The Host

The Host

Stephenie Meyer

352 pages

From the inside flap:

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 bod, 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 love.

One of the most compelling writers of our time, Stephenie Meyer brings us a riveting and unforgettable novel about the persistence of love and the very essence of what it means to be human.

My Thoughts:

I read this novel a while back, after I became a fan of the Twilight series.  I know that no one may believe me, but an old roommate and I found the Twilight books right before the second one, New Moon, was coming out (and before it was a huge revolution of all things vampire).  I'm not sure when The Host was published in relation to the Twilight series, but I just remember being so excited that Ms. Meyer had written another novel, adult genre this time.  I was not disappointed.

I've heard so much commentary of Stephenie Meyer's writing ability.   And I don't want to start a debate by any means, but I am so impressed with is her ability to draw you into a world you might otherwise avoid.  For instance, before Twilight I never read vampire/paranormal fantasy.  In fact, I never read Fantasy at all.  (Now it is one of my favorite genres.)  But in The Host, she takes an alien invasion and makes it seem plausible.  I noticed this first when I was attempting to explain to my dad what The Host was about.  I can't tell you the number of people who have looked at me crazily when I recommended this book.  So what's it about?  "Well, you see these things called Souls, which are actually aliens from a distant planet, invade humans and take over their brains.  But this one human Melanie and Soul Wanderer become friends in the same body as they talked to each other through thoughts."  I mean, you can see how crazy it can sound if you attempt to explain.  Finally, I normally just look at people and say, "Read it.  You'll understand."  Just as with the Twilight series, you are drawn into a world different than our own, but yet you don't feel out of place or confused.  Instead, you just keep reading to find out what happens.

I loved this book.  I would even go so far as to say that I loved this book more than Twilight (gasp!).  I know, I know.  But I loved The Host because it was written for adults.  It was like Twilight but more developed and adult-like.  The characters were very well developed.  I felt that I knew both Melanie and Wanderer, and Ms. Meyer did an excellent job of dividing a co-existing friendship.  I laughed, oh and awed, and sat on the edge of my seat at so many different parts of the novel.  It is awesome.  I've read The Host twice, and I loved it each time.  There is enough to the plot that I can reread it and not be bored.  The details only enhance the story, and I found I had missed some things the first time because I wanted to know the ending.   

I could gush on and on about this book.  The way Ms. Meyer writes from the Soul's point of view aids the theme of the essence of humanity;  The thoughts of seeing humanity through other's eyes; The many different characters and how you grow to love all of them; The unpredictable nature of romance; The surprises in the plot.  I think you can see the point.  But the best review I can give you is to go read it!  If you love Twilight, do not stop at go, do not collect $200 - go straight to the bookstore and get this book.  Pick a day to make time, put off those review books for one more day, and pick up something fun.  For those who are wary of the Twilight series and perhaps new to fantasy, I suggest you try this book out.  It was an introduction to science fiction/fantasy genre for  me, and I found something I love.  You just might as well.  Keep an open mind for the first couple of pages, and then you'll get sucked in.  I gave this book one of my rare 5/5, which means it was incredibly awesome and you all should read it and love it too.

Happily Ever After

Happily Ever After

Susan May Warren

384 pages

God has answered Mona Reynolds's prayers and given her the opportunity of a lifetime: she is about to open her own bookstore-coffee shop, the Footstep of Heaven. Now Mona has no time for love and no hope that a man can ever be the hero of her dreams. But when she hires mysterious drifter Joe Michaels to be her handyman, she discovers that it isn't only in fairy tales that people live "happily ever after."

My Thoughts:

I got this book free on my kindle.  Ok, slight tangent here:  Does anyone feel the need to take advantage of free books, even though your TBR list is a mile long, and you may never read them?  I have to say that it's a bit of a compulsion for me.  I mean, they could only be free for a day.  I have to save that money!  But I have to say that as my kindle gets more and more crowded, it bothers me some.  I mean, when I am reading a couple books at once (which I seem to be doing of late), it often takes me forever to find the title I'm looking for through all my new downloads.  And it's frustrating having so many items on my kindle (over 187 - how cluttered!).  I have a blog that highlights free ebooks (Books on the Knob), and I also get a daily Kindle "newspaper" that features the free ones as well.  So you can see how my compulsion is fed.   At one point, I thought that those books offered free had to be bummers that simply hadn't done well.  But, I've found several books that I've read, and enjoyed greatly, free before.  So I had to adjust my thinking (which fueled my free ebook downloading habit even more).  Being a perfectionist and chronic list maker, I have to say that the lack of end to the books on my kindle and the continuous additions to an ever growing list of books to read stresses me out.  It puts me in a pickle.  Anyone else have this trouble or it is just me?

