Science Fiction
![Sue Burke - [object Object] author](https://res.cloudinary.com/readsomnia/image/upload/authors/a_B007IG9WGW.jpg)
Semiosis: A Novel (Semiosis Duology, 1)
Human survival hinges on an bizarre alliance in Semiosis, a character driven science fiction novel of first contact by debut author Sue Burke.
2019 Campbell Memorial Award Finalist
2019 Locus Finalist for Best Science Fiction Novel
Locus 2018 Recommended Reading List
New York Public Library―Best of 2018
Forbes―Best Science Fiction Books of 2019-2019
The Verge―Best of 2018
Thrillist―Best Books of 2018
Vulture―10 Best Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books of 2018
Chicago Review of Books―The 10 Best Science Fiction Books of 2018
Texas Library Association―Lariat List Top Books for 2019
Colonists from Earth wanted the perfect home, but they'll have to survive on the one they found. They don't realize another life form watches...and waits...
Only mutual communication can forge an alliance with the planet's sentient species and prove that humans are more than tools.
2019 Campbell Memorial Award Finalist
2019 Locus Finalist for Best Science Fiction Novel
Locus 2018 Recommended Reading List
New York Public Library―Best of 2018
Forbes―Best Science Fiction Books of 2019-2019
The Verge―Best of 2018
Thrillist―Best Books of 2018
Vulture―10 Best Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books of 2018
Chicago Review of Books―The 10 Best Science Fiction Books of 2018
Texas Library Association―Lariat List Top Books for 2019
Colonists from Earth wanted the perfect home, but they'll have to survive on the one they found. They don't realize another life form watches...and waits...
Only mutual communication can forge an alliance with the planet's sentient species and prove that humans are more than tools.
Editorial Reviews
Praise for Semiosis
"This is up there with Ursula K. Le Guin: science fiction at its most fascinating and most humane."―Thrillist
"A fascinating world."―The Verge
"It makes the reader reexamine ideas about sentience. It is superbly written without an ounce of fat. Very cool indeed and highly recommended. It goes on my pile of books to be re-read."―Tade Thompson, author of Rosewater and The Murders of Molly Southbourne
"A solid debut."―SFRevu
"A magnetic meditation on biochemistry and humanity."―Locus Online
"This first-contact tale is extraordinary."―Library Journal (starred review)
"Sharp, evocative . . . Semiosis unfolds the old science fiction idea of first contact in ways that are both traditional and subversive."―The Christian Science Monitor
"A clever, fascinating, fun and unique debut."―Kirkus
"Burke's world building is exceptional, and her ability to combine the intricacies of colonization with the science of botany and theories of mutualism and predation is astounding." ―Booklist
"Impressive debut novel . . . lush . . . beautiful."―Publishers Weekly, starred review
"A fresh and fun perspective on planetary exploration."―The Bibliosanctum (4 out of 5 stars)
"Filled with questions about the nature of intelligence and how we value it, and humanity's place within the universe, Semiosis is a provocative novel . . . "―Fantasy Literature
"A very… different and super engaging novel."―The Book Smugglers
"A fresh and thought-provoking take."―Open Letters
"Semiosis combines the world-building of Avatar with the alien wonder of Arrival, and the sheer humanity of Atwood. An essential work for our time."―Stephen Baxter, award winning author of The Time Ships
"This is up there with Ursula K. Le Guin: science fiction at its most fascinating and most humane."―Thrillist
"A fascinating world."―The Verge
"It makes the reader reexamine ideas about sentience. It is superbly written without an ounce of fat. Very cool indeed and highly recommended. It goes on my pile of books to be re-read."―Tade Thompson, author of Rosewater and The Murders of Molly Southbourne
"A solid debut."―SFRevu
"A magnetic meditation on biochemistry and humanity."―Locus Online
"This first-contact tale is extraordinary."―Library Journal (starred review)
"Sharp, evocative . . . Semiosis unfolds the old science fiction idea of first contact in ways that are both traditional and subversive."―The Christian Science Monitor
"A clever, fascinating, fun and unique debut."―Kirkus
"Burke's world building is exceptional, and her ability to combine the intricacies of colonization with the science of botany and theories of mutualism and predation is astounding." ―Booklist
"Impressive debut novel . . . lush . . . beautiful."―Publishers Weekly, starred review
"A fresh and fun perspective on planetary exploration."―The Bibliosanctum (4 out of 5 stars)
"Filled with questions about the nature of intelligence and how we value it, and humanity's place within the universe, Semiosis is a provocative novel . . . "―Fantasy Literature
"A very… different and super engaging novel."―The Book Smugglers
"A fresh and thought-provoking take."―Open Letters
"Semiosis combines the world-building of Avatar with the alien wonder of Arrival, and the sheer humanity of Atwood. An essential work for our time."―Stephen Baxter, award winning author of The Time Ships
Readers Top Reviews
R. Murphy
Perhaps some would say that the main character is a bit unusual, and that's true (no spoilers). But this is a great book about an advance colonization party on a new planet who encounter some pretty strange stuff until they ally with an unusual local inhabitant. I thoroughly enjoyed it, it was a great read, and I see that the book has now been nominated for many awards. Treat yourself!
Anonymous
An interesting concept however, I found the writing flimsy and dense. The extremly small print didn't help. What I missed here were well developed characters. I love sci-fi but I felt this novel missed to expand the alien side of it which had a potential and the rest is pretty ordinary human with ocasional references to the alien world. It may be just me but I couldn't realy get the pucture of the Snowine nor the 'buildings' or the surounding/setting nor characters, all allong, which for a sci-fi book exploring a new setlement on the alien planet is quite disapointing. The characters, move, talk, explain, get ill, die, debate but action is dead in an hasy, badly built/described world. I have struggled along through endlesly long sentences that didn't say much and pushed my imagination to the limits but couldn't get much from the writing to help me along. It made me wonder who edited and formated the writing as it felt sub-standard. A misleading advert on front cover ( The Arthur C Ckarke Award) is not really an award but the book was only shortlisted for it (quite a difference). The book consists if several novelas, each themed with a new generation of settlers.It may have worked but the many characters came and went and I didn't feell interested/intregued/ invested in a single one. I rarely write a comment, especially a negative one but I guess, I was patricularly dissapointed with this book.
M. KingS. Mitchell
A bunch of rich hipsters escape a doomed Earth to set up a commune on a planet far far away. Peace and love and living as one with nature are on the cards, except that within a generation parents are murdering and raping kids for the vaguest of reasons. The first big failing of the book for me was that there’s no depth and no attempt to explain at a psychological level how this could happen. Anyway this bunch of losers find an intelligent plant who stops them all being dead in a week but who they don’t trust. There’s much made by others of the first contact element but really our magic marrow does all the work...it’s not an in-depth piece like Arrival . Then they meet a bunch of aggressive cannabalistic savages and decide to renew their ethos of piece love etc etc, regardless of the fact that they are always bickering with each other. (And killing each other) so the obvious happens and some of the savages do what they do best...until all is saved by the charismatic carrot...who some of our motley group still don’t trust. It’s simplistic, shallow nonsense that barely holds your interest and the characters are thinly drawn and unsympathetic...unless you have a penchant for stupid people.
