The Last Colony

By John Scalzi

The Last Colony is the final part in the epic space adventure involving John Perry, who we met first in Old Man’s War and who’s story continues in The Ghost Brigades and concludes with this one. Book one is very focused on the Colonial Defence Forces, the technology employed in recruiting and training the new soldiers and the inter-stellar fighting between the various alien races trying to capture and colonise any habitable planet they find. The second book, while similar, is a much more human story revolving around the actions of one man and his ideals – for good or bad – this time out we have a very political story, wrapped in the machinations of governments, coalitions and councils and the lies and intrigue therein. I loved both of the previous books and I’ll say up front that I loved this one too.

We catch up with John Perry and Jane Sagan, having both retired from the CDF, as the leaders of a small colony. Along with their adopted daughter, Zoe, they live a quiet life of peace and simple happiness but, ultimately, they are both bored. They’ve seen too much and been part of much more and, while they both hate to admit it, itchy feet are setting in, so when the CDF comes knocking at their door and asks them to leave the planet behind and lead a new colony to a new planet, Roanoke, they accept the opportunity, albeit warily.

The big problem is that a coalition of alien races calling themselves The Conclave has decided that no new colonies can be set up, anywhere, unless it’s under their auspices and they have set themselves up as judge, jury and executioner to any who try. This new colony will aim to make a stand against The Conclave but, as Perry and Sagan and the rest of the colony soon discover, the CDF has an ulterior motive and they, and the 2500 people in their charge, have unwittingly become pawns in a much bigger game of political and military cat and mouse.

Once again Scalzi has hit just the right note. His writing style is so accessible that even casual SF readers will find themselves sucked into the plot and he makes the science bits easy to get your head around. The action in this book takes place mostly in council meetings and halls of diplomacy but for fans of his previous novels, there are a few fight scenes and they live up to the benchmark that Scalzi has set himself. But the really strong part of this book, as always, are the characters, particularly the bizarre family unit that comprises Perry, Sagan and daughter Zoe. John is becoming the typical husband and father, keen to keep the familial peace, quick to make light of any situation, the voice of reason in any situation and always the butt of the other two’s jokes. Jane, the tough, more than capable female, is slowly adapting to the wife/mother role, but still occasionally needs to reign-in a quick temper and a military-honed killing instinct and, now a teenager, Zoe is adjusting well to her 8 year old mother and a 90 year old father and cracking-wise about both whenever she gets the chance.

But it’s not just these three that jump out. John’s assistant, Savitri, the third woman in his life, gives as good as she gets and is a willing accomplice in the ragging he gets from other two, but the real plaudits are reserved for the clever way he rounds out each of the other colonists in his group, with different backgrounds and different outlooks stemming from different politics, cultures and traditions each is fully realised with a unique voice and you can tell who is speaking any given sentence before the narrative informs you – even Zoe’s self-styled bodyguards, a pair of Obin nicknamed Hickory and Dickory have their own quirks and ticks – now that’s difficult with a few characters but this has a cast of dozens and it works brilliantly.

The Last Colony is undoubtedly the last book in this trilogy. The story arcs round out nicely and the loose ends are tied up neat and tidy with just the right note of sentimentality at the end to put things to rest. But there’s the rub. While it’s a fitting end to a terrific saga it’s such a shame to know that these characters you have come to know and love have now been put to rest and you won’t be seeing them anymore; mixed emotions, for me anyway.

I have one gripe with this particular novel and it concerns a group of marauding aliens that attack the encampment early on in the first half, but once they are chased off, they disappear from the story altogether. I was convinced that they would turn up like a bad penny at the end to ruin the best laid plans but they didn’t and that smacks of a huge missed opportunity for me. That said, it’s another page-turner just like all the others and I would urge anyone to check out the series as one of the better space opera’s to come out in recent years. Let’s hope his next outing lives up to the same high standards.

The Last Colony is published by Tor through Pan Macmillan and is available from Amazon, Blackwell and all good book stores.

John Scalzi can be found online here.