"Day of the Vipers"
by James Swallow

The long-awaited Terok Nor series finally arrives, with James Swallow's Day of the Vipers kicking things off as the first of three novels, all set prior to Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. The tale begins in 2328 - which, for those not up on their Bajoran history, is the year when the Cardassian Occupation of the planet first began - before flashing back to reveal what happened in the ten years before.

This enables us to see the first major meeting of the Bajorans and the Cardassians - the latter on a peaceful and compassionate mission to return Bajoran dead, with the possibility of building a relationship between their two worlds - and watch things develop over a decade, finally snowballing into the oppression of the entire Bajoran race.

We're introduced to a cast of characters from both Cardassia and Bajor, with familiar faces (a younger Dukat, most notably) hugely outnumbered by people of Swallow's own creation. Despite the massive cast, and the relatively long period of time encompassed by the novel, Swallow still develops the leads well, providing many enjoyable character moments alongside the heavier political beats. Swallow's grasp of Gul Dukat is fantastic, taking him back to an earlier point in his life but retaining many of the characteristics that made him so popular and charismatic on screen. The main Bajoran protagonist, Darrah Mace, is a particularly well-drawn and likeable man, and it would be good to see him return in the following volumes.

Especially satisfying are the early catalysts for the later contempt between the Cardassians and the Bajorans - Dukat, for example, is bitter that the Bajorans don't appreciate their luxurious lifestyle, when Cardassians struggle to survive, which is brought home vividly by a personal tragedy - and adding this extra depth makes the characters brilliantly three-dimensional.

And, as well as fantastic character work, the backdrop for the novel is beautifully-realised. This is a Bajor that's recognisably the planet we saw on Deep Space Nine, whilst being tangibly different due to its chronological setting. It's highly believable, and utterly alien - Swallow's world-building talents are to be commended.

Showing us the initial interactions between Bajor and Cardassia, Day of the Vipers lays a lot of groundwork for what we know happens later, and presumably also for what will happen in the two subsequent books. At times, though, the writer takes foreshadowing too far - whilst gentle hints and a little dramatic irony are effective, Dukat ominously muttering "We will" in response to a Bajoran's friendly "Take what you want" seems like the literary equivalent of a pantomime villain knowingly turning and winking at his audience. I'm reading Terok Nor because I'm a DS9 fan, I know where this is ultimately heading, I don't need to be thrown out of the flow by melodramatic references like these.

Day of the Vipers is, all things considered, a splendid book - a fantastic first Trek novel from Swallow, and a great start for this run of stories. If the remaining two novels live up to the standard Swallow has set, Terok Nor has the potential to be one of the most successful and enjoyable TrekLit sagas to date.