As You Wake, Break the Shell

By: Becky Chambers

The stars are waiting for you. We hope you will come find us there.

Life on Fortune is hard. The atmosphere is poisonous, the planet hardly fit for life. But for its inhabitants, it's home.
Pilot Cora suffers from a rare and dangerous condition, brought about by her bond with Colibri, the alien animal she pilots to quarry vital water for the colony. If Cora seeks treatment, she risks losing her license - and her connection to Colibri forever.

Then she meets Signy, a brilliant but reclusive botanist, whose bio-printed medicine is the only thing that can save her. But to do so, Signy must break the rules that govern their lives, risking her livelihood and the other colonists who rely on her for survival.

As Cora and Signy navigate their balance of risk and trust, they are forced to confront what they owe to each other and to their community - and begin to question whether survival is enough . . .©2026 Becky Chambers (P)2026 Hodder & Stoughton Limited

Critic reviews

Becky Chambers never misses. As You Wake, Break the Shell is another beautiful slice of life on an alien planet. I loved this tale of connection, symbiosis, and a reminder that life blooms where you water it, no matter where you are in the universe

Becky Chambers wows once again with an intricately detailed and fascinating world, a heart-warming tale of found family and the tenderest of relationships at its core. I laughed, I cried, and I can't wait to see what comes next

As You Wake, Break The Shell has all the hallmarks of what makes Chambers' work such a cornerstone of modern science fiction: insightful world-building, relatable characters, and morally complex journeys that navigate what it means to be. In this liminal, time-bending masterpiece, two women fall in love amidst a world as desperate for answers as it seems intent on withholding them. At turns cosy, politically incisive, and daringly hopeful about avenues toward a bright future that could be, As You Wake, Break The Shell is a love story at its core; not just romantic love, but love for siblings, love for humanity, love for the worlds that bear us, and love for those different - even cosmically so - from ourselves

Beautifully written, lovingly crafted, this book is a unique ride and a truly special treat!