Books like The braided world by Kay Kenyon

When Earth teeters toward extinction under plague and a mysterious dark‑matter scourge, the crew of the starship Restoration departs for a distant planet in search of lost genetic diversity. Their journey is fraught: the vessel’s captain has died, the crew is disheartened, and the old woman who commands the remaining power declares Anton Prados, an untested officer, the new captain. Humanity’s first contact occurs with the Dassa, an alien race that physically resembles humans yet follows bizarre breeding customs that challenge human notions of reproduction. The Dassa’s perspective on humanity forces the crew to confront the very definition of their own species while seeking a potential salvation. Crackling with tension, "The Braided World" questions what it means to be human in the face of an alien culture that mirrors us yet defies our biology, as the Restoration crew must decide whether the Dassa can offer a cure or simply a mirror on humanity’s fragility.

First publish date: 2003