ame heyhey read and liked Holly (2 Kids and Tired)'s review of The Host:

"It's no secret that I did not jump on the Twilight bandwagon. I put my name on the hold list at the library for The Host, however, because I wanted to see if Stephenie Meyer had improved in her storytelling. I'm happy to say, "Yes, she did. To a...more It's no secret that I did not jump on the Twilight bandwagon. I put my name on the hold list at the library for The Host, however, because I wanted to see if Stephenie Meyer had improved in her storytelling. I'm happy to say, "Yes, she did. To a point."

I would like someone tell me what her fascination is with sappy, overly dramatic dialogue, 17-year old girls and over-protective older men who carry them while running? Because there are some definite similarities here.

I find it interesting that this novel is pegged for "adults" where the Twilight novels were pegged "young adult" as I don't see a great deal of difference, except for one main fact: Wanda and Melanie are likeable. Thank goodness. If one of them had shown up as whiny and annoying as Bella, I never would have finished the book. Well, I would have finished it, but only to say, "I told you so."

While I found a lot of similarity to the Twilight novels in her storytelling and in the details (over-protective older men, teenage girls, dramatic sappy dialogue, etc.) this was a much better story. Far more developed than I would have expected. It still takes her a long time to get to her main points, but I wasn't as bored with this one in the beginning as I was with Twilight.

I found the storyline fascinating: that aliens who invade other planets and take over the species, invade earth and take over the human bodies and then live as humans. Wanda is one of those aliens, a "soul" who takes over Melanie's body, only to find out that Melanie isn't quite ready to give it up. This is where Meyer's storytelling has improved. She crafted a story where the romance was secondary to the main plot, and I think that is why this book is so much better than her earlier attempts. She explores the idea of a person's soul or spirit and how an individual is defined as much by that spirit as by their physical body.

I thought her character development was well done. I liked these characters. I cared about them. I don't need to tell you that I never cared about Bella. I enjoyed the complexities that the storyline created. Wanda was affected by Melanie's memories and feelings and couldn't help but love the man Melanie loved. Then, when she found herself caring for a different man, the conflict is believable. The humans have a difficult time accepting Wanda, but when they do, she truly becomes one of them.

The novel ends neatly, with hope. Predictably there is room for a sequel, which I no doubt expect.

I'd actually re-read this book. I won't re-read the others.(less) "

ame heyhey read and liked Rai's review of The Host:

"Talk about an emotional roller coaster!!!! This book was very difficult to rate. If someone were to ask me, "Was it good?" I'd have to think for a long time and then say, "No.... Well... yes, sorta.... No... It was ok." But if so...more Talk about an emotional roller coaster!!!! This book was very difficult to rate. If someone were to ask me, "Was it good?" I'd have to think for a long time and then say, "No.... Well... yes, sorta.... No... It was ok." But if someone were to ask me if I'd enjoyed it, I'd instantly reply, "Yes!" Would I read it again? Probably not. Was it exciting? On occasion. Was in interesting? Very much so, in my opinion. Was it weird? YES! Were the characters well-developed? ... After the first half of the book, yes, I suppose.

The Host is about a species of aliens who call themselves Souls. They are born without bodies and can not live very long without one, so they live like parasites inside the bodies of other creatures, completely taking them over. These "souls" come to earth and take over the bodies of mankind, living peacefully as they experience the new world around them.

The main character of this book, through whose eyes the events of the story are witnessed, is a soul named Wanderer who takes over the body of a young woman formerly known as Melanie. When Wanderer realizes that Melanie is still alive inside of her body, she tries desperately to fight her out, along with the painful and wonderful memories of the man Melanie is in love with. Eventually, Wanderer falls in love with this man, too, through Melanie's memories and the two of them set out to find him.

I don't usually read Science-fiction, and so maybe that's the reason I found this book so odd. I wouldn't have picked it up, knowing the storyline as I did, except that my sister had it in her room and I was bored. As weird as the whole alien/possession thing was and is, I found that it was interesting to read about. It was interesting to read the descriptions of human emotions through a character who's never felt them before. This book was VERY EMOTIONAL! Happy, sad, angry, jealous, confused, hurt, obsessed, offended, frustrated, loved, hated, admired, rejected... all feelings were vividly described and painfully lived as I read this book. It ended the way I wanted it to, which made me happy, but.... I don't know. There were just a few things I would have changed had I been the editor of this book.

1) Stephanie Meyer seems to be developing, more and more with every book, a strange fascination with writing graphic make-out scenes that are slightly embarrassing to read. There were two in this book that were completely pointless, like she just wanted to write them. There was one that was almost pointless, but I can see why she would think it necessary. I'm not against kissing in books or anything like that, but there is such a thing as overdoing it to the point of ridiculousness.

2) I wished that she would have spent less time with the first half of the book and more with the near-end of the book. I wished there would have been more after "the problem" was fixed. Hopefully anyone who's read the book knows what I mean by that. To me, the book really got interesting near the middle, and it kind of dragged a little before that. But it wasn't really boring.... Just... uneventful....

That's it! This book was uneventful for how long it is! But I wasn't ever bored, exactly. Stephanie Meyer is too good of a writer to allow that. There was always something I enjoyed about it, but there was just enough that was weird or not quite right about it that I can't say that I loved it.

In conclusion: I don't know exactly what I think of this book. It was enjoyable! I'm not sorry that I read it! But it was weird, and I would have liked it better with a few changes here and there.(less) "

ame heyhey added a quote:
"Forget them, wendy. Forget them all. Come with me where you'll never, never have to worry about grown up things again. " — Peter pan