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Star Trek: The Original Series #13
The Wounded Sky
An alien scientist invents the Intergalactic Inversion Drive, an engine system that transcends warp drive -- and the U.S.S Enterprise™ will be the first to test it! The Klingons attempt to thwart the test, but a greater danger looms when strange symptoms surface among the crew -- and time becomes meaningless.
Now Captain Kirk and his friends face their greatest challenge -- to repair the fabric of the Universe before time is lost forever!
255 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published December 1, 1983
176 people are currently reading
1040 people want to read
About the author
Diane Duane
167 books2,414 followersDiane Duane has been a writer of science fiction, fantasy, TV and film for more than forty years.
Besides the 1980's creation of the Young Wizards fantasy series for which she's best known, the "Middle Kingdoms" epic fantasy series, and numerous stand-alone fantasy or science fiction novels, her career has included extensive work in the Star Trek TM universe, and many scripts for live-action and animated TV series on both sides of the Atlantic, as well as work in comics and computer games. She has spent a fair amount of time on the New York Times Bestseller List, and has picked up various awards and award nominations here and there.
She lives in County Wicklow, in Ireland, with her husband of more than thirty years, the screenwriter and novelist Peter Morwood.
Her favorite color is blue, her favorite food is a weird kind of Swiss scrambled-potato dish called maluns, she was born in a Year of the Dragon, and her sign is "Runway 24 Left, Hold For Clearance."
(From her official website)
Besides the 1980's creation of the Young Wizards fantasy series for which she's best known, the "Middle Kingdoms" epic fantasy series, and numerous stand-alone fantasy or science fiction novels, her career has included extensive work in the Star Trek TM universe, and many scripts for live-action and animated TV series on both sides of the Atlantic, as well as work in comics and computer games. She has spent a fair amount of time on the New York Times Bestseller List, and has picked up various awards and award nominations here and there.
She lives in County Wicklow, in Ireland, with her husband of more than thirty years, the screenwriter and novelist Peter Morwood.
Her favorite color is blue, her favorite food is a weird kind of Swiss scrambled-potato dish called maluns, she was born in a Year of the Dragon, and her sign is "Runway 24 Left, Hold For Clearance."
(From her official website)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 163 reviews
April 3, 2018
Going truly where no has gone before!
THE SKY IS... SOARING!
This particular Star Trek prose novel became quite popular at its time of publication, to the point that it was adapted to a TV episode BUT for Star Trek: The Next Generation in the episode Where No One has Gone Before, that it became a key episode about the character of Wesley Crusher and his future role in the franchise.
Diane Duane, the author, she possess an amazing imagination for the creation of non-humanoid aliens, that since it's a prose novel, why limit it to humanoid-like alien, that it's understandable due the limitation of fx and budget for a TV series previous to CGI technology,...
...but in a prose novel?
Sky is the limit!
Diane Duane wrote one of my top favorite Star Trek novels, Dark Mirror, using the TNG crew and employing the Mirror Universe, way before that it would be re-introduced in DS9, and in there, she created an awesome dolphin-like alien.
Here, in The Wounded Sky, she created two cool aliens, one traditionally humanoid-like, but the other is one cool medusa-like alien which is the center character in the story.
WHERE NO ONE HAS GONE BEFORE
The Hamalki, are an alien race, so smart than even Vulcan have troubles to keep up with their experiments in "creative physics", and K't'lk is one member of that alien race and she is developed an "Intergalactic Inversion Drive" which would allow to a regular Warp-powered starship to reach other galaxies in few hours.
The USS Enterprise has been chosen to test the revolutionary engine, and the plans are to reach the Magellanic Clouds, just outside of the Milky Way. Spock and Scotty are assigned to assist to K't'lk in the installation and execution of the Intergalactic Inversion Drive on the Enterprise.
Such daring tech project was hard to keep in secret and the Klingon Empire sends an entire squadron of battlecruiser to attack the Enterprise and steal the advanced engine.
However, that military menace is the least of troubles for Captain James T. Kirk and his crew, since while the engine works as expected, there will be unpredictable after effects, as well in the inner senses of the crew, as in the outer fabric of time and space.
