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Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Ascendance
The post-television Deep Space Nine saga continues with this original novel from New York Times bestselling author David R. George III!
On the original Deep Space Nine, Captain Kira Nerys watches as the nearby wormhole opens and discharges a single, bladelike vessel. Attempts to contact its crew fail, and the ship is soon followed by another vessel of similar design. When an armada subsequently begins to emerge from the wormhole, it seems clear that DS9 is under attack. Kira orders her first officer, Commander Elias Vaughn, to board the U.S.S. Defiant and defend the station, and alerts Starfleet to send additional forces as her crew prepares DS9’s shields and weaponry for the onslaught to come.
Meanwhile, on the lead ship, Iliana Ghemor considers launching an attack on DS9 and finally ending the life of Kira, the fountainhead of all the ills in her miserable life. Her vengeance demands more than mere death, though—it requires pain. Ghemor refocuses, choosing to follow her plan to mete out her revenge on the captain by first decimating the population of Bajor…
™, ®, & © 2015 CBS Studios, Inc. STAR TREK and related marks and logos are trademarks of CBS Studios, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
On the original Deep Space Nine, Captain Kira Nerys watches as the nearby wormhole opens and discharges a single, bladelike vessel. Attempts to contact its crew fail, and the ship is soon followed by another vessel of similar design. When an armada subsequently begins to emerge from the wormhole, it seems clear that DS9 is under attack. Kira orders her first officer, Commander Elias Vaughn, to board the U.S.S. Defiant and defend the station, and alerts Starfleet to send additional forces as her crew prepares DS9’s shields and weaponry for the onslaught to come.
Meanwhile, on the lead ship, Iliana Ghemor considers launching an attack on DS9 and finally ending the life of Kira, the fountainhead of all the ills in her miserable life. Her vengeance demands more than mere death, though—it requires pain. Ghemor refocuses, choosing to follow her plan to mete out her revenge on the captain by first decimating the population of Bajor…
™, ®, & © 2015 CBS Studios, Inc. STAR TREK and related marks and logos are trademarks of CBS Studios, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
369 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2016
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376 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews
December 30, 2015
It's a very easy read, but it's in service of a book that exists simply to be a giant chess board. It's moving all the old pieces off the board (such as the Ascendants) and setting up the next phase of DS9 storytelling (the further adventures of Vic Fontaine, Sisko in the Gamma Quadrant). It will be nice to finally read a new, self-contained DS9 story in the future, but if you must tie up as many loose ends as possible, this is the way to do it.
February 3, 2017
Really good book that tells the missing story of the DS9 relaunch regarding the Ascendants but also launches the series in a new direction.
George's writing can sometimes be too verbose and he does have a tendency to give summaries of stuff that's already happened in this book, not just in previous books. That got annoying after a while.
But overall, very enjoyable.
George's writing can sometimes be too verbose and he does have a tendency to give summaries of stuff that's already happened in this book, not just in previous books. That got annoying after a while.
But overall, very enjoyable.
November 10, 2018
Mit diesem Roman wird das Aszendenten -Thema, das bereits im letzten Band der 9. Staffel DS9 (" Seelenschlüssel " von Olivia Woods) angekündigt war und im vorangegangenen Band (" Sakramente des Feuers " von David R. George III) vorbereitet wurde, fortgesetzt. Wie bereits in "Sakramente des Feuers" spielt die Handlung auf zwei Zeitebenen, zum einen auf der "alten" Deep Space Nine unter dem Kommando von Kira Nerys in den Jahren 2377/78 und die zweite auf der "neuen" Deep Space Nine unter Ro Laren im Jahr 2385/86, einige Wochen nach der Ermordung der Förderationspräsidentin Nan Bacco .
Der Roman beginnt gleich mit einer spannungsgeladenen Episode, als ein riesiger Gestaltwandler gewaltsam von einer Förderations-Forschungsstation flieht und dabei Odo schwer verletzt, der hinzugezogen wurde, um mehr über das geheimnisvolle Lebewesen zu erfahren. Danach springt die Handlung ca. 10 Jahre in die Vergangenheit, in der es zum Höhepunkt des Konflikts mit den Aszendenten unter Führung des "Feuers" ( Iliana Ghemor ) kommt, die die Aszendenten instrumentalisiert hat um den Planeten Bajor und auch die Wurmlochwesen zu vernichten. Durch ein geheimnisvolles Schiff konnte dieser Angriff jedoch verhindert werden, stattdessen finden die Aszendenten und Iliana Ghemor den Tod, Kira Nerys konnte jedoch einen Aszendenten retten. Dem Autor ist es m.E. durchaus gelungen, die fanatische Sichtweise der Aszendenten-Religion darzustellen, Raiq (die gerettete Aszendentin) wird dabei sehr einfühlsam beschrieben.
In der Zeit der neuen DS9 kämpft Ro Laren um den inneren Frieden der Bajoranischen Zivilisation, da eine radikale Splittergruppe nachweisen konnte, dass die Wurmlochwesen keine Götter sind, sondern eine Hoch-Zivilisation, die im Bajor-System das Wurmloch künstlich errichtet hat. Dadurch ist die Grundlange der bajoranischen Zivilisation gefährdet, was sich in gewaltsamen Auseinandersetzungen äußert....
