Semiosis (Semiosis Duology, #1)

336 pages

English language

Published 2018

ISBN:: 978-0-7653-9135-3
Goodreads:: 35018907

(1 review)

In this character driven novel of first contact by debut author Sue Burke, human survival hinges on an bizarre alliance.

Only mutual communication can forge an alliance with the planet's sentient species and prove that mammals are more than tools.

Forced to land on a planet they aren't prepared for, human colonists rely on their limited resources to survive. The planet provides a lush but inexplicable landscape--trees offer edible, addictive fruit one day and poison the next, while the ruins of an alien race are found entwined in the roots of a strange plant. Conflicts between generations arise as they struggle to understand one another and grapple with an unknowable alien intellect.

3 editions

Will Sargent reviewed Semiosis (Semiosis Duology, #1) by Sue Burke

Review of 'Semiosis' on 'Storygraph'

4 stars

Good premise, some awkward writing

The story of settlers on another planet where the plant are intelligent (although still very much moving on plant scale) and are used to domesticating animals by drugging or addicting them. The plot really doesn’t get going until we begging to see the plants viewpoint, and the settlers are all essentially indistinguishable, but it’s great to see how negotiations, mutual respect and friendship evolve from repeated deals.