Just like Twilight is a vampire story for people who don't like vampire stories, The Host is a sci-fi novel for people who don't like sci-fi. Ultimately, this is a very human story about love, friendship, loyalty and family. It's moving and unique.

Truthfully, I wasn't expecting to like it much. I read the excerpt available on Stephenie's website a few months ago and wasn't overly impressed, but because it's SM and I'm a big fan of the Twilight series I decided to give it a shot. I'm so glad I did! I found the storyline compelling and fascinating from the outset - unlike other readers, I did not find the beginning slow at all (or any part). I thought the entire novel flowed very smoothly. I enjoy quieter moments in stories because those are often when you really get to know the characters and it makes the action sequences more meaningful. Once again, SM has created characters we can relate to and care about.

I've read some of the negative reviews and all I can say is that everyone has different taste. I didn't find this story lacking in any way - it's very different from Twilight but in my opinion just as good. In fact, thematically, I think it's better. We have a much stronger herione this time and get to explore a friendship between two women (Melanie/Wanderer). And while Wanderer is peaceful and self-sacrificing, no one could argue that she isn't a very strong herione who chooses to do things because they are right and ethical. For those who thought Bella was such a rotten roll model, Wanderer should make them happy. Even though this is considered an adult book, it's perfectly suitable for teens.

I'd say this is Stephenie in her best form. The entire novel from start to finish is well written, though provoking and weaves complex emotions into a fascinating storyline. She has proven herself to be an excellent storyteller (much like Wanderer). Bravo, SM!

As invasions go, the Souls takeover of Earth was a peaceful one. Very few humans were harmed. In fact the Souls very survival depends on this: their race needs the bodies of other species to survive. That is why they travel through space, colonizing planets as they go by taking over the bodies of the native species. After that, they become their new hosts, living as they would in an idyllic world without wars, hunger or disease. Because, ironically, despite their initial act of invasion, the souls are gentle beings that recoil from aggressive behaviors.

But on Earth, not every one is happy with the new state of things as Wanderer, the soul that has taken over a young girl's body is about to discover. Her host, Melanie, refuses to fade away and as their minds fight, the Wanderer comes to realize what the Souls' invasion meant to Humans.

Wanderer is an old Soul having lived seven lives already, but nothing has prepared her for the overwhelming emotions that means to be a young girl and in love. Unable to control her body's yearning from Jared, the man Melanie loves, she goes in search of him. But Jared refuses to believe Melanie still lives inside her mind and sees Wanderer only as her killer. To convince him otherwise will require their joint effort, and so, out of need, Melanie and Wanderer reach an uneasy truce they both know cannot last.

Wanderer is a wonderful character, gentle and loving, easy to relate to. Through her struggles to understand humans, we see ourselves in a new, not always flattering light.

Although the book's pace drags a little at certain points in the narrative, the strength of its characters and their passion for love and each other, will keep you reading to the end.

Here's why.
The characters were good first of all, well drawn out, each with their own voice.
The souls didnt come off as bad guys, just creatures who want to experience the univerese and yet... well, you'll have to read it to find out more. I found this book to be throughly entertaining.
Stephanie Meyers is good at not only getting a person absorbed into the world she has created, but she's good at throwing in just enough humor to have you cracking up inappropiately at work and on subway trains. Then, she will drown you in drama and strong emotion, all the while making you thirst for more, making you look forward to turning that next page.
This is the sort of book that will have you tripping on curbs and bumping into walls because you just won't want to put it down for a second wanting to know what happened to your favourite characters.
Which is the mark of a very good book and very skilled writing.

Plus, you've got to admire her imagination in coming up with such interesting aliens.

First of all, you can not start reading this book thinking it is Twilight. I've read the reviews and most (if not all) of the 1 and 2 star reviews are comparing this to Twilight!

Stephenie creates a fantastic world that is very believable. I read the book through in one day because I just COULD NOT put it down! The characters are very complex, but I had no trouble understanding them. In fact, I felt like I knew exactly how they felt. Jared and Melanie became one of my favorite couples - they are up there with Romeo and Juliet, Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth, and, yes, Edward and Bella.