Boldly going where no one has gone before, never has been so literal and never has been so dangerous to the entire universe...
...and even other universes!
THE SKY IS... SOARING!
This particular Star Trek prose novel became quite popular at its time of publication, to the point that it was adapted to a TV episode BUT for Star Trek: The Next Generation in the episode Where No One has Gone Before, that it became a key episode about the character of Wesley Crusher and his future role in the franchise.
Diane Duane, the author, she possess an amazing imagination for the creation of non-humanoid aliens, that since it's a prose novel, why limit it to humanoid-like alien, that it's understandable due the limitation of fx and budget for a TV series previous to CGI technology,...
...but in a prose novel?
Sky is the limit!
Diane Duane wrote one of my top favorite Star Trek novels, Dark Mirror, using the TNG crew and employing the Mirror Universe, way before that it would be re-introduced in DS9, and in there, she created an awesome dolphin-like alien.
Here, in The Wounded Sky, she created two cool aliens, one traditionally humanoid-like, but the other is one cool medusa-like alien which is the center character in the story.
WHERE NO ONE HAS GONE BEFORE
The Hamalki, are an alien race, so smart than even Vulcan have troubles to keep up with their experiments in "creative physics", and K't'lk is one member of that alien race and she is developed an "Intergalactic Inversion Drive" which would allow to a regular Warp-powered starship to reach other galaxies in few hours.
The USS Enterprise has been chosen to test the revolutionary engine, and the plans are to reach the Magellanic Clouds, just outside of the Milky Way. Spock and Scotty are assigned to assist to K't'lk in the installation and execution of the Intergalactic Inversion Drive on the Enterprise.
Such daring tech project was hard to keep in secret and the Klingon Empire sends an entire squadron of battlecruiser to attack the Enterprise and steal the advanced engine.
However, that military menace is the least of troubles for Captain James T. Kirk and his crew, since while the engine works as expected, there will be unpredictable after effects, as well in the inner senses of the crew, as in the outer fabric of time and space.
Boldly going where no one has gone before, never has been so literal and never has been so dangerous to the entire universe...
...and even other universes!
January 3, 2023
Amazingly bold and deeply reflective. The story is a masterful blend of (pseudo) hard sci-fi and metaphysics with an epic scope, inspiring awe and wonder. Duane explores conundrums involving the nature of the universe, time, entropy and causality and all along the way evokes a deep sense of empathy among the members of the Enterprise crew as well as some wonderfully unusual and curious newcomers, something that could not have been accomplished so easily on screen. Her writing is infused with amazing imagery, subtle humor and poignancy, and features a number of dreamlike sequences where she blurs the lines of reality, breaking down barriers amongst the crew and some truly inscrutable alien entities, demonstrating the vast powers of the mind and human will.
This was an immense delight, both a gem of science fiction and a story that really showcases the entirety of the enterprise crew working together, offering a glimpse into their essential natures and highlighting what makes them so special, individually and together. In my opinion Duane, along with Peter David, were by far the most talented of the first generation of Trek novelists and her influence on the series has most certainly endured.
This was an immense delight, both a gem of science fiction and a story that really showcases the entirety of the enterprise crew working together, offering a glimpse into their essential natures and highlighting what makes them so special, individually and together. In my opinion Duane, along with Peter David, were by far the most talented of the first generation of Trek novelists and her influence on the series has most certainly endured.
July 20, 2023
I heard Diane Duane talk about this book on a podcast years ago, and she made it sound so compelling it's been on my radar ever since, even though I have never watched a single episode of Star Trek's original series. I went online recently to see if it was available as audiobook, and found a fan-made one which was posted chapter by chapter to youtube during 2020! Three friends decided that recording this book would be their covid project, and apparently Diane Duane retweeted several of their posts about it. I don't know if that counts as official authorization, but at the very least she was aware of the project and looked favorably on it.
The story itself is quite enjoyable. It opens with Captain Kirk's Enterprise being awarded the chance to test out a new engine system, the Intergalactic Inversion Drive, which far outstrips the warp drive in instantaneous jump capabilities. The Enterprise ends up hosting the alien scientist who invented it, an original character created by Duane who stole every scene she was in. This Inversion Drive pulls energy from an infinitely dense particle, but as the crew soon discovers, using it can have catastrophic effects on matter, time, and space near the ship. The ordeal that the crew must go through to heal the effects of the Inversion Drive is deeply philosophical and genuinely moving. I was already a long-time fan of Duane's Young Wizards series, but I'm definitely interested in reading more of her Star Trek novels after this.
