The Kari AnnAlysis

The Earth has been invaded by hosts. They are placed in your body and they take over. You are physically there, but mentally dead.

But Melanie Stryder won’t quit fighting when the host known as Wanderer is planted in her body.

Wanderer is known by that name because she has lived on 9 different planets and is literally a world traveller. She knows something isn’t right when she can still hear Melanie’s thoughts, and at first she resists, even tells her therapist, but then can’t resist much longer when Melanie’s memories start tugging at her little alien legs.

Before Wanderer knows it, she’s going against her own kind and trying to find Melanie’s few remaining loved ones. She’s not quite sure if she is walking into her own death, or if she’s about to change the world as it is.

I’ve had a hard time the past couple of books I have read, writing summaries. For The Help, I just loved it so much I wanted to gush all about it and tell everything I loved. This book was similar. For one, it was really, really long, so there’s a lot to tell. And that leads to two, I feel like there’s so much more that I could put in this summary, but I don’t want to give too much away.

This was my first experience with an audio book. I chose this one from the library because I loved the Twilight series and figured Stephanie Meyer would not disappoint. But that feeling didn’t last long. When I started to prologue, I was really uncertain that I would like it. It was technical and I really wasn’t sure what to expect, but then I got so into it, I wanted to drive around more than I needed to because I wanted to keep listening.

One thing about this book/audio book. It was LONG! Like 20 disks long! It took me about 2 weeks, two hours a day to listen to this bad boy. The one thing I realized about it, there is no way I would have gotten 2 hours of reading in a day on this book, so the audio book was good for that fact. I think it would have taken me a while to read it. There were a few parts I had to listen to again and again because I lost attention and couldn’t focus. That would have happened when I was reading too, I’m sure.

Ok, about the book itself: The more I read dystopian books, the more I love them. I have such a respect for authors who can make up a new world and not go with what we are given. That’s my goal… well, other than to get the two I have written published

If you are a fan of underdogs, you’ll love this book. Wanderer is definitely the underdog, putting herself in a place where she knows it’s most likely she’ll get murdered, but she has deep feelings for the woman still alive inside her and feels like they are one. She may not only be doing this for Melanie.

But the Wanderer, who becomes Wanda, is an awesome soul. I wanted her to be my friend. She always helped out and wanted the best out of every situation and was willing to risk everything to keep her loved ones safe.

I think the thing I liked most about this book was the cliffhangers. Every single chapter ended on a cliffhanger that made you want to keep listening/reading. In the car, it wasn’t a big deal because you just listen until you are at your next destination. But when you are reading, this becomes a major deal because if you are anything like me, you have to keep reading. When I run across a book that has awesome cliffhangers, I always have to keep going, even if it’s just the first few paragraphs of the next chapter. I. Can’t. Stop.

Now one thing about this book is that it is science fiction. I am not normally a major science fiction fan. Yes, I do watch a couple of shows on SyFy, but they’re not major monsters vs. aliens shows. Yes, it is science fiction about a world where souls rule, but it is a love story, well multiple love stories to be honest. And it’s one that will make you think long and hard about your love. Would they stick with you after you’ve been tainted by creatures who kill your kind? It also makes you think of yourself as a person. If you were Wanderer, would you risk it all to help Melanie get back to her family?

I give The Host 4 bookmarks.

ISBN: 978-0316068048
Released: May 6, 2008
Author Website
Kari got this audio book from the Cabell County Library

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