Not very many authors can break away from the "voice" they have found, especially with such a successful series as Twilight is. I was very pleasantly surprised to discover Stephanie Meyer created a completely different voice - different feel, different characters - and still managed to write a TERRIFIC novel!

was confused when my husband gave me this book for mother's day since I'm not a sci-fi fan at all. I knew nothing of Stephenie Meyer. But my husband had heard some good things about her on NPR, so he got it for me. I'm so glad he did! This book was a page turner from the start- I had a hard time putting it down, and finished it in 2 days. I love the writing style and the story is so creative, like nothing I've read before. I really fell in love with the characters. I was disappointed when it was over, but I'm excited by the prospect of a sequel!

I started reading The Host with excited trepidation. I love Meyer's Twilight series. I never seem to get enough vampires and werewolves, from books and movies. I have read her series, thus far, multiple times. I was thrilled to find out Meyers was writing another novel in addition to continuing her Twilight series. However, when I saw that it was about aliens, I was worried. I typically find alien fiction boring and repetitive. So, I was prepared to be disappointed with The Host. I was especially nervous after reading a few reviews that talked about the beginning and other sections being slow and losing their interest. I am not sure what book they were reading. The Host sucked me in from the first page and never slowed down. Literally. As I haven't read much alien fiction maybe that is why some of the ideas in The Host caught me as so original and fascinating. The Host quickly became one of my favorite, most enjoyable books I have ever read. Even more than the Twilight series. The areas that I find lacking in that series are strengths in The Host. While I love the story lines and details in Meyer's first books, I often find some of the characters weak or one dimensional (Bella and Edward, namely--even though I still love them). All the characters in The Host are phenomenal, constantly changing, struggling, real. Even the ones you hate, you can understand and sympathize with. Often when I am reading a novel, I have a few possible endings or conclusions that float through my head. Most of the time, one of those are the ending that actually occurs. With The Host, it wasn't until the last fifty or so pages that I was able to form any type of conclusion that made sense, I had no idea how it could possibly end up, until the story actually started to wind down. It made the reading process so much more enjoyable to me. Truly the mark of excellent writing and story telling. While Meyers could definitely write a sequel, I hope that she doesn't. This is one of the few stories that I really find to be nearly perfect in the state it is in. This will be a novel that I read again and again. I can not wait to see what else Meyers brings us. Her talent is growing and solidifying with every undertaking.

Let me start off by saying that I'm not one of those pathetic, zombie-like Twilight fans. I'm perfectly aware that based on the Twilight series, Stephenie Meyer is HARDLY the next J.K. Rowling. Bella was whiny and uninteresting, Edward was nothing but a pretty face, the plot was nonexistant, and vampires don't glitter. Saying that, that's why you should believe me when I say the The Host was fantastic.

I purchased The Host out of pure curiosity. The story seemed different, and everyone seemed to praise that the writing quality was far better than Twilight. Once I began reading it, I didn't put it down. I could tell by page 15 that Stephenie Meyer has grown immeasurably as a writer. It's almost hard to tell that it's by the author that created Edward Cullen. The descriptions are vivid and beautiful in this story, both the physical ones and emotional ones. These are especially poignant. Let me explain...

When I first heard the plotline of this story, I burst out laughing shamelessly. However, once again, bear with me because the book is worth it. Basically, at some point in the future, body-snatching aliens (known as "Souls") overtook earth. Through surgery, they inhabit human's bodies, killing only their spirit...basically, all of the humans are dead, but the aliens have kept their bodies intact and now inhabit them. Wanderer, a soul that's earned her name from the great number of bodies she's lived in, has been warned that life as a human is difficult. Not only are their senses vivid, but the emotional range of being a human is even more painful. The situation isn't helped by the fact that the former tennant of Wanderer's human body, Melanie Stryder, is somehow holding on. She refuses to fade away, filling Wanderers head with visions of the people she loves, who are still in hiding. Soon Wanderer is torn between her allegiance to the Souls and the love she feels for the humans.

Basically, it sounds out there, but is fantastic. Though the beginning is very slow, I urge you to continue. Stephenie Meyer paints a fantastic image of the setting -- the scorching desert -- and makes use of Wanderer's unfamiliarity with human reactions to explore her relationships beautifully. This is without a doubt what makes this books special -- at its core, it is a book about love. All kinds of love, not just the superficial fairytale romance explored in Twilight. It describes the maternal love Wanderer feels for Melanie's younger brother, the appreciation for her eccentric Uncle Jeb, the friendship she developes for Mel's former comrades, and the romantic interest she soon developes for Melanie's former boyfriend, Jared. What really puts the icing on the cake is that Stephenie illustrates how love is really a double-edged sword. Not only does she go into the depths of how wonderful having the love of so many people feels, but she describes the pain Wanderer feels when she contemplates their love for Melanie versus her herself.

