Excellent review, Thrawn. I'm finishing the book 'round about now, so I'll post my own thoughts soon-ish.
Finished it today and really enjoyed it. It was to me a good old-fashioned Trek novel where the explorers come across a problem that has to be solved, and not one that means saving the universe or the Federation, but just a planet in trouble. At the same time I love the ongoing story of the fleet and Janeway and how it is developed in the story. For me this book really had the best of both worlds - planet of the week and ongoing story.
Nice review. I agree with you on her character skills, she makes them come alive in a way that I wish the TV series would have been able to accomplish. Harry Kim is a very tough nut to crack, and she has been able to make him appealing and interesting and valuable. I think in time she will be able to fully flesh out her interpretation of Tom Paris, but for now at least she has been able to capture his concern and caring for his family. Thank you also for pointing out the fantastic action scenes, as I had neglected to mention that in my review. I just love this book series.
I just finished after two days of reading whenever i could. Loved this book and can't wait for October for the next part. I wish Tom was getting as good a service to his character as people like Harry and Chakotay, but i have supreme confidence that Kirsten knows what she's doing and that i'm just a reader with only a part of the whole in my possession. I'm sure Tom will get plenty of 'screen time' in the next go. Way to go Kirsten! Another fantastic outing, and further proof that Voyager is the best treklit series currently on the shelves.
Another fantastic Voyager novel by Kirsten MF Beyer. My friend and I commented how wonderful it was to be back with these characters again; like getting a new episode or season of the show. Spoiler: Review - This got a bit long, has spoilers I really loved the way the novel was split between three different, interwoven storylines, and how they all came together at the end. Of the three (Voyager/Galen/Earth) I think I enjoyed Voyager’s storyline the most - a very unexpected episode to have built on (Twisted), but such a cool idea! There were so many threads picked up from episodes of the show, and I can't wait to see where they go. (I do find myself saying that a lot, though I understand the necessity of having a "setup" novel after everything that went on in The Eternal Tide. And sending Janeway back with the Vesta was a very neat solution; as soon as she mentioned it I had a feeling that's what would happen, and I'm glad it was. Some great 'gasp out loud' moments, including the reveal of the identity of Patient C-1. Kirsten's handling of the Voyager characters continues to be a delight - I always get the sense that she really *gets* these characters and does them the justice they deserve, especially Chakotay. Hugh Cambridge was, as always, hilarious - my favourite new character in the relaunch. Events of ‘Protectors’ are setting him up for an - interesting time and I can't wait to see more of him. I also really liked the increased focus on O'Donnell/Fife, Farkas and Glenn considering they're going to be the new command team along with Chakotay - also how Harry stepped up, which makes sense considering he's going to be Acting First Officer for a while. One of the parts of this relaunch I've loved is the focus on characters neglected by the show, especially Chakotay but this time around, Harry as well. I'd like to see more development for Tom, as mentioned above, but with him returning alone to the AQ I'm looking forward to seeing what happens there. Loved the part with O'Donnell and 'Monster'. I agreed with rfmcdpei's comment above about consequences, which was a theme throughout this book, and something I loved. Kathryn Janeway is my favourite character in Trek, so I was especially interested in her development here. I actually wasn't sure about the whole section after she visited Picard with her at her mother's - it felt almost a little *too* blissful for me - my friend commented that it felt like she was in the Nexus. But I was glad to see her coming to terms with the crushing weight she's been carrying, and actually grow and change as a character after it. Looking forward to seeing what these changes might mean for her going forward. I loved the scenes with Phoebe, which felt very realistic. And she can't be broken of her coffee habit; say it ain't so! I'm sure it won't be the case now she's back at work. I was a little disappointed in the development - or lack thereof - of the Janeway/Chakotay relationship, though I'd be the first to admit I may be a little overinvested in it. But they seemed to me to be somewhat - businesslike this time around, especially compared to The Eternal Tide (admittedly an extraordinary and emotional situation for both of them, but still), and given everything they've been through and the things they'd both previously said in The Eternal Tide (and earlier) about their commitment to each other going forward, I was surprised they both seemed rather nonchalant about their relationship this time, from the unemotional parting to the way they think back to each other throughout the book (or don't) to the rather strained reunion. Kathryn doesn't seem to consider much of a place for him in the new life she's trying to build (though I do understand the importance of having her establish herself on her own - I was reminded of Phoebe's description of her emerging like a phoenix from the haze of grief after hr father and Justin's death from Full Circle). I did love her reflecting at her memorial in San Francisco; one of my favourite scenes. I know it won't be easy for them to balance command and a relationship - I wouldn't expect it to be - but I had hoped they might finally get a chance to commit to each other more than they've had a chance to in the past, as in previous novels they had both expressed a desire to, so this felt like a step back for them. With Kathryn living on the Vesta now - and Starfleet's discouragement of their relationship - I don't know how they're going to move forward, either, but then again I may be surprised. I'm usually kept guessing - in a good way - by these books. At least they're in the same quadrant now. So yes, a great deal of really interesting setups with the Confederacy, the new (much more manageable) fleet, Tom, Seven and Sharak leaving, the worrying seeming-alliance of old, familiar enemies, What Julia Did, Patient C-1, What The Doctor Did, what Starfleet are up to, the plague etc. 'Protectors' left us in a really exciting place and I already can't wait for the next installment. Thankfully it's not too long a wait this time!
