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The Host
In the near-future country of Manhattan the poor First-Levelers barely survive on the old streets, sealed beneath a fifth-story ceiling. Far above in the sunlight, rich Second-Levelers thrive in boring opulence. They get their kicks by projecting their minds into the bodies of First-Levelers in an ultra-real game called Hosting. Desperate to earn enough cash to have a child, First Leveler Watly Caiper becomes a Host. But instead of using his body for sordid fun, the anonymous Second-Level Donor commits the perfect crime. On the run from the police and on the hook for murder, Watley must find the mysterious killer before time runs out.
- GenresScience FictionDystopia
358 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1991
4 people are currently reading
162 people want to read
About the author
Peter Emshwiller
2 books18 followersBack in the roaring eighties, Peter “Stoney” Emshwiller lived in the East Village of Manhattan, right around the corner from CBGBs. Did he spend his days punk-rocking out? Sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll? Nah, he was way too nerdy and introverted for all that. Instead he worked as the managing editor of a buncha international magazines (including Rod Serling’s Twilight Zone Magazine, Night Cry, and Gallery Magazine).
Since those years he’s had two science fiction Bantam Books novels published (The Host and its sequel, Short Blade), an original TV sitcom pilot produced, and numerous movie options taken out on his work by the likes of Jerry Bruckheimer. When he’s not writing, he’s acting — particularly as a voiceover artist. Yes, that’s Stoney you hear resonating mellifluously in radio ads, making goofy voices in cartoons, and dying a thousand horrible deaths in video games. (Hey, it beats working for a living.)
Stoney is currently working on a romantic, silly, deeply smutty, hopefully funny novel designed to offend anyone who has even the tiniest smidgen of good taste.
Since those years he’s had two science fiction Bantam Books novels published (The Host and its sequel, Short Blade), an original TV sitcom pilot produced, and numerous movie options taken out on his work by the likes of Jerry Bruckheimer. When he’s not writing, he’s acting — particularly as a voiceover artist. Yes, that’s Stoney you hear resonating mellifluously in radio ads, making goofy voices in cartoons, and dying a thousand horrible deaths in video games. (Hey, it beats working for a living.)
Stoney is currently working on a romantic, silly, deeply smutty, hopefully funny novel designed to offend anyone who has even the tiniest smidgen of good taste.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
January 17, 2013
I've had a damn good run of reads recently and this may be the best of them. The first part in particular gave me one of those read until you literally cannot keep your eyes open kind of nights. The Host is set in a future when the United States have splintered and now most societies are split down the poverty line where the rich people live in the sunlight and the poor live about five stories underground. Only there's this subset of the rich who would like to go play in the gutter with the commonfolk so naturally what they do is rent out someone to host for them. Which means they wear some poor sap's body and do what they like with it. The hosts, like our main character Watley Capier, are all desperate for the cash. Watley's end goal is motherhood since contraceptives in the water have been added to keep the population under control. So Watley hosts and Watley gets involved with something that is way over his head.
The world building here is fantastic. There's some politics but it's not overwhelming. Hosting is a cool concept and it's supremely well executed. Emshwiller takes some risks with language that I think reads a little clunky, but I can appreciate the effort. There's also a lot of screwing with gender norms which works damn well and I enjoyed it a lot.
My biggest problem with it was that Watley's character and ensuing romance didn't really work for me. Which is sad, but good writing, good action, good pace. Definitely pick this one up if you have the opportunity.
The world building here is fantastic. There's some politics but it's not overwhelming. Hosting is a cool concept and it's supremely well executed. Emshwiller takes some risks with language that I think reads a little clunky, but I can appreciate the effort. There's also a lot of screwing with gender norms which works damn well and I enjoyed it a lot.
My biggest problem with it was that Watley's character and ensuing romance didn't really work for me. Which is sad, but good writing, good action, good pace. Definitely pick this one up if you have the opportunity.
September 2, 2014
This was a freebie from amazon so I thought I'd give it a try. The idea behind the book was intriguing. The book built up to a pretty good peak but sort of plateaued a bit.
