I loved Overgrowth. Apocalyptic, aliens, galactic war, really descriptive world building and characters I cared so much about. I didn’t expect to cry at the end, but did.

Stasia has been telling everyone, since she was three, that she was an alien and that eventually Earth would be invaded and conquered. She’s never deviated from this. She’s found love in her boyfriend Graham and a core group of friends who accept her for who she is. Until the aliens actually invade.

I don’t want to spoil too much. Go in cold if you can. I would love to see this as a movie. I would also love to see more stories from this universe.

This book sounded like SUCH a great idea and I'm so bummed that it didn't live up to my internal hype. It dragged in places that should have been faster and then the end felt like the author didn't know how to end the story and we just got this dump of fantasy instead?

There definitely couldn't have been a bigger look at trans experience here, especially with her boyfriend and that her body transitioned without her consent, the story easily could've gone deeper into the themes of identity.

This was such a fun book! It starts off with some history first and then you really get to delve into the book! It's a fun sci-fi story and the characters felt realistic!

This book was such a good ride. It is a bang from the beginning to the end - you start with sort of history and then you get immersed in the novel. I love that nothing felt cheesy or like it was already done before - it felt fresh and the characters felt realistic (for what the novel is about). I had a lot of fun reading this and would definitely recommend this book to sci-fi lovers. Thanks Netgalley and Tor!

Thanks to Tor Publishing Group and NetGalley for an ARC of Overgrowth in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 3/5

This book had a lot of good themes and pop culture references, but unfortunately, the style of writing wasn't for me. The story seemed to move too slowly for me, and not as scary as I had wished. I hope it finds its audience.

'Family is where you keep the pieces of yourself that need to be shared with someone else if they’re going to have meaning, the memories that must be seen from three or four different angles at the same time before they find their context.'

Anastasia Miller is an alien, and the invasion is coming.
I am absolutely blown away by this incredible story. At it's core, this is a story about choice, morals, and love. I had ZERO expectations of shedding tears when I went into this, but here we are. While this was a complex story with the internal intricacies, it was also an incredibly eerie read about an actual alien invasion.
This was a slow burn that was overflowing with character development. Anastasia's relationship with her boyfriend Graham was beautiful. The love and support they had for each other was nothing short of unconditional. The friendships created and developed were incredibly thoughtful... While the world was burning around everyone, those chose to be ride or dies together, and I thought that was so powerful.
There were parts of the story that I thought were slower moving, but none of it took away from the overall big picture. I had a fantastic time listening to this. I enjoyed this far more than I ever thought I would, and this instilled some hope in humanity for me.
So many thanks to Macmillan for this ALC!

I love stories from the alien/villain's POV, especially with a woman character, but this one just didn't live up to the expectation for me.

The first half of the book is really interesting as we inch closer to the alien invasion and Stasia collects her found family. The second half had pacing issues, and the ending felt like Mira didn't quite know how to end it so then we got a flying dinosaur/dragon? It felt too far into fantasy to have the same weight and horror as the first half of the book.

I wish it unpacked the trans rep a little more, the idea of being born in a body that isn't aligned to your identity, I think there's so much similarity between our main character and her trans boyfriend, and then to follow that line through to the horror of transitioning (without consent) into an alien plant monster - I wish that was the story.

Unfortunately this book fell flat for me based on the hype and previous Mira Grant horror/thriller books I've read. Feed (and the whole series) is absolutely five stars for me.

Ohhh where do I start? This was a very thought provoking read wrapped up in a fun sci fi. I really liked the conversations we were having about immigration and belonging in the beginning. I thought she took a fun invasion trope and really turned it on its head by allowing us to be in the eyes of Stacia the alien and also them announcing their presence. So different than what I usually read. In the second half when the invasion happens, I expected the horror to really kick in. Instead, I found the pacing slowed down more for me and became a little repetitive. This definitely is a more literary sci-fi than horror in my opinion. I still really enjoyed this, but I do wish the second half had leaned into the horror more kind of like Into the Drowning Deep.

Overgrowth is a creepy and engaging SciFi that is incredibly topical. Mira Grant really hits the nail on the head when discussion topics relevant to todays political climate. Anastasia Miller was such an interesting character and how her experience being a seedling that was planted by an Alien Race and how it correlates with Trans People and Immigrants. The fact that people were so willing to brush off her warnings because it "it wasn't hurting anyone" and then turn around to invalidate Grahams identity Transman or Mandy being Biracial.

Mira Grant always delivers in the SciFi genre by applying real world situations into a digestible story that has a lot of heart. I also like that this had a really sweet romance element.

Overall a really good read! Will recommend

Ahoy there me mateys!  Mira Grant is the pen name for Seanan McGuire's sci-fi & horror tales.  This is her newest about an alien invasion coming soon to an Earth near you.  When Anastasia "Stasia" Miller was three years old, she got lost in the woods and was enticed by a weird alien plant.  When she immerges several days later, she tells everyone that she is an alien in disguise as a human and that the armada is coming.  No one believes her.