The story itself is quite enjoyable. It opens with Captain Kirk's Enterprise being awarded the chance to test out a new engine system, the Intergalactic Inversion Drive, which far outstrips the warp drive in instantaneous jump capabilities. The Enterprise ends up hosting the alien scientist who invented it, an original character created by Duane who stole every scene she was in. This Inversion Drive pulls energy from an infinitely dense particle, but as the crew soon discovers, using it can have catastrophic effects on matter, time, and space near the ship. The ordeal that the crew must go through to heal the effects of the Inversion Drive is deeply philosophical and genuinely moving. I was already a long-time fan of Duane's Young Wizards series, but I'm definitely interested in reading more of her Star Trek novels after this.
February 1, 2023
Exciting and fun.
July 4, 2021
Such a bargain. Only 255 pages, but feels like 800. During which the characters talk, think, and talk about thinking. Some wackadoo science thrown in to make you suspect that aren't bored, you're stupid.
July 24, 2018
I wanted to like this more than I did. And credit where it's due, there are parts of this that were excellent. The alien spider scientist, who was essentially a main character for the duration, was as interesting and likeable as the regular crew, and Duane makes an extra effort to integrate a number of alien species into the Enterprise crew. So often it appears as thoroughly human, with the occasional exception thrown in, but the constant and genuine diversity here really helped to give that sense of wonder that I think Duane was reaching for with the plot. The plot, alas, was where this book failed for me. The first half felt weighed down with endless technobabble, and the second was almost mystic fantasy. Neither of these things enthuse me - for example, the many-mind confusion during the new travel, in which memories of a number of characters were melded together, left me cold every time. I think it was meant to be exciting and meaningful, but it just felt tedious and every time it recurred I wished she'd just get on with it. I can't help but think that buried under all this excess presentation is a story worthy of the characters, but by the end I was tired of digging for it.
September 19, 2025
This story has big ideas, but gets too bogged down in metaphysics to tell a cohesive story. The narrative is meandering and fragmented. Diane wrote many books after this, so I will be interested to see if her narrative voice improved. 2.5 stars.
June 19, 2011
Diane Duane, author of fantasy novels and even a Star Trek Next Gen episode or two, wrote what was her first novel in the Original Series universe called The Wounded Sky.
The Wounded Sky tends to be a bit tedious reading at first. We meet the alien scientist, who is a glass spider-like alien (why the book blurb says "pretty scientist" is beyond me!) meets up with the Enterprise crew, which crew has won the lottery on which starship will be heading off to parts of the Galaxy Mankind has never been to before by using an inversion drive.
From the way I understand it, an inversion drive reduces the occupant to nonexistence, then you reappear at another location instantaneously.
Despite much techno-babble and characters endlessly chattering (100 pages could have easily been edited out) about the physics of the project, there are two major things wrong with this drive:
1. You relive experiences usually in your own mind or even do a bit of mind-sharing during the process. This is actually another reality and you could be hurt.
2. Stars tend to explode in your vicinity (thus the title)!
The best parts of the book are when the Klingons attempt to ambush the Enterprise and Sulu has to do some pretty fancy flying to avoid them before the inversion drive is turned on. The descriptions of the ships and Sulu's actions is riveting.
Another good scene is near the end, when they reach beyond the Milky Way galaxy and observe it from 100 thousand light years out in the blink of an eye.
Their meeting with a new being with tremendous power but no real knowledge is the crux of the novel which makes for some philosophical reading.
Bottom Line: Overall, not the best Star Trek novel I've read, a bit chatty, but a decent read and entertaining.
The Wounded Sky tends to be a bit tedious reading at first. We meet the alien scientist, who is a glass spider-like alien (why the book blurb says "pretty scientist" is beyond me!) meets up with the Enterprise crew, which crew has won the lottery on which starship will be heading off to parts of the Galaxy Mankind has never been to before by using an inversion drive.
