Book reviews: Stephanie Meyer Twilight series and The Host

So last weekend I bought a few books. I began the Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer. I devoured the books in a few short days and then read her latest book, intended for adults, "The Host." Now that I've finished four books and 2500 pages in the space of a week, let me tell you a little bit about what I thought about them.

Twilight series: Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse
This is a series about a teen named Bella who falls for a boy. But, not just any boy mind you. Bella falls for one that happens to be vampire and wants to kill her as much as he wants to love her. The series follows her story as she moves to a tiny town in the northwest and begins to interact with people that until she moved there, she would have believed were only mythical characters from story books.

These are just downright fun books. I haven't enjoyed books this much since the Harry Potter series. But unlike the Harry Potter series that throws in turns and often keeps you guessing to the end, with the Twilight books I felt like I already knew the entire story in the first 50 pages. It didn't really matter though, I devoured each book after the next. What kept me reading wasn't necessarily suspense, it was more wanting to hear the story told in the way only the author could. But don't get me wrong, there were certainly plenty of surprises along the way.

The character development is very rich and the main characters are so likable and easy to identify with. I cared about Bella and the others and wanted to hear the story. I identified with her as a strong, independent girl and remembered what it was like to be that age and too inexperienced to always make good decisions and too prideful to admit it. I understood her conflicts and wondered what I would do in her position. I also have to mention that I appreciated that the series was written for young adults and found the chastity in the relationship very refreshing.

All in all, I absolutely recommend the books to young and old. They are fun, refreshing books. And who doesn't love a good vampire story? I'll be in line with everyone else when the next book comes out this weekend. I'm hooked and happy to fulfill my fondness for the magic and mysticism genre with the Twilight series.

The Host
This was Meyer's first book targeted for adults. I have to say she certainly stepped things up a notch from her young adult series. I have to admit that somewhere around page 85 I considered putting the book down. I thought it was going to be a tearjerker and just mess with my emotions too much. Bill encouraged me to keep reading a little longer and I'm really glad I did.

While with the Twilight series I could see the road ahead, with "The Host", I was blind. I was reading in faith wondering what kind of journey I was going on. This is a sci-fi in your own backyard story that talks of species and life on other planets but the conflict and the aliens are right here on earth. It is a "The Puppetmaster" or "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" kind of story where the basic concept is earth has been silently invaded by aliens that have taken over humans as nothing more than hosts for the parasitic aliens and have pretended to still be human.

Unlike the above mentioned books, "The Host" is not a horror story. It instead delves deep into the study of the psyche of a symbiotic relationship and the chaos and questions surrounding it as it follows one who has become a host and a few remaining humans as they fight to keep from becoming extinct. Again, Meyer shines in character development and at some points I related to both human and alien so much I couldn't remember what side I was really on. Her whimsical tales of species' on other planets are so vivid I felt like I had been there.

I found myself contemplating a lot of questions with this book. It really made me take pause and think about a lot of themes: ethics, love, mortality, humanity, aliens, the greater good, sacrifice, prejudice. I love a book that makes me still think once I've put the book down. It's even better when the story to cause so much thought is an exciting, entertaining story. In that, this book did not disappoint. I'd recommend this book to anyone that enjoys the sci-fi genre or someone who is looking for a book to challenge their minds.