If you’re a fan of trees and dystopian fiction, this is the book for you! Set in the very near future, the story is narrated by Bren, whose colleagues and employers are all AI and whose partner Caelyn becomes an authority on a phenomenon called arborescence. People feel the urge to become trees. They choose a place to stand and eventually they take root. As the movement goes from cult to mainstream, with increasing numbers of people turning into trees and human society falling apart, Bren and Caelyn’s relationship grows distant and we wonder whether they will become trees too.

I have seen this book described as thriller, eco-horror and science fiction. It’s not a thriller at all, although the ideas might be thrilling; the pace is quite gentle because it spans quite a few years. It will appeal to readers of subtle sci-fi such as Never Let Me Go. Becoming a tree is depicted as desirable, providing you choose a good place to root. It’s a very thought-provoking read which is a warning – if any more warnings are needed! – about the way things are going. I thought the ending was a little weak and that for more impact, one character should have stayed a tree. The use of swear words was excessive and the dialogue was strangely child-like considering that some of the characters were academics. There are some frighteningly possible ideas in the book, such as AIs deciding they don’t need humans any more, even as avatars, but eventually failing because they run out of input. Even turning into trees isn’t as outlandish as it sounds, because evolution is fantastic and perhaps the earth will save itself by causing humans to change.

In conclusion, this is a tree-mendously interesting novel which will ‘leaf’ a lasting impression.

First published by Hachette Australia in 2025. This edition will be published in January 2026 by Fleet (Little, Brown). Thank you to the publisher for the review copy via NetGalley.