Some Comments on "Troublesome Minds" (Possible Spoilers)

[DaveGalanter]

John,

Thanks for the very kind words! Yes, I actually have pictured "The Scream" as well when thinking about them. It's apt.

Yes, finding Meshu was a bit of good luck in some ways, but I also thought of it like this: Spock knew she could be alive, and their sensors told them which planets could be in range and which they could check in the time they had. Instinct told them she'd forgo a nicer climate to be with other beings, and the metal of her ship on a planet of very little refined metal told them where to look. All that said, my goal was to write a Trek episode and in a Trek episode you'd be presented with all the players necessary if even it takes a bit of a coincidence to accomplish it.

As well, I'd hope the non-pat ending would suffice for bringing the players together in a pat way.

 

[JohnChod]

HI, Dave -

Thanks for the reply.

When you think of the real vastness of space, it's pretty hard to conceive of locating just about anyone or anything. It's the proverbial needle in a haystack with the haystack expanded exponentially. But, as you said, an episode always had all the players necessary and the location of Meshu was no more of a stretch (probably even less so) than any of the successful searches/serendipitous meetings necessary for an acceptable outcome in Trek.

I didn't really see that as that much of a drawback other than that I felt you had woven such an intricate web with no apparent easy escape and wondered how you'd work your way out of it. I did not initially anticipate the use of another "TM" and felt that you were leading us into one of the great grey area stories - in the vein of DS9's In the Pale Moonlight. When Meshu showed up, I feared that everything just might turn out to fine and dandy at the end of it all. My thoughts were that Berlis would agree to go back to Meshu's planet and that their telepathic contact would be sufficient to provide some aspect of happiness in their lives. Obviously, you turned it at the end and still gave me that hoped for ambivalent conclusion.

 

[Christopher]

When you think of the real vastness of space, it's pretty hard to conceive of locating just about anyone or anything. It's the proverbial needle in a haystack with the haystack expanded exponentially.

On the other hand, there are no horizons in space, so virtually anything is in your direct line of sight. It's just a matter of looking in the right direction with a powerful enough telescope. Within decades, with the right kind of space telescopes, we should be able to image surface details on planets dozens of parsecs away.

Though of course the whole premise of Star Trek pretty much requires ignoring that, since it assumes that it's possible to go somewhere in space without already knowing what you're going to find. And for some reason, many Trek writers never seem to think that "sensors" include telescopes; you see all sorts of stories where they can't detect something on a planet surface due to sensor interference, even though it's right there on the surface and they should be able to see it just by pointing a telescope.

 

[Stevil2001]

^ It must always be cloudy.

 

[Claudia]

Having just finished "Troublesome Minds", I must admit that I particularly enjoyed two aspects: First, that there's no good vs. evil here. Berlis doesn't act out of a will to dominate, it's simply his nature combined with a certain childish innocence and incapability to understand his own influence on others. Also, the Odib aren't immune to reason, they're not a belligerent race, they're just afraid of once again coming under the influence of a Troublesome Minds.

And the second aspect is, of course, the ambiguous ending, starting with how strongly Berlis reacted to losing the connection to the others, Spock's staying with him in the meld and his reasons for it, and eventually leading to Berlis' death and Spock's confusion and grief which felt a bit like "City on the Edge of Forever" to me. A very powerful and poignant sequence which shows that even in a standalone novel characters can be put to the edges of their endurance (and beyond) without the repercussions feeling diminished somehow by not immediately being addressed in a follow-up novel.

 

[BaloksPuppet]

I just read this today and want to add my voice to the chorus. I've been reading Trek books since the 70s, and though overall I enjoy the recent trends in Trek Lit, I still prefer the relatively short, standalone novels that feel like they could have been a regular episode of the series (I think that puts me in the minority here). If I'm not mistaken, it's been about six years since a TOS novel has been published which would fit that bill. This happens to be a particularly good read, too, so I'm hoping we can see more like this in the future. It feels a lot like the Bantam era and 80s Pocket era TOS novels.

I have to admit, though, that the ending has left me a little... troubled. Although it can be argued that he was being controlled (I know that's left intentionally ambiguous), Spock's actions were a very big deal, and the discussion Kirk and McCoy were having amount to conspiring to cover-up what really happened. I don't think this is inconsistent with what we've seen from them in the past - one of the messages I always took away from TOS was protect your friends even if it means breaking the rules - but something about this particular situation is a bit more disturbing. I don't think you could have gotten away with this in the Bantam era or early Pocket era. That's not a bad thing, it just took me by surprise and I still haven't decided how I feel about it. I'll ruminate over this for a while, and needless to say that's going to make this all the more memorable.

I'll also add that this gripped me from the beginning and kept me hooked through the end. Very good ideas, nicely defined and believable guest characters, and excellent treatment of our heroes. Kudos!

Edit: Oh, and no need for a sequel, IMO. We know what eventually happens to our heroes and I don't think it's necessary to spell-out what happens in the immediate aftermath. This is better left to the imagination of the reader I think. I can't help but believe that a direct treatment of the consequences would diminish this novel somewhat.

 

[DaveGalanter]

^^Thanks, Claudia, for your kind words. I was most certainly going for the unsettling ending of a show like "City."

