Meet the Cast
Wanderer/Wanda
If you were to take a look at our protagonist, you'd see a young woman. And you'd probably like what you saw, because she's athletic and attractive. But you wouldn't actually be looking at her. Tha...
Melanie Stryder
Melanie's hard to classify. She's a consciousness, still existing in her own body, which has been taken over by an alien from outer space. She can't speak. She can't control her own movements. She...
Jared Howe
Jared and Melanie are perfect for each other: Jared with his machismo and male dominance and Melanie with her good looks, athleticism, and willingness to submit to said male domination. From the ve...
Ian O'Shea
Stephenie Meyer heroines have a thing for statuesque marble men. Jared and Ian are basically Jacob and Edward from the Twilight series. Jared is all testosterone, fury, and aggressive kisses like J...
Doc
Doc's a good example of a bad first impression. Wanda first sees Doc as someone who is going to cut her open to see how she works. This is… only half true.What's Up with Doc?When Wanda first sees...
Jamie Stryder
Jamie is Melanie's younger brother, but since both their parents of died, he's more of a son to her. The first part of the book is motivated by Melanie's drive to find Jamie and see if he's still s...
Kyle O'Shea
Kyle is Ian's less attractive, more angry brother. Not a good combination. He's ruled by anger over the loss of his girlfriend, Jodi, who was taken by the aliens about three years ago. Because of t...
The Seeker/Lacey
The Seeker is a title bestowed upon a certain member of the alien race. They, quite obviously, seek information about others. If the old body-snatching movies were allegories for communism, then th...
Uncle Jebediah Stryder
Uncle Jeb is the benevolent dictator of a strange hippie commune. At least, he would be if the human civilization hadn't been eradicated by aliens. Before the alien invasion, he was just a crazy co...
Walter
Poor Walter. He's one of those characters who exists to die, like a red shirt in Star Trek. It's not just for tear-jerking purposes, though. When Walter is on his deathbed (or death rock, or whatev...
Other Cave Dwellers
Clan of the Cave Under ThereWhile we learn the names of all the cave dwellers, most of them don't have any impact on the plot. They first glower at Wanda, then they accept her. Well, some of them.T...
The Souls
Shiny Happy PeopleThe first line of the book tells us about Wanda's species: "Because he was a soul, by nature he was all things good: compassionate, patient, honest, virtuous, and full of love" (P...