The Lesson (2019)

Turnbull places an alien presence in the US Virgin Islands, where arrival does not begin the islands’ history of domination. Residents, an intermediary and the visitors experience the relationship differently, while apparently ordinary encounters carry a dangerous imbalance of force. Read for a community whose family ties, arguments and desires remain central beneath the science-fiction premise. The Virgin Islands context is specific, and the novel’s competing perspectives do not make the occupation harmless.