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| "Tales of the Dominion War" edited by Keith R.A. DeCandido Keith R.A. DeCandido, editor of the long-running S.C.E. series, takes the reins for a new anthology of short stories focussing on the events on the Dominion War. As he explains in his introduction, the stories are about the people we didn't see on TV but who fought just the same: the crews of the Gorkon, the Enterprise, the Stargazer, and many others are highlighted here. The first story is Michael Jan Friedman's What Dreams May Come, which follows a Vorta supervisor, under whose command is a Starfleet infiltrator -- a survivor from Picard's first command, the U.S.S. Stargazer. Fun, exctiting, intriguing, and surprising, Dreams is a worthy (if short) start. The Beta-XII A entity from Star Trek: The Original Series's The Day of the Dove returns as a ruthless being with a lust for death in Greg Cox's The Night of the Vulture. A deep and cruel look at 'playing God', it was a memorable story that kept me thinking a long while afterward. Keith DeCandido pens the third story: The Ceremony of Innocence is Drowned tells of the fall of Betazed, and shows the pompous and arrogant Lwaxana Troi losing everything in the devastating attack. DeCandido's skilled writing truly made me feel sorry for the stuck-up Betazoid, and is an emotional look at the effects of war. Josepha Sherman and Susan Shwartz, famous for their Spock books, look at Romulus in their story Blood Sacrifice. The plot is solid, but predictable, and the tale sadly lacks the extra edge that the others have. Mirror Eyes -- a collaboration between Jeffrey Lang and Heather Jarman -- is by far the anthology's best. A first-person account of the war from, of all people, a Romulan agent, Mirror Eyes has all the right ingredients. The regular characters that are featured are fun and true to form, and the narrator is likeable and mysterious. Twilight's Wrath by David Mack follows Shinzon and his Reman viceroy Vkruk, last seen in Star Trek Nemesis, during the war. As well as having an engaging storyline, it goes a long way to explain the B-4 and the Thalaron weapon Shinzon acquired, which will surely delight continuity fans. Excellent. Eleven Hours Out is the first of two stories depicting the Breen attack on Earth. Dave Galanter follows the Enterprise, who think that they're "away from the war", when the assault begins. Showing civilians as well as officers, the pain and terror of wartime is never more evident than in this harrowing tale. Howard Weinstein's Safe Harbors sees aging officers McCoy and Scotty in a runabout, as they hear of the attack. Although it's more slow and contemplative than some of the others, the tale holds up well. Dayton Ward and Kevin Dilmore team up once again for an S.C.E. tale entitled Field Expediency. The tale represents a change in pace for the book, showing the familiar da Vinci crewmembers in a thrilling Starfleet/Breen ground battle, up to full tech-y form. Robert Greenberger adds a new voice to the adventures of Captain Klag of the I.K.S. Gorkon series in A Song Well Sung: a story that tells of the famous battle in which Klag lost his arm as the sole survivor in a battle against the Jem'Hadar. A pretty average story, but GKN fans will enjoy having a proper look at what is a oft-mentioned plot point in the series proper. Peter David's popular New Frontier series is the focus of Stone Cold Truths. Over a century into the future, the long-lived Excalibur crewman Zak Kebron brings home the reality of the Dominion War to a particularly misinformed Brikar Mentor. A second read of this fascinating story increases its impact still further, making it a truly fascinating addition to the popular novel line. The final story, Requital by Andy Mangels and Michael A. Martin, follows Reese from the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode The Siege of AR-558. The idea is a brilliant one, but the setting isn't particularly credible and it's a real shame that the book ends on a lower note. With a comprehensive ten-page Dominion War timeline as an added bonus, there's no reason for any self-respecting Trek fan not to buy Tales. There's something to please every fan of every series, and this is a collection of high-quality adventures that always needed to be told. Definitely not to be missed. |
This review originally appeared on the BookTrek website. In brief:  Star Trek: Tales of the Dominion War edited by Keith R.A. DeCandido Published: August 2004 by Pocket Books Format: Paperback, 360pp £9.99 UK |