The Long Night

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine #14

by Dean Wesley Smith, Kristine Kathryn Rusch

Centuries ago, the Supreme Ruler of the planet Jibet fled a democratic uprising, taking with him many priceless works of art. Now Quark’s greed leads Commander Sisko and his crew to the lost treasures—and to the Supreme Ruler himself, preserved in cryogenic suspension.

The discovery sparks unrest on Jibet, and launches an alien armada against Deep Space Nine™. As Dr. Bashir struggles to keep the dying ruler alive, Jake and Nog uncover deadly evidence of lingering Cardassian treachery. Now, Sisko must somehow keep the mysteries of the past from destroying all hope for DS9’s future.

Genres: Star Trek, Science Fiction, Star Trek Deep Space Nine, Fiction, Media Tie In, Space Opera, Space

274 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published February 1, 1996

About the author

Pen Names
Edward Taft
Dee W. Schofield
Sandy Schofield
Kathryn Wesley

Dean Wesley Smith is the bestselling author of over ninety novels under many names and well over 100 published short stories. He has over eight million copies of his books in print and has books published in nine different countries. He has written many original novels in science fiction, fantasy, mystery, thriller, and romance as well as books for television, movies, games, and comics. He is also known for writing quality work very quickly and has written a large number of novels as a ghost writer or under house names.

With Kristine Kathryn Rusch, he is the coauthor of The Tenth Planet trilogy and The 10th Kingdom. The following is a list of novels under the Dean Wesley Smith name, plus a number of pen names that are open knowledge. Many ghost and pen name books are not on this list because he is under contractual obligations not to disclose that he wrote them. Many of Dean’s original novels are also under hidden pen names for marketing reasons.

Dean has also written books and comics for all three major comic book companies, Marvel, DC, and Dark Horse, and has done scripts for Hollywood. One movie was actually made.

Over his career he has also been an editor and publisher, first at Pulphouse Publishing, then for VB Tech Journal, then for Pocket Books.

Currently, he is writing thrillers and mystery novels under another name.

Reviews

[Louie the Mustache Matos · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a rather unique story for the DS9 Pocket Book series (#14) filled with much political intrigue and conspiracy. Happily, this is not a murder mystery, as so many of the other books have been. More in tune with the television series, The Long Night depends on the representative figures (not just the lead characters) acknowledging and understanding the diplomatic necessities of navigating through the political sensitivities of distinct cultures, and attempting to weigh needs and priorities.

There is a lost ship that has been found after 800 years and appears to not only contain the wealth of an entire race, but may also contain an ancestor as well. Of course, there are cultural issues that are affected by the discovery, the possibility of war with the Federation, and spiritual ideologies challenged. Suspense is built really well here as the political situation, and implications thereof begin to clarify. Regardless, of my muddled thoughts (trying to tiptoe without revealing spoilers), this novel deserves a gander. It is not perfect, but one of the better DS9 novels with a high recommendation given by this reader.

[Jamie · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF. Plot seems interesting, but the writing is lackluster and characters and dialogue wooden.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is what a DS9 novel should be like. It has tension, Kira fighting her way through politics and a sense of mystery that isn't a murder. Add a little humour from Quark thrown in and this was a pretty good little book. Definitely enjoyed it.

[Ashly Lynne · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

The main theme of this book is conspiracy and unrest. There is so much going on in this novel that it’s hard to know which scandal to focus on. The main focus, though, is a Jibetian ship that was lost centuries ago–disappearing with the planet Jibet’s ruler and the entire crew. The discovery, which was happened upon my Warf because of his desire and greed for wealth, causes a complete upset that puts Deep Space Nine (DS9) at the center of what could be the start of a war. If that is not enough, there is something out of place on the ship itself. Jake and Nog discover some tunnels that may be hiding seriously dangerous Cardassian secrets.

