Star Trek - The Klingon Gambit

Kirk felt drained.  Spock fluctuating emotionally before his eyes, Scotty and his pilfering, Chekov and his wild desire to blast the Klingon out of space, the crew becoming edgier and edgier - all took a toll on his nerves  He felt more like  a mediator in civil disputes than the captain of  starship.  The dull throbbing in his head refused to die down as long as he sat in the command chair.

"Mr Spock, you have the conn."

For the first time, Kirk added under his breath, "And I hope the ship survives it." 

So if there ever was a book to teach me not to judge a book by its cover I guess this is the one!  The Klingon Gambit (#3 Pocket, #33 Titan) by Robert E Vardeman was actually one of first Star Trek novels I bought (it was included in a bundle of books on ebay), but I have repeatedly put it to one side simply because the cover art wasn't to my taste. Foolish girl!  Will you never learn?

In my defense I am generally more attracted to stories with heavy character development in and they more often than not have compellingly large renderings of the relevant characters on them so I am naturally more drawn to those covers.  And... although I like star ships and technology I prefer people and aliens... and... Look frankly I find this cover ugly as sin, the Klingon ship is drawn in an ugly way, the colours don't attract me in the slightest.  Believe it or not, the Titan Books edition is even less inspiring than the pocket books edition pictured here.  What's more, the tag lines on the book makes it sound awful.

IS THE ENTERPRISE DOOMED AT LAST?

THE KLINGONS ARE HUNGRY FOR WAR... THEIR TARGET: THE ENTERPRISE

It sounds so generic, so uninteresting, so you will forgive me for being less than enthusiastic about this one.  But actually... it was really, really good.

Sorry, say that again?

It was really, really good.

... and I read it in two sittings.  Sure, it is a very modest book only 158 pages long, so that has something to do with it but even so it is very good, it's a real page turner.  It kept me guessing.

The Enterprise is called away from mapping a new planet  in order to investigate a possible attack by Klingons on a Vulcan research vessel.  When they arrive at the scene they find the Vulcan ship drifting serenely in space and all the Vulcans on board dead.  There are no signs of struggle and the corpses of the Vulcans appear to indicate they died in a state of meditative repose.  Wary that the Klingons might have used a strange and powerful weapon, Kirk and the Enterprise approach the Klingon Dreadnought and make contact with the archaeologists on the surface of the planet.  The Enterprise keeps herself between the Dreadnought and the planet in order to protect the archaeologists,  but it is not long before the crew start acting strangely.  Spock starts to swing between being emotional wreck to being a cold computer, Scotty starts stealing parts to try to eke out extra power and efficiency from his beloved engines, Chekov is having trouble controlling his  violent urges to attack the Klingons - the whole crew is degenerating as each man starts to fulfil his own desires over his duties.

To make matter worse, the Klingon vessel is having similar problems.  Mutiny is rife and the Klingon commander tried to keep his charges under control, which adds even greater problems for Kirk - how will these erratic Klingons react? 

Kirk needs to work out what is causing the strange behaviour in both crews while trying to keep his in control and safe.  What did the Vulcans find?  What is causing the strange behaviour in his crew?  Are the Klingons to blame?

Throughout the novel there is one piece of information that we're missing which keeps us in the dark (and turning pages) until the end - until Kirk asks the right questions.  The whole situation is utterly puzzling, made more perplexing by the fact that Kirk doesn't appear to be influenced by 'whatever it is' and has to navigate the situation on his own as McCoy becomes increasingly cantankerous and anti-technology and Spock swings from emotional extreme to non-emotional extreme.

The book would be utterly spoiled if I reveal anymore on the story, so you'll have to read this one yourself to get the whole story - I ain't spoiling this one for you!

I really liked the overall message of the story, the 'moral' as it were.  The story is based around acting selfishly on your own desires and the damage that a person can do if he acts solely for his own contentment.  The Enterprise is society in microcosm, and this book demonstrates how a society breaks down if it becomes totally selfish.  It also demonstrates that people can be better and can beat their impulses and desires for the greater good - sometimes (like in the case of Chekov) we just need guidance from others to understand right from wrong.

Stylistically The Klingon Gambit is easy to read, and Vardeman has included a good amount of humour in his story.  I particularly enjoyed Scotty's escapades with the engines!

My only real complaint is that it wasn't long enough!  I honestly can't fault it, it was just enjoyable.

EDIT:  I forgot to say!  The tag lines are completely misleading / off the mark!  The target was never the Enterprise and they aren't hungry for war!  I say again - who writes these things?!

4/5  - I'm getting soft in my old age.