Review Detail

Reader reviewed by Booked Books

Humans' worst fear have come true: aliens have won the invasion against Earth. These aren't just aliens; they are parasitical aliens also known as "souls". These souls need to invade humans and take over their minds in order to survive. When Melanie's mind is taken over by a soul named Wanderer, Melanie refuses to vanish. Instead, she still lives within her mind, while Wanderer is occupying it at the same time. Through browsing Melanie's memories, Wanderer learns of two humans who have yet to succumb to the souls; in other words, these two humans have yet to be invaded. One of these humans is Jared, the love of Melanie's life. Because Wanderer is in Melanie's mind, she falls in love with Jared as well. Melanie and Wanderer then set out to find Jared as well as Melanie's brother, Jamie.


When I first read the summary for this book, the first thing I thought about was Animorphs. Growing up, I love to read Animorphs, a series about a group of kids fighting mind-invading aliens called Yeerks. The idea of aliens taking over human minds is not a unique one. It has been done many times before in various science fiction stories. What I like about The Host is how Stephenie Meyer presented it from the alien's point of view rather than the human's.


One thing I noticed about The Host is its similarity to Twilight some of the characters' personalities are so alike, I wouldn't be surprised if they were the same. Wanderer, without a doubt, reminded me of Bella. They're passive, altruistic, and don't fit in with their own kind - to sum it up, just dull weak characters. On encountering Jamie, the first Twilight character I thought of was Jacob Black nice and easygoing. Jared definitely reminded me of Edward with his fierceness, strength, and handsomeness. Doc's Twilight twin would be Carlisle, of course. As if the parallel characters weren't enough, even the storyline was almost alike two guys fighting over one girl with a slight twist.


The souls are not inherently wicked creatures. In fact, they are making the Earth a better place to inhabit. They were able invade because the invasion was gradual, and the souls outnumbered the humans. Wanderer's character really irritated me; I preferred Melanie over Wanderer. Wanderer's character is really too predictable she always, always does what's right for others. She has no sense of survival instinct, even when others are trying to kill and hurt her; all she does is whimper and cry. I had trouble grasping the fact that a member of an Earth-invading species has trouble defending herself.


A lot of reviews I read about this novel complained about how dull the middle is. I didn't mind that so much, though I thought some parts were really unnecessary. Melanie's initial reaction to Wanderer's and Jared's kiss was really melodramatic for me. I do think the last chapter and the epilogue should have been taken out entirely. The happy ending was too overdone corny, to be blunt.


I'm not sure why this is considered an adult novel, since it's tamer than Breaking Dawn (from what I've read so far). I actually like The Host better than the Twilight series though. When I looked past its flaws, it really was an excellent story to pass the time. It was interesting enough to keep my attention even through the melodramatic and slightly boring parts. I especially love how the aliens seem more humane than the actual humans.



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