Hey Bookworm friends! It’s about time that I share my thoughts on Human Scars on Planet Skin. HSOPS was written by two authors: Effie Joe Stock & Nathaniel Luscombe. I requested this ARC because I’d previously read and loved a book by Luscombe but am not familiar with Stock’s writing style so I was curious to see how I would feel about this one.
Thanks to BookSirens and the authors for the ARC; All opinions are my own.
About Human Scars on Planet Skin
Author: Effie Joe Stock & Nathaniel Luscombe
Genre(s): Science Fiction, Horror,
Standalone
Publisher: Dragonbone Publishing
Format Read: E-Book, ARC
Pub Date: September 1, 2025. OUT NOW!
Cover Artist: Effie Joe Stock
Content Warnings
Graphic: Frightening Imagery Involving Decay & Corpses, Grief & Trauma Surrounding Death, Body Horror & Dysmorphia
Moderate: Colonization, Dissociation, Plant and Environmental Horror
Minor (Mention):
Notes On Diversity
LGBTQIA+ Shroompeople characters
Pace: Medium, Character-Driven
Tone: Dark, Reflective, Sad
Review
If you love mushroom people this might just be for you!
HSOPS is about a sentient planet named Turr who fights back against humans that try to colonize her. But it’s mostly about the native shroom people who suffered during the traumatic human invasion. And even though the humans are gone now, they’re still in pain and feel disconnected from their planet and purpose. As the planet speaks to two of its inhabitants, Clyra and Invidia, they have to look past death and uncertainty to restore a new kind a balance to their beloved planet.
This book is marketed as a blend of cozy sci-fi and horror but for me, it leaned more heavily towards horror. The cozy side comes from the fact that the main characters are mushroom people and there’s lots of imagery about forests and moss. Their society before humans came was happy and thriving and the adorable citizens have a strong sense of community that guides their every action. However, I felt the horror more keenly because of that. Before humans arrived, all of Turr’s creatures were innocent and then were forced to experience and witness mass violence and pollution on a level they never would have previously imagined. Now, I’m not saying that being more horror-forward is necessarily a bad thing; I just think it’s a valid heads-up for readers looking for cozy reads.
“Alarms rang, lights flashed, but not even technology was a match for the fury of a planet.”
That being said, I had a mixed reading experience. There was as much I enjoyed than what didn’t work for me. In the interest of ending on a positive note, let me complain first. I was expecting the focus of this book being on actively fighting against colonization and the humans rather than surviving the aftermath. It took me a while to reconcile myself with the fact that we’re here for a different journey and thus had a hard time finding the thread of hope that’s in here. It’s certainly there but I had to dig deep for it. That’s honestly probably the point, but as I was reading it, it felt more depressing than anything. And hey, some readers might be looking for that. Additionally, maybe because of the themes or format of the plot, I found it felt needlessly repetitive in certain parts.
“They lived in the past instead of fighting for the future. I had to cut my memories loose in order to set myself free.”
Okay, that’s enough of that—on to the things I liked! I thought that a POV of an unreliable narrator for one of the characters was executed in such a unique way, that added so much flavour to the world these authors created. Since one of the shroom people is a psychedelic mushroom, it’s in their nature to hallucinate things and this is used to such a dramatic effect in the story. I thought this element was so clever! I also really appreciated the conversations surrounding mental health, burn-out, and setting ourselves free from the monsters inside of us. Those parts of the story were the ones I found the most compelling.
So, given that I don’t exactly know what to make of this one, I encourage you to read it for yourself if it sounds intriguing to you!
Let’s chat in the comments!
Do you like books that blend genres? Or, what’s a book that you had a mixed experience with?
What an interesting title, thanks for sharing your thoughts
Thanks for checking out my review and it was interesting for sure 🙂
This sounds crazy! I love the idea of a mushroom like creature defending their planet. 😁
If you like weird lit this definitely would fit under that banner for sure. It’s actually the planet who fights the humans and then the little mushroom creatures have to deal with the ramifications of that for good or ill. 🙂
This is such an original concept!!
I am sorry that it was more depressing than what you expected, but it sounds really intriguing, and I love the idea of a psychedelic mushroom as one of the MC. That said, I don’t think that this will be a good fit for me, but it sounds like a unique book, and I am glad that your experience with it was, on the whole, more positive than not! 🙂
Yes, the premise is so interesting and unique, truly unlike anything I’ve ever read. So even if it wasn’t exactly to my taste, I’m glad I gave it a shot! Yes the Psychedelic mushroom was cool 🙂 That’s super fair, I totally understand. Thanks 😀
Im sorry to hear that this was kind of a mixed experience for you. The heads up in your review about it leaning into its horror more than its cosy vibes is definitely a good one as I can see a lot of readers picking it up and anticipating the latter vibes to be stronger given the popularity of the cosy subgenre lately. It sounds like a heavy but interesting read. I love the unique take on an unreliable narrator that you’ve described here – definitely not an approach I’d have guessed at. Although weird is an approach I usually struggle with so this is more of a maybe read for me personally.
Thanks, It’s definitely SUCH a unique book with a specific vibe that it’s certainly not for everyone but those that love it will LOVE it! & thanks yeah I thought it was an important piece of info to share for exactly that reason! 😀 Yeah it was a cool way of doing an unreliable narrator but yeah I know you struggle with weird sometimes so maybe this one isn’t so much your thing, I fear.