Friday, June 7, 2013

The Host by Stephenie Meyer

Title: The Host
Author: Stephenie Meyer
Publication Date: May 6, 2008
Length: 619 pages

Wanderer is a Soul, one of a race of aliens that live by taking over the bodies of other species. When Wanderer comes to Earth, she is put in the body of Melanie Stryder, but Melanie doesn't give up her body so easily. Instead of fading away, Melanie remains as a voice in Wanderer's head. By listening to Melanie, and feeling her feelings, Wanderer becomes attached to the memories of Melanie's brother, Jamie, and boyfriend, Jared. Together, they flee the Seekers and go in search of surviving free humans.

This book was so different from what I was expecting. I had no idea it would be from the perspective of the alien, which I found to really give the story a good angle. Wanderer isn't some cruel, conquering alien; she honestly didn't realise that humans would resent being taken over, no matter how much their world has been improved as a result.

I also liked Melanie, and how she grew to understand and even love Wanderer over time. But really I was all about Wanderer (and as a result, I was totally into Ian, and totally NOT into Jared). I liked Jamie a lot, too. I often had trouble picturing how old he was. He's really just a kid, but has been forced to grow up way too fast. I found him quite lovable.

One warning: This book is not for the faint of heart about women being punched in the face. Because oh my goodness, does Wanderer ever get punched in the face a lot. I mean, I get that she's seen as the enemy in a planetary war, but it still seems pretty messed up how many guys had no problem punching this quiet, gentle girl who was so obviously not a threat to them.

Overall I just really liked this book. The story, the characters, the ending, pretty much everything.

4 stars.

Movie review coming soon!

1 comment:

  1. I was skeptical about this book in the beginning but then so many have recommended it that I began to feel I missed the boat. I'm hoping to get this one soon.

    ReplyDelete