The Host

The Host by Stephenie Meyer (Sphere)
I was obsessed with the Twilight Saga. Totally – eating, breathing and daydreaming in Stephenie's world. Obsessed. There, I said it.

So when I came across her latest book, The Host, I fell upon it with reluctant and shameful glee. I mean, this wasn't Twilight.

There aren't any vampires or werewolves in sight – there are aliens instead – and although both female characters remind one of Bella, it's still rather different. Meyer takes the old story of "The invasion of the body snatchers" and puts a whole new (romantic!) spin on it.

Trust this woman to turn a sci-fi thriller into a romantic drama.

Melanie's body is taken over by an alien soul called Wanderer. Wanderer (who is later rather sickeningly shortened to Wanda) is part of a peaceful if parasitic race that lives on various planets through host bodies.

As part of the integration process, Wanderer gets all Melanie's memories and feelings. Soon she falls in love with Melanie's boyfriend Gareth, who's still hiding from the invading aliens. Torn between a love for an unknown human and loyalty to her race, Wanderer sets off into the desert.

But Melanie is still inside Wanderer's brain and she doesn't want to go away. And ta-da! You have two women (in the same body) in love with one man.

Although it's not great literature, and her characters are sometimes a bit, erm, annoying, I had a lot of fun with this book. In short, I enjoyed it a lot. So shoot me.

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