This was only my second DS9 book that I’ve read. The frist was The Heart of the Warrior (DS9 #17) by John Gregory Betancourt, which was just an okay read for me at 2.5/5 stars. So, my standards were low, meaning I wasn’t really expecting this book to impact me in any way. Turns out this was a much better read, and very near a 5-star rating from me. There was just one minor complaint that kept me from giving this all the stars.

Honestly, I really enjoyed this plot and story. It was interesting and gripping in all the right ways. I actually liked that the story wasn’t entirely action-paced. Don’t get me wrong, this is Star Trek; there was plenty of action, but the action wasn’t what was driving the story. It was the tension. There was political tension, friendship tension, time-constraint tension, and even some personal validation tension. This book had it all.

The only thing I didn’t enjoy as much about the plot was the side story with Jake and Nog. I liked that they were exploring the ship and dragging up well-kept secrets, but it was taking up too much time for me. Everything of course made sense in the end, and it offered new and interesting plot points as well as a way to directly influence and drive the story, but it was hard to want to focus on the side plot when the main plot was so freaking interesting, and Jake and Nog’s plot didn’t get super interesting until about the last 50 pages. This is why I couldn’t quite give this book the full 5 stars. I enjoyed this part of the plot, but simply needed a smidge less of it.

As far as the characters, I haven’t watched DS9 in ages, so I can’t attest fully to their accuracy, but from what I remember, they seemed pretty spot on. Plus, I can say that this character depth and development was way better than the other DS9 book I read. I know a spin-off book doesn’t need much character development as that was done in the show, but they definitely still need depth, otherwise the book is, in my opinion, pretty unremarkable and forgettable.

I only remember bits and pieces of the first DS9 book I read–just main plot points. But, with this one, I remember almost everything that happened, including small events and instances of comedic relief. (It was very hard to write the synopsis, because I wanted to say so much more!) I can even remember many of the emotions the characters felt, because I was feeling the same ones. Also, I love the meaning of the title and how it was incorporated and stated in the book.

These writers did an amazing job of bringing these characters and their stories to life.

Overall, I definitely recommend this book, especially to DS9 fans. But, I honestly think any Star Trek fan with a general understanding of the Star Trek universe would be able to read and enjoy this short novel.

Since this book is out of print, you can’t order it new. But, if you come across this book and you’re a Star Trek fan, snatch it up!

Review originally published on my Wordpress blog Dreaming Through Literature.

[Daniel Kukwa · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are a few character issues present (Kira is more season 1 than 3, Jake & Nog are more season 2 than 3), but everyone else is spot on, and the story moves at an exciting pace that doesn't waste any time. This is definitely one of the few success stories from the early original line of DS9 novels -- one that actually FEELS like a DS9 story.

[Mayaj · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very early seasons, everyone's a little one-note. Ferengi stuff came off overpoweringly racist. Which like, yeah.

[Tomislav · Rating 4 out of 5]

An artifact turns up for illicit sale in Quark’s, and it is evidence of a shocking rediscovery of the 800-years-lost generation ship, Nibix. On board, in exile and in cryostatis, is the former but still revered Supreme Ruler of Jibet. Meanwhile after 800 years of caretaker government, the Jibet have grown to fill 80 worlds and recently encountered both the Federation and Cardassia.

In a high stakes gamble, Sisko takes the Defiant to investigate, leaving Kira in command. Meanwhile, Jake and Nog explore a hidden series of chambers on DS9, and make discoveries that affect the outcome. It is intricate and successful space opera plotting within the constraints of the DS9 franchise, and closes with a satisfying ending. This is one of the better of the original DS9 tie-in novels of the 1990s.

[Violet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyable. It read smoothly, like a long lost episode.

[Frank Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent story. I wouldn't say the characters were spot on but they were pretty darn close. The story was engaging and moved along at a good pace.

[Shelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good solid Star Trek story, which is more than I can say for a lot of the DS9 novels I've been reading lately. I enjoyed this one! Not the best written, but above average.

