The Host by Stephenie Meyer

I had to wait until after I was done with the Twilight books before I could get into this one, but it was well worth the wait.  This book takes place in a totally different “universe,” so I often felt like I was reading something by a completely different author as well.  It’s pretty cool, actually, to read something so different by an author whose work I thought I was “used to.” Enough of that, though…  I need to tell you about this book!

Earth as we know it no longer exists.  Human bodies are being taken over by alien creatures called “souls,” which the human resistance consider to be no better than parasites.  Very few “wild” humans exist, and those who are caught are soon given a soul.  When Melanie Stryder is caught, though, something strange happens.  She refuses to submit to the soul that has been implanted within her; she decides to fight to keep control of her own body.  The biggest problem is that Wanderer (the soul) does not want to admit that she cannot control Melanie, and she soon starts to feel affection for both Melanie and the people whom Melanie has known and loved.  When Wanderer and Melanie decide to take off and find Melanie’s brother and boyfriend — in a hidden camp of humans — neither of them knows where this will end.  Will her family even be there, or will they have been caught already?  And, if they are still in hiding, will Melanie’s presence make enough of a difference to them?  Will they kill Wanderer/Melanie before she has a chance to explain?  Or will she not live long enough to find them in the first place?  I thought this was an awesome science fiction thriller, and I was pleased to find that it also included a touch of romance.

Happy Reading!

Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer

The fourth (and final) book in the Twilight series was very highly anticipated… I’m talking, my teens would rather read this book than eat for a week kind of anticipation. My teens and I had a very specific set of questions we needed answered, though, so we were a little worried that we might end up disappointed in the end. We all wanted to know, for example, whether Bella would marry Edward, whether Edward would turn Bella into a vampire, and whether Jacob would ever imprint. I am happy to say that we got all of those answers and more, but my lips are sealed! Let’s just say that there’s a whole lot of drama, action, and suspense… In many ways, this book was very much like the rest of the series. I am happy to report, nevertheless, that there were a couple of huge surprises — and that I liked how they changed the storyline.

Happy Reading!

Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer

Now that I have finally held my February book group, I won’t feel bad posting about this book. The reason I waited is because this post will most likely contain some minor spoilers, and I didn’t want to ruin the story for any of my teens… Anyhow!

This book starts out with a letter from Jacob Black. He’s writing back to Bella to let her know how much she has hurt him and that he doesn’t want to hear from her anymore. They don’t even deliver the note themselves, which I found both comical and sad. Instead, the letters are exchanged between Jacob’s dad (Billy) and Bella’s dad (Charlie). Basically, Bella hurt Jacob’s feelings by choosing Edward — his mortal enemy and the boy who previously broke Bella’s heart — instead of simply falling in love with him. Love can be like that, though. You can’t always choose what makes the most sense.

So, Jacob is bumming, and Bella’s feeling majorly guilty. Bella is under house arrest because Jacob told Charlie about her motorcycle, but Edward is still allowed over a couple hours a night. Suddenly, though, Charlie makes an offer to lighten Bella’s “sentence” — under the condition that she spend more time with friends other than Edward… particularly Jacob. So, now Bella has to try to convince Edward (and his vampire family) to let her hang out with Jacob (and the other werewolves in his “pack”), let alone get Jacob to agree to see her in the first place.

Things are MUCH more complicated than that, though. Edward and Charlie are both pressuring Bella to apply for colleges (though Edward is mostly trying to postpone Bella’s plan to become a vampire). Seattle has been experiencing a surge in unsolved murders. Victoria is still seeking revenge (i.e. Bella’s death). The Volturi are still expecting that Bella will be “turned” or killed, and more than happy to help along the latter. PLUS, some other vampire (with an unrecognizable scent) has gotten into Bella’s house, without Alice seeing anything, and has even gone through Bella’s stuff!

Suffice it to say that Bella has a whole lot of deciding to do. Love or friendship? Deception or honesty? Her safety or the safety of the people she cares about? Mortality or eternal life? There are still plenty of things left for 4th (and final) book, but I certainly wouldn’t wait any longer to read this book… Unless, that is, a large dose of suspense at the end of this book is likely to kill you before the August 2nd release of Breaking Dawn!

Happy Reading!

TWILIGHT MOVIE NEWS!!!

Ok… So, I have been really bad at blogging all of the books I have been listening to and reading, but I found something that was WAY more important to get me started back on here — pictures of the Cullen family cast have been released at http://www.stepheniemeyer.com/twilight_movie.html!!!!!!!!!

I was just talking about this movie at our Eclipse book discussion yesterday, and I could not be happier to see whom they chose! (FYI, I *should* be adding a few book reviews today as well, but we will see where the day takes me.)

Happy Reading!

New Moon by Stephenie Meyer

So, I cannot tell you how crazy it made me to have to wait for this audiobook. I was actually on the waiting list in multiple library systems! I finally got my hands on it, and I listened at every opportunity. Words may fail me, but I’m gonna try…

Edward and his family have already saved Bella from a gruesome death at the hands of a psychotic vampire named James. She thinks all of her troubles are behind her, but then she has to go and have a birthday. Bella hates the idea of getting older, since Edward never will, but she grudgingly allows Alice to throw her a birthday party. When she gets a tiny paper cut from opening a birthday card, though, all hell breaks loose. Bella is suddenly face-to-face with a bunch of thirsty vampires whom she has never before seen as a threat. Is this too much for Bella to handle? Will Edward want to and be able to protect her from his own family? Find out when you read this thrilling sequel!

Happy Reading!

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

I am almost ashamed to admit that I knew nothing about Stephenie Meyer’s vampire books until the third book (Eclipse) was slated for release. I figured they must not be that good if I had never heard of them before, but then I started to hear about them everywhere. I decided I better see what all the fuss was about, and now I am hooked! Just in case there are any Buffy fans out there who have not yet read this book, let me tell you — Buffy fans will love this book!

I guess you could say that Bella is the new Buffy and Edward is the new Angel. I mean, Bella is not exactly a vampire slayer or anything, but she is a “normal” (i.e. not vampire) teen girl who is obsessed with a hot vampire guy… One who is a “good vampire” (hence the Angel reference). I will not go into too much detail, so as to not spoil the ending, but I will give you the quick character summaries I gave my husband — told in the style of an internal dialog:

• Bella: This town sucks, but I am going to find some friends here. Who are those kids? The Cullens? The one named Edward is so cute — and he’s in my biology class! Why does he seem angry with me? Why is he not in class? OK, he’s back… And now he’s being nice? His family sure seems strange. And he has some rather unusual talents. I wonder if he’s a vampire? I wish he could be my boyfriend. Well… I know he’s a vampire, but I’m not scared of him. He’s such a nice vampire! I wish we could be together forever.
• Edward: I wish Bella didn’t smell so good. I’m gonna have to hunt some more animals if I’m going to stay safe near her. It really is tough being a “vegetarian vampire” when I am near Bella. She is a rather accident-prone girl, so I guess I’d better make sure she doesn’t get hurt… I would hate to smell her blood and react by attacking her in front of everyone. Well, I guess she is just as obsessed with me as I am with her. That could be a bit problematic… But I love the fact that I can share my secret with someone. Although, it is a bit strange that she is not scared of me. Let’s give this dating thing a shot!

Yeah… I can’t wait until the second book gets to the library. I think I may start to twitch if I don’t get it soon!

Happy Reading!