Star Trek - The Wrath of Khan - Novelisation

"Jim," he said, "I have been, and will be, your friend.  I am grateful for that.  Live long, and prosper...."

His long fingers clenched into seared claws; the agony of the assault of radiation overcame him.  He fell.

"Spock!" Jim cried.  He pounded the glass with his fists.  "Oh, God no...!"

McCoy tried to make him leave.  Jim snarled and thrust him violently away.  He hunched against the window, his mind crying denial and disbelief.

I find it singularly incredible that an author could be given a gift - a gift - of an adaptation to write, and still manage to faff it up with her own bias and preferences.

It's actually a remarkable skill, to cock up writing one of the most powerful scenes in cinema.

Good ol' Vonda has that skill though.  Not only can she manage to make Spock's iconic death scene a spectacle of mediocrity she also manages to, once again make the mind numbing decision to give more thought and reflection to an 'original character' of sorts, and skip merrily past any in depth consideration of you know, an insignificant character like Admiral James T Kirk.

I swear, Star Trek - The Wrath of Khan by Vonda McIntyre could be renamed Star Trek - Biography of Lt. Saavik because that's what it is.

If you've followed my blog before, you'll know I have a particular antipathy towards a particular author (no prizes for guessing it's Vonda McIntyre), and it's not without good reason!  I swear it!

Here read my other reviews, I'll wait.

#2 Star Trek - The Entropy Effect

 Enterprise - The First Adventure

Put it this way, I knew what to expect and she didn't surprise me one iota.  I mean, if there's information you didn't need or want to know, Vonda will provide.  If there's a female sub character / original character she can give more pages than necessary, she'll do it.  If she can somehow give more page time to Sulu, he'll get it and, frankly, she hates Scotty.  She adores Spock though, so I guess the depressingly badly written death scene might have been a little unexpected... but then again, shorter death scene means more time to lavish on Lt. Saavik.

Well at least after this book I only have, what, three more Vonda-cides to go?

I guess I better start at the beginning?

I don't know what your feelings are on books and film adaptations and where you draw the line between canon and not, but I think they need to be taken on a case by case basis.  For example, the previous film novelisation I would call canon, it was written by Gene Roddenberry after all and I feel he added significant insight with the novelisation, the novelisation actually makes the film make sense, fills in the gaps;  I reviewed it here.

This adaptation... I'd say should be in the category of don't touch it even with a stick, there's so much utter rubbish inserted, so many liberties taken I just can't accept it.  I mean, I know I don't like Vonda's writing style in the first place and have very little patience for her generally, but come on!  If you're going to write a film novelisation at least leave your bias at the door!

Lots of people have positively reviewed this ST:TWOK novelisation and said that it 'explains it all' and that they 'didn't enjoy TWOK because they didn't understand it and this fills in all the gaps'... no, it doesn't it makes up page count with utter trash filler that, if you've read a couple of McIntyre's ST novels you know it is just self indulgence on her part.

What kind of trash filler you ask?

I don't need to know that two of the scientists on Carol and David Marcus' team are jokers with a thing for Lewis Carol.  I don't need a whole poem by Lewis Carol reproduced for me to read.  I don't need to know that these two genius scientists make games in their spare time and leave that as data for Khan and co to pick up instead of the genesis project information.  Why did you have me read pages of utter rubbish about nothing characters that are shortly going to die?

Is Scotty really a prissy, thin skinned uncle?  Do we really need to know that his nephew has a crush on Saavik and has maths lessons with her?  Do we really need that painfully written scene with Spock trying to explain a 'crush' to Saavik?  Or that Saavik really doesn't like omelette because it's bland and has to use chilli on it to make it palatable, or a vegetarian diet makes (half) Romulans sick?

On that note, I know the director pretty much edited out everything to do with Saavik being a Vulcan/Romulan hybrid because she never really acts like a Romulan, so he decided to simplify it with the view of if she always acts like a Vulcan, make her Vulcan, in fact, the actress was a pretty big Spock / Vulcan fan and so she pretty much acted like a Vulcan would - as she had done in make believe as a child (she used to pretend she was Spock's daughter).  So, if we keep in mind that her background in regards to Romulan heritage was edited out, a large section of the book which is dedicated to her and her tragic background is now erroneous.  Why wasn't this caught and edited out?  Couldn't they at least keep it consistent?

Speaking of consistency, wouldn't it be fantastic if dialogue actually in the films was accurate?  Especially for the most important scenes?  It probably didn't escape your notice that the dialogue quoted above does not fit with the dialogue in the film?

Found this wonderful comparison on facebook
 a while back.  Sorry I don't know where
it was originally from!

And really, this dialogue proves to be some of the most important when it comes to Spock / Kirk relationship analysis (doesn't matter if you think that it is a platonic or sexual relationship), as in the graphic above the scene is a reflection of Spock's response as early in the series as Amok Time.