^BaloksPuppet:Kirk and McCoy weren't conspiring. They were convincing themselves of the story they wanted to believe. Kirk more than McCoy. But remember that Spock is an alien who had mental contact with a powerful telepath who is a different kind of alien. There'd be nothing to cover-up, really. In space (in Star Trek, anyway) these things happen.

I appreciate you enjoyed the book, and a sequel would lessen, I think, this story. You know what will happen to Spock, and you can guess what will happen with Meshu. The Isitri and the Odib? Their story has been told.

http://trekbbs.com/member.php?u=9872

 

[OmahaStar]

I thought I'd already posted, but I can't find my post. Anyway ... Pretty much echoing what's already been said, I enjoyed it. While reading, it felt like I was watching a missing episode of the original series, and that's one of the best things I can say.

Seeing the cover with Nimoy doing the finger thing, I thought "Oh great, this is going to be a Bantam-style book" without character development and a slapped-together plot. Imagine my surprise when I discover what's really inside. Well-written, and a unique story. Good job.

 

[Valin]

I've been reading Trek books since the 70s, and though overall I enjoy the recent trends in Trek Lit, I still prefer the relatively short, standalone novels that feel like they could have been a regular episode of the series (I think that puts me in the minority here).

I'm also in that minority.

 

[DaveGalanter]

I like telling the stand alone stories, but not because I don't like the other stories. More because sometimes you need an episode of the show, and so that's what I was going for.

 

[RonG]

Finished Troublesome Minds yesterday, and I'm still not over the fact that I would enjoy a stand-alone TOS novel this much.

I'm usually (and still) much more into the arc-heavy post-TV relaunches of 24th Century Trek, but every once in a while there comes a novel like this

I think the things I loved the most about it were (1) the fact that everything happened *because* of our heroes, and (2) nothing was resolved "for the best". Both of these make this novel both refreshing and "classic" at the same time.

The novel just *felt* like a lost TOS 2-part episode, and one of the better ones, at that. The plot and character development were simply great and I would recommend this novel to first time TrekLit readers in a heartbeat

 

[Joel_Kirk]

I've been reading Trek books since the 70s, and though overall I enjoy the recent trends in Trek Lit, I still prefer the relatively short, standalone novels that feel like they could have been a regular episode of the series (I think that puts me in the minority here).

I'm also in that minority.

I like the short standalone novels myself....(i.e. 'Eye of the Beholder'....'Mutiny on the Enterprise'....)

 

[Nerdius Maximus]

I need to read this. I prefer standalone books to a long, drawn-out series. Too much potential for filler. Not a big fan of the whole "Book 3 of 6" thing. I like to be able to pick up a book whose cover catches my eye or is written by an author whose previous work I've enjoyed and not have to worry about catching up on 12 books worth of continuity.

 

[indianatrekker26]

I'm curious to know where in the 5 year mission this book takes place in.

 

[Christopher]

I'm curious to know where in the 5 year mission this book takes place in.

Which 5-year mission? This is said to be about three months into Pike's current 5-year mission aboard the Enterprise, but that would be over a decade before the 5-year mission Kirk commanded in the TV series. And Troublesome Minds isn't really in the same continuity as TOS anyway.

 

[indianatrekker26]

I'm curious to know where in the 5 year mission this book takes place in.

Which 5-year mission? This is said to be about three months into Pike's current 5-year mission aboard the Enterprise, but that would be over a decade before the 5-year mission Kirk commanded in the TV series. And Troublesome Minds isn't really in the same continuity as TOS anyway.

Oh i thought "Troublesome Minds" took place during Kirk's 5-year mission. I have yet to read the book, so I don't know much about it. It's sitting on my "to be read" collection.

 

[Defcon]

I'm curious to know where in the 5 year mission this book takes place in.

Which 5-year mission? This is said to be about three months into Pike's current 5-year mission aboard the Enterprise, but that would be over a decade before the 5-year mission Kirk commanded in the TV series. And Troublesome Minds isn't really in the same continuity as TOS anyway.

What are you talking about?

According to Dave Galanter Troublesome Minds is set within the last year of Kirk's five-year mission.

 

[RonG]

I'm curious to know where in the 5 year mission this book takes place in.

Which 5-year mission? This is said to be about three months into Pike's current 5-year mission aboard the Enterprise, but that would be over a decade before the 5-year mission Kirk commanded in the TV series. And Troublesome Minds isn't really in the same continuity as TOS anyway.

Christopher, I think you meant Dave Stern's The Children of Kings rather than Dave Galanter's Troublesome Minds.. Unless there are discreprencies with TOS within TM as well..

 

[Christopher]

Whoops! Sorry, you're right. I got this and The Children of Kings mixed up. There's been a lot of discussion of TCoK lately and it's been a while since Troublesome Minds was discussed, so my sleep-deprived brain got confused.

 

[Judith Sisko]

I need to read this. I prefer standalone books to a long, drawn-out series. Too much potential for filler. Not a big fan of the whole "Book 3 of 6" thing. I like to be able to pick up a book whose cover catches my eye or is written by an author whose previous work I've enjoyed and not have to worry about catching up on 12 books worth of continuity.

Yes, this is one you need to get. I think it's the only standalone I can honestly say I enjoyed this past year.

And with all the rain we're having, you'll have it finished in no time!