Phil in SF reviewed Terra Nullius by Claire G. Coleman
Dignity rather than happiness or satisfaction
4 stars
Content warning The book's premise is not uncovered until halfway through, but this review reveals it
Until about halfway through the novel, you might think the story is set in early 1800s Australia. Jackie is an Native inmate at a boarding school run by Settler nuns, until he rebels against his treatment and absconds. Sergeant Rohan is a Trooper assigned to chase after runaway Natives. Sister Bagra is a nun responsible for the education of Natives, including Jackie. The book follows them and a few more point-of-view characters, each of whom gets a different view of the reality of colonization.
About halfway through, the story reveals that the Settlers are actually Toads, aliens who have conquered Earth. The book is a "what if aliens used much the same tactics colonizing Earth that the British used in Australia."
This is well-written, and readable, but not very hopeful. For, despite being aliens who lay eggs, they are in most respects human. They conscript their own people. They have a colonial government. They have religious orders. Their society mirrrors humans where some sympathize with the subjugated humans, but don't want to rock the boat and anyway they depend on the humans for the comfort they experience. If humans did not choose a different path in Australia, why would invading aliens who think almost exactly like humans choose a different path.
The story isn't looking for happiness. Instead, the books tries to show the dignity in the face of overwhelming oppression.