For once someone can write Kira competently! Especially giving her something unusual (diplomacy stuff) to do. And Kira still comes off as competent and in-character! Give this writer a prize!

The sideplot with Jake and Nog (and Rom and Quark) was really enjoyable. But possibly I just enjoyed it because they're all my favorite characters. I really love when writers give Jake and Nog stuff to do~

There were a few head-scratchers that stood out to me, especially because they happened repeatedly throughout the book. Firstly, it was consistently stated that people aboard other vessels were "listening in" on communication between DS9 and other ships. Like, if Kira was talking to one of the Starfleet vessels, they had to speak in code because the other ships circling around the station would be monitoring their conversation. Why didn't they just use a secure channel? Or scramble the message? This happens all the time in Star Trek.

Okay the one thing that really made me laugh was all the ensigns running around! Sisko's regular staff are stuck on the lost ship, sure, and this leaves room for new minor characters to occupy the Defiant bridge and Ops on DS9. That part makes sense. And usually I really like it when authors put in some lower ranked officer characters into the books. I enjoy seeing what charas they come up with. But I cracked up each time it happened here because each new officer introduced was always an ensign! The writer made sure to describe each new Starfleet member filling in for the regular staff on the Defiant and on DS9... and again and again, they were all specifically stated to be ensigns. Did... did the author think the only officers of a higher rank on DS9 were the regular cast? I find it hard to believe that in this time of crisis, Kira and Sisko were content to keep their least experienced personnel at Ops and on the bridge when the least little mistake could throw the entire sector into a political war.

Also I thought it was pretty odd to have Sisko (and Dax to a lesser extent) completely obsessed with this "legend of the lost ship." Maybe it's just me but Sisko never really struck me as the type to be into archeology (unless Bajor is involved). But his entire characterization in this book revolved around him being an expert on the Jibetian ancient civilization and their lost ship. Picard, I could see this. Sisko? Not so much.

You know, it would have been enough if he was very concerned with the situation because he knew he was representing the Federation and he wanted to keep the Jibetian ship from falling into the wrong hands, so he learned all he could about the lost ship before taking action. But instead, the author pressed upon us how Sisko was obsessed with this legend for years and studied every article ever written about it and even had subspace alerts set up to catch new information being published on it? Uh... since when is this how Sisko usually acts? I dunno, that part seemed contrived.

These odd writing choices aside, I really did enjoy the book and I liked that almost every regular character got something to do. It was a fun read.

(But lastly, I really laugh thinking about how much trouble Odo is going to be in when Jake tells his dad, "Yeah, Odo let me follow the security guards onto this trader ship that was docked and we found a dead guy in there and then the trader ship almost blew up with us inside it!" Ha! RIP Odo.)

[Steven · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to agree with the majority of the reviews here in that The Long Night is a really good DS9 tie-in novel. The characters blend seamlessly with their portrayals on the show, and the plot moves along at a good pace. One of the issues I found is that the Jake/Nog sub-plot almost fails to connect with the rest of the plot. [More on that below]

Where the novel chokes a bit seems to be due to lazy editing and some bizarre oversights on the parts of the two writers. Below are some examples, and I'll try to reduce any spoilers.

Some of the grammatical errors seem quite obvious, such as using "lead" instead of "led", and "whose" instead of "who is/who's". The authors can't seem to decide whether they want to refer to the cold-sleep process as "cold-sleep", "cold sleep", or "coldsleep", and there does not seem to be any appreciable difference between these three terms. Also, when the Grand Nagus appears, he is referred to as "nagus", despite his title obviously being a proper noun (and one bizarre use of "negus" in Chapter 22).

