Aliens beat vampires

The Host book review

8/10

After reading Twilight by author Stephanie Meyer, I had no interest in continuing in her vampire series. Way too much teenage love angst for my taste, and the book got a little boring in the middle (may have had something to do with the teenage love angst). And then there's a big vampire brawl at the end, but because the book was written from the perspective of the heroine who was passed out, we don't even get the fight. Yikes.

So when my wife suggested I read Meyer's non-vampire book The Host, I wasn't really interested. She said it was very different than Twilight, no teenage love story. And she said it was the kind of tense sci-fi thriller I enjoy. And heck, the cover of the book has an endorsement from Orson Scott Card.

Several weeks ago I decided to give it a go. And it was really good.

Let me start with the negatives. There is nothing incredibly original here; as far as sci-fi is concerned, the concept of parasitic aliens is nothing new. It also has some 'sci-fi' holes, where if you think too much about them, the universe she's created seems to unravel. Lastly, about 3/4 through the book, the rhythm of the book seems to stall before a stunningly well-done ending.

So let's get to the positives. Much like Twilight, she creates compelling characters you care about, characters with depth and feeling. All of the main characters (with the possible exception of one) were painted beautifully. Most sci-fi books fall short in this area, but not Meyer's.

This was your classic page-turner. Once you get into this book, it will posses you. Though I did see the ending coming about 30 pages before, the rest of the book was an intriguing path of twists and turns, most of which I did not see coming. It was a very refreshing piece of fiction set in an interesting, compelling world.

I would definitely recommend it, even if you have no interest in her vampire series. This is not the same kind of book, and almost feels like it was written by someone else, which speaks to Meyer's versatility as a writer.

Now my wife is trying to get me to read the second book in the Twilight series. I should probably just take her recommendation instead of resisting.