Short story ID, please. Octopus aliens, human refugees.

Cafe Society
1

I read this one in a sci-fi anthology, at least 3 years ago, but I can’t remember which one. It was set on a planet by inhabited by cephalapod aliens (their homeworld?) and a small community of human refugees. Earth had been involved in a proxy war between the octopus guys and some other aliens. The octopus guys lost, and some of their human supporters moved in with them. IIRC, the plot itself revolved around a murder mystery type thing.

It was a neat setting and I’d like to see if the author ever returned to it. Any thoughts?

2

Oops. I had this answer all typed out and then I saw “anthology”. *

Yes. Two books by Donald Moffitt. (Genesis Quest and Second Genesis). You’re misremembering some details though (starfish, not octopuses, etc).*

That said, the plots are weirdly similiar.

3

Sounds quite like the novel A Darkling Sea (softcover due v.soon) by James Cambias.
I really liked the novel in hardcover and I’m sure some of it appeared as a novella or short story - probably The Ocean of the Blind although I’m guessing a little at which of his stories’ titles fits best!

The Ocean of the Blind was in Year’s Best Science Fiction 2005.

4

Here’s the ISFDB page for James Cambias, by the way Summary Bibliography: James L. Cambias. Looks like “Ocean of the Blind” was also in The Mammoth Book of Best New Science Fiction: 18th Annual Collection

5

Thanks, but that’s not it either. After checking the synopsis, I do recall liking Ocean of the Blind and think I will check out the novel.

I think the cephalopod aliens were at least somewhat humanoid, not wholly octopus-looking. Pretty sure they could breathe air and lived in wet, terrestrial cities instead of underwater.

This is driving me nuts.