From the way I understand it, an inversion drive reduces the occupant to nonexistence, then you reappear at another location instantaneously.
Despite much techno-babble and characters endlessly chattering (100 pages could have easily been edited out) about the physics of the project, there are two major things wrong with this drive:
1. You relive experiences usually in your own mind or even do a bit of mind-sharing during the process. This is actually another reality and you could be hurt.
2. Stars tend to explode in your vicinity (thus the title)!
The best parts of the book are when the Klingons attempt to ambush the Enterprise and Sulu has to do some pretty fancy flying to avoid them before the inversion drive is turned on. The descriptions of the ships and Sulu's actions is riveting.
Another good scene is near the end, when they reach beyond the Milky Way galaxy and observe it from 100 thousand light years out in the blink of an eye.
Their meeting with a new being with tremendous power but no real knowledge is the crux of the novel which makes for some philosophical reading.
Bottom Line: Overall, not the best Star Trek novel I've read, a bit chatty, but a decent read and entertaining.
April 4, 2018
Read too long ago!
March 20, 2012
That jellyfish on the cover made me think it was the story where Nurse Chapel married a jellyfish. But, no, my bad, it's a glass spider called K't'l'k, and she's got a universe to save and a new one to build. Plenty of exotic new aliens in this story, plus the enjoyable Harb Tanzer- Recreation Officer. Every starship needs one, cause everybody needs the simplicity of play.
Put through too many filters and rewrites, this became the TNG episode 'Where No One Has Gone Before'. Stands perfectly well on its own, a little trippy and pseudo-religious but it makes you think and it's got a great sensa wonda. Most worthy. Mike Canonical!
Put through too many filters and rewrites, this became the TNG episode 'Where No One Has Gone Before'. Stands perfectly well on its own, a little trippy and pseudo-religious but it makes you think and it's got a great sensa wonda. Most worthy. Mike Canonical!
January 20, 2024
Humorous and Philosophical
I have only read 4 Star Trek books but this is my favorite. It describes the Star Trek crew of the original series but was adapted for an episode of the Next Generation.
It has a lot of humor and mixes pseudo hard sci-fi with metaphysics, speculating how a universe without entropy might appear. Alien scientists, the Hamalki, so smart that even Vulcans have troubles keeping up with their experiments in "creative physics” have developed an "Intergalactic Inversion Drive" which makes travel to other galaxies feasible and the U.S.S Enterprise™ will be the first to test it!
Said drive could very well break the known laws of physics and potentially damage the fabric of the universe, hence the title Wounded Sky.
The story shows the entirety of the enterprise crew working together, Scotty is quite enamoured by the alien, K't'lk who resembles something like a glass spider. The alien in return gives Scotty an unusual compliment. “You’re the closest thing to a Hamalki on two legs, you know that?”
This read was a lot of fun.
I have only read 4 Star Trek books but this is my favorite. It describes the Star Trek crew of the original series but was adapted for an episode of the Next Generation.
It has a lot of humor and mixes pseudo hard sci-fi with metaphysics, speculating how a universe without entropy might appear. Alien scientists, the Hamalki, so smart that even Vulcans have troubles keeping up with their experiments in "creative physics” have developed an "Intergalactic Inversion Drive" which makes travel to other galaxies feasible and the U.S.S Enterprise™ will be the first to test it!
Said drive could very well break the known laws of physics and potentially damage the fabric of the universe, hence the title Wounded Sky.
The story shows the entirety of the enterprise crew working together, Scotty is quite enamoured by the alien, K't'lk who resembles something like a glass spider. The alien in return gives Scotty an unusual compliment. “You’re the closest thing to a Hamalki on two legs, you know that?”
This read was a lot of fun.
March 30, 2016
Having now found my Star Trek books I am enjoying picking out the old favourites. 'The Wounded Sky' is definitely one of the best. Diane Duane is obviously a fan, knows the Trek world well and has an imagination worthy of the best SF writers. K't'lk, a spider like being, is a lovely creation. The descriptions of the other worlds, the astronomy and creative physics are outstanding. There's a meaty story and a lot to think about.
