Host (Thorn St. Croix, Book 3) [Mass Market Paperback]

Faith Hunter (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 6, 2007

In a post-apocalyptic ice age, neomage Thorn St. Croix was nearly driven insane by her powers. She lived as a fugitive, disguised as a human and married to a human man, channeling her gifts for war into stone-magery. When she was discovered, her friends and neighbors accepted her, but warily. Not so the mage who arrives from the Council of Seraphs, who could be her greatest ally-or her most dangerous foe. And when it's revealed that her long-gone sister, Rose, is still alive, Thorn must make a choice-and risk her own life in the process.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The third novel in Hunter's postapocalyptic fantasy series (after 2006's Seraphs) finds neomage Thorn St. Croix working as a jeweler and town mage in the rural Appalachian town of Mineral City, Carolina. Then her former home, the New Orleans Enclave, sends arrogant metal mage Cheran Jones, ostensibly to instruct her in media relations as she is woefully lacking in diplomatic knowledge and abilities. When the deadly succubus queen's war on Mineral City provides enough death energy for the powerful Dragon to escape its prison between the planes of reality, Thorn is pulled between the demands of the ultra-lawful Administration of the ArchSeraph and its rivals, the Earth Invasion Heretics, who claim to know the origins of seraphs and demons and the whereabouts of Thorn's missing twin, Rose. Hunter's world continues to expand in this highly original fantasy with lively characters where nothing can ever be taken for granted. (Nov.)
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About the Author

A native of Louisiana, Faith Hunter spent her early years on the bayous and rivers, learning survival skills and the womanly arts. She liked horses, dogs, fishing and crabbing much better than girly skills. She still does.

In grade school, she fell in love with fantasy and science fiction, reading five books a week and wishing she could "write that great stuff." Faith now shares her life with her Renaissance Man and their dogs in a Enclave of their own. Faith is working on a new series, which Roc will publish starting in the summer of 2009, and a role-playing game, called The Rogue Mage, based on Thorn.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Roc Trade (November 6, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451461738
• ISBN-13: 978-0451461735
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,009,165 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Faith Hunter, urban fantasy writer, was born in Louisiana and raised all over the south. Hunter fell in love with reading in fifth grade, and best loved SciFi, fantasy, and gothic mystery. She decided to become a writer in high school, when a teacher told her she had talent. Now, she writes full-time and works full-time in a hospital lab, (for the benefits) tries to keep house, and is a workaholic with a passion for travel, jewelry making, white-water kayaking, and writing. She and her husband love to RV, traveling with their dogs to whitewater rivers all over the Southeast.

The dark urban fantasy Skinwalker series, featuring Jane Yellowrock is taking off like a rocket with Skinwalker, Blood Cross, Mercy Blade, the compilation e-book Cat Tales (dec 2011) and Raven Cursed (Jan 2012).

Her Rogue Mage novels, a dark, urban fantasy series--Bloodring, Seraphs, and Host--feature Thorn St. Croix, a stone mage in a post-apocalyptic, alternate reality, urban fantasy world. These novels are the basis for the world book / role playing game, Rogue Mage. This RPG title will be out in December 2011.

Under her pen name Gwen Hunter, she writes action adventure, mysteries, and thrillers. As Faith and Gwen, she has 28 books in print in 28 countries.

Along with other published writers, Faith participates in an online writing community geared to helping fantasy writers with tips and publishing advice called www.MagicalWords.net

Join the fans at the official Faith Hunter Facebook fan page now located at
https://www.facebook.com/official.faith.hunter or follow her on Twitter @HunterFaith
For more, including a list of her books, freebies, & upcoming events see www.FaithHunter.net and www.GwenHunter.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Engrossing and disappointing at the same time, April 25, 2008

By 

T. Warning (Dallas, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Host (Thorn St. Croix, Book 3) (Mass Market Paperback)

Throughout this series, Thorn often lusts after men because they are seraphs or the progeny of seraphs. I understand that she can't help it and I think the idea is intriguing. However, all this lust never culminates or amounts to anything. Books don't require sex in order to be good but if Thorn is repeatedly throwing herself at guys, I come to expect something to result from it. I expect her to find a guy (human, mage, kylen, seraph, WHATEVER) and pick him AND end up with him. When I finished the epilogue, I felt incredibly disgusted but not at all surprised. It seems like all three books so far have ended somewhat abruptly with loose ends, just a few pages after the battles are over.

That being said, the characters are well-developed and likable, my favorites being Audric and Eli. And, of course, my favorite aspect of the books is the world-building; I'm a huge fan of seraphs vs fallen/spawn in a post-apocalyptic setting.

The end leaves a lot unsaid and afterwards I went to Ms. Hunter's website, hoping for news of a fourth book though I had a sinking feeling that I wouldn't find anything. One page on the site calls the series a trilogy but I would still love to see what happens to Ciana, Thorn, Cheran, Rose, Audric, and the seraphs. Hopefully there's some evil left for them to fight.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Too much time spent on erratic battle scenes, September 12, 2009

By 

L. Smal (USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Host: A Rogue Mage Novel (Mass Market Paperback)

In the beginning of the book, there is one long and boring battle scene which takes close to 50-60 pages. In my opinion, it's too much, it's overkill. This battle with darkness could have taken maximum 20 pages.

Reading the book, sometimes I stopped understanding what is going on: too much religious and unnecessary references; who kills whom; who is on whose side; and in general -- what is happening, etc. As usual, there is no definite ending to several plot lines, the books leaves many questions unanswered.

Author's writing was erratic and illogical (even assuming that this is a Post-Ap Sci-fi, some logic is required).

I liked much more another book by this author, "Skinwalker" released summer 2009.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not bad.., March 23, 2010

By 

Joshua Anderson - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Host: A Rogue Mage Novel (Mass Market Paperback)

Not overly good but the story arch for the whole series is actually intriguing. This is probably my least favorite book in that there are a host of characters that never seem to build into anything more. The ending feels a bit rushed also in that Thorn finds her sister and then after the next chapter the book is done. She had been looking for her for years and all we get is exchanged glances. And what about the High Host? Are they really aliens trying to take over the world or are the actually angels? So, many possibilities with characters and ideas that have been brought up never get flushed out. I don't know if this is the last book and this is only going to be a trilogy but that's what I've heard and that is aggravating if it is true. If you don't mind books not really tying up any loose ends then give these a try but if you like stories to come to a conclusion then stay away.