Overgrowth

Creepy and thought provoking, Overgrowth is an unsettling tale about an alien invasion told from the alien’s POV. Anastasia (Stasia) Miller walked off into the woods one day when she was three years old and was enchanted by an interesting flower/plant. She reaches out and touches the plant and, oops…… When she came back from that fateful meeting, she has been telling everyone that will listen that she is an alien. An alien that traveled through space and sprouted on earth. She has always been honest about what she is, but not many believe her.

This book is told through Anastasia/Stasia’s POV, and her tale begins when she is small and then jumps to when she is an adult and has a boyfriend. An alien message has been received and now people are beginning to take notice of what Anastasia/Stasia has been saying. Her real family is coming to get her. The days are counting down and things are beginning to get interesting.

This is an interesting book that looks at humanity, family, and choices. What happens when an alternative life form is raised and surrounded by humans. Does humanity prevail? What happens when the truth is far-fetched and hard to believe? What happens when contact is made? What happens when something new wants to take over?

As I mentioned this book is creepy and has an eerie vibe. I enjoyed the beginning of this book the most but also enjoyed the take on found family, finding those with whom you can relate, what are you willing to do for those you love, colonization, and speaking your truth. The descriptions are vivid, and this book does contain body horror. I can easily see this being made into a movie. The take on invasion, hiding in plain sight, the drama, the dread, the aspect of invasion, and danger. This was a nice mingling of science fiction and horror.

Mira Grant writes original books which are thought provoking and creepy. While this was not my favorite book by Grant, I did find it to be enjoyable, thought provoking, and eerie. I loved the unease which flows throughout this book. I also enjoyed some Stasia’s thoughts on looking human but not being human. The I-look-and-talk like you but I am not one of you feel was very nicely done.

Other reviewers have mentioned the pacing, and I must agree with them. This book did lag for me in places and found myself wishing things would hurry up. But the book does get there in the end.

*I listened to the audiobook and though the narrator did a great job of bringing this book to life. If you are interested in this book, I suggest giving the audiobook a go as it was very well done.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.