The world has changed, countries and cities aren't what they used to be. There are physical levels to society, unlike today's class perceptions in people's minds. The main character Watley lives in the bottom level. But he has the chance to ascend one day if he can take a job "hosting", which pays a great sum. Hosting is allowing someone from the upper level to technologically take over your body and use it the way they choose. There are rules and safeguards to the hosting, but something goes wrong one night as Watley is hosting, terribly wrong.
The world has changed, countries and cities aren't what they used to be. There are physical levels to society, unlike today's class perceptions in people's minds. The main character Watley lives in the bottom level. But he has the chance to ascend one day if he can take a job "hosting", which pays a great sum. Hosting is allowing someone from the upper level to technologically take over your body and use it the way they choose. There are rules and safeguards to the hosting, but something goes wrong one night as Watley is hosting, terribly wrong.
July 29, 2014
I love this book! So different. Action filled. Great description of events and people. What an unexpected story from beginning to end.
July 27, 2014
Fantastic Plot, Outstanding Characters
This was written 25 years ago and yet still has all the action, adventure, suspense, and weird dystopian future that readers could ever hope to encounter.
This is the story of Watley Caiper, a man who lives in our distant future where Euroshima has wiped Europe from the map, the U.S. states are separate countries, or separate states have banded together to make a country. Watley lives in Manhattan, which is a country all by itself. They have walled in the first floor and streets of Manhattan off overhead, and created a second level, where the wealthy live and get the benefits of fresh air, sunshine and the flora/fauna. Watley lives with his Uncle Narcolo on the dark and damp first level - trying to get a job as a host for big bucks to fulfill his dream. His dream is to one day be the Mother of a child ( in the area of raising the child, not physically producing one ). When the hosting starts, the novel takes off like a rocket.
While I won't rehash the plot, Watley is a very busy boy during the rest of the book. The plot could have been conceived on an Etch-a-Sketch, with a huge amount of wiggly turns and about- faces. I was always surprised at each escape and solution that Watley and his friends came up with. I was also impressed that law enforcement in the future actually made smart use of technology as well as manpower.
You get soul possession, kidnapping, murder, mistaken identity, rape, criminal pursuit, an underground army, evil doctors, a nefarious plot, a dedicated police detective, a revolutionary leader, unscrupulous Uncles, techno sex changing aristocrats, philanthropists, Sexsentral and much, much more.
Watley, our narrator, is such a fantastic character. He could be anyone, caught in an untenable situation, but he uses his head as well as his heart, which is what I loved the most about him. He goes through so much in so little time, and yet it changes his entire perspective - finally understanding what P-pajer, his Mom, meant throughout his childhood. Alysess, the doctor, was a mixed bag for me. I either wanted to slap her silly, or have Watley stay with her forever. Her major scenes were either wonderful, or a poor showing (tantrum x 2, violence, stupid). I realize that the situation was extremely stressful, but someone described as regal would not rave about a situation that wasn't the other person's fault, nor would they punch that same person in the face. After everything that happened, she acted out of character. There was no backstory on anyone other than Watley, so no insights into behavior. We know nothing about the life of the villain either, or the victims, the friends, or the police. While the characters were colorful and had details that fixed the type of people they were, I realize I can't actually picture any of them except for Watley and Alysess in my head.
The pace of the novel is breakneck. The POV is Watley's, so you get narrative in action mode, like a live CNN chase, except it would be the chased giving the report. Imagine being in O.J.'s head as those policemen chased him down the 405 freeway. Now you have the picture.
The only problem with the breakneck pace, is things get left out for the sake of the action. Why is the F-bomb a good word? Why do they use rape as a pejorative? What changed? What triggered Euroshima? Who did the bombing? Are they a big smoking hole too? What is Alysess's history, along with the Ragman's and villain's? What did Uncle Narcolo's apartment look like? There are so many questions now that I have finished the story. It was for this reason that I gave it 4 stars instead of 5. In my opinion, a bit more background on the doctor, the ragman and the bad guy would round this out nicely. Why is the bad guy so very evil? Why has the Ragman worked so very hard all these years? Why is the doctor emotionally challenged? What are the primary colors of level one during their day? I could keep going, but you get the gist of it.