Except Stasia is telling the truth.  The alien plant has consumed her human self and taken her place.  She has no other facts about the invasion.  No timeline.  No idea what she is supposed to do in the meantime.  And no choice but to keep repeating the truth of her nature to everyone she meets.  Needless to say, she isn't extremely popular.

Stasia has a handful of friends, a boyfriend named Graham, and a cat named Seymour who tolerate her alien quirkiness.  Then one day, an alien signal is received by Earth.  The invasion is finally coming to pick Stasia up.  Humans are beginning to believe in aliens.  The government is involved.  And Stasia finds others of her kind.  That is just the beginning of Stasia's crazy adventure and the take down of Earth.

I began reading this in e-book form and switched to the audiobook.  I absolutely loved the set-up for this novel.  Reading about Stasia's disappearance, return, and foray into human adulthood was fascinating.  There is a bit of body horror involving the plant and it was creepy and awesome.  I also loved when Stasia realized that there were other aliens like her planted (ha!) on Earth.

Unfortunately for me, I felt that this book was not as interesting once the alien signal was introduced.  And when the government gets involved around the 38% mark I was less than enthused.  I think this is because the novel went from a focus on character relationships to a more action novel flavor.  Also Stasia really spends a lot of time waffling about the same existential questions.  Because she and the other aliens don't really know anything about what the invasion will do, the reader has to spend a lot of time just waiting alongside them. 

Once invasion day starts (62%), the pace picked back up again.  I enjoyed a lot Stasia and the other aliens interactions with the invaders.  I appreciated how Earth's humans were never going to win.  But I found the overall goals of the aliens to be rather silly.  About a third of this book really floated my boat so I am glad I read it and I have been thinking about it a lot.  I just think that the majority of this book wasn't to my personal taste.  Arrrr!

Side note: what actually happened to Seymour?  Did I miss where he ended up?

Three-year-old Anastasia Miller wandered into the woods and never returned home. Something came back — something that looked like Anastasia, talked like Anastasia, but insisted she was an alien, a scout left behind by her people, waiting for the day they’d return. Like a cuckoo chick in a human nest, she grew up with Earth’s cultural literacy but knowing she belonged somewhere else.

Now, years later, a signal from the stars confirms her story. The armada is coming. But it’s not a joyous reunion — it’s an invasion. And as humanity scrambles to respond, Stasia and a mismatched group of allies must decide what to do when the future you’ve been waiting for turns out to be a threat to everything you've learned to love.

Despite the knowledge at the outset that an alien invasion is impending, this is a slower, more introspective story rather than a high-octane thriller or horror story. There are interesting ideas at play in the book. Stasia’s perspective as someone caught between two worlds — biologically alien, emotionally tied to Earth — is compelling, and the glimpses we get of the alien species, especially the psychic bond between the scouts and the lush design of the vessel, are fresh and evocative. But ultimately, the execution didn’t quite land (ha ha) for me.

The pacing is a big part of that. I had access to both the audiobook and eBook through my review copy, and at one point, I realized the audiobook was missing a significant chunk of chapters — and I hadn’t noticed. I feel like that's the best way I can convey how uneven the structure and momentum felt. The early promise of an alien arrival kept getting delayed by scenes that didn’t add much urgency or emotional weight, and much of the final act relies on lengthy conversations rather than truly gripping confrontation.

Tone-wise, Overgrowth is earnest and readable, but it didn’t feel especially distinctive in a crowded sci-fi field. For me, this was a solid concept with uneven execution — a read that I wanted to like more than I actually did. Plenty of other readers seem to enjoy this one, though, so maybe my complaints about the pacing are a matter of personal preference.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

Review: I really enjoyed this book. I didn't think I was going to because sci-fi is very hit or miss for me. However, I really, really enjoyed this book. I've wanted to try Mira Grant for a long time and this definitely makes me want to read other works by her. The plot is straight forward, engaging, and exactly what the synopsis says it's going to be. The book is consistent the entire way through, pacing is perfect. I also really enjoyed the characters and their stories. The diverse representation was much appreciated, as a trans guy myself, we don't get a lot of stories about transmen and ciswomen together. Overgrowth has a lot to say, so much you should read it yourself, I can't really do it justice in my review. There's a lot of social commentary but Grant does it in a way that weaves it throughout the story and will feel relatable for most of us. Really glad I read this. The MC is endearing and one I will continue to think about. I could see myself reading this again in the future.

Stasia Miller has spent her whole life warning the people around her that she’s an alien and that an invasion is coming. And then the first advance signal is received and released to the world. Everyone will have to believe her now.

This was such an interesting story! In every book of hers I’ve read, Grant does such an amazing job making me love characters, even the advance scout of a race possibly coming to destroy humanity. All of these characters were so diverse and had such unique voices.

There were a couple pacing issues. We hit the ground running with a really intense, horrific prologue, but then everything kind of slows down and doesn’t pick back up until halfway through.

The highlight of this book for me was the horror. It was so well done, the descriptions of the alien plant taking over were so gruesome and engaging. And the ending took me completely by surprise! I was thoroughly convinced it was going one way, and then everything changed.

Thank you to both NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group for the opportunity to review this arc!

