Usurpation (Semiosis, 3)

After her rollicking standalone Dual Memory, Sue Burke returns to her Semiosis series and the world of Pax in Usurpation, which combines the thrill of M. Night Shyamalan’s The Happening with the eco-empowerment of VanderMeer’s Dead Astronauts.

Stevland, the dominant sentient lifeform of Pax, has clandestinely sent some of its progeny to Earth. To explore, to spread, to report back.

Since their germination, Earth has been a powder keg. Human rebellion, robot uprisings, and global pandemics have created chaos, distrust, and deaths.

As more and more conflicts break out across Earth, Stevland's children work in the background, in an attempt to control human behavior and perhaps, bring peace to the planet. Stevland took control of Pax. Earth shouldn’t be too difficult…

Other Books by Sue Burke

Semiosis
Semiosis
Interference
Usurpation

Immunity Index
Dual Memory

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Published Oct 29, 2024

240 pages

Average rating: 7.33

3 RATINGS

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Community Reviews

Celia Seupel
Feb 28, 2026
6/10 stars
I admire Sue Burke. I think she's a great SciFi writer, and I loved Books 1 & 2 of this series, but Usurpation wasn't my favorite. The initial chapters could've been deleted, since the body of the story began later on. Also, I listened to the audio book, and I think reading it would have been better. The audio made the shifts in point of view harder to follow. The story takes place on earth, which is an interesting shift in the series. But some of Burke's choices make the book seem rushed and maybe not edited as well as the others.

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