This is how it plays out in the film:

Ergh.  Gets me right in the feels every time.  Every. Single. Time.

I think what really characterises that whole scene is its quietness.  Kirk's quiet agony at watching his friend die, his t'hy'la (soulmate/brother/lover) die and Spock's characteristic calmness... but with that obvious pain and distress.  What really gets me is that the charismatic leader that is James T Kirk is struck virtually dumb, such is his utter despair and pain.  What does he say, ever so quietly?  'Spock'.  'Spock'.  'Yes'.  'No'.  Spock reaches out for contact he can't have, a contact he should have had, which was even expected by Sarek as we see in the next film.  If there was ever a perfect piece of cinema, it is this scene.  What does McIntyre do, well aside from mutilate it with her clumsy writing and stilted sentences?  She makes it loud.  Gone is the quiet despair of Kirk, instead we have outbursts.  Instead of a distressing, intimate moment between two souls saying good bye, we have an interjection by... Saavik.  I read it and wanted to scream, shut up Saavik!  You are not in this scene, of course Kirk will not understand because you are intruding, intruding I say!

You can have a picture 'cause I aint typing it all out.

Even if this was in the original script she saw, if that was how it was done, I don't know, an editor should have caught all this.  Oh wait.  Hold on.  If you edited out Saavik from this section then you would have no reason to return to her for almost three solid pages as she visits Spock's coffin and comes out with zingers like 'Admiral Kirk's opinion was of no significance'.  Well if his opinion is of no significance Saavik, then I don't know whose is!  In comparison, Sulu (another Vonda fav.) gets about a page of shared dialogue with Chapel, while Kirk gets a page of shared dialogue with Carol Marcus.  Then we are straight back to Saavik again for a paragraph before we get to Spock's funeral.  Where Saavik is the first one mentioned.  Again.  I don't care about a character introduced for this film, I really don't.  I want to know about the characters I'm invested in.   And I have a real problem with those three scenes that McIntyre has inserted.  They aren't in the film, that's fine, but they don't add anything either.  They could have been brilliant scenes, revisiting all the old crew, but no, we get too much Saavik, we get Sulu (urgh) and a pretty rushed scene with Kirk and Marcus (double ergh).  Honest to God, she loves her side characters!  That is a Bones and Kirk moment, absolutely, 100%, but no, Carol Marcus it has to be, why use the original cast anyhow?  Additionally, having Saavik as the 'bread' of the sandwich in these scenes makes her too important.  She is used to hold the *two* scenes involving original cast together, she isn't that important, just WHY.

(╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻)

And you know, the really unfortunate thing about all this, is that it makes me really dislike Saavik, which really isn't fair on the character.  In the film Saavik is enigmatic, she;s Vulcan with a little bit of extra emotion.  Perhaps it's youth, perhaps it's just in comparison to Spock she's a little bit more dynamic, but she is acted superbly and the tears at Spock's funeral are poignant because as far as we know, she's Vulcan and displays of emotion like that are a faux pas.  She reflects Kirk at this time, who is unable to hold it together, just about getting the words out.

And I do understand she acts as a kind of audience surrogate... oh, no she doesn't.  Saavik does not work as an audience surrogate, she's new blood as Decker was in TMP, but she is not a surrogate because she is an enigma even to us.  She is a very strange choice to base the much of the perspective of the book from, personally I would have gone for third person omniscient, and not focused on Saavik.  Sure, she can have her exposition, but enough is enough!

Right, I think I have gone on enough about this.  There are serious problems with this novelisation of ST:TWOK and frankly, unless you have some morbid curiosity about Saavik's non canon origins I don't really see the point in reading it.  In contrast to the ST:TMP novelisation, McIntyre's first novel adaptation of the film series adds nothing to our understanding of the film as much of it can't be considered canon.  It does highlight however a severe lack of editorial oversight.

In my opinion, a novelisation should at least be accurate to the scenes included in the film and any extra content should be relevant and add to the reader's understanding of it.

The author should also be competent and not struggle with sentence structure and flow.  McIntyre never, improves on this front (at least in her Star Trek novels).  I have no desire to read any of her other series to see if she actually does improve, I fear I'd feel the urge to claw my eyes out.  Just these will be enough.

1/5 - Don't bother.

((McIntyre's work to me is as a red rag to a bull...))

Star Trek - Web of the Romulans

A gleam was born in the captain's eyes.  Spock, watching it glow, felt a stab of trepidation.  He was always nervous when Kirk began to work from inspiration instead of logic.

"Countess..." said Kirk in a voice that made Uhura, Yeoman Kouc and Ensign Stewart blush.  Spock looked startled and McCoy incredulous but the captain continued in his dark, velvet voice.  What he had in mind was a long shot, but it was all he had.