Parents: This book does contain mild sexual encounters, masturbation and talk of genitalia as well as people discussing and watching pornography.
The ending of the book was a complete surprise to me, but I really can't think of a better way for this wild caper to end. The ending was shocking, poignant and touching. It wraps up some issues, but leaves others wide open for the sequel.
Bottom Line: If you like a good exciting story with a torrential pace, a great protagonist and a surprising plot, then this is your novel. The genre definitions don't matter on this one - it's just a thumping good read. Thank you Mr. Emshwiller, for re-releasing your books. It gave me a chance to read a fantastic story that swept me away into exciting and unpredictable world of Watley Caiper. Highly Recommended!
This was written 25 years ago and yet still has all the action, adventure, suspense, and weird dystopian future that readers could ever hope to encounter.
This is the story of Watley Caiper, a man who lives in our distant future where Euroshima has wiped Europe from the map, the U.S. states are separate countries, or separate states have banded together to make a country. Watley lives in Manhattan, which is a country all by itself. They have walled in the first floor and streets of Manhattan off overhead, and created a second level, where the wealthy live and get the benefits of fresh air, sunshine and the flora/fauna. Watley lives with his Uncle Narcolo on the dark and damp first level - trying to get a job as a host for big bucks to fulfill his dream. His dream is to one day be the Mother of a child ( in the area of raising the child, not physically producing one ). When the hosting starts, the novel takes off like a rocket.
While I won't rehash the plot, Watley is a very busy boy during the rest of the book. The plot could have been conceived on an Etch-a-Sketch, with a huge amount of wiggly turns and about- faces. I was always surprised at each escape and solution that Watley and his friends came up with. I was also impressed that law enforcement in the future actually made smart use of technology as well as manpower.
You get soul possession, kidnapping, murder, mistaken identity, rape, criminal pursuit, an underground army, evil doctors, a nefarious plot, a dedicated police detective, a revolutionary leader, unscrupulous Uncles, techno sex changing aristocrats, philanthropists, Sexsentral and much, much more.
Watley, our narrator, is such a fantastic character. He could be anyone, caught in an untenable situation, but he uses his head as well as his heart, which is what I loved the most about him. He goes through so much in so little time, and yet it changes his entire perspective - finally understanding what P-pajer, his Mom, meant throughout his childhood. Alysess, the doctor, was a mixed bag for me. I either wanted to slap her silly, or have Watley stay with her forever. Her major scenes were either wonderful, or a poor showing (tantrum x 2, violence, stupid). I realize that the situation was extremely stressful, but someone described as regal would not rave about a situation that wasn't the other person's fault, nor would they punch that same person in the face. After everything that happened, she acted out of character. There was no backstory on anyone other than Watley, so no insights into behavior. We know nothing about the life of the villain either, or the victims, the friends, or the police. While the characters were colorful and had details that fixed the type of people they were, I realize I can't actually picture any of them except for Watley and Alysess in my head.
The pace of the novel is breakneck. The POV is Watley's, so you get narrative in action mode, like a live CNN chase, except it would be the chased giving the report. Imagine being in O.J.'s head as those policemen chased him down the 405 freeway. Now you have the picture.
The only problem with the breakneck pace, is things get left out for the sake of the action. Why is the F-bomb a good word? Why do they use rape as a pejorative? What changed? What triggered Euroshima? Who did the bombing? Are they a big smoking hole too? What is Alysess's history, along with the Ragman's and villain's? What did Uncle Narcolo's apartment look like? There are so many questions now that I have finished the story. It was for this reason that I gave it 4 stars instead of 5. In my opinion, a bit more background on the doctor, the ragman and the bad guy would round this out nicely. Why is the bad guy so very evil? Why has the Ragman worked so very hard all these years? Why is the doctor emotionally challenged? What are the primary colors of level one during their day? I could keep going, but you get the gist of it.
Parents: This book does contain mild sexual encounters, masturbation and talk of genitalia as well as people discussing and watching pornography.
The ending of the book was a complete surprise to me, but I really can't think of a better way for this wild caper to end. The ending was shocking, poignant and touching. It wraps up some issues, but leaves others wide open for the sequel.
