Review: The Host by Stephenie Meyer

Okay, so, I admit, I used to be a Twihard (obsessed with Twilight) and so, when looking at Stephenie's website I found out about this book: The Host.

The blurb drew me in, it just sounded so interesting, and I bought it. And, guys, this book has had so many uses. Like, the copy I have is very loved and very battered from so much use. So, without further comments, here's the book:

Melanie Stryder refuses to fade away.

Our world has been invaded by an unseen enemy. Humans become hosts for these invaders, their minds taken over while their bodies remain intact and continue their lives apparently unchanged. Most of humanity has succumbed.

When Melanie, one of the few remaining “wild” humans is captured, she is certain it is her end. Wanderer, the invading “soul” who has been given Melanie’s body, was warned about the challenges of living inside a human: the overwhelming emotions, the glut of senses, the too vivid memories. But there was one difficulty Wanderer didn’t expect: the former tenant of her body refusing to relinquish possession of her mind.

Wanderer probes Melanie’s thoughts, hoping to discover the whereabouts of the remaining human resistance. Instead, Melanie fills Wanderer’s mind with visions of the man Melanie loves—Jared, a human who still lives in hiding. Unable to separate herself from her body’s desires, Wanderer begins to yearn for a man she has been tasked with exposing. When outside forces make Wanderer and Melanie unwilling allies, they set off on a dangerous and uncertain search for the man they both love.

One of the things I love about this book is the journey that both Melanie, the human who has been taken over, and Wanderer (later dubbed Wanda), the 'host' that has taken over Melanie's body, take to becoming friends. It's a slow go, but it was great to see the friendship and understanding between the two girls grow throughout the book.

I'll warn you now, the romance situation in this book is certainly weird, but it is also interesting as Wanda learns just what love is, and then later has to decide if it is just Melanie's feelings that she is feeling, or if they are her own. In fact, in this book there is kind of a love triangle (or a love square if you count the fact that Melanie is still her own person in Wanda's mind), so if you like interesting romance plots mixed into YA fantasy/SciFi, this book is definitely for you.

However, the romance side isn't everything in this book, in fact the main plotline of this book that I see is Human's that hate these invaders slowly learning about and understanding them because of the experience of living with one of the other species (Wanda).

All I can say without spoiling anything nearer to the end is that I love this book, and it always seems to make me cry as there are so many different emotions throughout it. I feel like I'm on an emotional rollercoaster when reading this (a good one).

I just love it. And I'd highly recommend it to anyone that like SciFi or Fantasy books.

Have any of you read The Host? And do you agree with my love of the book?