So despite the stress that free ebooks puts on my list making habits, I still tend to download free ebooks.  This one was a book I found before Christmas, and it is still featured as a free ebook at Amazon.com.  (I am purely a Kindle user, so I am only familiar with Amazon.  I apologize Nook owners.)  I have to say that it was perfect for what I needed.  I read this book after reading The Hunger Games.  Though I loved The Hunger Games with all of my heart, I needed something light-hearted after being sucked into another, more-oppressive world.  This book was the perfect solution.

Happily Ever After was an adorable romance that, though it touched on some darker themes, generally stayed light and fun.  Mona and Joe were cute together, and I loved how they had little arguments and such going on.  Made for a fun romance.  The author also discusses some deeper things as she included the backgrounds of each character.  She writes a story of the need for forgiveness, and the peace and healing that can come when one accepts the forgiveness God has given them and releases guilt.


Overall, this novel was a cute, fun story.  It was a perfect light distraction from the darker, seriousness that can sometimes comes with life and in books.  I read it in one afternoon, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  I would recommend it to anyone looking for a fun, cute read.  If you have a kindle, definitely check it out.  It's worth the stress (or at least my stress) of a never-ending list of books.  Plus, it's free right now!

My Rating: 3/5

Enquiring Minds Want to Know (12)

Each week Dollycas's Thoughts hosts the meme "Enquiring Minds Want to Know." She posts questions for us to answer each week in order for us bloggers and readers to get to know each other beyond our books.  Check out her's and others answers here.

1. What is the outside temperature where you are today?

My phone puts the temperature at 24 degrees right now, with about an inch of snow on the ground.  But the temperature is supposed to drop with it snowing all week.  (sweet!)

2. Do participate in any special winter sports or hobbies like skiing or snowmobiling, etc?
I don't participate in winter sports (or sports at all for that matter).  I would love to try snow skiing, as I love water skiing, but I haven't gotten around to it yet.

3. If you had to choose between a week long stay in a mountain lodge with lots of snow, activities, friends, food and beverages or a week alone on a deserted white sand island with just a bag of books and food and water which would you choose?

 

Mountain Lodge!  Though the beach is nice, I love cold weather.  And the idea of a wonderful vacation (not counting cool places to go or anything) for me would be a snuggly lodge with snow outside, warm tea or hot chocolate inside, a great book, and fun friends/family.  My family actually did this a couple of years ago, rented a cabin and just hung out for several days.  It was wonderful.  I love curling up by the fire (gas or real, I don't care) with a cup of tea and a great book.  Or playing cards with family around the living room with the fire crackling in the background.  Sounds perfect.  Whose ready for vacation?  ME, ME!  

The Three Rs Challenge

So I know I said I would be finished with challenges, but I really like this challenge.  Plus, I am trying to do this anyway with my reviews.  I want to give credit as well as link to other reviews, which can give a reader several perspectives.  So, I think this could be a great way to keep track of that and keep me accountable.

Here's the DL from the blog:


The Three R's is a collaboration of the minds of Cheryl from CMash Loves to Read, Julie from Reading with Restraint, and Gina from Hott Books. The ideas, the creativity, and the technology - respectively. We're each putting forth what we can do to spring this to life.

It all started because Cheryl wanted to remember the bloggers who write the reviews that begin our journey to a new book, new series, or new author. Every day each of us reads the reviews of others shaping our TBR lists. Then we occasionally remember to note them in our post but, more often than not, we completely forget about the reviews that brought us to the wonderful book we've just read.

So this challenge is for them!

We'd like to link our reviews that mention the blogger that suggested the book we've read and are now reviewing.

How thankful are you?

• 1-6 Books (~1 review every 2 months)
• 7-12 Books (~1 reviews every month)
• 13-24 Books (~ 2 reviews every month)

Rules:

We're not making this a difficult challenge, actually, it's going to be very simple!

1. This challenge will begin on January 1, 2011 and end on December 31, 2011.
2. Write a starting post stating how thankful you plan to be in the upcoming year and link it to the linky we'll have on the starting post.
3. Read a book recommended  to you by another blogger. (This book can be a crossover from another challenge.)
4. Review the book & Recognize the blogger who recommended it to you.
5. Recommend the Book in our Recommend linky by linking your review post naming the blogger who recommended the book to you.

