Reviews

I really liked this story. I saw what should have been the twist ending coming from a mile away, but otherwise, the characters and the story were well written.

amyz001's review

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4.0

Great story with well realised character voices. The aliens are fantastic and sympathetic. A good lesson about getting over prejudice, and learning to work together.

frakalot's review

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5.0

I loved it. A great story with a satisfying, albeit predictable ending. I think Chakotay could have made the cover since he played a decent role in this story.

arielkirst's review

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4.0

Another great Voyager novel by Golden.
Just like reading an episode. She's my fav Voyager author to date.

errrick's review

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

It was fine. There's a kind of weird "Tom Paris is racist towards lizards and people who look like lizards b-plot*," but otherwise it's pretty fun. The main plot is the usual Star Trek two alien cultures fighting and we have to figure out how to get around the Prime Directive story. It was pretty well done though.

*From a dude who was literally turned into a lizard and mated with a lizard and had baby lizards.

dreamwanderer's review

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4.0

I've been going through the Star Trek Voyager books and this is the first in the series where I felt the characters were finally in sync with what we saw in the TV episodes. The earlier books are for the most part good stories but the characters came across as a bit bland but that is not the fault of the authors. The show was also new at the time and there wasn't a lot for them to work with. Christie Golden had access to more background material and it shows.

The Starship Voyager has found a wormhole but the area is controlled by a nasty Empire. Despite Neelix's protestations Janeway orders the crew to investigate. They find a dying world in need of help and several strange surprises. Chakotay and Paris play prominent roles in this story.

Part of me had to laugh out loud at Paris having to overcome his distaste for the appearance of the aliens because they reminded him of lizards. Viewers of the TV series might wonder "Was this supposed to be a joke?" Despite that he had a good arc and some great action scenes.

I left off one star because I'm not a big fan of "Getting into the alien's head and details of their world'. I understand that some readers like that sort of thing but to me it bogs the story down too much. However that is a personal preference thing and not the fault of the writer.

This will probably go on my pile of books that I like to read again and again, right up there with my personal favorites from Star Trek Original Series books Prime Directive and Death Count.

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