Ok, so, I'm not as far along as I hoped to be in the book. I'm only on chapter six. I will admit that I was REALLY confused in the beginning and it was hard for me to understand what flip was going on until the third chapter but I'm all caught up and I LOVE ths story thus far. I don't know too much about Jared's character but I already like him! I feel for both Wanderer and Melanie and I freakin can't stand Seeker. I want to slap her in the face haha! Kathy reminds me a bit of Esme, she has a warm, kind and gentle spirit...for being an alien.

So, how far along is everyone with their reading? Have you emotionally invested yourself into any of the characters yet? Can you see The Host being Stephanie Meyer's new phenomenon? Perhaps we will see a possible film adapation in the future? What do you lovely ladies think?

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"Want me to bolt the door so you can massacre the unsuspecting townsfolk?"

I am really enjoying it as well. Like you, I'm not as far into it as I hoped to be. (I've made it to ch. 12) The writing "style" feels different, and no I don't mean b/c there is no Edward. This book feels more, hmmmm...cryptic? Little pieces and clues are given here and there and we, along with Wander I suppose, are left to decipher. It has a good mystery element to it. I am enjoying the memories of Jared and Jamie and hope that as the story progresses we actually get to meet them.

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I just started it too and I am only on Chapter 6. I was very confused too, but now I'm all caught up (I think).

I can't stand Seeker either and I feel for Melanie and Wanderer. Can't wait to see what happens next!

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Lisa from Ohio

I was lucky enough to get a copy early and finished it over the weekend. I thought the first 2 chapters were very painful to read and not easy to understand. It wasn't until the middle of the book that I even enjoyed it--up until then, I was really just reading it because I loved Stephenie's other books and was slightly curious where it would go.

I must say that overall, now that I'm done, it was a good book. The last 5 chapters were fabulous! They made me cry so much that I couldn't read!

But, it's nowhere as good as the Twilight series, to me. It was pretty slow-paced most of the time.

Amyrica

I finished the book at 3:30 this morning. It is going to be a long day at work, but I loved it. I agree that I was lost a little in the beginning, but the story line picked up. I cried, which is always a good sign. No it is not Twilight, but I personally am glad to see that. The whole time I was reading, I just kept thinking to myself "Wow, all of this complexity on a drive to Utah, I need to drive more!!"

I loved the more adult action, violence, and independance of the characters.

And dare I say it, it looks like we could have more stories of the native souls and resistent humans.

Shelli

Oh yes! I, too, am glad that it's not like Twilight. In fact, in the first 100 pages or so I was disappointed at all the similarities I saw between The Host and Twilight. (Lots of the same adjectives used to describe Jared as were used to describe Edward, similar acts of affection like face stroking, the inability of Melanie to breathe in his presence, etc. in addition to locations of Chicago and AZ, for example).

Thankfully, it became its own story quickly and I didn't think there were any storyline similarities except for the love triangle and the themes of love, family, and dedication.

I was just saying that when I compare the 2 stories, I'm not addicted to The Host like I was/am addicted to Twilight. The Twilight series are all page-turners but I didn't find that to be the case with The Host until the very end. I just didn't love The Host nearly as much as her other books.

Amyrica

Maybe it's becuase I'm already a sci-fi fan, but I enjoyed every last page! I actually was pleasantly surprised that I had to read slowly to catch all the little details. And I love the mystery aspect of it! I, for one, was hooked from the beginning. There's a lot more to sink my teeth into, and that makes me all sorts of happy!

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Boom boom! Ain't it great to be crazy!

I'm about 3/4 of the way through.....I was hooked from the very first page. Love Melanie and Wanderer, and would like to strangle her Seeker (hey, I'm one of those brutish humans, right?) I like all the stories about the other planets Wanderer has lived on - especially the See Weeds:) I liked the first parts with the descriptions of the implantation process....I'm a nurse:) I really like Jeb. Like the Twilight series, this book has characters so vivid and richly drawn that you can't help but be drawn in. I love all the detail that this book has - I'll be reading it again after I finish the first time around, because I know there are nuances I'm missing in the first reading. Parts are slower paced, but those are often the passages that I find the most thought-provoking. I haven't even attempted to compare it to Twilight because the two genres are so different. However, I have read a lot of other sci-fi, and this is most definitely my #1 fave sci-fi novel. Love it!! Thanks, Stephenie - you've done it again!

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I wish we could sic the Volturi on the jerk who leaked the MS manuscript!!

Melanie's memories hooked me and then I was off and running with it from there. I also saw some similarities between the books, but The Host holds its own. If I could have gotten more Jared/Mel it would be on par with the Twilight Saga for me. I adore that she covered so many themes w/o it being obvious, and all of the different types of love that humans experience.... but romantic love, I'd like a bit more of that at the end, especially.

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And the last seven months meant nothing. And his words in the forest meant nothing. And it did not matter if he did not want me. I would never want anything but him, no matter how long I lived. - Bella

Oh, here is the thread I was looking for earlier:) I am loving the book so far. I too felt a little lost in the first couple of chapters, so much so, that if it wasn't written by Ms. SM herself I probably would have put it down for a day or two. But I am really glad I didn't! It all became more clear around p. 25, somewhere around there. I am really enjoying it and can't wait to see how it all ends!

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"I made him say ow." Bella Cullen

This book has definitely made me put it down at times and think..What does it really mean to be human? Are we as bad as the aliens think we are? Stuff like that..there is a lot of description so that sort of slows me down but I do enjoy it. This book has actually been one of the first books that I haven't been wanting to read the end to see how it turns out; I am actually reading it page by page, chapter by chapter. My mom wasn't really going to buy the book (she was going to wait for me to finish before deciding) but I told her she needed to buy it. She called me after reading the first couple of chapters and was like "Wow! This is great!" Ok off to read some more now...

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Does anyone remember Star Trek Deep Space Nine? (Yes, I am a nerd). Anyways, there was a character on that show that was very similar to the Wanderer. It was a worm-like creature that attatched to a host and the host/alien became one--their personalities melded. When the human host died, it just went into another. I think the character's name was Dax (not sure though)? When I was reading the Host I couldn't help but thinking of the similarities.

Nerma wrote:

Does anyone remember Star Trek Deep Space Nine? (Yes, I am a nerd). Anyways, there was a character on that show that was very similar to the Wanderer. It was a worm-like creature that attatched to a host and the host/alien became one--their personalities melded. When the human host died, it just went into another. I think the character's name was Dax (not sure though)? When I was reading the Host I couldn't help but thinking of the similarities.

Yes Dax was the name of that character. I thought of the same thing. I know that people have also commented on how it is similar to the G'ould of the Sci Fi show SG-1.

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I loved the book, read it twice already. Stephenie is a very gifted writer. She's able to weave great stories from simple plots.

I'm with a lot of you. The memories of Melanie and Jared and Jamie is really what hooked me. Before that point I felt like I was trying too hard.

And also I wanted more romantic love (like Twilight)...however I really am not a sci-fi fan and I really enjoyed this a lot. I know I need to read it again as I was so enthralled that I was pushing and pushing to find out what happened next. I love that about Stephenie's writing. It's like running a marathon. You have to keep pushing through as fast as you can. And then I love going back and enjoying every little detail.

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Nobody does "happily ever after" like Stephenie, nobody!!!!