Shroud by Adrian Tchaikovsky. Orbit, 2025. 9780316579025. 464pp.
This is my favorite first contact novel. It's set in a post-Earth interstellar future where humans function as assets for expansion across the galaxy. A ship has arrived at an unexplored star system to start exploiting local assets in order to create a waystation for humanity.
The most notable body in the system is a large moon. It’s a dark, inhospitable place where light has never reached the surface (if it has one). But it is alive with a cacophony of radio signals. Scientists began studying and, via drones, exploring the moon. They discover life there. And as they begin to plan to send humans to the surface to try to make sense of what their cameras are seeing, the novel turns into a tale of survival, as well as one of trying to recognize a truly alien intelligence. (The book is told from both alien and human points-of-view).
Worth noting: one of the characters in this novel has a role on their ship that's unique among all of the futuristic jobs I've read about. I don't want to spoil anything about the story, but this character and the way they help things work is amazing.
