Does "Fire Ship" get better?

[cem1701]

I am reading the Voyager Captain's Table book "Fire Ship" right now. I am about 60-some pages in and I am really not into it. I think I have only put down 1 or 2 Trek books after starting to read them, but I am about to put this one down.

Does it get better?

While I am asking...I have the DS9 Captain's Table book "The Mist" that I had planned on reading after "Fire Ship." What are your opinions on it?

THANKS!

 

[Allyn Gibson]

I loved Fire Ship. I thought it was one of Carey's best Star Trek novels. I loved the whole "fish out of water" vibe of the story, with Janeway having to work on a deckhand of a starship that worked on different principles.

 

[Steve Roby]

I am reading the Voyager Captain's Table book "Fire Ship" right now. I am about 60-some pages in and I am really not into it.

Does it get better?

Some people love Fire Ship, others hate it. Personally, I'm not one of its fans. It's possible that something will click in this story for you if you keep reading. Depends what it is about the book that's not working for you. If you don't like Carey's prose style or the way she writes the TV Trek characters, you likely won't find the rest of the book significantly different.

While I am asking...I have the DS9 Captain's Table book "The Mist" that I had planned on reading after "Fire Ship." What are your opinions on it?

As for The Mist, I remember finding it average at best -- nothing special, not the authors' best, but not painful to get through, either. It certainly never generated anywhere near as much online discussion as Fire Ship did.

 

[MMCL]

It's actually one of my favourite Voyager novel (la) s. But then it's not that hard given the competition...IMO

I'm more of a DS9 fan in general, but The Mist didn't do it for me really... although wasn't Klag in it? I liked the klingon bits, I recall.

 

[ronny]

I'm a big DS9 fan and found The Mist pretty uninteresting. Haven't read the Voyager book.

 

[Therin of Andor]

I am reading the Voyager Captain's Table book "Fire Ship" right now. I am about 60-some pages in and I am really not into it. I think I have only put down 1 or 2 Trek books after starting to read them, but I am about to put this one down.

"Fire Ship" is probably my favourite VOY novel. Loved it.

"The Mist" was kinda forgettable by comparison.

 

[LightningStorm]

I'm in with the crowd that LOVED Fire Ship. One thing that is a bit off-putting (if you don't know this going in) is that the entire Voyager crew is absent except for Janeway. (They show up for a second or two but it's mostly irrelevant.) When I read the book I also almost put it down because of this, then it just got so interesting seeing Janeway's story unfold I couldn't stop.

The Mist... I've owned for probably 4 years, but haven't picked it up due mostly to the lack of overly positive or overly negative reviews of it. I had, in fact, forgotten I even owned it until this thread showed up and reminded me of it.

 

[Christopher]

I'm in with the crowd that LOVED Fire Ship. One thing that is a bit off-putting (if you don't know this going in) is that the entire Voyager crew is absent except for Janeway. (They show up for a second or two but it's mostly irrelevant.) When I read the book I also almost put it down because of this, then it just got so interesting seeing Janeway's story unfold I couldn't stop.

Yeah. Carey really took the Captain's Table concept to its fullest extent. Instead of an ordinary tale that just happened to be narrated in first person by the captain, Fire Ship was a story that could only be told by the captain because she was the only regular involved in it, and because of how her experiences affected her personally.

 

[Starbreaker]

I loved Fire Ship. I read it and tried to watch an episode of Voyager a couple of days later and was absolutely shocked at what Carey had accomplished. I thought it was a lot better than anything that had been brought to the screen regarding Voyager. Even if it was only Janeway, it was really compelling.

 

[Therin of Andor]

I loved Fire Ship. I read it and tried to watch an episode of Voyager a couple of days later and was absolutely shocked at what Carey had accomplished.

I love how it even explains the transformation of her hairstyles: from the so-called "bun of steel" to her trendier, shorter cut.

 

[Trent Roman]

Just to balance things out, I'm on the side of those who couldn't stand Fire Ship and thought Carey's characterization of Janeway was entirely out of whack. "Control freak discovers the joys of menial labour after tragedy befalls her..."

Fictitiously yours, Trent Roman

 

[Stevil2001]

I really like Fire Ship. It and Once Burned were really the only stories that exploited the Captain's Table conceit in an effective way. Well, actually, Where Sea Meets Sky did a good job, too.

The Mist is a pretty average novel, except the story gets interrupted so much that even the characters complain about how annoying it is.

 

[JD]

What about the Picard one? That's another one I've got that I've never read.

 

[Therin of Andor]

What about the Picard one? That's another one I've got that I've never read.

Tedious, IIRC.

 

[The Grim Ghost]

I'm interested in giving Fireship a try. I have to say that Mist was one of the worst Trek books I have ever read though. I put it down around halfway through and haven't been able to finish it yet. That is rare for me.

 

[Trent Roman]

The Mist is a pretty average novel, except the story gets interrupted so much that even the characters complain about how annoying it is.

At the risk of appearing perverse, I actually enjoyed the 'interruptions' and the scenes in the bar more than I did the story itself. For a group of people basically just sitting there and chatting, I thought they were an interesting bunch and had a good round-table thing going.

Fictitiously yours, Trent Roman

 

[Frontier]

I really enjoyed it. It really was unique at it's time, when Trek Lit wasn't allowed to do a lot other. I'd stick with it, see how you like it half-way through.

 

[Stevil2001]

The Mist is a pretty average novel, except the story gets interrupted so much that even the characters complain about how annoying it is.

At the risk of appearing perverse, I actually enjoyed the 'interruptions' and the scenes in the bar more than I did the story itself. For a group of people basically just sitting there and chatting, I thought they were an interesting bunch and had a good round-table thing going.

It worked in some of the books-- I really liked it in Where Sea Meets Sky, where it gave you additional insight into Pike and his state of mind-- but it just wasn't pulled off interestingly in The Mist.

 

[ronny]

That's one of the things that was killing me in this book. The main story was barely holding my interest as it was then they kept going back to long scenes of Sisko enjoying his jambalaya in the bar. I read the NF book because it was part of that series but I haven't been able to bring myself to read any of the others yet. The anthology had some good stuff in it though. I remember really not getting into the Titan or Enterprise stories but the rest were enjoyable.

 

[JWolf]

I too really enjoyed Fire Ship. I thought Janeway was portraied spot on. And he being alone without the rest of the crew was very well done.