Bottom Line: If you like a good exciting story with a torrential pace, a great protagonist and a surprising plot, then this is your novel. The genre definitions don't matter on this one - it's just a thumping good read. Thank you Mr. Emshwiller, for re-releasing your books. It gave me a chance to read a fantastic story that swept me away into exciting and unpredictable world of Watley Caiper. Highly Recommended!
July 16, 2014
The story of a good person hunted on false charges, forced to dig up unforseen layers of courage and cunning to survive until the next paragraph, is one that never gets old; and in LEVELS: THE HOST, Peter R. Emshwiller has come up with a fun and fresh variation on this theme.
One key to this variation is the use of an innocent, surprisingly naive person who must learn to survive in a cruel environment without becoming cruel himself. That person, Watly Caiper, is a young man with a compelling dream: to be a mother. To that end, he will do anything -- but as he discovers, "anything" means one thing to a good man, but something else entirely to a man who has no concern for people, for ethics, or for life itself.
It can be hard to write about naive heros without having them seem stupid or credulous to the point of pain, but Peter Emshwiller walks the tight-rope well.
He can also bring other skills to the page. He can dream up a vivid place and time. He can plot in devious ways that play fair with details already provided. He can end chapters on a note that makes you hurry to the next. He can surprise you with appropriate moments of humour or dismay. Best of all, he can make you care about his hero: a man both naive and courageous, both desperate and fundamentally good, who can carry the weight of the story right to the final page.
With all of this in mind, I have to admit that I nearly bailed out of the opening chapters, and only because of the prose.
At his best, Peter Emshwiller can write with an individual voice that is unpretentious, clear, and engaging. He makes a few grammatical mistakes ("like" and "as" have to play by different rules), and every now and then he might choose the wrong word ("nauseous" does not mean "nauseated"), but on the whole, he can describe an action, a setting, or a state of mind with conviction.
Yet in the opening chapters, this individual voice is undermined by needless repetition:
"It struck Watly suddenly -- almost physically -- that the most wondrous thing about Second Level compared to First was a very simple thing. A basic thing: People had only one shadow here. Just one. Like Brooklyn. The solitary sun cast only one elegant shadow for each object. On First Level there was never only one shadow. Down below, as one walked from beneath one daylite to another, a fan of shadows danced about, fused and separated, faded and grew -- always in motion and never alone. Here it was different. Here a person could have a sense of solidity. One person: one shadow. Elegant."
In the early chapters, this verbal padding is often relentless, and it buries passages of lively description and fun, quirky insight beneath a pile of words. All too often, a statement is repeated. All too often. Almost constantly. Almost every time. Repeated. Statement after statement. After a while -- after just a few moments -- after just a few paragraphs -- I began to notice the repetition more than I noticed the story.
Very much to my relief, this repetition soon fades away to the point where the story can stand up and be enjoyed. The flaw has less to do with writing than with a lack of careful revision. From this debut novel, I would say that Peter Emshwiller can write well; if he can learn to revise well, then his obvious abilities will shine out all the more.
But for now, I recommend this book: for its roller-coaster plot, for its keen sense of place, for its emotional warmth and humanity, and for the glimpses of the writer's personality that gleam from the pages.
THE HOST is an individual book with an individual voice. In our current publishing environment, this matters more than I could say.
One key to this variation is the use of an innocent, surprisingly naive person who must learn to survive in a cruel environment without becoming cruel himself. That person, Watly Caiper, is a young man with a compelling dream: to be a mother. To that end, he will do anything -- but as he discovers, "anything" means one thing to a good man, but something else entirely to a man who has no concern for people, for ethics, or for life itself.
It can be hard to write about naive heros without having them seem stupid or credulous to the point of pain, but Peter Emshwiller walks the tight-rope well.
He can also bring other skills to the page. He can dream up a vivid place and time. He can plot in devious ways that play fair with details already provided. He can end chapters on a note that makes you hurry to the next. He can surprise you with appropriate moments of humour or dismay. Best of all, he can make you care about his hero: a man both naive and courageous, both desperate and fundamentally good, who can carry the weight of the story right to the final page.