Easy, right? Who wants to be in on the fun?

What else will we be doing? We'll have quarterly giveaways for our participants to enter and unannounced special drawings for commenters on the site so be sure to leave your email address with your comment!

Are you ready?

Yes, Yes!  I'm ready!  :)  I am planning on doing the 13-24 books category, which I will try to do 2 reviews a month from a recommendation.  Perhaps this will help slim my TBR list down.  Anyone else get excited about books from other bloggers?  Do you try to give thanks to those who introduce you to those awesome series?  This challenge (I hope) will be another way for me to step-up my blogging and get more involved in the book blog world.

To BEA or not to BEA?

For those of you who simply read my blog for book recommendations, this will be a slightly personal post.  So if you are uninterested, feel free to just skip it.  I will be back posting reviews and book info this afternoon.

So recently, there as been quite a bit of rumblings about the BEA.  It is a huge Book Expo event held in NYC in May.  I had almost decided to pass it up this year, until I started reading more about it (bad Hannah - never investigate more.  Ignorance is bliss.)  Kristi at The Story Siren has posted several information posts about the BEA which include links to other information.

Intro to BEA
BEA: Q&A
BEA: Budget Tricks and Tips

Now you see why I'm struggling so much with this decision?  It looks incredible, no?   At first, I thought it would be so incredible to be able to go.  I am now more on top of my finances, so I could potentially save the money over the next couple of months in order to go.  But I guess the question that keeps lingering in my mind is whether or not I belong there?

I know this may sound a bit like whining, and I apologize greatly.  I guess I am simply asking for the advice of other bloggers/readers on the subject.  I am a relatively new blogger.  I started in July of 2010 and have only recently been blogging regularly.  I don't have a huge following (not that numbers are all that matters).  I don't review ARCs, mostly because of my shyness in contacting book publishers/authors/etc and because I still have so many books I missed out on in college.  I've never interviewed an author (though it is something I have been wanting to do in the next couple of months).  But I mostly started this blog as a way to get to know other readers and to learn how to form coherent thoughts and discussions on books.  I have made many friends over the last couple of months, close friends whose opinions I value more than many people I know in real life, especially when it comes to books.  I have learned to be myself and not apologize for who I am and the fact that I love to read and that I spend most of my time reading.

But I guess my thought process becomes who am I to consider myself "important" enough to go?  I don't mean that as derogatory as it sounds.  But the BEA is a trade convention.  I have heard several people comment on the professionalism of the book bloggers last year and their frustration at the number of people who did not seem to belong there.  I am not considering  going just because of the free books and awesome autographing experience.  In fact, I really thought you had to pay for all of those books until a couple of days ago  (and I'm still not completely sure how all of that works).  I would be ecstatic to get to meet some really cool authors, and I know that many of the bloggers I follow religiously are almost more important to me than some authors.  But who am I but a small-town blogger from Tennessee?  What questions would I ask to an author if I ever met one?  I can't think of anything original to say or some brilliant insight into their book that they've never heard of before.  Even now, I feel shy tagging people on Twitter (I wish I had an etiquette book when it comes to Twitter, because I constantly worry about offending people), especially authors - though I am wanting to promote them more than actually promoting me.  But who am I to write a review criticizing a book, especially now that I am aware that they might actually read it?  I mean, after all, I've never written a book before.  (Don't worry - I am continually fighting to make my reviews honest, even though I am incredibly shy about it.  I am simply trying to be professional and tactful with the idea that these are my opinions and feelings about a particular book.)

I guess what I am wondering (and it may have to be a personal decision) is where I am wanting all of this to go.  I started out with this as a hobby.  And it has kept me entertained and from being incredibly lonely in a new town with me not-so-great-at-making-new-friends.  But I read of others who are constantly pushed to read more/schedule their reading/trying to find time to read what they want to read, and I worry that my perfectionism and strive to please others will make me get in too deep.  I, above all, want this to be fun.  I am at that new relationship stage where everything is exciting, and I hope I always stay that way with books.  I get excited about new books to read, and I have seen some unique bloggers who are still very passionate about reading.  It seems that they are not struggling with the "work load," so I know it's possible.  But it's still hard for me to imagine myself having something to say that others want to read.  Perhaps it is time for me to get out of my shell even more by "networking" and being more open to being a book promoter and not simply a book reader. 

