The Host

Title: The Host
Author: Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Sci-fi, dystopia, speculative fiction
Source: E-book, owned


Finally! I finally reached the end of this book. I don't mean that in the negative way that it sounds...but just in that surprisingly this novel took me ALL of February to complete. That being said, I did wholly enjoy this novel and am glad I finally gave it a chance.

Before I go into likes and dislikes I need to tackle the subject of author vs. known writing style. I am guilty of doing something I'm not particularly proud of in my identification as a reader....I judged a book by the author's other books. You see, I read and sort of enjoyed Twilight. It was a light fluffy read that if I ignored everything I knew about vampires (which is a lot) and just enjoyed the jr. high crush feeling it fostered, I could enjoy it. I am not however a Twilight fan. Overall, it was ok. I've read significantly more interesting young adult novels and am not completely sure why these novels have received the popularity they have. But this is not about Twilight. This is about The Host. Honestly, if I'd been given this book without a cover, I would have never guessed that it was by Ms. Meyer. For this novel, her writing style changed and grew. The world was well-fleshed out, the characters were fully developed and capable of great changes (no limp rag Bellas here), and the story had a consistent arc and plot development. There was never a moment where I thought it went too long or should have ended sooner. I pre-judged this novel, and for that I'm sorry.

What I liked:

1. I found it interesting that our main character was actually a combination of two characters. Wanderer/Wanda is a kind being who is enjoying her species ability to join with and explore the lives the are taking over. Melanie is a human rebel. She has the strength, training, and of all things...the nerve to stay alive and unjoined. These two women have to learn to live together, work together, and love together...when they shouldn't have to.  Notice that neither of these women is a push-over or easily manipulated. It's awesome to have a 2-1 strong female lead.

2. The little details of the world building blew my mind. On the human side, there were things like people who were pre-prepared being considered crazy. Now they are the leaders. From the Soul side, there are details such as being trusting to the extreme or the easy to read labels.

3. Parts reminded me of other sci-fi entities that I enjoy. For example: The way the Souls bond to humans is initially explained to be very similar to how the Goa'uld join with their hosts.

What I disliked:

1. Length. This was not the novel to read on an iPhone e-reader. Holy will-it-ever-end-I'm-reading-on-quarter-length-pages Batman! I know this is silly and personal, but it may have been an easier read, for me, if I had this one as an actual paper book.

2. Some of the world building was so complete that some details weren't well explained or were assumed to be known. This primarily happened in descriptions and talk about the various planets that the Souls have come in contact with.  Some had great explanations and others were glossed over. It sometimes made it hard to keep everything straight in my mind.

Overall: I enjoyed this novel and am glad I finally gave it a chance.

 

**This novel was originally intended to be reviewed for Blogs with Bite, but I missed the due date. 

***This novel qualifies for the speculative fiction challenge ***

BWB Review - Queene of Light

Title: Queene of Light (A Lightworld / Darkworld Novel)
Author: Jennifer Armintrout
Genre: Sci-Fi (according to library classification), Romance, Paranormal, Fantasy
Source: Library


This is not your run-of-the-mill fairy story. Lately, there has been a plethora of novels where the fae are coming to or intermixing with the human world. This story is set in a much darker time and place where humans and fae, of all kinds, have separated and taken to different areas...including underground.  This setting takes the reader out of a well-known and comfortable world and smacks them immediately into an experience where they are unknowing and on edge. I loved it immediately!

What I liked:

1. The setting. The immediate plunge into a world underground where the traditional rules I know don't apply set me immediately on edge. Normally, this would be considered a bad thing, except in this case it made it easier for me to identify with the characters. Malachi is confused and lost in a world not his own, and Ayla (for some reason I have flashes of Clan of the Cavebear when I hear this name...but that's a different thing) is out-of-place and not truely comfortable in her own skin and world. Being on edge is the way to be.

2. Malachi's love and trust of /for Ayla. He has every right to not trust her. His quick change of heart could be seen as too simple or naive, but to me it's sweet. He does struggle for a bit deciding whether to kill her or kiss her, but luckily love wins out.

3. Maab. She is portrayed as self-ish and cruel, but also intelligent. She is the perfect foil for actions in this world and her court.
 

What I didn't like:

1. Not much is given as to the whys of the world splitting and changing the way that it did. I'm sure that it is just a weighty story in it's own right....and that's not this story, but I'd like to have a bit more of it.

Overall: I'm in love with the story! I'm excited to get my hands on the next two books in the series: Child of Darkness and Veil of Shadows.  If you have any interest in fairy politics....and a good love story...this is one for you.

Discussion Questions And Possible Spoilers 

(Don't continue reading if you don't want things ruined for you.)

#1 Did you have an understanding of the world created by this novel, or did you find the complexity too much? It seemed like a lot of the world was based on well established information we already have about the Fairy Court, Queen Maab, and such. However, I do wish we (readers) had been given more information concerning what happened to the world previously to get us to where we currently are.

#2 In a book that it appears many have trouble liking, what is one thing that you like about this book? I liked quite a bit about this book actually. One of the most interesting things is something I didn't speak about in my review (not wanting to give spoilers and all that). I find it very interesting that Ayla, a being that is half-fairy and half-human, is the catalyst for the changes to come between the worlds. Her coupling with Malachi, a Darkworlder a.k.a. different race, will produce the ruler that unites the worlds......or so I think. Plus, that fits perfectly into the mythology in the book about who will unite the races.

#3 Did you agree with the author’s decision to make Ayla a fierce assassin in battle and a weakling in her emotions? For example her obvious contempt for Garret but yet her willingness to be his mate and subject herself to his demeaning manor?   I'm torn here. It seems perfectly reasonable to me that someone so highly trained in battle and killing would either be able to close emotions off or not have a good grasp of their actual emotions. However, I don't like her interactions with Garret. It reads too much like a domestic violence situation....which I think it was supposed to. 

#4 What do you think the significance of the the baby Ayla carries is/will be? That baby is the savior of the races. She is the Fae with mixed blood that will unite them all.

#5 What do you think of Ayla's ascension to the throne? Do you believe she accepted her own destiny too easily?  I believe that she often did what she thought was expected of her. She wanted to be part of this society so she did what she needed to belong, which includes being an appropriate consort to the Queen's brother, and accepting the crown when it is thrust upon her.  I don't think it is necessarily easy

for her, but that she goes along be that's what she is expected to do.

One More Bite

Title: One More Bite (A Jaz Parks novel)
Author: Jennifer Rardin
Genre: Paranormal, sci-fi (library classification)

This is the most recent of the Jaz Parks novels out (at least that's what the internets tell me), but they can easily be picked up and read in any order....or even alone just for fun. I seem to be going on the completely out of order route. Several months ago I read the first in the series, loved it, couldn't get the middle ones from the library (they're popular ya'know?), and picked this one up last week. Loved it again.

Jaz is part of a super special, possibly secret, CIA team to fight crime......err....solve mysteries......err....kill bad guys, preferably paranormal ones. She works with and dates a vampire, a psychic, a tech guru, witches, ghosts.....whomever is needed to solve the case. She's what could happen if Buffy and Faith were smashed into one slayer. All the kick ass strength, the daring, the snarky quips, but a fairly good grasp on what's legal and what isn't. This time, she has to confront ghosts of her own while fighting other ghosts, witches, and tourists to solve the case. Plus, she has a great dog. :)

Fun to read.