With all of this in mind, I have to admit that I nearly bailed out of the opening chapters, and only because of the prose.
At his best, Peter Emshwiller can write with an individual voice that is unpretentious, clear, and engaging. He makes a few grammatical mistakes ("like" and "as" have to play by different rules), and every now and then he might choose the wrong word ("nauseous" does not mean "nauseated"), but on the whole, he can describe an action, a setting, or a state of mind with conviction.
Yet in the opening chapters, this individual voice is undermined by needless repetition:
"It struck Watly suddenly -- almost physically -- that the most wondrous thing about Second Level compared to First was a very simple thing. A basic thing: People had only one shadow here. Just one. Like Brooklyn. The solitary sun cast only one elegant shadow for each object. On First Level there was never only one shadow. Down below, as one walked from beneath one daylite to another, a fan of shadows danced about, fused and separated, faded and grew -- always in motion and never alone. Here it was different. Here a person could have a sense of solidity. One person: one shadow. Elegant."
In the early chapters, this verbal padding is often relentless, and it buries passages of lively description and fun, quirky insight beneath a pile of words. All too often, a statement is repeated. All too often. Almost constantly. Almost every time. Repeated. Statement after statement. After a while -- after just a few moments -- after just a few paragraphs -- I began to notice the repetition more than I noticed the story.
Very much to my relief, this repetition soon fades away to the point where the story can stand up and be enjoyed. The flaw has less to do with writing than with a lack of careful revision. From this debut novel, I would say that Peter Emshwiller can write well; if he can learn to revise well, then his obvious abilities will shine out all the more.
But for now, I recommend this book: for its roller-coaster plot, for its keen sense of place, for its emotional warmth and humanity, and for the glimpses of the writer's personality that gleam from the pages.
THE HOST is an individual book with an individual voice. In our current publishing environment, this matters more than I could say.
August 5, 2014
This very much reminded me of Robert Silverberg's short story 'Passengers'. I haven't re-read it since 1970 so the likeness may only be the 'host' one. Great short story and this is also a nice piece of work.
This book was originally written twenty-five years ago and with few changes has survived the journey well. Not all sci-fi can do that. The new world is vivid without long chapters setting it up and the altered use of words (such as rape and the F-word) is a great idea and adds a touch of futurity without effort.
It is also great to see that the writer does not fill in unnecessary background, a failing of many tyro writers. We do not need to know how the situation arose to produce this world, or early lives of its characters, (for example) to fully appreciate and comprehend this tale.
A very enjoyable read even after the passage of years. I suspect its few failings have been well documented in reviews since then.
This book was originally written twenty-five years ago and with few changes has survived the journey well. Not all sci-fi can do that. The new world is vivid without long chapters setting it up and the altered use of words (such as rape and the F-word) is a great idea and adds a touch of futurity without effort.
It is also great to see that the writer does not fill in unnecessary background, a failing of many tyro writers. We do not need to know how the situation arose to produce this world, or early lives of its characters, (for example) to fully appreciate and comprehend this tale.
A very enjoyable read even after the passage of years. I suspect its few failings have been well documented in reviews since then.
March 22, 2012
Allegorical sci fi with comic and erotic paraphernalia. In future Manhattan, young man Watley Caiper wants to be a mom. But in order to counter the contraceptives in the water, he needs money, and the onluy way to get it is to rent his body as a Host. The hosting chores go from banal to lascivious--but murder is strictly prohibited. Guess what happens when Watley hosts! And it goes from there, with Watley trying to figure out who killed someone with his body! After this, check out the sequel, Short Blade.
April 28, 2012
Remember liking this a lot when I got a signed copy at an Icon scifi convention when it came out. Reminded of it again as I am reading Starters which is quite good, but reminds me way too much of this book mixed with Hunger Games, and Total recall so far...
July 29, 2014
Would make an excellent movie. Recommended.
August 28, 2014
I wasn't expecting much since it was a free Kindle download, but wow, this blew me away.
