There aren’t that many books where the aliens have won, and won for good, and the ones that do exist focus more on the heroic human resistance than on the part of the population that has resigned themselves to their fate. The Course of Empire is, as far as I know, the only one that doesn’t only do that, but also has one of the aliens as the main character, depicting much of the story from his point of view.
And the aliens in this book are marvellous! Complex, truly alien, consistent, with a unique outsider view of Earth and humans, and completely unapologetic in treating us as their subjects. I read somewhere that the relationship between them and the humans was inspired by Britain’s colonization of India, and I can see that — we are a vassal species to them, and the very fact that we were defeated justifies their treatment of us in their eyes. The twist is that they once were a slave species themselves, so they have a very... pragmatic attitude towards the concept.
The culture of the Jao occupants, from their complicated body language to their political maneuvering among each other, is intricately worked out, and results in truly well-rounded and complex aliens that put any Star Trek race to shame. The authors also give us a glimpse of another alien race, the Ekhat, who are really incomprehensigly alien, and a right Eldritch Horror.
There is a human resistance, but it’s scattered and internally divided, and usually outmatched by the aliens, with no hope of liberating the planet. That is also the opinion of the vast majority of humans, who try to keep their head down, and don’t give a damn if their taxes are collected by human or alien motherfuckers. But what I found most interesting were the jinau — human auxiliaries in the service of the Jao, the alien conquerors. Ed Kralik, one of the major characters of the book, is a former member of the US military, who chose to enlist with the jinau after the war was well and truly lost.
The book doesn’t side with the rebels or the collaborators/colonized, as it mostly tells the story from the viewpoint of the new alien liaison who is meant to take over from the old governor of the planet, which is really refreshing. I don’t want to give away the whole plot, but there is some good stuff for fanfic in there — from the political side, to the romance between Ed Kralik and the daughter of the president (yes, there still is a president of the United States, even if the position is now mostly ceremonial), and even some angst and whump (the aliens capture a rebel and “retrain” him... to the point where he chooses to stay with them when he has the choice to leave).
Aside from all the juicy fanfiction tropes Empire evokes, at its heart it’s a story about two cultures clashing, and about the struggle to understand the other, to find a way to transcend the oppressor vs. subjugated dynamic and to integrate both cultures so that all become stronger. It’s a hopeful story in that regard, which makes it so satisfying for me.
The Course of Empire - Eric Flint
WHAT MAKES IT GREAT:
There aren’t that many books where the aliens have won, and won for good, and the ones that do exist focus more on the heroic human resistance than on the part of the population that has resigned themselves to their fate. The Course of Empire is, as far as I know, the only one that doesn’t only do that, but also has one of the aliens as the main character, depicting much of the story from his point of view.
And the aliens in this book are marvellous! Complex, truly alien, consistent, with a unique outsider view of Earth and humans, and completely unapologetic in treating us as their subjects. I read somewhere that the relationship between them and the humans was inspired by Britain’s colonization of India, and I can see that — we are a vassal species to them, and the very fact that we were defeated justifies their treatment of us in their eyes. The twist is that they once were a slave species themselves, so they have a very... pragmatic attitude towards the concept.
The culture of the Jao occupants, from their complicated body language to their political maneuvering among each other, is intricately worked out, and results in truly well-rounded and complex aliens that put any Star Trek race to shame. The authors also give us a glimpse of another alien race, the Ekhat, who are really incomprehensigly alien, and a right Eldritch Horror.
There is a human resistance, but it’s scattered and internally divided, and usually outmatched by the aliens, with no hope of liberating the planet. That is also the opinion of the vast majority of humans, who try to keep their head down, and don’t give a damn if their taxes are collected by human or alien motherfuckers. But what I found most interesting were the jinau — human auxiliaries in the service of the Jao, the alien conquerors. Ed Kralik, one of the major characters of the book, is a former member of the US military, who chose to enlist with the jinau after the war was well and truly lost.
The book doesn’t side with the rebels or the collaborators/colonized, as it mostly tells the story from the viewpoint of the new alien liaison who is meant to take over from the old governor of the planet, which is really refreshing. I don’t want to give away the whole plot, but there is some good stuff for fanfic in there — from the political side, to the romance between Ed Kralik and the daughter of the president (yes, there still is a president of the United States, even if the position is now mostly ceremonial), and even some angst and whump (the aliens capture a rebel and “retrain” him... to the point where he chooses to stay with them when he has the choice to leave).
Aside from all the juicy fanfiction tropes Empire evokes, at its heart it’s a story about two cultures clashing, and about the struggle to understand the other, to find a way to transcend the oppressor vs. subjugated dynamic and to integrate both cultures so that all become stronger. It’s a hopeful story in that regard, which makes it so satisfying for me.
WHERE CAN I FIND IT?
You can read it for free on Kindle.