When Dax first sees the statue in Chapter 2, she realizes she "would have to do some tests, but they would be redundant, for Starfleet records only." That's not what redundant means. Then, in an even more bizarre description later in the chapter: "But [Sisko] was going full bore, like the commander a rumor said he would become." What does this even mean? Sisko already is a commander, and who is spreading a rumor that he's going to be even better than he already is? The writer immediately moves on without expounding on this odd thought. This is exasperated by squeezing into Sisko an almost fanatical obsession with lost ships, something that is never mentioned in the series, and is tangentially tied into his love for baseball... because, you know, if you like baseball, you like hunting for shipwrecks...

Sisko's command at the end of Chapter 6: "Doctor Bashir! We need you on the surface immediately" doesn't quite line up with Chapter 8's "Doctor, I need you here immediately" and there doesn't seem to be any reason for the discrepancy.

Chapter 9 duplicates some of the revelations Jake and Nog already made in Chapter 5 regarding the Cardassian spy hole.

The Jibetian Ribe in Chapter 15 sees the Federation starships docked with DS9, when this is clearly not the case in any other chapter.

Who is Jepson, anyway? It seems this notorious mercenary has crossed paths with the DS9 crew before, and yet he's not in the Memory Beta wiki and ... oh never mind, he's gone before his presence is more than a nuisance. (In Chapter 25, there seems to be confusion as to whether Jepson is the name of the mercenary or his ship.)

Jake/Nog sub-plot: While the existence of a spy network does explain why so many species converge on DS9, when they destroy the relay, they do so before it can release any of the information it's collected... so there never was any explanation why the communication about the Nibex was initially revealed.

Also in Chapter 25 there is some weird Odo logic: "I think if we test that, we'll find poison. Or something poisonous to Andorian traders.” As opposed to regular Andorians, as if traders are a different sub-species as opposed to a job? Also, if something is poisonous, doesn’t that simply make it poison, especially in a Trek situation where one species can be immune to something poisonous to another?

[Christian Hamilton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another fun Pocket DS9 read. I think the novels are starting to pick up quite a bit as we get into them more. The last several have been consistently fun. This novel, in particular, felt like an episode of the television show - and in a good way. I could easily see all the characters behaving as they did in Smith's and Rusch's characterization.

The novel follows the crew of Deep Space Nine as they unearth a lost treasure ship that has been missing for 800 years. It's like TOS's "Space Seed," but with genuine hope and adventure. We see Sisko and Dax, in particular, excited about unearthing this vessel, and doing their finest to make sure the ship stays intact in the midst of machinations, political and financial, from multiple species and groups.

One thing I thought was interesting, and this is delving into spoiler territory, was that the revived Supreme Ruler found in the vessel did not play a prominent role in the story. Sure, his reviving from cold sleep (i.e. The Long Night) is an important plot point, but after playing an important role in the prologue, we don't see his influence during the story. Namely, he appears again at the end of the book as things seem to start to clear up. I thought this was a good way to handle the story. Instead of focusing on a bit character we'll never see again, the story focuses on the actions and reactions of the DS9 cast, though sadly Garak is left in the dust, and O'Brien fades out after about halfway in the story.

Overall, I thought it was a fun read. It wasn't entirely riveting, but I would maybe compare it to "Indiana Jones in space." I think that's as good of a compliment as any!

[Patrick Hayes · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had no memory of reading this book when it first came out, even though I had bought a copy when it was new, so I was wondering if this was a good book or not. This was a good Trek read.

A ship that disappeared over 800 years ago, and has become the stuff of legend due to the treasure it possessed and the tale of the royal family that fled its world in it, has seemingly been found by a trader that appears in Quark's bar to see a statue. Dax recognizes what it is made of and immediately contacts Sisko, who is fairly obsessed with the ship since a cadet in Starfleet. He takes the statue, puts the trader in the brig, and orders everyone not to breathe a word of their discovery. It seems this world has survived, thrived, and is now trying to join the Federation. News of the lost ship being found could put it in jeopardy. Not to mention all the races that want to go treasure hunting.

The ship is found, but something else is found on it, complicating matters. And several races have gone to DS9 to demand to know where the lost ship is or they'll start to attack the station.