As I'm reading these ST:TOS novels I'm often thinking about how I'm going to review the book.  At about half way through on a shorter book, perhaps every quarter on a longer one I stop and think and start forming my opinions.  I ask questions to myself, what's the theme, is the characterization good, is the story compelling, are there any memorable moments so far?

So as usual at about page 130, I did the same to Web of the Romulans (1983) (#10 Pocket, # Titan) by M S Murdock.

What's happened so far?  Um...  Not much.

What's the story?  Romulans... are attacking but not attacking the Federation?  A disease!  Yeah, there's a disease and they need to, uh, get medicine!

You're just remembering what you read in the blurb, aren't you?  Yes...

So... what you're saying is that you've read half the book and if you hadn't read the blurb you still wouldn't know what was going on and nothing much has happened?  Correct.

Fascinating.

Essentially, Web of the Romulans is, well, for lack of a better word... slow.  Not in a boring, arduous sense but in a I really feel that by about half way through there should be some sense of something happening.  This is somewhat deliberate, the whole story is a series of waiting games and a lack of action which wears on the readers and the characters alike.  Saying this however without expressly saying that it is also enjoyable would be doing it a disservice.  I was actually surprised to find myself approaching the middle of the book.  But nothing has happened yet! I thought.  And furthermore, I'm not bored!  And that was the surprising thing, despite nothing really happening and getting to half way though with virtually no action what so ever, I didn't really mind.

On the flip side, I wasn't in a particular rush to finish it either.

I must quickly comment on the cover.  Notice anything strange?  Well aside from Bones' rather dapper get up (so suave)!  Spock and Kirk's insignia are on the wrong side!  Not only that, but the insignia are flipped too.  You'd think that that meant that the image had been flipped, but the artists signature is the right way around... I'm sure there's going to be a story behind this mishap!

It became apparent in the first page that M S Murdock is a female author.  Her descriptions on the first page gave the game away.  Her descriptions paint a detailed picture with a feminine eye, and although her imagery is often somewhat overwrought it is none the less pleasurable to read.  As the plot develops at it's sedentary pace it becomes very clear where her focus is - love and relationships.  It shouldn't surprise anyone who reads Web of the Romulans that at least part of it was written by Murdock for a fanzine.  Web of the Romulans has a definite division in the stories the more developed 'computer loves Kirk' plot and the less refined 'Romulans need medicine' plot.

To some extent, the slow pace of the novel is explained by the two story lines.  Initially the plot with the Romulans is introduced however, the narrative with the computer has to be resolved before the Romulan plot can continue, since the story with the computer effectively disables the Enterprise.  Since the computer plot is essentially a standalone, go nowhere, what if, silliness found frequently in fanfiction, it's an interesting if lengthy diversion.  This somewhat explains my confusion re. 'nothing has happened, why aren't I bored?' Basically, I was occupied for most of the book with the amusing problem of the computer devoting all its resources to Kirk and an understanding of love (a follow on from 'Tomorrow is Yesterday).  This problem isn't so much solved by the end of the book so much as bypassed.  Reminding us of auxiliary control serves a purpose for the other narrative, which was a neat link.

The Romulan section of the narrative which is utterly unrelated to Kirk's problems is pretty well written however, I would like to have seen more of it.  S'Talon and the Centurion were likeable, sympathetic characters, as was the aged mentor and his friend.  The Praetor was a little tropey and predictable but served his purpose in the narrative.  I wanted to read more about the Romulans and their problems, more character development, just more!  The weakest part of the story was probably the reasons given for the Romulan's actions, the Praetor's role, the under developed bit about the planet where the miracle drug is.  On the other hand, if you don't look to closely at it, it is fine!  Mixed in with the Romulan intrigue is some Federation intrigue, in which an admiral who works in intelligence believes that the Romulans intend to start a war with the Federation.  He is completely obsessed with the idea and so manipulates the situation to be in the frontline.  However, this isn't his only problem, he also wants to conduct a war with the Romulans like a game, and he wants to be the victor.  So... basically he's completely off his rocker.  Through this story line we're introduced to three or four Federation characters who are generally likeable, interesting characters.  I also wanted to read more about these characters but I was denied this too!

So frustrating!  Perhaps this bothers me most there's a really good story line concerning the Romulans but Murdock's main concern is that silly fanfiction she wrote.  If the book had been one hundred pages longer, the Romulan narrative would have had more room to breathe and develop, as it is there is a frustrating amount of potential that just isn't utilised!

Of course, this just highlights the main problem of this book - nothing much happens.  I mean, it's impossible not to realise that two large sections of the book are comprised of 2 or more star ships sitting for days on end looking at each other over an invisible boarder in space.

