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beaktastic's review against another edition
4.0
To be honest, I didn't really go into reading this book with many expectations. I'd read the Twilight series, kinda enjoyed them but was under no illusions that they were great books. I'd heard about this when it was released and thought about reading it but never got around to it. Then last week I saw the trailer for the movie adaptation, thought it looked good and decided to finally sit down and read this. And I have to say, I was really pleasantly surprised.
'The Host' is about a not too distant future version of earth, where parasitic aliens have conquered our planet by inhabiting our bodies. Humanity is almost extinct. The story follows Wanderer (later known as Wanda) as she is put into one of these bodies. But her human host, Melanie, hasn't vanished entirely within her mind, and Wanderer finds herself drawn to the memories of Melanie's brother and lover (Jamie and Jared respectively) and wants to find them for herself and discovers a hidden colony of humans in the desert, beginning a journey that will forever change her.
I thought the concept was really interesting and really well written. It's obviously been given a lot of thought, and while the concept of parasitic aliens isn't exactly new, it felt like Meyer had taken a bit of a fresh twist with it. The aliens are not your typical enemies. Yes, they have wiped out humanity but they're all just so pleasant all the time it's hard to hate them (apart from the main antagonist, The Seeker (which is a kind of alien police force)).
It was nice that the book was told from Wanda's POV, it was really interesting way to go about it. We see everything from her POV, starting with the aliens (the souls) so you get to know this 'enemy' race from the beginning. Typically, when a soul is inserted into a human, the human mind is squashed and vanishes, but in Wanda's case her human host, Melanie, is very much present in her mind which troubles her. Melanie shows her memories of her brother Jamie and lover Jared, and puzzles over a map her uncle gave her to find him if the worst should happen (but she was caught by the souls before she could find them. Eventually, Wanda and Melanie begin to bond and go in search of Jared and Jamie and they discover this hidden, hold-out colony of humans. It gets really interesting then and it was at this point that I really began to get into the book. It was interesting to read Wanda's view of us as she saw them and was treated by them. She says (at several points early on) that humans are cruel and violent monsters, and seeing how she was treated and her justification it's really hard to argue with her. And the thing is, I know that humans would do some of that stuff in reality if this happened. It was really interesting to see humanity as the enemy through Wanda's eyes, and then see how this relationship changes and develops.
Wanda was a good main character, and I felt I could relate even though she was an alien, she was still quite human at heart (or soul). I did feel myself rooting her throughout, and Melanie as well. I felt really sorry for her at times, because I could relate to her, for example:. At times I did find myself irritated by some of the conclusions she jumps to, or things she does, cos they seemed quite stupid. But then again, it was kind of nice when she would realise the truth for example or whatever, because it kind of reminded me that she was an alien and this is what she thought of what had happened, and obviously I knew the truth cos I was a human and I could see it.
I loved Jamie, he was just this energetic teenager, and it was just impossible not to love him. Jeb was a great, stubborn fatherly character too. Jared... I didn't really get for the most part. Melanie was head over heels for him throughout, and Wanda falls for him as a result, but for most of the book he was a bit of jerk and it was hard to understand that or to root for him. I mean, he did get better and I did like him more as it went on but I still didnt really see it, even though I knew I was supposed to. Then there's Ian, who I totally rooted for. Ian was really nice and friendly throughout and seemed to be one of the only people (if not the only one) who truly understood Wanda and didnt judge her and loved her, and he was just awesome basically. I loved him.
It was quite a gripping book, once I got into it (it was only when I was about 20-30% through that I really got into it). It's not a big action romp, although there is action in it. At the same time though, although there is a lot of melodramatic romance stuff in it that Meyer does so well, it didn't necessarily feel like a romance story. It was a story about an alien and her interactions and relationships with humans, with a bit of romance thrown in.
The ending was very happy, and I was interested in some of the things brought up in the last chapter, such as. I felt that the ending wrapped things up sufficiently for it to be a stand alone book, although I did want to know more about some of the stuff which was nice. It's good when a book leaves wanting more. I have heard that Meyer might write a sequel (or trilogy) which could be interesting and introduce more of this stuff and carry on the story, but at the same I felt it stood well on it's own and I worry that a sequel won't quite live up to it, or will ruin it a bit like I felt later Twilight books.
Overall though, I felt that 'The Host' was a really good book and it pleasantly surpassed my expectations. The characters were good and relatable, no one was perfect, everyone was a bit flawed. I really rooted for Wanda and Mel and Ian and etc. Overall, a great book.
