Spoilers TOS: Harm's Way by David Mack Review Thread

[David Mack]

I was surprised how distrustful of Starfleet and the crew Mara is given her encounter with them in this book. She‘s originally afraid of Starfleet death camps and torture. I suppose this falls in the same category as Chekov’s hatred of Klingons for killing his brother.

Exactly — it is stated in the episode that the "entity" is capable of both suppressing and inventing memories to make certain its captives remain belligerent—

SPOCK
Captain, I am constrained to point out that
since minds are evidently being influenced,
we cannot know at this moment whether
our own memories are completely accurate
and true.

This is why, despite the events of Harm’s Way, Kang and Mara remain hostile toward Kirk and his crew, and why Chekov doesn't remember Mara — but it also provides a subtextual justification for how and why Kirk and Spock are able to persuade Mara and Kang to ally with Kirk and his crew against the entity.

 

[ryan123450]

This is why, despite the events of Harm’s Way, Kang and Mara remain hostile toward Kirk and his crew, and why Chekov doesn't remember Mara — but it also provides a subtextual justification for how and why Kirk and Spock are able to persuade Mara and Kang to ally with Kirk and his crew against the entity.

Well done! If a first time reader were to slot this in with the other Vanguard novels, would you advise they read it before or after Precipice? I couldn't recall the details of what occurs in which books of the series enough to notice if there were any spoilers for the first half of Precipice in Harm's Way.

So sad to hear in your Literary Trek's interview that you expect there will be no further novels announced for 2023. But it was very interesting to hear a bit more of the backstory behind that situation.

 

[Jinn]

I couldn't recall the details of what occurs in which books of the series enough to notice if there were any spoilers for the first half of Precipice in Harm's Way.

T'Prynn not being on Vulcan anymore is definitely from Precipice. But I haven't read Harm's Way yet.

 

[David Mack]

Well done! If a first time reader were to slot this in with the other Vanguard novels, would you advise they read it before or after Precipice? I couldn't recall the details of what occurs in which books of the series enough to notice if there were any spoilers for the first half of Precipice in Harm's Way.

If someone were planning to read through the Vanguard saga and wanted Harm’s Way to be a part of it, I would suggest reading Harm’s Way after book five, Precipice, but before the anthology Declassified.

While there are some minor spoilers for books three and four of Vanguard in Harm’s Way, they shouldn't impair a reader's enjoyment if Harm’s Way inspires them to go back and check out the rest of the Vanguard saga. Similarly, if a fan of TOS just wanted to enjoy Harm’s Way as a stand-alone adventure, they certainly could do so and not feel lost.

So sad to hear in your Literary Trek's interview that you expect there will be no further novels announced for 2023. But it was very interesting to hear a bit more of the backstory behind that situation.

It is a frustrating state of affairs, to be certain. All any of us can do, writers and readers alike, is be patient.

 

[ryan123450]

If someone were planning to read through the Vanguard saga and wanted Harm’s Way to be a part of it, I would suggest reading Harm’s Way after book five, Precipice, but before the anthology Declassified.

Thank you for the info! Will update my website accordingly.

 

[Ronald Held]

Mr. Mack should be able to answer this. Is there an inside joke about " Don't call me Chiro"?

 

[David Mack]

Mr. Mack should be able to answer this. Is there an inside joke about " Don't call me Chiro"?

Nothing mysterious. Nogura just doesn't like being addressed with a diminutive form of his given name by a person he holds in personal contempt. I honestly don't recall whether it was inspired by a similar moment in another work, but it might have been based on something in other Vanguard books by Dayton Ward and Kevin Dilmore.

 

[Christopher]

Anyway, the diminutive form of "Heihachiro" would not be "Chiro." The Japanese name consists of the kanji 平 (hei, meaning peaceful or even), 八 (hachi, meaning the number 8, no idea why), and 郎 (rou, a common masculine name suffix). So the way to shorten it would be to drop the suffix and make it Heihachi, or maybe just reduce it to "Hei" (which is two syllables in Japanese). Though of course it would be "Hei-san" to be polite, unless you were a close friend or elder family member exempted from using the honorific. Or "Hekkun," combining it with the familiar/casual honorific -kun, though that should only be used by a social/professional equal or superior.

 

[David Mack]

Anyway, the diminutive form of "Heihachiro" would not be "Chiro." The Japanese name consists of the kanji 平 (hei, meaning peaceful or even), 八 (hachi, meaning the number 8, no idea why), and 郎 (rou, a common masculine name suffix). So the way to shorten it would be to drop the suffix and make it Heihachi, or maybe just reduce it to "Hei" (which is two syllables in Japanese). Though of course it would be "Hei-san" to be polite, unless you were a close friend or elder family member exempted from using the honorific. Or "Hekkun," combining it with the familiar/casual honorific -kun, though that should only be used by a social/professional equal or superior.