It's also hard to miss that the cash poor Romulans mount an invasion force, get to the planet with the drug that they need and then... sit and negotiate?  Or that these very same cash poor Romulans buy the whole supply of this miracle drug - enough to save their whole Empire?  No boots on the ground?  No drama with S'Talon?  The Romulan ships get fired at and they just... sit there?

There's lots of cameo scenes recognisable from the series, Rand being stuck in a turbo lift is one, for example, and characters are generally well written.

So, in essence, Web of the Romulans has some serious problems, which are mitigated somewhat by a pleasant writing style and a good sense of humour and timing from the author.  It is just a pleasant sojourn, not stressful, not exciting, just a bit of a ramble.  Read it by all means, but don't look too hard / think too much about it.

3/5 - Countess of.... what?

I must add that I am laughing hard at people calling it misogynist.  Dear me.

Star Trek - Black Fire

But the doctor's main concern was on the severe condition of the captain; he hadn't yet assessed all of Kirk's injuries and McCoy entered surgery not knowing exactly what he would find.  At least hes alive - barely.

It took all of McCoy's professional detachment to suppress his despair when he full examined his patient and his friend.  There were just so many organs one could transplant, just so much one could patch and mend the human body.  Kirk's wounds pressed that limit.

Black Fire (#8 Pocket, #37 Titan) (1983) by Sonni Cooper starts with a bang, a big one.  I have to be honest, not many authors have the gall to pen an event that nearly kills one of the main characters within the first line of chapter one.  And when I say 'nearly kills' I mean only the fact Kirk is protected by virtue of being Kirk, Captain of the Enterprise, but he was as close to dead and out of the narrative as Cooper could make him.  Kirk is absent then for pretty much half the book and even when he does come back nobody bothers to tell him what is going on and he ends up having to feel his way through the narrative like a blind man without a cane.

Strike one.  Will Black Fire get three strikes? Will it hit a home run?  I don't know, but I do know I've never watched a baseball game in my life!

So, ok, I've jumped ahead a little bit, but as an ardent lover of all things Kirk I just had to get it off my chest.  I suppose I was surprised that the story took the route it did, after all I excitedly read the excellent introduction and the praises lauded onto Sonni Cooper and thought Yes!  This is going to be a gem!  Well, lets say don't expect ruby, expect garnant and you'll be fine.

So, as I said, Black Fire starts with a bang, which incapacitates Kirk for a lengthy time and seriously damages the Enterprise.  Spock (also injured) finds that the evidence points to a deliberate bombing with the intention of robbing Kirk of his life.  On submitting the evidence to the Federation, he finds them unwilling to listen to him or sanction an action into the investigation of the bombing.  Instead they seem to want to brush it all under the carpet, keeping it all hush hush.  Although I guess this is plausible, one of their advanced ships has essentially just been towed to a space dock for extensive repairs, crew members have died, the captain is critically injured... this isn't going to go away.  So... why?

Spock then takes it upon himself to investigate further, enlisting Scotty to aid him in stealing a ship and investigating co-ordinates he has worked out from various clues left by the Enterprise's bomber.  Naturally, this goes horribly wrong and Spock and Scott are captured by a barbaric race of small, suicidal, furry humanoids who want to take over the galaxy.  You'd think that would be the meat of it?  No... That's not the half of it.  Spock and Scott escape, get court martialled and punished.  Spock ends up making friends with a Romulan pirate  who he then escapes with, becomes a pirate himself, joins the Romulan Empire, acts as an intermediary between the Federation and the Empire, helps broker peace between the small furries and the Federation / Empire... 

Kirk in the meantime is busy recovering.  A lot of time passes in this novel, the Enterprise is refitted and absentee crew is replaced.  Kirk assumes command of the Enterprise once more to find... a new first officer, science officer and head of engineering.  Seriously, he knew nothing about that, nobody told him what happened to Spock and Scott, not even his bridge crew.  Seriously, poor Kirk.

Kirk ends up running into Spock again and again, once as the pirate 'Black Fire' and then as sub-commander Spock of the Romulan Empire.  Kirk's heart is just about breaking THE WHOLE TIME.  Insight from Spock?  Not much, there might be a feeling somewhere, but he seems more concerned about his new Romulan friend than Kirk.  Huh.. ok.

So, you'd be forgiven for wondering just HOW short of time travel, will this mess be cleaned up.  I hope you'll forgive me for spoiling but... BECAUSE HE WAS UNDERCOVER.  Well that's all right then!  That explains everything!... not.  What a hot mess!