Oh, and for those interested, heres the link to the movie trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRKjf8b4f2E
'The Host' is about a not too distant future version of earth, where parasitic aliens have conquered our planet by inhabiting our bodies. Humanity is almost extinct. The story follows Wanderer (later known as Wanda) as she is put into one of these bodies. But her human host, Melanie, hasn't vanished entirely within her mind, and Wanderer finds herself drawn to the memories of Melanie's brother and lover (Jamie and Jared respectively) and wants to find them for herself and discovers a hidden colony of humans in the desert, beginning a journey that will forever change her.
I thought the concept was really interesting and really well written. It's obviously been given a lot of thought, and while the concept of parasitic aliens isn't exactly new, it felt like Meyer had taken a bit of a fresh twist with it. The aliens are not your typical enemies. Yes, they have wiped out humanity but they're all just so pleasant all the time it's hard to hate them (apart from the main antagonist, The Seeker (which is a kind of alien police force)).
It was nice that the book was told from Wanda's POV, it was really interesting way to go about it. We see everything from her POV, starting with the aliens (the souls) so you get to know this 'enemy' race from the beginning. Typically, when a soul is inserted into a human, the human mind is squashed and vanishes, but in Wanda's case her human host, Melanie, is very much present in her mind which troubles her. Melanie shows her memories of her brother Jamie and lover Jared, and puzzles over a map her uncle gave her to find him if the worst should happen (but she was caught by the souls before she could find them. Eventually, Wanda and Melanie begin to bond and go in search of Jared and Jamie and they discover this hidden, hold-out colony of humans. It gets really interesting then and it was at this point that I really began to get into the book. It was interesting to read Wanda's view of us as she saw them and was treated by them. She says (at several points early on) that humans are cruel and violent monsters, and seeing how she was treated and her justification it's really hard to argue with her. And the thing is, I know that humans would do some of that stuff in reality if this happened. It was really interesting to see humanity as the enemy through Wanda's eyes, and then see how this relationship changes and develops.
Wanda was a good main character, and I felt I could relate even though she was an alien, she was still quite human at heart (or soul). I did feel myself rooting her throughout, and Melanie as well. I felt really sorry for her at times, because I could relate to her, for example:
Spoiler
when Wanda stumbles across the humans attempts to separate aliens and human hosts, she's horrified, and the humans don't initially realise what's wrong because they covered the human bodies up, but then someone points out that they hadn't covered up the alien bodies which would obviously be more upsetting to WandaI loved Jamie, he was just this energetic teenager, and it was just impossible not to love him. Jeb was a great, stubborn fatherly character too. Jared... I didn't really get for the most part. Melanie was head over heels for him throughout, and Wanda falls for him as a result, but for most of the book he was a bit of jerk and it was hard to understand that or to root for him. I mean, he did get better and I did like him more as it went on but I still didnt really see it, even though I knew I was supposed to. Then there's Ian, who I totally rooted for. Ian was really nice and friendly throughout and seemed to be one of the only people (if not the only one) who truly understood Wanda and didnt judge her and loved her, and he was just awesome basically. I loved him.
It was quite a gripping book, once I got into it (it was only when I was about 20-30% through that I really got into it). It's not a big action romp, although there is action in it. At the same time though, although there is a lot of melodramatic romance stuff in it that Meyer does so well, it didn't necessarily feel like a romance story. It was a story about an alien and her interactions and relationships with humans, with a bit of romance thrown in.
The ending was very happy, and I was interested in some of the things brought up in the last chapter, such as
Spoiler
the introduction of other human cells (which I knew would exist and was wondering if they would be introduced sooner) and another soul who has "gone native". I want to know more about these people and how this will affect our groupOverall though, I felt that 'The Host' was a really good book and it pleasantly surpassed my expectations. The characters were good and relatable, no one was perfect, everyone was a bit flawed. I really rooted for Wanda and Mel and Ian and etc. Overall, a great book.
Oh, and for those interested, heres the link to the movie trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRKjf8b4f2E
mansikwatra's review against another edition
3.0
Stephenie Meyer: the woman who can turn a good idea for a novel into yet another cheesy, sappy romance, where people are okay with mentally and/or physically abusive relationships.
I still read on. I don't know why.
I still read on. I don't know why.
livdimaio's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
vanikr's review against another edition
5.0
Dieses Buch ist einfach perfekt vom Anfang bis zum Ende ! Einfach wunderbar!
archimedesfudge's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
marieeee_v's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
kathydavie's review against another edition
4.0
This was good! Very unexpected after her Twilight series. A paranormal romance with alien possession in an invaded-Earth. I enjoyed the twist on the alien occupiers. I'd like to follow this story on...
becca_themoodreader's review against another edition
5.0
It’s not right to play with my emotions the way this book did.... I was crying real tears throughout especially over my Wanderer but Meyer saved me the heartache I would’ve had if the book finished the way I thought it was going to. Thank God it didn’t by the way.