Reading Marathon: The Typhon Pact... and Beyond!

[KRAD]

Dang. My brain totally didn't register that phrase. Sigh. Sorry about that, @Stevil2001 ......

 

[Stevil2001]

Coda, Book II: The Ashes of Tomorrow by James Swallow
Released: October 2021
Time Span: July 2387 (nine months since Section 31: Control, which was Oct. 2386 according to my notes)

My guess is that I am going to reach book III of Coda and decide Coda was a bad idea. But maybe I am wrong. Certainly I have my own thoughts on what a "novelverse" wrapup trilogy should have done, but we'll see.

That said, if it had to be done this way, The Ashes of Tomorrow is probably about the best it could have been done. James Swallow's novel picks up from the end of Moments Asunder, with Devidians devouring the galaxy. Whereas Moments Asunder mostly focused on the Enterprise-E crew, this book begins with them, but as it goes on, increasingly focuses on the Deep Space Nine cast. Yes, Picard and Worf are there, but the series cast who are all there, getting the spotlight, are the DS9 ones.

It's really effective. One of the great things the original DS9 relaunch did was be willing to move on from the tv characters in the configuration we had known them... but this does mean that it's been eleven years of story time and twenty years of real time since Sisko, Kira, Bashir, O'Brien, Odo, Quark, Jake, and Nog got together to solve a problem as a team. Swallow very effectively hits the nostalgia button here; I loved the scene were they all end up together, trying to figure out what can be done about this problem. Swallow has a very strong command of their voices.

If I have a complaint, it's that while most of the novel-original characters (e.g., Taran'atar, Vaughn) had been killed off by this point, we don't get a return appearance by, say, Shar or Prynn. This is the end of the litverse after all; most of these characters could be seen again... but not Shar! There is at least a lot of Ro Laren. (James Swallow can't make the USS Robinson crew interesting, alas, but he does wisely avoid even mentioning most of David R. George's other post–Typhon Pact recurring cast. Sorry not sorry, Jefferson Blackmer. You will forever be Starfleet's worst and most boring chief of security. Your space station is being purposefully destroyed, and your boss doesn't even mention you.)

Almost all of the characters get great moments. Nog dies—but he dies saving Jake. Jake saves the lives of a bunch of civilians (and we learn he wrote a novel based on the events of Rising Son). Quark and Ro have a genuinely emotional scene about growing old together. Odo gets a couple good gotcha moments. O'Brien's death isn't as impactful as some, but he goes out swinging. I found that Swallow captured Quark best of all. I liked that it was Quark who most objected to the plan to destroy the wormhole, and the scene where he says he's staying behind to protect what's most precious to him, which Ro initially thinks means the bar, but turns out to mean her, is great. Quark always comes through when it matters, and Swallow nailed that here. (Also good: "it's very presumptuous of you to assume that I'd just go along with this, without complaint." "I never assumed you wouldn't complain.")

I wasn't a huge fan, though, of how the Bajoran prohecy was just a maguffin, only of relevance as yet another portent of the apocalypse. At its best, DS9 managed to also use stuff like that to say something interesting about faith, but that's absent here.

This book also does the "flashes of random established characters in action scenes to show the scope of the crisis" thing more effectively than Moments Asunder, with appearances by Martok and Klag, for example. No full-on IKS Gorkon, but I'll take what I can get. (Has there been a da Vinci reference in this series? I haven't noticed one yet.) We also get a lot of random callbacks, which I enjoyed because it fits the tone of the series. Who would have thought a key plot point in this trilogy would reference Keith DeCandido's The Brave and the Bold duology!? Or that there'd a passing reference to The Janus Gate trilogy of all things!?! (Had that ever even been referenced by another "novelverse" book before?) (The thing this book needed, though, to really complete the vibe was comic book–style footnotes explaining this references. Those parts should have had a note at the bottom of the page attributed to "Editing Ed" or something.)

My big complaint is that if this book is our last chance to see the novels' Admiral Riker—and especially, the novels' version of the Titan—I'm pretty disappointed with the choice to go with a "Riker is crazy and has to hunt Picard" subplot. Not only did we (as the book itself points out) do this quite recently in Takedown,* but it means we can't really get any POV scenes from any Titan characters, as it would lampshade how little sense it makes that they're all going along with Riker's plan. Disappointing, given how 1) Titan was one of my favorite novel-original concepts, and 2) Swallow is typically very good at writing the Titan crew.

Longtime readers know of my dislike of the novels' version of the mirror universe, so the end of this book has me worried, but on its own, this was about as good an installment as I could have hoped for.