So ultimately, I am wondering your thoughts.  Is anyone going to the BEA and looking forward to the excitement?  Has anyone else struggled with the workload that could come with the introduction of ARCs and networking to your blog?  Or have you found that it opens up a whole new world of good friends that love books as much as you do?  Thoughts?  Comments?  Suggestions?  Tired of hearing me whine?  I'm finished now.  Thanks for listening.  :)

CSN Stores Giveaway Winner!

I'm pleased to announce my winner for the CSN stores $25 gift code.  Give a congrats to:

Belle Decouverte!!

Thanks to everyone who entered.  And a big thank you to CSN Stores for this amazing opportunity allowing me to host the giveaway!  

Lock and Key

Lock and Key

Sarah Dessen

432 pages

Rating: 3/5

"Ruby, where is your mother?" Ruby knows that the game is up. For the past few months, she's been on her own in the yellow house, managing somehow, knowing that her mother will probably never return. That's how she comes to live with Cora, the sister she hasn't seen in ten years, and Cora's husband Jamie, whose down-to-earth demeanor makes it hard for Ruby to believe he founded the most popular networking Web site around. A luxurious house, fancy private school, a new wardrobe, the promise of college and a future—it's a dream come true. So why is Ruby such a reluctant Cinderella, wary and defensive? And why is Nate, the genial boy next door with some secrets of his own, unable to accept the help that Ruby is just learning to give?

My Thoughts: 
I was first recommended this book by Jennie from Life is Short. Read Fast.   In fact, this novel was the first book of Sarah Dessen to be on my TBR list.  So, I guess Jennie really was the first one to introduce me to Sarah Dessen, who now is one of my favorite YA authors.  So excited that I stumbled upon Jennie's review!  As far as Lock and Key goes, I loved the cover, and the description sounded amazing.  I have to say though, that I did not enjoy it as much as I have all of the others.  I am not sure if this was the first Sarah Dessen book that I read if I would have the same opinion.  But it simply was not my favorite of her novels.

The general premise of this book, as you can tell from the book description from Goodreads, is that Ruby has grown up with an unreliable mother and has hence learned to not rely on anyone, thereby not letting anyone get close to her.  As she moves in with her sister, she has people around her that attempt to break down those barriers, and the story is how she learns to be apart of a family and to have true friendships that include the give-and-take that all relationships do.  


Just as Auden, from Along for the Ride, was the character I could relate to the most, Ruby was the Dessen character I could relate to the least.  Perhaps it is because I never experienced the things that Ruby did, but reading about her life was very foreign to me.  I had to learn to accept her mindset in order to not get frustrated and yell at the pages.

I also had a hard time grasping the other characters besides Jamie (Ruby's brother-in-law).   Jamie was very readable to me, and I could picture him easily in my mind (perhaps because he reminds me so much of my uncle).  But the other characters, Cora, Nate, Ruby's friend from her previous school, they were all hard to imagine in my mind.  I guess I simply could not put all their pieces and actions together to make a whole character.  I just never really grasped who they were supposed to be as characters, and that made the novel harder to enjoy. 

On another note, I want to give a shout-out to Ms. Dessen for once again creating a picture of healthy relationships.  She has a wonderful talent for creating a realistic picture of how relationships work.  She shows the ups and the downs, and I love that in this novel, she shows how one person's baggage can affect everyone surrounded.  She also portrays the difficulty that working through baggage can be.  There are some novels that oh-wave-a-wand-and-things-are-better, and it just makes me want to laugh - because I believe we all know that real life does not work that way.  Instead, Ms. Dessen actually writes about how relationships can be worked on, and she even makes it interesting.  Kudos to her talent! 


Ultimately, I gave this novel a 3/5 because I did not enjoy it as much as I did all of Ms. Dessen's other novels.  The plot was good, and I thought the lessons learned were appropriate.  I just found the novel not as enjoyable to read.  I could not grasp the characters, and the story just did not seem to jump off the page at me (which might have been a personal issue).  However, the novel was a fun read, and I am not disappointed in the time spent reading it.  If you are a first time Dessen reader, I would recommend picking this one up as a second read.  But I would recommend it to all Dessen and YA fiction fans.  Read and enjoy.


Other reviews about Lock and Key:
Life is Short. Read Fast. review
Books Obsession review
Under the Boardwalk review