There's some great character work for everyone in this tale, with everyone getting to do something related to the plot, including Jake, Nog, and Rom. There's lots of tension, some solid "Uh oh" moments, and a great ending. Only Sisko seems a little off with his obsession for the ship.

Highly recommended for all fans of DS9.

[Joe Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The majority of this book actually makes it one of the best DS9 books from while the show was still airing. It was pre-Worf and post-Defiant so it takes places in the third season.

The characters are overall acting more like we expect them to than earlier books written before they were fleshed out. The only noticeable exceptions are the Grand Nagus, who behaves more like early Next Generation Ferengi than the character we grew to know. Quark is a lesser exception as he is behaving in character, but he's being much, much more obnoxious about it than we'd care to see.

The plot is an interesting one, allowing for a lot of intrigue and suspense despite knowing things can't go beyond what the TV series would allow.

However... I drop a star not because of the Ferengi behavior, but that a bunch of outside species like Ferengi, Cardassians, and the ones who are the primary storyline because it's their ship that was found felt like their plots were left unfinished. Everyone was tense over this ship, but in the end you never really understand why for some of them, and stories for others you feel were just dropped. The ending feels incredibly rushed, and some form of epilogue that covered the bases of all the various species involved would have helped.

[Andy Stjohn · Rating 4 out of 5]

DS9 #14: the Long Night by Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch

This book was a fun but decent book. It felt like it could have functioned better as a TNG novel as it deals with archaeology and lost treasures. Sisko at no point in the series shows an interest in ancient history or treasure hunting like Picard. It just felt out of character for him to be interested in a Picard like mystery but given its legendary status, the Nibix it’s possible. I feel like most people regardless of wherever they’re like Picard would be interested in lost legends like the Mary Celeste or Oak Island because of the promises of riches.

Overall, this was a fun book and reminded me a bit of a Clive Cussler book and the finale was fun and action packed. It a little slow at the beginning of it but came together in the end.

7/10

[Peter Rydén · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spännande bok med ingående berättelser utifrån både Jake Sisko och doktor Bashir, men framför allt utifrån de politiska intrigerna i det annars för mig okända jibetianska samhället. Författarna gör ett mycket gott arbete och betyget på boken blir gott. Jag älskar Kiras ledaregenskaper när plötsligt sex andorianska, fyra ferengiska, flertalet cardassiska och fler skepp kommer på plötslig visit till Deep Space Nine, då de fått vittring efter guldjakt! Mycket bra beskrivet!

[Vorik · Rating 3 out of 5]

Die Geschichte beginnt mit dem Prolog und dem sich anschließenden Kapitel sehr vielversprechend, pendelt sich danach aber auf einem schlichten, durchschnittlichen Niveau ein. Die Charaktere sind erkennbar, im Detail manchmal nicht ganz akkurat getroffen; und es liest sich flüssig dahin. Wer DS9 mag und seine Helden noch einmal in einem seichten Abenteuer mit Nostalgieeffekt (ohne große Ansprüche) erleben möchte, kann mit diesem Buch durchaus ein paar nette Lesestunden zubringen.

[Andrew Beet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good novel to read the story wasn't special it just seemed the ending was wrapped up too quick especially with sisko bringing the nibix back to the station. The authors got the characters spot on the part of the book with Jake and Nog wasn't interesting at all

[Todd R · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this one fast. It was quick with very little useless commentary...the way a tie-in novel should be.
Good from beginning to end. The Jak/Nog bits were a bit lame, but overall good.

[Rachel A · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deep space 9 is my favorite series and i liked this story a lot. The characters were written very well and the plot was one of the best next to 34th rule.

[Jonathan Lee B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Long Night is a salad with a complex-flavor dressing.

[Samantha L'Esperance · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a nice little story. Felt like a multi-episode plot line.

