Stephenie Meyer's New Book Captivates!

With the publishing of The Host, Stephenie Meyer proves she is more than a one story author. It's hard to imagine more captivating characters than Bella and Edward, but the world Meyer creates in The Host is every bit as fascinating, and even more original than the vampire/werewolf world of Twilight. By the use of an alien invasion of Earth, Meyer examines what it means to be human, both the good and the dark sides, and causes her reader to sympathize equally with human and alien.

Melanie Stryder is one of the last humans left on earth, as far as she knows, who is not inhabited by an alien. Then she finds Jared, another "uninhabited" human and falls in love. When Melanie is finally captured and taken over by the alien, Wanderer, she refuses to fade away as most humans do, leading to a strange and complicated relationship with a being who has control of her body. The dynamics become even more difficult, when the two endanger their body to find Jared and the group of humans hiding in the Arizona desert. Though the focus of the plot is definitely on the characters and relationships, this is interesting science fiction as well. Meyer ties up plot complications pretty well in this novel, but there's plenty of room for a sequel, if she wants to further develop her new world.

--reviewed by Dail Sams