From what I can understand, the Federation had literally nothing to gain from keeping it all hush hush, painting Spock as a traitor, have him galavant as a pirate and join (albeit temporarily) the Romulan Empire (he steals a ship and returns to the Enterprise near the end of the book, at which point all is revealed).  Spock admits that actually teaming up with his pirate friend wasn't actually part of the plan... then what was the plan?  Why did they not have Spock's back healed and risk paralysis of a valuable officer and undercover agent?  Why didn't they tell Kirk?!  Additionally, we get much of the narrative from essentially Spock's POV, but even so he never reacts / thinks as if he's aware he's undercover.  I feel like Cooper get's to the end of this big mess and then reaches around for the quickest, simplest way of explaining why Spock went solo for this story, became a pirate, and defected to the Romulan Empire etc.

Strike two!

In essence, don't think about this one too hard.  Black Fire is a romp, it's enjoyable, it's generally well written but it's not one that tries very hard to make sense - even in a Trek way.  Obviously this is a Spock centric story, and a part of me wants to say, the characterisation is good, but the other part of me disagrees because the narrative pushes him in a direction I don't think is natural to the character.  It's like Cooper wants something to happen, forces an action (which isn't normal to the character) but then characterises well when it isn't a plot point.  This kind of goes against some narrative theory I hold quite dear, so I can't quite forgive it for that.

I quite liked Scotty going against the grain and teaming up with Spock to steal a ship though, that was completely in character!

The main 'villains' of the story were quite, strange.  For one thing they had a society based on the fact they bred prolifically on a home planet that couldn't support them.  This resulted in a warlike, suicidal race with next to no respect for life.  They somehow got themselves off their planet and started taking over others... secretly it seems, as nobody else seems to have heard of them previously.  They integrate the technology of the species they subdue with their own, but they do not seem to develop scientifically at all otherwise.  They seemed... I don't know, very unlikely villains especially since they ended up being defeated relatively easily.  This made little sense to me because they were essentially besieged but that was only their home planet, they have scores of other planets as I understand it, why would besieging their dying home planet cause their empire to wave the white flag when socially they are suicidal and have little respect for life?

Strike three!  Black Fire is out! (That's what happens right?)

One of the little furry villains ends up falling in love with Spock *groan*, at least this puts Spock in an uncomfortable position a couple of times.  He deserves it after not being truthful with his space husband Kirk!

I honestly think the lack of exposition from Spock is where the book falls down a bit, it's like Cooper is trying so hard to keep the secret that Spock is undercover that it all comes across a bit disingenuous.  So example, if the narrator is constantly telling us what Spock is thinking and his reasoning, why aren't we made aware that it's all a deception anyway.  Concealing the truth stops us from actually learning the Federation's motivations.  It stops us actually learning what Spock actually thinks / feels about the events, instead we are essentially fed half truths.  Perhaps we should be grateful, it's more information than Kirk gets!

Not wanting to be too much of a stick in the mud, I have to confess that I did enjoy the pirate Spock and his adventures with the Romulan, that section alone was almost worth reading the book for.

Finally, should you read it?  Well... I'm going to give it a solid 3/5.  There's nothing particularly bad about it, but there also isn't anything that really makes me go 'wow' either.  It was just enjoyable, quite silly at times, a little bit melodramatic.  I find some of the TOS novels could plausibly fit in the continuity, Black Fire just doesn't.

3/5 - Ka-boom.

URGH - Just corrected some errors where text was out of place.  It's when I post on my tiny laptop with a touch pad - I'm sorry!

Guest blog is up on trekfanproductions.com!

Hello Hello!

I just thought I'd share with you that a little while back I wrote a guest blog for trekfanproductions.com which has just gone live today!

It's an essay on an alternative reading of Turnabout Intruder, ditching the 'sexist'/'sexism' commentary and instead positing that a better reading is one of 'gender fluidity' and exposition of mental illness.

Anyway, if you're interested and would like to read something other than a book review by me, please follow the link:

Turning About Turnabout Intruder

Star Trek - The Abode of Life

Two nearly simultaneous explosions from the humanoids' handguns shook the glade.  There was the solid sound of a projectile hitting one of the trees, followed by the whistling of another projectile ricocheting off some surface to warble off into the distance.

White smoke having the smell of rotten eggs, the characteristic odor of exploded black gunpowder, filled the air.

Oh dear, it has been a while!  I'm afraid I was on a bodily enforced hiatus - it was either mild flu or a cold with delusions of grandeur!  Either way it wiped me out for weeks (I'm only now feeling awake enough to write again!), and considering I'd pretty much finished The Abode of Life when I came down with it, I'm now having to stretch my Trek addled brain far further back than I'd like in order to review it!