Only in SF, with a good writer, could you get ideas to make the reader ponder on religion, creation, gods and proto-gods, and the meaning of life, all wrapped up in an exciting story. K't'lk has invented the mathematics to make an intergalatic inversion drive to take the Federation beyond the galaxy. Enterprise is the spaceship chosen to first test the drive, but there are problems. First the Klingons have a go at seizing the ship, then the drive itself is causing problems. and what a problem. Not just threatening to blow up the ship, but much more serious and thought provoking, threatening the universe.
Diane Duane knows her characters too and there is some great dialogue, particularly between Bones and Spock, K't'lk and Scotty, and Captain Kirk gets to think some fascinating thoughts. His crew have nice cameo roles and they reflect the multi-cultural ideals of Star Trek well. It's a good read.
Duane writes well and gives the reader a lot of pleasure and much to think over. For fans this is a must read. For those who like SF to reflect the human condition and have things to think about then this is the novel to try. For readers who like a great story, fascinating characters, and ideas this novel is worth a read. Above all the book is fun! And that is something hard to find in many novels these days.
Only in SF, with a good writer, could you get ideas to make the reader ponder on religion, creation, gods and proto-gods, and the meaning of life, all wrapped up in an exciting story. K't'lk has invented the mathematics to make an intergalatic inversion drive to take the Federation beyond the galaxy. Enterprise is the spaceship chosen to first test the drive, but there are problems. First the Klingons have a go at seizing the ship, then the drive itself is causing problems. and what a problem. Not just threatening to blow up the ship, but much more serious and thought provoking, threatening the universe.
Diane Duane knows her characters too and there is some great dialogue, particularly between Bones and Spock, K't'lk and Scotty, and Captain Kirk gets to think some fascinating thoughts. His crew have nice cameo roles and they reflect the multi-cultural ideals of Star Trek well. It's a good read.
Duane writes well and gives the reader a lot of pleasure and much to think over. For fans this is a must read. For those who like SF to reflect the human condition and have things to think about then this is the novel to try. For readers who like a great story, fascinating characters, and ideas this novel is worth a read. Above all the book is fun! And that is something hard to find in many novels these days.
December 31, 2018
I don't remember much about this book, except that as a teenager I LOVED it. This, along with "Black Fire," was one of my favorite Star Trek books. I re-read it many times between 1983 and 1988 (at least once per year), more than any other Star Trek book (aside from Black Fire, which I re-read just as frequently). I need to re-read this as an adult to see if it really was that good - but then again, maybe I ought to just leave it be and remember it as one of those books I loved as a kid.
July 18, 2013
I've read this one several times, and like it every single time. Good characterizations and lots to think about.
Just read it again, first time in at least a year or two, and it made me cry all over again, the good kind of weeping. The author saw and loved in the ST characters what I saw and loved in them all those years ago, and made a magical, wondrous story about them, and more. I have two copies - one to read, and the other autographed to me. Not letting go of either!
Just read it again, first time in at least a year or two, and it made me cry all over again, the good kind of weeping. The author saw and loved in the ST characters what I saw and loved in them all those years ago, and made a magical, wondrous story about them, and more. I have two copies - one to read, and the other autographed to me. Not letting go of either!
March 10, 2022
This started off pretty cool. It introduced some tech that wouldn’t be seen until next gen like a proto holodeck and food replicators. It also brought in some decent new characters and the regular crew were decently written. The big problem was that it just went way, way off the rails in the third act, I don’t even want to get into it but it was cringe city.
January 19, 2024
I’ve read multiple Star Trek books and short stories - and this one was my least favorite. It did have some good parts, but most of the time I read it I would have to make a decision to keep reading to finish.
There’s huge swaths of introspective thoughts, deep technical discussions, and acid trips. Not a great read, wouldn’t recommend.
There’s huge swaths of introspective thoughts, deep technical discussions, and acid trips. Not a great read, wouldn’t recommend.
August 1, 2012
This is one of my very favourite Star Trek books of all time. I love the new characters she creates and she just nails her depiction of the original characters. Love it!