Continuity Notes:

• Because of the way the novels have jumped around in time, you end up with weirdness like Rugiero being Sisko's first officer for (arguably) longer than Kira was. You'll never make me believe it.
• Here we learn Tom Paris is on Akaar's staff. Tom was in Moment Asunder, but I thought just because he had experience with this kind of malarkey thanks to "Year of Hell"; if he was working for Akaar there too, I missed it.
• Here we learn what nickname Wesley has for his half-brother René. Was this preestablished? I can't remember any meaningful interactions between the two in earlier books, but perhaps it was in Cold Equations.
• There is a dog on Picard's vineyard (c.f., Picard season one). It's funny, because I think of the "novelverse" as so separate from the modern shows, it was quite jarring every time there was an explicit reference to them: for example, that Boreth is a source of time crystals (as seen in Discovery). The most effective one is probably when you realize part of Riker's motivation is this feeling that he ought to have two kids and live in a cabin in the wilderness (Picard: "Nepenthe"); I wish the book had leaned into that more, it could have made evil Riker work.
• Given how many books were referenced here, it struck me as quite pointed that the book makes sure to establish that Saavik and Spock are good friends and great colleagues and no more, contradicting Vulcan's Heart and Vulcan's Soul, even though those books have been previously referenced by other Destiny-era books.
• Alexander and Spock previously met (for some reason) in the Prometheus trilogy. I didn't detect any reference to that here, but I also didn't notice any explicit indication they hadn't met; their first meeting here seems to be between scenes.
• When did Odo resume being constable on DS9? Is this something that happened in another book that I forgot about?
• Look, the Andorian transporter duplicates were dumb. I appreciate this book wrapped that plotline offhandedly, but it should have done so in a way that made it clear what a dumb plotline that was to begin with.
• I didn't buy how little Picard seemed to know about Bashir (p. 287). Surely there was a lot of information on him in the Section 31 files released at the end of Control, and surely Picard would have read all about him!
• Counselor Hegol dies in book I of Coda but pops up here. Whoops.

Other Notes:

• Why is the adjutant of the Federation ambassador to the Klingons a Klingon? That didn't make any sense to me.
• At the beginning of the book, a former disciple of Admiral Dougherty (from Insurrection) gets a lot of setup, but I don't really know why, because he promptly vanishes from the story in favor of the "evil Riker" approach.
• There is a Nick Locarno joke here. James Swallow beat Lower Decks to the punch!
• Jake calls Rebecca his "stepsister" (p. 151), but that's wrong, she's a half-sister.
• Endalla being destroyed in gory detail without a single reference to the "what's up with Endalla" plotline that ran through DRG3's DS9 novels interminably just feels like trolling.
• Does every James Swallow Star Trek novel have a bit where someone says "down and safe" after beaming?

* Funny moment: Riker points out Picard gets possessed a lot; Vale retaliates that so does Riker.

 

[Christopher]

Does every James Swallow Star Trek novel have a bit where someone says "down and safe" after beaming?

Ohh, I get it! It's what they always said in Blake's 7 after teleporting. Which is actually a pretty good policy.

 

[David cgc]

My guess is that I am going to reach book III of Coda and decide Coda was a bad idea. But maybe I am wrong. Certainly I have my own thoughts on what a "novelverse" wrapup trilogy should have done, but we'll see.

I spent all of the threads on the first two books arguing there was a twist coming and Coda wasn't what it first appeared.

Anyway...

That said, if it had to be done this way, The Ashes of Tomorrow is probably about the best it could have been done.

I do think that this one hit the series' stated themes and goals right in the bullseye (which is ironic, because they've said that of the three authors, Swallow wasn't as on-board with the premise and had to be talked into it a little). The Boreth vignette, especially, does everything that the series was supposed to be about, effectively and affectingly. Ro and Quark's "we'll be young and beautiful forever" scene hits me right where I live. Nog's death... is kind of sideways in a way I can't articulate without talking about the final book, since it reflects the major flaw with that one.

The most effective one is probably when you realize part of Riker's motivation is this feeling that he ought to have two kids and live in a cabin in the wilderness (Picard: "Nepenthe"); I wish the book had leaned into that more, it could have made evil Riker work.

That aspect also ends up being muddled and incomprehensible in light of the overall project.

Given how many books were referenced here, it struck me as quite pointed that the book makes sure to establish that Saavik and Spock are good friends and great colleagues and no more, contradicting Vulcan's Heart and Vulcan's Soul, even though those books have been previously referenced by other Destiny-era books.

IIRC, the aim was to thread the needle, so it could be read that they're a lightly-estranged married couple that have been apart for years for people familiar with Vulcan's Soul, while also not being that for people who aren't fond of that particular relationship, but I see how not specifying either makes it look like it's definitely the latter.

Endalla being destroyed in gory detail without a single reference to the "what's up with Endalla" plotline that ran through DRG3's DS9 novels interminably just feels like trolling.

If there's a hundred people annoyed we never found out what the deal was with that damn moon, I'm one of them. If there's one person, then it's me. If there's no one who still wants some pay-off for Endalla, I'm dead.

 

[Stevil2001]

Oh, I forgot this bit:

BOOKS REMAINING: 1
ESTIMATED DATE OF NEXT BATCH: March 2026
ESTIMATED DATE OF COMPLETION: September 2025

Yes, the different methods I use to estimate these stats are throwing up contradictory results now that I have one book left. I'm leaving it as is because I'm curious which one will be more accurate.

IIRC, the aim was to thread the needle, so it could be read that they're a lightly-estranged married couple that have been apart for years for people familiar with Vulcan's Soul, while also not being that for people who aren't fond of that particular relationship, but I see how not specifying either makes it look like it's definitely the latter.