Fascinating, absorbing sci-fi horror about an alien invasion, and the people who've insisted that they're aliens all along. As seen through the eyes of a complex character, Stasia, sympathies and sides are not so clearly drawn, and what the aliens want is not as straightforward as it might seen. This book is long, but it flies by, and I just couldn't put it down.

This took me a few tries to really get into, but once I did it really grabbed me. This is so good, definitely a new favorite. That beginning is so brutal. Definitely check the triggers on this one! I feel it’s best going in as blind as you possibly can.

A charming and yet horrifying exploration of humanity, colonization, and what it takes to be family.

Disclaimer: I read this as a tandem read with a physical ARC as well as an audiobook ARC from NetGalley and Tornightfire. All opinions are my own. This is my honest and voluntary review.

The audiobook was done very well. (See audiobook stats below for more details). I feel like the audiobook narrator did a great job, being very clear and concise with her narration, as well as holding the same speed in tempo throughout the text. I never had to adjust my speed or change any settings for the audiobook. It all played out really well from beginning to end. I felt like the narrator gave great characterization to everybody involved and did a great job differentiating each character with her voice.

This book did an excellent job of making you care about all of the characters while subtly building this creeping feeling of dread and claustrophobia as the invasion closes in on you. It was almost charming in the way the characters were portrayed. It felt so much like a cozy found family type situation, with the undercurrent of a hostile alien invasion that was going to wipe out humanity at any moment. It was very easy to root for the characters in general, even the ones you necessarily shouldn't be rooting for. I enjoyed the conflicted feelings I had for the characters, because I knew I shouldn't be caring for them and yet I ultimately did.

There was great diversity within the characters that were represented. There was representation in the way of a Mexican American character, where her language and culture was mentioned several times throughout the text. As well as a very prominent trans main character that was discussed quite regularly and was very normalized. I enjoyed that quite a bit. We also had a brief mention of Asian American characters as well. I really enjoyed that the characters were not just present within the text, but also it spoke of their background and/or trials and tribulations several times throughout the book as well which solidified that the author was really making an attempt to represent by public communities and not just checking off for some sort of "diversity checkbox".

I really enjoyed the way humanity was really explored throughout the text. What makes us human and ties us to those around us was a big theme in this book. I felt like it covered multiple facets of this theme and it was very interesting to read. Watching our main character Anastasia grapple with what made her human versus what made her "other" was at times stressful but always interesting and poignant. Relating humanity to family that you have created also was extremely interesting to read about. Blood is not always what makes us family.

I felt the overall premise of this book was extremely interesting. I've never read anything like it, and I found it to be an extremely easy book to hold my attention. I did get a little bogged down during info dumps. Some conversations I felt got a little too heavy on the "tell" and not the "show". But overall, the entire book really captured my attention and my imagination. The imagery within this novel was so amazingly done. I definitely could picture of these plant human hybrids at work consistently being revealed throughout the novel. I felt the way that the aliens were portrayed was also very unique and different from other popular portrayals throughout media.

Overall, I think this is gonna be an absolutely wonderful sci-fi release for this year. It's definitely gonna be one. I'll think about for a long time.

Audiobook Stats:
⏰: 8 hours 18 minutes
🎤: Frankie Corzo, Cynthia Farrell
Genre: Sci-fi Horror
Gore: 🧟‍♂️🧟‍♂️
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Audio/ Tornightfire
Themes: humanity, colonization, found family
Representation: Mexican American characters, Trans characters

This was lighter and fluffier than I thought it would be. Going in I thought it would be a dark horror but it was more young adultish.I liked the beginning and it definitely started with a bang but I would be aware it is more of a young adult sci-fi than a horror.

I’m finding it hard to review Overgrowth. I liked it, I didn’t like it. The entire book is from the premise of a seedpod that kills a human child and takes over her identity. As she grows up, she continually tells everyone around her she is not human, she is an alien, but is not believed just co soldered odd. She has trouble relating to most people but has a boyfriend she loves and two good friends who believe her when she says she’s not human. She’s never really had proof that this is true only strange dreams where she’s in a forest that is unlike anything on earth. When proof comes that an alien invasion is about to start and she is definitely one of the aliens the story takes on her conflict and that of her friends as to what side they want to fight for. It’s a cleverly brilliant book with a unique version of the pod people. There are great many reasons shown why earth should not survive. I loved this part of the book however I didn’t really care for all the descriptions of the forest and the actual aliens themselves. I found myself skimming all those parts. And I wasn’t quite sure of how I felt about the ending.

Seanan McGuire never disappoints, especially when Mira Grant delivers sci-fi/horror, and this is most definitely the best of both worlds. If the blurb was enough to catch your interest, then this is why you need to read this book. The character work is wonderful. Stasia is an alien, she tells us so, and yet you find yourself rooting for her and the people she cares about. Even characters you may not agree with, you can still find yourself understanding why they do what they do. The plot and the pacing are on point. Just remember, it's only a story.

This book gave Stranger Things vibes. I was hooked from the beginning wondering where it will. And boy was it something! Lol
5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️