The Abode of Life (Pocket, Titan) by Lee Correy was a welcome break from the overly dramatic silliness of Marshak & Culbreath and also allowed me to legitimately avoid reading another two that I'm not very excited about, to say the least.  Ok, what I really want to say is that I needed a man's literary touch and Lee Corey managed to scratch that itch.  I've often said that there is a definite difference between male and female writers and it couldn't be more exemplified than in the comparison between the emotional writing of Marshak and Culbreath and the succinct prose of Lee Correy.  The Abode of Life is spartan and Correy is generally uninterested in emotional exposition or character development (he in fact seems to have difficulty expressing emotion at all -Vulcan?-, I'll talk about that later), instead his interest lies in writing an expanded episode, showing us a whole new culture and having Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise make first contact with a technologically advanced species so cut off from the rest of the galaxy that they believe they are the only sentient life and whose culture is built around that belief.

The cover is... ok?
I kind of like Kirk and Spock
being full length instead of
floating heads though...

I don't want to give the wrong impression, I really did like The Abode of Life, it was just what I needed and that's all right with me.  As much as I like character driven stories full of exposition and relationship / character building, sometimes I just need to be reminded just why I like the series in the first place.  Essentially, it's very easy to get bogged down with 'fanon' (which is wonderful) that you forget just why it was love at first sight.  I didn't get annoyed, I didn't get emotional, I just got taken on a Trek adventure

The author is worth mentioning before I move on.  Lee Corey is a pseudonym of G. Harry Stine who as well as an author is one of the founding figures of modern model rocketry.  He has a physics background and worked at the Naval Ordnance Missile Test facility.  The Abode of Life is his only Star Trek novel, however he wrote a number of novels including his 'Warbot' series.  He has also published non fiction books on model rocketry and a number of space / space travel related books.  His non-fiction writing style peeks through in The Abode of Life, economical with language, a general lack of emotional description but a really in depth creation of a world and a culture and the possible science behind it.  Lee Correy writes plausibly, everything is believable from the science to the reactions of the characters.

The Enterprise is asked to scout a dangerous area of space full of spacial gravitational distortions.  Naturally, in an encounter with one of these distortions the Enterprise gets thrown across space to a sector of the quadrant which has not been yet discovered / explored by any other known race.  Badly crippled by the ordeal, the Enterprise limps under impulse engines to a lone planet circling a lone star, the readings of which defy even Spock's understanding of star behaviour.  It soon becomes clear that the star and the planet were victims of the same phenomenon that the Enterprise experienced, albeit many years previously, explaining the odd behaviour of the star.

Due to the state of the Enterprise, Kirk makes the decision that he must make contact with the people on the surface of the planet.  Scans indicate they are technologically advanced and use a transporter system though they have not developed space travel.  Kirk finds himself in a first contact situation with a people who have no concept of any other life in the universe except for their own, and whose unique society could be irrevocably changed by contact with aliens...  Of course, the situation becomes more urgent when it is revealed that the unstable sun is due to start a cyclical event which will cause it to throw out lethal amounts of radiation, enough to destroy a crippled starship and her crew.  Kirk must decide whether to break the cycle and change a planet's society forever, or save the Enterprise from certain destruction, all the while playing the part of Federation ambassador and tactician.

It's pretty much a no-brainer, isn't it?  I mean, even those of us who will defend Kirk to the ends of the Alpha quadrant know that there are certain things he won't allow:

1) Destruction of his woman the Enterprise (unless it involves Spock, see 3))

2) Loss of his best bro, McCoy

3) Loss of his space husband first officer, Spock.

So once the negotiations inevitably break down, Kirk has to take action.  In doing so he changes Mercan forever, which of course means that the story doesn't stop there.  The Abode of Life is unusual as it continues on well after the main event has occurred, Kirk has to take responsibility for his actions, and that means helping to mend the rifts between the various factions on the planet and try to bring the isolated planet into the Federation for protection and for strategic purposes.

Much of the action The Abode of Life comes from the conflict between three factions which can probably be described simply as conservatives, liberals and military.  In this case the conservatives hold the power in the Mercan society being part of a 'church of science' (?) and they hold the knowledge of how to predict their sun's behaviour and have control of the bunkers which the people have to hide in to survive.  The liberals represent 'new-science', challenging old views and trying to work out what the conservatives know in order to shift the balance of power.  The military are pretty self explanatory, they work for the conservatives but only want to act for the good of Mercan.

Pretty standard fare isn't it?  The meat of the story itself is not original, but the setting is.  I think the real strength comes from the Correy's world building.  His new characters are average, but the well thought out world with it's interesting martial society and mix of new technology (world wide transporter system) and old (black powder pistols) is really interesting.  I actually liked the idea of this isolated, advanced society having this duelling system that uses old pistols to settle disputes.  The 'mythology' of the planet was really interesting too, after all, there had to be a reason they didn't ever bother developing space travel and such. 

One of the points I had to laugh at was the characterisations, they were accurate I think, but because Correy's weakness is description you get funny repetitions like 'Kirk snapped'.  'Kirk snapped' was used so many times that it kind of becomes a joke.  Does Kirk do nothing else but 'snap' as his crew?  It's like he's suffering a sugar low or something!!