The emotional aspect of this novel is beautiful and I guarentee you won't regret picking it up. In the end, Stephenie poses the timeless question: To be or not to be? For, as she illustrates, light cannot exist without shadow, relaxation without exhaustion and love without loss. As the particularly lovable character of Wanderer finds out, it seems like a tough question, but the answer is more obvious than it appears.

So here we have Host. Why did I buy it? I was outside my home state of Arizona wandering the country. As I was visiting Lovecraft's grave in Providnce I passed by the book store and Host literally caught my eye. The cover looks at you. Very strangely I might add. I gleefully commited that sin of picking a book out by its cover. A wise choice! (Also the bookstores made sure to decorate their establishments up and down with it. Someone has a good marketer!)

The story isn't 'original', but then again, nothing is these days. The trick to writing great fiction is taking the stories we all know, and doing something very different with it. Why read Beowulf when you can read Grendel instead? Why read about the last human on Earth hiding from the aliens. How about read about the alien?

The story is told from the perspective of a parasitic alien fused to a host whose consciousness has not 'gone away' like it is supposed to. Wanderer, the alien and her human host, Melanie, are quite literally stuck with each other and it causes complications both ways. And there in lies the gem of this story.

I hate xenos. I generally wish to purge the galaxy of all alien life-forms in the name of glorious humanity. Don't you? No? Traitor.

Anyways, I learned to 'hate' these aliens. Silent. Stealthy. And the idea of aliens taking your body, and absorbing some of your memories but crushing you in the process! Terrible. The idea you could be still aware and trapped within! Horrible. The echoes of your life joined with theirs! Sickening. And yet the aliens were so darn nice it was hard to wish them ill. The moment any of the alien characters were developed I found it quite difficult to picture them up against the wall in my mind's eye. So I had found myself utterly conflicted during the entire book. Just like the main character. Clever on so many levels! It is hard to 'pick' sides during this story and that will keep you voraciously reading in search of some closure or some definative answer as to 'who is right'.

The setting amused me. I live in Arizona and the idea that people are hiding out at the old Civil War 'battlefield' site Picacho Peak, amused me to no end. The conspicuous lack of guns in the hands of humanity (what is left of it), confused me. It's Arizona! If you don't have a gun, don't worry your neighbor has three.

The book is written by a female author and you can tell. I mean no offense. Quite the contrary. The story is about emotion, internal dialogue, internal dialogue (not a typo!) and less about action and description. I don't think a male author would have pulled it off the same.

Worth a read? Absolutely. By the time you are done, you'll be suspicious of anyone who is nice, always carry a flashlight (hopefully a gun as well) and have an escape plan. Strikingly similar to your Zombie Doomsday plan. Avoid urban areas. Avoid noise. Carry poison or a at least one bullet for yourself. You get the idea? Don't have a Zombie Doomsday plan? Oh my, well, you'll be a nice neighbor I'm sure!

Anyways, go enjoy Host! It should be looking at you right now. Literally. Accolades for an author I've never read before, thanks for the read Mrs. Meyer!

In October I finished the Twilight Saga, and found it hard to pick up another book. I didn't want to be disappointed. I had picked up Stephenie Meyer's book "The Host" in the books store a couple of times but I didn't think it would interest me. Then I read a book review. It said that "The Host" was for those people that say they they don't read alien books, just like "Twilight" was for those people that say they don't read books about vampires. So, I decided to give it a shot.

I was surprised. I really liked it. There is danger, love, and you just can't put the book down. I just wonder how Stephenie comes up with these ideas. Eventhough it is an adult novel, the story line is mild enough that young adults could read it too. Just like I fell in love with the characters from "Twilight", I can't get the characters in this book out of my mind. You'll fall in love with them too.

So, if you liked "Twilight", I am pretty certain you'll like this book too.

One hundred pages into this book I was hooked! Totally! I don't usually read Sci-Fi books so I resisted this read for awhile. However, I'm a HUGE fan of Stephenie Meyer and her Twilight Series (awaiting my Sat. arrival of Breaking Dawn!), so I gave it a try.