None of which would likely be knowledge possessed by Admiral Theodore Fitzpatrick. So perhaps the reason Admiral Nogura tells him "Don't call me Chiro" is because Fitzpatrick is butchering Nogura's given name in an attempt to abbreviate it using Western conventions.

 

[hbquikcomjamesl]

So perhaps the reason Admiral Nogura tells him "Don't call me Chiro" is because Fitzpatrick is butchering Nogura's given name in an attempt to abbreviate it using Western conventions.

No "perhaps" about it; giving somebody an etymologically wrong diminutive is pretty damn insulting if you ask me. Even just giving somebody an unwanted diminutive is insulting enough.

The protagonist in my opus-in-progress is named Jennifer. And she categorically refuses to answer to "Jenny." (And I have a vague recollection that there's at least one glossary of given names, I think it's the one in the 1971 World Book Dictionary, that gives entirely different etymologies for "Jennifer" and "Jenny.")

 

[Ronald Held]

I recalled it in other Vanguard novels. Thanks Mr. Mack.

 

[Christopher]

None of which would likely be knowledge possessed by Admiral Theodore Fitzpatrick. So perhaps the reason Admiral Nogura tells him "Don't call me Chiro" is because Fitzpatrick is butchering Nogura's given name in an attempt to abbreviate it using Western conventions.

Yes, that's pretty much what I was suggesting.

 

[Ronald Held]

Half way through. Planet surface seem highly detailed. For some reon, things seem to be plodding along In spots.

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

Abbreviation nicknames don't have to conform to their component words, I suppose.

Does that segment, when used alone, mean something stupid or vulgar?

Some people don't like short/twisted versions of their names because "only so-and-so is allowed to call me that", like a dead/close relative, because they are/were who they are/were, or a lover, in which case random people calling you that would feel weird or icky. Some don't like it because a bully/annoying person used to call them that. Maybe it reminds them of a fictional character/celeb they don't like.

 

[Christopher]

Abbreviation nicknames don't have to conform to their component words, I suppose.

No, of course not, but Japanese abbreviations tend to reduce names or words to the first syllable or two. An English speaker would look at "Heihachiro" and expect it to be stressed on the "chi" syllable, and we often base nicknames on stressed syllables, like reducing "Henrietta" to "Etta," say. But Japanese doesn't have stressed syllables, so they wouldn't form the nickname that way. So as Dave said, it's the kind of nickname someone unfamiliar with the language or culture would use, which is a good reason for Nogura to find it unappealing.

Does that segment, when used alone, mean something stupid or vulgar?

In fact, chi in isolation can mean stupid or foolish, and "ro," again, is a common masculine name suffix meaning "son." (The feminine equivalent is -ko, hence Keiko, Yoko, Motoko, etc.) So "Chiro" could be taken to mean "stupid son." It could also mean "bloody son" or "bottom son." Although there are more innocuous homophones for chi, like the number 1000, land or territory, and wisdom.

Some don't like it because a bully/annoying person used to call them that.

I think that was a factor in why I started to go by Christopher rather than Chris in my early teens. I had many bullies in grade school.

 

[hbquikcomjamesl]

I had many bullies in grade school.

You, too? I feel your pain.

 

[Enterprise1701]

Apropos of nothing, it now occurs to me that it would be amazing happenstance if we were to live in a world where Starfleet: Year One was the ENT post-television novel relaunch.

Christopher writing the new Christopher-class!

 

[hbquikcomjamesl]

I wrote:

(And I have a vague recollection that there's at least one glossary of given names, I think it's the one in the 1971 World Book Dictionary, that gives entirely different etymologies for "Jennifer" and "Jenny.")

Yes. According to the "Vocabulary of Given Names", 1971 World Book Dictionary, "Jennifer" is said to be derived from a Celtic root, meaning "white wave," while "Jenny" and "Jessica" are both said to be derived from a Hebrew root, meaning "gracious gift of God."

Whether there is any basis for that, and indeed, whether it's anything other than a typo, is not for me to say: I chose it for my protagonist because of how it sounds to me.

 

[thribs]

I finished it. I enjoyed it. The interactions between Starfleet and the Klingons was nicely done and side-lining Kirk to allow more time with Spock and others was something different and worked quite well I thought.
I haven't read any of the Vanguard books and so the Shedaii stuff was new to me. The way it was described just reminded me of Resident Evil. Some foreign agent that mutates your DNA to create some grotesque form that is stronger than your natural form. The ending which just felt like a boss battle at the end of one of those games. You "kill" it only for it to come back stronger and in a different form. They should have brought in Chris Redfield and S.T.A.R.S to deal with it.
I hope the next Vanguard novel is set in a old mansion which is full of traps.

 

[Avro Arrow]

I haven't read any of the Vanguard book

You should remedy that!