It was nice having Kirk just being a captain and demonstrating how capable he is.  You know showing you just why he's is the captain of a starship charged with not only the responsibility of the 400 or so lives on board, but as a soldier and as a negotiator and representative of the Federation - a diplomat able to initiate and preside over first contact situations.  Correy really emphasises Kirk's sense of responsibility and his wisdom. 

Correy used a wide selection of the main cast, including Rand, who gets to be part of the landing party.  I'm actually rather fond of Janice Rand and when she is written into a story it tends to be rather satisfying for me.

The Abode of Life is really worth the read, it's just good, solid, Trek.  What more do you want?

4/5 - Kirk snapped.

Star Trek - The Prometheus Design

He awoke strapped down, metal biting into his wrists, ankles.  Dispassionate alien probed him at him.  He was face down.  For a long moment he could see nothing.  Then he managed to turn his head and saw Spock, strapped on another table beside him, conscious of everything being done to or prepared for either of them.

Kinky.  I've totally read this in a gay erotic novel.  That was lacking in story too.

In my time honoured tradition of reading books out of sequence, I turned to The Prometheus Design (#5 Pocket, #35 Titan) (1982) by Sondra Marshak and Myrna Culbreath to avoid reading the second part of the 50th Anniversary Trilogy (I'm struggling to be interested after the first volume...).

Last month I read and reviewed Triangle by Marshak and Culbreath, it failed to impress from a literary perspective, although it is interesting from the perspective of being incredibly slashy and written by those women who are arguably considered the mothers of all slash.  It was incredibly dramatic, it often crossed the line in regards to homosexual subtext, and definitely crossed my line as far as hurt/comfort and Kirk abuse goes.  I did expect much of the same from The Prometheus Design but I was pleasantly surprised, which makes me wonder what on earth they were the playing at with Triangle?

Before I go into The Prometheus Design proper, I have a few musings I hope you'll humour me with.  Firstly, from most of the accounts I can readily find on Sondra Marshak she was a clever woman, and very driven in her... I don't know, obsession with certain aspects of Star Trek.  Most noticeably her interest in developing Vulcan lore (I'm going to assume the Vulcan supremacy obsession is primarily Marshak's contribution) and of course the Kirk/Spock relationship.  I can certainly see her cleverness in her work, there are good ideas certainly but they are not fully formed and often quite confused.  Something I have found in both Triangle and The Prometheus Design is an inability to really focus and refine ideas or, in fact explain them fully.  Of course, I'm not going to discount Culbreath's involvement, I don't know how they worked, and she is also demonstrably an intelligent woman but I can't shake the feeling that it's Marshak's touch that makes their combined work recognisable.  I would like to read something solely from Culbreath just to test my feelings here.

I guess what I'm trying to say is, although I've found much in the way of reports of Marshak's brilliance, I don't really see it - at least not in the two novels I have read.  The Prometheus Design is significantly better than Triangle but it is still very flawed.  The ideas and themes are muddled, as if half understood sometimes simple aspects of the story deliberately obfuscated to project a false intellectualism.  Certainly, I believe Marshak and Culbreath to have embraced a pseudo intellectualism, and in Marshak's case it appears to have been what impressed people within the early fandom.   I would be different if I believed that what was written they themselves understood the implications of what they were asserting, but I really don't believe it to be the case.

Another aspect to Marshak and Culbreath's work is that they heavily reference their novels.  For example they cite many episodes in The Prometheus Design that back up their assertions, however they also cite a number of previously written books / fictions including their own two previous novels published under a different publisher.  This does strike me as a little odd, especially as what they are building on somewhat stretches characterisation of Kirk and especially Spock to extremes.  This might be well and good for a one off novel, but to extend that into an extended continuity?  I have problems with that.  In later novels, there are often references to earlier authors, but only references to good ideas or events that were possible NOT the development of super sadist Spock and masochist Kirk. 

So onto the review proper, yes? 

The book might be rubbish,
but don't they look dashing!

Initially, The Prometheus Design is fairly incomprehensible.  It has a prologue which introduces us to an alien perspective, but the scenes that they are commenting on come later in the book, so the prologue means very little to the first time reader (and why you'd want to read it again unless you were reviewing it is a mystery to me) and there are still sections which remain obscure even then!  The aliens are scientists, obviously conducting some kind of test and Kirk, McCoy, Spock and an unknown Vulcan are the test subjects.  There is talk of a double blind test which will make sense, eventually... although in my opinion it adds nothing to the story at all.

The Prometheus Design removes Kirk as the captain of the Enterprise and places Spock as captain.  Kirk is allowed to stay on as first officer, all this under the order of  a Vulcan who was a pioneer of space exploration, but has been missing for some ten years.  Why is Kirk removed?  Well, this Vulcan believes that he and his bridge crew may be compromised after they were all captured and experimented on by terrifying creatures, but, surprise surprise, Vulcans may be immune to the experiments/suggestions so Spock needs to be in charge.