Other reviewers have outlined the story. I will say that, once again, Meyer has drawn such amazing characters that the reader cares about them, human or non-human. She's a wonderful storyteller with an amazing character development ability.

Heavy reading? No. However, if you enjoy good story telling and believable characters (yes, aliens, vampires and werewolves are believable in Meyer's hands) then you will enjoy The Host.

I'm a moderate fan of Stephenie Meyer, meaning that I like some of her Twilight books, but only barely - they're a silly guilty pleasure. I picked up THE HOST expecting yet another thoughtless read to snuggle up with and giggle at, but I certainly wasn't expecting anything spectacular. I thought the protagonist would be a Bella Swan remake in a futuristic universe. I was not expecting Wanderer, or Melanie Stryder, the two strongest, most intriguing and spellbinding characters that Meyer has ever created.

Earth has been invaded by Souls - strange, kind-hearted aliens who had taken over dozens of planets, each one different and unique. They live in an impossible utopia which used to be our planet, taking our human bodies as their hosts so they can survive. Nearly all of the human species had been subjectified to the invasion of the souls.

But some have not, and Wanderer, an experienced soul that had earned respect through living in eight different planets, is inserted into the body of Melanie Stryder, a ferocious human with a life she has left behind that she will not abandon. Wanderer is shocked and frightened when Melanie sticks in her head, speaking with her and showing her memories she does not want to see. Those memories are that of her life before being caught by the souls, of Jared, a man she had loved, and of Jamie, her beloved younger brother. As Wanderer grows to know them as much as Melanie does, she grows to love them as well, and decides to go on a journey beyond the comfort of her home in the midst of her species, into the unwelcoming hands of a human rebel group. As time goes by, Wanda grows closer and closer to Melanie, and to her new unwilling human allies.

THE HOST is an astonishing tale woven with such great skill that it is literally impossible to put it down. The story is so well paced that the reader actually feels like he has been sucked into this crazy world, where humans live underground in secluded caves, and feels for the unlikely pair - a soul, shoved into a human community that despises her, and a human, trapped in her body with someone she could only consider an enemy. The story is complex, intriguing and thrilling, to the point of breaking a sweat as you turn the page or having tears well up in your eyes in sympathy or sadness. Stephenie Meyer has greatly surprised me with this incredible novel, which is much, MUCH better than her popular Twilight series, and feels like it was written by someone else entirely than the person who wrote of the Mary Sue-ish Bella Swan and her sparkly vampire boyfriend. THE HOST is a story for adults, no doubt, and is devoid of the irritating teenage angst scattered all over the Twilight books. The crucial pain - physical or emotional - Wanda and Melanie experience together is staggering, and the fascinating story of the Souls will keep you up all night in thought. Every page of this spectacular novel is filled with hope and light, intertwined with fear and darkness. I hate myself for not savoring this creation - I read it in less than twenty-four hours for fear of losing the vibe, and I will surely be running for the next installment. I only hope Meyer had fully jumped up from her writing style in the 'Twilight' saga and will not disappoint with THE SOUL... I can't wait to see what further difficulties Wanda and Melanie will have to face.

Oh, and there's plenty of romance as well, for those of you just out of the Twilight phase.

The last thing I will say of this novel is that it was fascinating to read of the human race from a perspective that certainly was NOT human. Somewhere in the book, Wanderer comes across an old newspaper from the time where humans still ruled, and her righteous alien soul is apalled by the crimes and cruelty committed by humans, at which point Melanie tells us that humans first became suspicious when the world started 'cleaning up'. It is difficult to think of ourselves as monsters, but with all this food for thought, we will certainly be contemplating the option. And then there's the other side of the Alien point of view; no other species feels emotion, either scorching anger or piercing love, the way a human does, and no creature is so committed and devoted to their loved ones. This book will keep me thinking for weeks, and babbling to anyone who would listen.

In a nutshell: THE HOST is truly a fantastic novel, worthy of much more appereciation than Twilight and its sequels. No reader, even a reader who does not like science fiction one bit, will be disappointed.

I was a Twilight fan and that was the reason I purchased The Host. I knew the plot of the book and wasn't really excited to crack it open as I'm not into sci-fi. It took awhile to get into but it was definitely worth reading. It has excitement, adventure, love, compassion, a little bit of everything. And besides the fact that the main character is an alien, it is a very human story. After finishing the book - I do hope that she continues this story in a series.