September 3, 2022
As hard as it is to believe that it's been 25 years since Peter Emshwiller's cyberpunk classic first hit shelves, it's even harder to accept that it's been out of print for so long. Fortunately, in celebration of it's silver anniversary, it's now available as an e-book, complete with a new intro and a shiny new cover.
Fortunately, the story itself hasn't changed, and neither has the telling. Levels: The Host still has that early 90s, edge-of-apocalypse, pulp sci-fi sort of feel to it, but it's surprisingly fresh and original. Re-reading it now, after so many years, it's just as imaginative and just as much fun as the first time around.
Part of what makes the story so attractive is the simple ways in which Emshwiller subverts expectations - beginning with language. Instead of inventing new slang that's dated almost as soon as the final page is turned, he plays with words we already know, extending conversational trends, turning the f-bomb into a part of everyday speech, and making words like rape the coarsest of curses. Even his hero is a subversion, an all-around average guy who wants nothing more than a chance to be a mother (not in a gender sense, but that of gender roles).
Yes, Watly Caiper is a First Leveler, a denizen of the subterranean industrial slums, who aspires to an impossible dream of motherhood. In order to save up enough money to cover the costs, he has applied to become a host, renting out his body to angry, horny, or bored Second Levelers who want to to play in the slums without risking their bodies. It's a dangerous job, despite the multiple safeguards, but it pays extraordinarily well. Unfortunately for Watly, his second gig not only sees his body being used to assassinate one of the most prominent Second Level businessmen around, but the stranger taking a ride inside him has worked very hard to disable all those safeguards and frame Watly for murder.
What follows is a classic thriller, with Watly desperately trying to evade capture while trying to clear his name. The set pieces are fantastic, dark and claustrophobic on the First Level, and gleaming chrome and blue skies on the Second. There's at least one narrow escape in just about every chapter, a few great chase scenes, and more than one double-cross that proves to be as clever as it is entertaining. The emphasis here is very much on the human element, with technology playing a supporting role, as evidenced by the experience of hosting. While we do learn about the how and why of it works, it's really the sensory experience of what Watly feels and how he experiences his world as a consciousness with no physical control over his own body that drives the story.
Levels: The Host is a fun, fast-paced read that doesn't try to 'wow' the reader with technological genius, and which avoids the temptation to drive any sort of 'hard' moralizing or ecological message. The climax is something of a shocker, setting up the events of Short Blade, but the core mystery here is resolved.
Originally reviewed at Beauty in Ruins
Fortunately, the story itself hasn't changed, and neither has the telling. Levels: The Host still has that early 90s, edge-of-apocalypse, pulp sci-fi sort of feel to it, but it's surprisingly fresh and original. Re-reading it now, after so many years, it's just as imaginative and just as much fun as the first time around.
Part of what makes the story so attractive is the simple ways in which Emshwiller subverts expectations - beginning with language. Instead of inventing new slang that's dated almost as soon as the final page is turned, he plays with words we already know, extending conversational trends, turning the f-bomb into a part of everyday speech, and making words like rape the coarsest of curses. Even his hero is a subversion, an all-around average guy who wants nothing more than a chance to be a mother (not in a gender sense, but that of gender roles).
Yes, Watly Caiper is a First Leveler, a denizen of the subterranean industrial slums, who aspires to an impossible dream of motherhood. In order to save up enough money to cover the costs, he has applied to become a host, renting out his body to angry, horny, or bored Second Levelers who want to to play in the slums without risking their bodies. It's a dangerous job, despite the multiple safeguards, but it pays extraordinarily well. Unfortunately for Watly, his second gig not only sees his body being used to assassinate one of the most prominent Second Level businessmen around, but the stranger taking a ride inside him has worked very hard to disable all those safeguards and frame Watly for murder.
What follows is a classic thriller, with Watly desperately trying to evade capture while trying to clear his name. The set pieces are fantastic, dark and claustrophobic on the First Level, and gleaming chrome and blue skies on the Second. There's at least one narrow escape in just about every chapter, a few great chase scenes, and more than one double-cross that proves to be as clever as it is entertaining. The emphasis here is very much on the human element, with technology playing a supporting role, as evidenced by the experience of hosting. While we do learn about the how and why of it works, it's really the sensory experience of what Watly feels and how he experiences his world as a consciousness with no physical control over his own body that drives the story.