A portion of the novel is the dedicated to Spock being, quite frankly, a monster.  A MONSTER.  A pointy eared cruel terror who appears to team up with the other Vulcan to undermine and degrade Kirk, not just from the perspective of his removal from command, but also in terms of his personality and species.  We know Spock isn't a commander, he's a genius, yes, but he is not fit for prolonged periods of command especially not when it comes to working with a human crew.  Marshak and Culbreath emphasise that this Spock is not the Spock from the series, he has been changed by gol (this book is set between the first and second films) and Kirk and Spock did not reignite their rapport in quite the same way yet. They have psychic connection however, which is stressed has weakened Kirk's own mental defenses- this point they use in their next book 'Triangle'.  I mean, despite him being as evil as he looks (...apparently, Marshak and Culbreath just love to remind everyone that somehow Vulcans look like the devil himself - he even has horns this time!) he still comes running when Kirk is in trouble (Kirk of course does the same for him).

One thing I couldn't quite decide is whether he was actually in on the other Vulcan's plan or affected by the experiments of the aliens?  I don't really know what would be worse.  The other Vulcan 'Savaj' (which I read as 'Savage') is pretty much a self confessed xenophobe, why Spock would consider Savaj logical from this skewed view I simply don't know.  Savaj's distrust of humanity negatively impacts the crew... oh right.  I almost forgot.

VULCAN COMMAND MODE.

VULCAN COMMAND MODE.

One more time!

VULCAN COMMAND MODE.

It doesn't get any better with repetition, does it (or different fonts).  It is where a Vulcan goes into a... state of mind which requires absolute obedience (there is a Japanese yaoi sex/dating game by that name by the way - translated into English, it's really terrible, just an FYI).  I really can't believe that Vulcans would have such a doctrine, how would it be logical to not question a commander in anyway?  To stop thinking and just obey?  This is used to explain Spock's strange behaviour... I found it made him like a puppet on Savaj's strings.

Okok... so I  know I'm bitching here, and picking at bits and pieces, but honestly my confused review only reflects the convoluted mess that is The Prometheus Design.  In short it's about breaking patterns of behaviour.  The super icky aliens you're initially introduced to as the 'experimenters' are redundant, as far as I can tell they and the double blind test serve no purpose what so ever aside from confuse matters.  They have no part in 'breaking the pattern' they're just... cruel and being directed to do these horrible things by greater powers.  The greater powers can see into the future and realise that their civilisation is heading to destruction, so they are experimenting on civilisations in our galaxy by a) speeding up cultural progression b) causing trauma and pain to certain individuals because... Marshak and Culbreath wanted to cause trauma to Spock and Kirk?  I don't know, I've got nothing.  It's nonsensical.  Anyway, it becomes clear as mud that they want proof that people can break patterns and make a new future.

Naturally our intrepid trio Spock, Kirk and Savaj... oh wait.  McCoy is there too for some reason, but isn't really used...  Our intrepid foursome find the awesome fortress of the... oh wait I totally read this in Triangle...  Um... OK!  They get caught and the fire woman 'Flame' (I kid you not) screws Kirk...  even though he's just a lab animal to her.

Right so... it's in this section we get exposition of this advanced species.  We get some anti-vivisection rhetoric, and Kirk volunteers to be their eternal lab animal if they could just leave the galaxy alone thank you very much.  Spock is annoyed and COMMANDS HIM not to sacrifice himself.  What follows is two different occasions of Kirk 'breaking his pattern of command' and thus showing the super beings that doom can be averted and the future they see isn't the only possible future.  Hooray, thank God that is over.

As a side note, the xenophobic Vulcan 'Savaj' decides that actually, Kirk is a bro and he's totally cool with humans now.

Right am I done yet?  It's taken me a week to summon the desire to write this terrible review (this isn't even a review to be honest) of a terrible book.

Frankly, it's a convoluted mess.  There are some good ideas there, buried in the mire of total horse poo.  I think I said earlier it was better than Triangle.

I lied.

I've changed my mind.

It's getting a 1/5.

I mean, I won't say don't under any circumstances read it, it is interesting to me from a perspective of seeing a fandom develop and the prevalence actually of the slash fandom / authors, but keep your expectations low and don't try to understand it - it isn't worth the headache.

I am going to say there are some good... paragraphs.  As well as some hilarious imagery like naked Kirk running over the top of the shoulders of confused aliens, freely swinging in the...

1/5 - VULCAN COMMAND MODE.

I'm sorry, past a point I couldn't take writing this review seriously anymore.

Forgive me?!

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.