After Reading: THE CHEMIST by Stephanie Meyer

In this gripping page-turner, an ex-agent on the run from her former employers must take one more case to clear her name and save her life.

She used to work for the U.S. government, but very few people ever knew that. An expert in her field, she was one of the darkest secrets of an agency so clandestine it doesn’t even have a name. And when they decided she was a liability, they came for her without warning.

Now, she rarely stays in the same place or uses the same name for long. They’ve killed the only other person she trusted, but something she knows still poses a threat. They want her dead, and soon.

When her former handler offers her a way out, she realizes it’s her only chance to erase the giant target on her back. But it means taking one last job for her ex-employers. To her horror, the information she acquires only makes her situation more dangerous.
Resolving to meet the threat head-on, she prepares for the toughest fight of her life but finds herself falling for a man who can only complicate her likelihood of survival. As she sees her choices being rapidly whittled down, she must apply her unique talents in ways she never dreamed of. (Goodreads)

Okay, so I'll admit, I was a little wary of this novel. I mean, the potential for really lousy science (and you all know how much that bugs me), and a love triangle, coupled with some potentially trite sappiness, kept in on my shelf for a few extra weeks. But then I decided to pick it up, and I'm quite glad I did! There were a couple of eye-roll-worthy science goofs, but for the most part, Meyer skates over them with enough ambiguity that they didn't take me out of the story. There wasn't a love triangle, and actually I was kinda shocked there was a love story at all. But I liked it :) And I loved the growth of the characters, their layers and depth, and especially the kick-ass heroine. Because Meyer hasn't really managed this before, but she really nailed it in this novel! It hit all the other points I've been enjoying lately: bioterrorism, spies, gov't intrigue, massive plans to uncover a nasty political plot. All of it was deeply enjoyed. Really, this novel read like someone completely different wrote in: there wasn't a trace of Twilight in there, imho, and while I enjoyed the Twilight books (mostly as a sugary treat that I knew wasn't good for me), this is a tight-paced novel that was just fun and interesting, and I'm going to stop gushing now. Go read it. It's great. Meyer has grown a ton as an author and it was totally worth it!

Have you read any of Meyer's work? What did you think?