The Search for Spock by Vonda N. McIntyre

[Commishsleer]

Wasn't the plot about Scotty's family kind of left dangling at the end of the book?

Too often, imo, he was written as just a collection of stereotypes. Scotty dialog is pretty much guaranteed to contain a mention of his engines, booze, Scotland, or >shudder< haggis. I give credit to McIntyre for at least trying to do something with him.


It's kind of funny, but for such a popular character I cant think of very many of the older books that I'd call Scotty-centric. He's got important roles in Twilght's End and The Kobayashi Maru and...I'm drawing a blank.

I love McIntyres expansion of other TOS characters. But thinking of "The Entropy Effect" wasn't Scotty a bit paranoid there. Not at all supportive of Spock when he most needed it. The reasons were valid of course but I suppose I was just a bit disappointed in Scotty there. While I wouldn't say it was OOC I suppose its not the Scotty we know from the movies more like the Scotty from "Operation:Annihilate!" and "Day of the Dove".
Scotty comes across as a sad character in TSFS novelisation alienated from his family but as you say at least we get to see his family.

 

[Desert Kris]

I love McIntyres expansion of other TOS characters. But thinking of "The Entropy Effect" wasn't Scotty a bit paranoid there. Not at all supportive of Spock when he most needed it. The reasons were valid of course but I suppose I was just a bit disappointed in Scotty there. While I wouldn't say it was OOC I suppose its not the Scotty we know from the movies more like the Scotty from "Operation:Annihilate!" and "Day of the Dove".
Scotty comes across as a sad character in TSFS novelisation alienated from his family but as you say at least we get to see his family.

Yeah, I was struck by how he seemed to be left out of the loop from the rest of the crew, and ends up as an antagonist to other TOS characters (McCoy and Spock in particular IIRC). He isn't treated like a team player with the crew, contrary to what's seen in TOS and the movies, and he starts to act like an outsider, as if he hasn't worked with this crew in an "We have each other's backs" kind of way.

There's a terrible sadness in the scenes where Scotty goes home to visit family and attend Peter Preston's funeral. One family member isolates herself from social contact, he argues bitterly with a niece and hurtful words are exchanged, there. The bright spot in all the gloom is that he has a healing confrontation with the AWOL cadet who feels guilty about Preston's death, and Scotty takes him under his wing. There's the sad irony that he can't be an uncle with his estranged niece, but he can be a kindly uncle figure for the cadet.

It's a more rough ride for Scotty because he's asked to participate in priming the Enterprise for destruction to keep her out of Klingon hands. He doesn't let it happen, doesn't participate without vocalizing a protest. That felt very much in character, I think; a good addition to a movie scene.