May 7, 2019
The crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise is overcome with excitement when their vessel is selected to test out an experimental new drive, one that will allow the ship to travel instantaneously to other galaxies. When the ship sets out to test it, though, it is quickly beset upon by a squadron of Klingon warships determined to acquire the new drive for their empire. No sooner does the Enterprise crew deal with that threat, though, than they encounter a new crisis that they themselves created — one that endangers the entire universe.
Diane Duane's book is a notable addition to the Star Trek franchise for a number of reasons. A prolific genre writer, this was the first of her many novels in the series and enjoys the distinction of serving as the basis for a Next Generation episode, season one's "Where No One Has Gone Before." Yet for all of the novel's strengths of characterization and Duane's use of the freedom the novel format provided to her, I found the overall result disappointing. A major reason for this was the novel's progression in its later chapters into the metaphysical. While I'm not much of a fan of this approach in Star Trek novels, this one especially read like little more than a collective LSD trip by the crew, with much communing and willing an outcome. Perhaps if it hadn't led to a climax all too similar to many an episode of the show I might have been more accepting, but the beats were just too familiar for me to feel much suspense or surprise in the later chapters, making my first encounter with her novels a somewhat underwhelming experience.
Diane Duane's book is a notable addition to the Star Trek franchise for a number of reasons. A prolific genre writer, this was the first of her many novels in the series and enjoys the distinction of serving as the basis for a Next Generation episode, season one's "Where No One Has Gone Before." Yet for all of the novel's strengths of characterization and Duane's use of the freedom the novel format provided to her, I found the overall result disappointing. A major reason for this was the novel's progression in its later chapters into the metaphysical. While I'm not much of a fan of this approach in Star Trek novels, this one especially read like little more than a collective LSD trip by the crew, with much communing and willing an outcome. Perhaps if it hadn't led to a climax all too similar to many an episode of the show I might have been more accepting, but the beats were just too familiar for me to feel much suspense or surprise in the later chapters, making my first encounter with her novels a somewhat underwhelming experience.
February 7, 2021
4.75 stars given the option.
Boy, oh boy. Diane Duane came into the Star Trek novel-writing game and turned it right on its head. I'm reading every novel in publication order, and this is the one that said, "Look at all that is possible with this subject matter. We can do so much better than we have so far."
The writing is rich and poetic and beautiful from beginning to end. At 255 pages, it's not a fast read at all because you want to take your time with the paragraphs, reread a lot of them, sink into the voluptuousness of the writing, and truly enjoy the experience.
Every character is in character, every aspect is explored deeply and fully, and every sentence has a purpose.
If I had one small critique of this book it would be that it leans too heavily on the western vision of a god-being rather than exploring the stunning diversity of such ideas that can be found on just our planet, much less hundreds of others. I think some small changes could have helped to reflect the IDIC in the concept of religion, too, just as Duane does so startling well when introducing and exploring a myriad of other species and cultures.
I cannot recommend this book highly enough, even if you aren't a Star Trek fan.
Boy, oh boy. Diane Duane came into the Star Trek novel-writing game and turned it right on its head. I'm reading every novel in publication order, and this is the one that said, "Look at all that is possible with this subject matter. We can do so much better than we have so far."
The writing is rich and poetic and beautiful from beginning to end. At 255 pages, it's not a fast read at all because you want to take your time with the paragraphs, reread a lot of them, sink into the voluptuousness of the writing, and truly enjoy the experience.
Every character is in character, every aspect is explored deeply and fully, and every sentence has a purpose.
If I had one small critique of this book it would be that it leans too heavily on the western vision of a god-being rather than exploring the stunning diversity of such ideas that can be found on just our planet, much less hundreds of others. I think some small changes could have helped to reflect the IDIC in the concept of religion, too, just as Duane does so startling well when introducing and exploring a myriad of other species and cultures.
I cannot recommend this book highly enough, even if you aren't a Star Trek fan.
February 10, 2024
Ziemlich unlesbar, wenn man nicht weite Teile überspringt.
Obwohl Duane was Weltenbau angeht, ein paar Lücken füllt - zum Beispiel den Aufbau des Freizeitdecks, fehlt schon da teilweise eine gewisse Logik.
