The Polyphony of Green: An Adult Saphic Solarpunk Novel - Softcover

Briar, L S

Softcover

ISBN 13: 9798245837727

Publisher: Independently published, 2026

Synopsis

"I am Lira," she forced herself to say. "I am separate. I choose to return."
But pulling back was harder than it had ever been...
Dr. Lira Ansel, a blind xenobiologist in a floating forest-city, has spent years listening to the bioelectric songs of engineered trees—until she discovers something singing back. An alien microbial intelligence has woven itself through the forest's roots, offering profound connection and collective consciousness. As Lira risks repeated communion to understand this vast, distributed mind, she faces an impossible choice: preserve her individual humanity or surrender to transformation that could bridge two incompatible species.
When a green-tech consortium arrives to commercialize the alien presence, Lira must navigate corporate exploitation, her own dissolution into collective awareness, and a deepening relationship with systems engineer Mara Ibekwe—who loves Lira specifically, not the expanded consciousness she's becoming. With her integration approaching the point of no return, Lira has days to establish protocols for coexistence between human autonomy and alien connection—or watch both species destroy what they're trying to save.
The Polyphony of Green is an 80,000-word adult sapphic solarpunk novel featuring:

• Sapphic Romance – A love story between two women navigating transformation, fear, and choosing each other despite impossible odds
• Disabled Protagonist – A blind xenobiologist whose disability is integral to her expertise, not a limitation to overcome
• Solarpunk Worldbuilding – Floating forest-cities, bioelectric communication systems, and hopeful futures built on cooperation
• First Contact Science Fiction – Distributed alien intelligence, consciousness studies, and the ethics of interspecies communion
• Found Family – Scientists, engineers, farmers, and community organizers working together
• Identity & Transformation – Deep exploration of selfhood, consent, and what we're willing to sacrifice for connection
• Anti-Corporate Themes – Commons-based governance vs. profit-driven extraction, workers' rights, and resisting exploitation
• Neurodivergent Representation – Multiple neurodivergent characters whose different processing is valued and essential

Perfect for readers who loved:

• The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson
• A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers
• The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers
• This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone
• A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine

Content notes: This book contains detailed descriptions of ego dissolution and identity transformation, themes of burnout and exhaustion, characters experiencing permanent neurological changes, relationship conflict during major life changes, and scenes of choosing between self-preservation and greater good. No graphic violence or sexual content.
For fans of thoughtful science fiction exploring consciousness, identity, and the cost of being the bridge between worlds.

Edition details

• Publisher: Independently published
• Publication date: 2026
• Language: English
• ISBN 13: 9798245837727
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 433