Levels: The Host is a fun, fast-paced read that doesn't try to 'wow' the reader with technological genius, and which avoids the temptation to drive any sort of 'hard' moralizing or ecological message. The climax is something of a shocker, setting up the events of Short Blade, but the core mystery here is resolved.
Originally reviewed at Beauty in Ruins
December 11, 2016
http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/2705521.html
This 1991 novel may have been partly inspired by Frederik Pohl's memorable 1974 story "We Purchased People", with which it shares the concept of human bodies being rented out for use by other intelligences, the original owner helplessly aware as murder is committed by their hands. However it's not quite in the same league - where Pohl's protagonist is repulsive and has done dreadful things with the result that he is punished by being rented out to aliens, Emshwiler's Watly is participating in the free market and renting himself to rich humans, in a near-future surveillance society which is sexually liberated in many ways except that it remains deeply homophobic. The impact is very different - Pohl gets us to sympathise with an awful man to whom awful things happen, Emshwiler switches from the implications of the hosting technology to standard techno-thriller mode once we've had the original setup, allowing him to explore his future city at exciting pace, before the inevitable twist leads to a predictable conclusion.
This 1991 novel may have been partly inspired by Frederik Pohl's memorable 1974 story "We Purchased People", with which it shares the concept of human bodies being rented out for use by other intelligences, the original owner helplessly aware as murder is committed by their hands. However it's not quite in the same league - where Pohl's protagonist is repulsive and has done dreadful things with the result that he is punished by being rented out to aliens, Emshwiler's Watly is participating in the free market and renting himself to rich humans, in a near-future surveillance society which is sexually liberated in many ways except that it remains deeply homophobic. The impact is very different - Pohl gets us to sympathise with an awful man to whom awful things happen, Emshwiler switches from the implications of the hosting technology to standard techno-thriller mode once we've had the original setup, allowing him to explore his future city at exciting pace, before the inevitable twist leads to a predictable conclusion.
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July 28, 2014Here Peter R "Stoney" Emshwiller pens a curious genderbending science fiction novel of the future in which "Rape" is a dirty word but the "F" word is not, one man's greatest dream is to become a mommy, gender is indeterminate among the faithful, while opennness about relations prevails everywhere but on the repressive Second Level where a repressive, supposedly pure bred society rules the roost. Thence comes the cries, "California!" "California!" and "Revy" for revolution's sake as the Ragman comes looking to overturn the order without the threat of violence. And thence too comes certain death... with new life to follow in its wake. Well done, Mr. Emshwiller. A good analogy. If only it were that easy...
August 25, 2014
The two stars need explaining... Compared to my other reviews this should get only one star (to make it more fair to my other two star ratings). But it is not that bad that I "did not like it". On the contrary. The dystopian ideas were novel and the overall plot interesting. But how the characters react made me more than once wince. Oh no, not like that. And the style was very repetitive. Almost every idea was rephrased several times in consecutive sentences. The book could have been made 3 times shorter without losing anything of the plot, the ideas, ... and would have made it stronger. Solve these and it gets a three star review!
If I could, I would settle for a 1,5 star review of this version.
If I could, I would settle for a 1,5 star review of this version.
January 17, 2015
The author suggested I read this, and I'm so glad he did. (I'm also glad I enjoyed it so. It's tough to avoid folks looking for feedback! This was a no-brainer!)
I really enjoyed "The Host." It took a couple of chapters before I was able to see where I was and what was happening, but once the concepts kicked in I was all on board.
Great sci-fi, great characters, and, for me, great life lessons, what strong science fiction does so well.
Nicely done, Mr. Emshwiller.
Give this a read, ya'll.
d
I really enjoyed "The Host." It took a couple of chapters before I was able to see where I was and what was happening, but once the concepts kicked in I was all on board.
Great sci-fi, great characters, and, for me, great life lessons, what strong science fiction does so well.
Nicely done, Mr. Emshwiller.
Give this a read, ya'll.
d
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