Aber als es dann an den eigentlichen Plot geht, wird es ganz abstrus und ich glaube, die teilweise VIER Seiten Technobabbel am Stück(!) sind dafür da, die Hirne der Lesenden so zu schmelzen, dass sie einfach nichts mehr mitbekommen.
Obwohl Duane was Weltenbau angeht, ein paar Lücken füllt - zum Beispiel den Aufbau des Freizeitdecks, fehlt schon da teilweise eine gewisse Logik.
Aber als es dann an den eigentlichen Plot geht, wird es ganz abstrus und ich glaube, die teilweise VIER Seiten Technobabbel am Stück(!) sind dafür da, die Hirne der Lesenden so zu schmelzen, dass sie einfach nichts mehr mitbekommen.
March 27, 2023
Too esoteric! And too long for what it ultimately is!
August 5, 2025
trippy
July 12, 2020
A fun little Star Trek adventure.
Overtly existential, in typical Star Trek fashion; our characters find meaning in chaos by defining God as they see fit.
Overtly existential, in typical Star Trek fashion; our characters find meaning in chaos by defining God as they see fit.
January 22, 2016
Wow. This is an amazing book; it demonstrates the fun and depth that good science fiction writing can achieve. It had profundity, depth, and wonder encapsulated in a Star Trek novel. I finished it in about three days, part of which was on a plane from Rapid City to DFW. I was actually frustrated when the pilot announced we were landing because that meant I would need to stop reading.
One of the advantages of a science fiction book over a TV show or film is that books are not constrained by special effects budgets or the limitations of humans playing alien characters. Duane creates far more fantastic aliens that we have seen in Star Trek's on screen incarnations, including a felid, a transporter operator with multiple tentacles, and the book's main character, a sentient arachnoid (spider-shaped) glass-clear engineer named K't'lk. The apostrophes take the place of the only vowel in her species' language, "an E above high C, surrounded by shivery harmonics."
We also have alien genders. Most characters (including K't'lk) are easily categorized as male or female, but others are referred to as "it" and "hir" as a matter of course. Another species has 12 genders, all of which claim to be male, especially those that bear children.
The book takes us from a fairly ordinary beginning of the Enterprise testing a new drive system to the far side of another galaxy and an encounter with another universe; in fact, another kind of universe. As a physicist, I find the most compelling and fascinating sections of the book to be those that deal with the relationships among entropy (or the lack thereof), time, pain, death, and the nature of God.
I think I see the influences of C. S. Lewis in many sections of this novel, most obviously because of a ship named Malacandra. Other scenes remind me of The Magician's Nephew and Peralandra.
One of the advantages of a science fiction book over a TV show or film is that books are not constrained by special effects budgets or the limitations of humans playing alien characters. Duane creates far more fantastic aliens that we have seen in Star Trek's on screen incarnations, including a felid, a transporter operator with multiple tentacles, and the book's main character, a sentient arachnoid (spider-shaped) glass-clear engineer named K't'lk. The apostrophes take the place of the only vowel in her species' language, "an E above high C, surrounded by shivery harmonics."
We also have alien genders. Most characters (including K't'lk) are easily categorized as male or female, but others are referred to as "it" and "hir" as a matter of course. Another species has 12 genders, all of which claim to be male, especially those that bear children.
The book takes us from a fairly ordinary beginning of the Enterprise testing a new drive system to the far side of another galaxy and an encounter with another universe; in fact, another kind of universe. As a physicist, I find the most compelling and fascinating sections of the book to be those that deal with the relationships among entropy (or the lack thereof), time, pain, death, and the nature of God.
I think I see the influences of C. S. Lewis in many sections of this novel, most obviously because of a ship named Malacandra. Other scenes remind me of The Magician's Nephew and Peralandra.
July 21, 2015
[These notes were made in 1984:]. The latest Star Trek novel and rather a good one, tho' the scientific concept on which it is based - the defeat of entropy - is a little boggling for a pedestrian mind like mine. Luckily I can see past the scientese - creating a "heavenly" state of no death or decay is simply Duane's way of creating a situation for dramatizing what she feels is the essence of each of the ST characters: Kirk's joy in command and the trust of his followers; Spock's devotion to truth and intense loyalty to Kirk; McCoy's overwhelming compassion and hatred of death, etc. It's quite deftly done - Duane doesn't get lost in her own abstractions as the Marshak/Culbreath team does. There's style, humour, and fidelity to the originals. I'd definitely put this in the top three - and I think on the whole the quality of these things is getting better as time goes on.