Spoiler: Thrawn's spoiler post I've never understood why Tom ended up First Officer, instead of Tuvok. Tuvok always seemed like the better choice to me.
I finished the book today. Spoiler: jmc247's spoiler post" It was well written and interesting, but this series hasn't been easy for me as a fan of the Doctor to read with his holographic heart getting beaten quite thoroughly with a heavy rock. The new boyfriend of Seven was hard enough and now Axum... so his programming has been messed with to try to 'make him happy'... somewhat like he was when he was on the Equinox so far without him going Doctor Mengele. It was nice to see a fellow Starfleet officer question future Janeway's actions in Endgame and her to question it openly herself. All in all I think its time for me to go back to re-read the earlier installments of this series as its been a long time since I have.
I voted Above Average. The first half was a bit sluggish. Re-establishing Janeway took a bit more pages than I would have preferred. At one point, I even thought to myself "I sort of liked it better when she was dead." It got better, though. And I'm glad that some interesting things have been set up in the delta quadrant.
I voted Above Average. I found that I enjoyed the Alpha Quadrant parts more than the Delta Quadrant parts. Spoiler: Protectors The mission to the Ark Planet really didn't become interesting for me until the other ships showed up - the lack of any "first contact" with the species on the Ark Planet made it too much of a science mission for my tastes. I'm excited to see what comes next in Acts of Contrition. Beyer has certainly set up some interesting plotlines that I am certain she will bring to a satisfying conclusion (although we may have to wait for the next Voyager book after AoC for that).
I got the feeling, that too many of Starfleet Command officers has become what Oliver Queen of Smallville said "Generation of Critics instead of Leaders" for judging selfishly what late Future Admiral Janeway did by changing the Timeline. It's so annoying to see such a Commanding Officers could do that... It's remind me of those stupid Captains who shot at the Aventine on The Falls: 4, so stupid and narrow minded. It seems that only people of DTI and their counter parts (whether its from other power temporal division or Future agents) understand the important benefit of that "messing with timeline" to the existence of peace universes without Borg in the future. What will we have in the next story? Major Non-Ethical Medical Research?
Anyone care to give the details on the alliance/confederacy? It's going to be a while before i can buy it and read it.
I absolutely loved this book. I could not put the darn thing down. The VOY series has become one heck of a grand slam. My only concern is that it is out of sync chronologically with the rest of the "current" book timelines.
I've read only seven chapters so far. I feel bad for Tom Paris&Belanna when it comes to his mother wanting to take custody of Miral away from them.It looks like Chakotay and Captain O'Donell will butt heads when it comes to exploring the unknown section of the Delta Quadrant and their different command styles.
Spoiler: The Confederacy The Confederacy of the Worlds of the First Quadrant is an ancient alliance of two species that used to wage war with one another. Together, they escaped from their doomed homeworlds and settled on the First World, in an isolated region of space. The Confederacy is reminiscent of the Goeg Domain in that it is a multispecies but semi-autocratic proto-Federation. The Confederacy consists of 53 member worlds and is unwilling to expand. Edit: There's are spoiling article of the Confederacy on Memory Beta now.
About a 130 pages or so to go. Really liking parts of it, others not that much. The DQ parts of the book don't grab me that much unfortunatly. And, is it me, or does Kirsten write a lot of angst in her characters? Anyway, I'll reserve judgement untill the end, but I think this will be a Above Average for me.
Finished, had less pages to go then I thought I had. Above Average for me. The characters... amazing, as always with Kirsten, but like I said earlier, there really is so much angst going on. Everybody seems to have a reason to be afraid or uncertain about, which makes for interesting characters I suppose, but I can't help but feel that in normal life, you'd have more stable people in a big group. Then again, after all the events from the last 6 months, it's not odd that people feel like this. FYI, I'm talking about all the Kirsten novels since Full Circle, obviously some people have gotten over their issues by now. The Ark Planet/wave forms..... not my cup of tea really, but the it was an interesting concept for sure. The DQ sections of the novel really became interesting to me when the ships starting showing up. I agree with a previous post, that it's very interesting to see that some of our characters now have to deal with the consequences of some of their actions. No good deed goes unpunished indeed. The illness/Axum/secret Starfleet part of the novel.... I will reserve judgement on that entire storyline when it develops more. I find it hard to judge something that has only just peeked around the corner. All in all, very enjoyable read. Perhaps not as epic as Full Circle or Children of the Storm, but I suppose with only half the story told sofar, I have a feeling this might be the biggest thing happening for Voyager, her crew and the fleet sofar.