Interesting! I did try to read it with that in mind, but there was some specific wording that made me think it was unlikely.

If there's a hundred people annoyed we never found out what the deal was with that damn moon, I'm one of them. If there's one person, then it's me. If there's no one who still wants some pay-off for Endalla, I'm dead.

 

[Allyn Gibson]

Nog dies—but he dies saving Jake.

I ordered this book at work... and then got it about two weeks before the on-sale date. I blitzed through it in about five hours -- it was gripping -- and when the thing with Nog happened...

I had to put the book down.

My favorite Nog scene of all time comes in the second Millennium book. The Defiant has been pulled into the future, the crew is on the Starfleet ship of that time, and the older Nog of that time gives Worf a hug.

Nog gives Worf a hug.

Even twenty-five years ago that just hit me in the feels.

Nog gives Worf a hug.

Nog saving Jake -- and, IIRC, Nog doesn't even know that Jake is there on the other ship -- hit me in the same feels.

Nog is the poetic soul of the Ferengi. Nog is made of love.

Thanks for coming to my TED Talk.

Has there been a da Vinci reference in this series? I haven't noticed one yet.

It must be in the next book.

 

[Csalem]

I found Book 2 the best of the trilogy (though it's not a high bar for this series). The characters seemed more active in trying to deal with the issue and the deaths hit better than in the other books.

It is possible I as I went through Book 1 I felt it was going to be a trilogy of death so my mood went down, and then my mood went up again in this one as it felt there was a bit more hope to positive outcome to problem, and then Book 3 brought me down again.

 

[David Mack]

My guess is that I am going to reach book III of Coda and decide Coda was a bad idea.

We would all be shocked if you did anything else.

 

[bdub76]

The reason is, of course, that no offense to the writers, but you're not there for the writers. People largely don't consume tie-in fiction because they care about who writes it. They consume tie-in fiction because they like the characters from tv and want to know what happens to them next. I may feel fairly certain I might not enjoy the next Matt Fitton audio drama featuring the eighth Doctor... but if the eighth Doctor is my favorite Doctor, I'm hardly going to listen to all sixteen parts of Doom Coalition but not parts 1, 8, 10-11, and 14-15, am I? I want to know what happens to the Doctor and Liv and Helen, even if I have to listen to a bunch of scripts by a writer I don't like to do it.

This is why I end up DNFing so many tie-in fiction books. I buy it because I'm interested in reading stories about characters I have grown to love via their TV show, but if the story isn't good enough to keep me going, I'm done. The good news is that I have at least 50 Trek novels that I've bought over the last two years that have been sale, so I feel less bad DNFing a book I only paid $1.99 or $2.99 for than one I paid $20 or more for.

Tie-in fiction is a weird animal. One tie in book that did surprise this year was the sequel to the original V miniseries by the guy that wrote the original miniseries. He wouldn't put his name on the sequel miniseries, and he wrote a book about how he'd like the story to end. I finished the book out of curiosity, but I didn't much care for it. However, I also binge watched all of the Alien Nation, and it's movies by the same writer. And I enjoyed all of them.

What I'm learning is that I actually prefer tie-in short stories and novellas. I'm less likely to not finish, and I get to enjoy a good story. I really enjoyed the fiction coming out of that new Trek magazine that ended.

Anyway, I'm enjoying reading your reviews, and I'm building up a Trek TBR based on it. And for Big Finish, there is so much on Spotify these days that I'm not buying anymore.

 

[Stevil2001]

This is why I end up DNFing so many tie-in fiction books. I buy it because I'm interested in reading stories about characters I have grown to love via their TV show, but if the story isn't good enough to keep me going, I'm done. The good news is that I have at least 50 Trek novels that I've bought over the last two years that have been sale, so I feel less bad DNFing a book I only paid $1.99 or $2.99 for than one I paid $20 or more for.

Tie-in fiction is a weird animal. One tie in book that did surprise this year was the sequel to the original V miniseries by the guy that wrote the original miniseries. He wouldn't put his name on the sequel miniseries, and he wrote a book about how he'd like the story to end. I finished the book out of curiosity, but I didn't much care for it. However, I also binge watched all of the Alien Nation, and it's movies by the same writer. And I enjoyed all of them.

What I'm learning is that I actually prefer tie-in short stories and novellas. I'm less likely to not finish, and I get to enjoy a good story. I really enjoyed the fiction coming out of that new Trek magazine that ended.

Anyway, I'm enjoying reading your reviews, and I'm building up a Trek TBR based on it. And for Big Finish, there is so much on Spotify these days that I'm not buying anymore.

The thing about tie-in novels is that I never DNF them because you can read a Star Trek book in two days; by the time I realize it's not clicking, I'm typically three-quarters done, so why give up? Original fiction is a different beast. A bad sf doorstopper is a whole week you could have spent reading something else!

I do like Doctor Who short fiction a lot, at least from the writers who don't try to squeeze a 1970s four-parter into fifteen pages. I remember finding the old SNW anthologies more miss than hit, but I did buy all the Explorer anthologies in the going-out-of-business sale, so I look forward to reading those in 2040.