January 11, 2013
I loved this book and everything in it - the world-building, the science, the wibbley-wobbley timey-wimey aspects (I've got Doctor Who in your Star Trek - and Diane Duane is a Whovian!), the Duane-created OCs, and Kirk. Kirk being Kirk! Older, wiser Kirk who is still the same Kirk everyone loves! There's tentacles and body swapping and Starfleet folks who don't conform to a gender binary because the galaxy's too big for that mess and Sassy!Bones and a whole lot of eyebrow quirking from Spock and everyone on the Enterprise loves each other the end ♥
Also, this gets five stars because page 190 of the paperback, the line "the problem with the tribbles", and the immense self-control Diane Duane must have had not to write 'trouble' instead of 'problem'. Really want to pass this on to my other Trekkie friends so they too can love it like I do.
Also, this gets five stars because page 190 of the paperback, the line "the problem with the tribbles", and the immense self-control Diane Duane must have had not to write 'trouble' instead of 'problem'. Really want to pass this on to my other Trekkie friends so they too can love it like I do.
February 1, 2014
I'm sort of kicking myself for having managed not to read this book for so long. This is the same, brilliant vision of the Star Trek universe as Spock's World, which I've loved since my teenaged years.
There's a theme that I can't quite name that seems to run through much of Duane's work that sometimes makes me wonder if the Young Wizards doesn't actually take place in the same exact universe as Star Trek. Her writing makes me hopeful, and even as I come to the depressing realization that the descendants I'm not actually having will not ever live in a future like Star Trek, I love it more. The novels are frequently the best part about the whole franchise, and in this, like in her other work, she does not disappoint.
There's a theme that I can't quite name that seems to run through much of Duane's work that sometimes makes me wonder if the Young Wizards doesn't actually take place in the same exact universe as Star Trek. Her writing makes me hopeful, and even as I come to the depressing realization that the descendants I'm not actually having will not ever live in a future like Star Trek, I love it more. The novels are frequently the best part about the whole franchise, and in this, like in her other work, she does not disappoint.
October 16, 2019
This is one of those Star Trek novels filled with odd prose about the mysteries of the universe and consciousness. It comes up a lot on ST books and I don't normally mind it. But there's just SO much in this that I skimmed large portions of it towards the end, the first time I've ever done that with a book. I suppose had it been anything other than Trek I would have given up but loyalty made me finish.
Diane Duane is usually one of my favourite Trek authors but I found this a real slog. She needed reining in by a better editor. There's precious little story to this, its all about the author playing with language and contemplating existence. The final nail for me was the idea that one individual can 'sing' a universe into existence, which was a stretch, even for me.
Diane Duane is usually one of my favourite Trek authors but I found this a real slog. She needed reining in by a better editor. There's precious little story to this, its all about the author playing with language and contemplating existence. The final nail for me was the idea that one individual can 'sing' a universe into existence, which was a stretch, even for me.
May 2, 2022
It tried very hard, very cool opening describing Enterprise flying at warp in space and its all up hill from there. Characters were very off, very Big Concepts that fell flat. Here's a chapter outline: talk - talk- naval gaze - say something out of character - do nothing - talk some more. Not exciting and bloated and not getting easier to read as the pages turn. Read it as it is on a list of Trek books I am determined to read: every book release from TMP novelization to Star Trek IV novelization. Otherwise I barely finished it. I would turn the page and think, "Are we still going on about this? I hated the "guest alien" of the story too., rewrite this and replace them with an idiot savant Pakled.
June 22, 2017
Like a lot of these earlier original series novels, this one is overall pretty lackluster. These books just don't have a lot of consistency with how the characters - main and supporting - are treated. The same is true of the physics and which futuristic theories happen to apply in Star Trek. As far as the writing itself, it ranged from pretty good to awful, with tendencies to waver drastically in quality even within very short sections. I don't recommend this book unless you're running out of Star Trek to read and are something of a junkie.
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