[nx74defiant · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good book. All the parts are well done. Sisko's story, Kira's and Jake's.

[Steven Shinder · Rating 4 out of 5]

There’s some decent humor with Jake and Nog. And apparently Odo respects Rom more than he does Quark.

[Shane Amazon · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Long Night is the tale of one world's ruler that escapes a revolution only to be lost to history through the act of betrayal. Eight hundred years have past since the Nibix has gone missing with all hands. Now, a prized relic from the ship's extensive treasure holds has wound up in Quark's bar. If the relic can be traced back to the lost Nibix ship the entire quadrant can be flipped upside down by civil war and the quest for the ship's riches.

Although I found this book to be both well written and, at times, entertaining, I thought the author's were incredibly repetitive in their storylines and missed huge opportunities to write what would have been a great story. At nearly 300 hundred pages long the book tells the reader dozens of times how the entire sector of space could be impacted by the discovery of the Nibix. How civil war could break out. How lives could be put in jeopardy. But in all of the 300 pages the author's never took a moment to actually delve into what that would look like, they just keep repeating how dangerous the discovery of the vessel could be.

The second storyline of the book is Jake's and Nog's adventure into newly discovered tunnels in the station's walls. There are a bunch of things wrong with this storyline as well. First is that Chief O'Brien is so worried about Jake's safety around these tunnels that he wants Nog to go with him in case there are old Cardassian traps that may put the young man at risk. During this time in the DS9 timeline, Nog is about to go off to the Academy, but has never shown too much an interest in mechanical objects like his father, so why him? In fact, wouldn't a better storyline have been that Garak joined Jake? After all, a Cardassian spy knowing about Cardassian spying would seem like a better fit. However, Garak is never even mentioned in the book, which sounds strange given that everyone assumes Garak is a spy and they find Cardassian spy tunnels on the station.

But for me the book's death knell is that the whole book is one giant build up to a minor fight amongst a handful of species all trying to get at the Nibix. The story spends a ton of time warning about the events surrounding the discovery of the Nibix and the affect that would have on the sector, but none of that comes to be. And in the end all that time dedicated to that story is wasted by the Great Leader not being awaken until the very end of the book.

In the end, though, the story is entertaining but has none of the traditional Star Trek feel of discovery and the repercussions of the Federation sticking their noses into the unknown and then fighting the consequences of their doing so. And at the end of the 300 pages nothing is really worked out because the authors never really cared to explore the things they spent so much time trying to build up.

A yawn from me on this one.

[Dianah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started off not liking this book at all. It begins with a lengthy prologue about the ruler of an unknown race. Luckily, it gets better. The main plot involves a legendary missing ship that Sisko and Curzon Dax had often discussed. A sub plot mirrors the main with Jake and Nog exploring some mysterious passageways on DS-Nine.

Once I got through the first 100 pages or so, I really began to enjoy the book. I am a little disappointed that the story includes guest appearances by many semi-regulars like Gul Dukat and the Grand Nagus, but not a peep from Garak. I wasn't sold on the authors characterization of Jadzia Dax at first, but either it grew on me or they got better. They did a great job with Bashir. While I'm normally annoyed by Jake/Nog stories, that portion of the novel was interesting as well.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice story about a lost spaceship that's known to have lots of treasure on board. The cover is a bit misleading as Odo and Quark are only in the B storyline. It's more about Sisko, Dax, Bashir and O'Brien than them. The treasure hunt keeps you reading, and the political intrigue adds a bit of depth. A good read.

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the good ones! An interesting premise, the characters were spot-on and pretty much all the main characters got their moment to shine. (Gotta say, though - they find a Cardassian spy station that shows signs of recent use on DS9 and noone even questions whether this might perhaps have something to do with the resident Cardassian spy? C'mon.)

[Sam Reeves · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book I have read by Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch. The story unfolded vividly. It was just like an episode of DS9. In fact, after reading it, I am tempted to go back and watch the old episodes.