In many science fiction stories, there are a lot of reasons why an alien invasion might be particularly scary. The aliens might not understand or speak human languages, or they might look really weird and foreign, or they might be invading a society of affluent white people who have no idea what it’s like to have their power stripped away (or at least, that’s who’s telling the story). In THE LESSON, the aliens look and speak just like us. And the invaded people, the St. Thomians of the US Virgin Islands, know what exactly invasion feels like—they’ve been through plenty of takeovers throughout the island’s history. What results is a unique take on the invasion story, where the invader feels terribly familiar. The thrills here come, in part, from just how acutely we can see our own reflections in this otherworldly force that has the power to save humanity—or devastate it—on a whim.