Das Buch ist recht kurzweilig zu lesen und auch spannend, der Cliffhanger am Ende legt den Schluss nahe, dass die bisher als tot geltenden Kira Nerys , wieder in die DS9-Handlung integriert wird.
Allerdings bremsen mehrere Nebenschauplätze den eigentlichen Plot aus. Vor allem Quarks Suche nach dem vermissten Morn , wirkt in die Länge gezogen ebenso wie Nogs beginnende Romanze mit einer bajoranischen Kellnerin und sein Bemühen das Holo-Programm von Vic Fontaine wieder zum Laufen zu bringen.
Dennoch für alle DS9-Fans; und für alle Liebhaber der Star Trek-Post-Nemesis-Ära eine Leseempfehlung, die Qualität recht jedoch m.E. nicht an die großen Romane des "Typhon-Pacts " oder an die Miniserie " The Fall " heran...
Der Roman beginnt gleich mit einer spannungsgeladenen Episode, als ein riesiger Gestaltwandler gewaltsam von einer Förderations-Forschungsstation flieht und dabei Odo schwer verletzt, der hinzugezogen wurde, um mehr über das geheimnisvolle Lebewesen zu erfahren. Danach springt die Handlung ca. 10 Jahre in die Vergangenheit, in der es zum Höhepunkt des Konflikts mit den Aszendenten unter Führung des "Feuers" ( Iliana Ghemor ) kommt, die die Aszendenten instrumentalisiert hat um den Planeten Bajor und auch die Wurmlochwesen zu vernichten. Durch ein geheimnisvolles Schiff konnte dieser Angriff jedoch verhindert werden, stattdessen finden die Aszendenten und Iliana Ghemor den Tod, Kira Nerys konnte jedoch einen Aszendenten retten. Dem Autor ist es m.E. durchaus gelungen, die fanatische Sichtweise der Aszendenten-Religion darzustellen, Raiq (die gerettete Aszendentin) wird dabei sehr einfühlsam beschrieben.
In der Zeit der neuen DS9 kämpft Ro Laren um den inneren Frieden der Bajoranischen Zivilisation, da eine radikale Splittergruppe nachweisen konnte, dass die Wurmlochwesen keine Götter sind, sondern eine Hoch-Zivilisation, die im Bajor-System das Wurmloch künstlich errichtet hat. Dadurch ist die Grundlange der bajoranischen Zivilisation gefährdet, was sich in gewaltsamen Auseinandersetzungen äußert....
Das Buch ist recht kurzweilig zu lesen und auch spannend, der Cliffhanger am Ende legt den Schluss nahe, dass die bisher als tot geltenden Kira Nerys , wieder in die DS9-Handlung integriert wird.
Allerdings bremsen mehrere Nebenschauplätze den eigentlichen Plot aus. Vor allem Quarks Suche nach dem vermissten Morn , wirkt in die Länge gezogen ebenso wie Nogs beginnende Romanze mit einer bajoranischen Kellnerin und sein Bemühen das Holo-Programm von Vic Fontaine wieder zum Laufen zu bringen.
Dennoch für alle DS9-Fans; und für alle Liebhaber der Star Trek-Post-Nemesis-Ära eine Leseempfehlung, die Qualität recht jedoch m.E. nicht an die großen Romane des "Typhon-Pacts " oder an die Miniserie " The Fall " heran...
May 5, 2022
Following on from 'Sacraments of Fire' which had a minor myriad of plot threads, the title 'Ascendance' is fairly indicative that we'll be following The Ascendants. This book reveals a bit more about how they came to be the pawns in Ghemor's vendetta. As it turns out they're no strangers to crusading against heretic cultures and have a long history of purifying the galaxy, one genocide at a time.
One thing that this story does very well is to flip the typical sequence of events. Instead of the chapters building up to a battle we start with a massive onslaught against Bajor. Thirteen thousand ships emerge from the wormhole and there's very little that DS9 or the planet can do to defend against such ridiculously stacked odds. Poor old Bajor is again to be devastated by a foreign menace.
Surprisingly, (because it had little to do with the story directly), we learn quite a bit of backstory for Ezri Dax and how she had switched to the command track. In the current timeline, I'm familiar with her as Captain of the Aventine but I haven't read the Mission Gamma books yet and now I'm wondering if that continuation of the DS9 story covered any of her trajectory from counsellor to commander.
Now. There are two distinct time settings in this story. And there's a Kira from the future, trying to help a Kira from the past or something to that effect. Yada yada. I'm not going to pretend I was always clear about which point in time I was reading, but I think I found a slip up by the author? Maybe? While questioning one of the Ascendants it seems like Kira from the past recalls the prophets telling her that she is Their Hand, which if I've been following properly, is something that she shouldn't know.... because that's something future Kira will be told. But I'm not sure if I'm right on this one.
Being a story about the Ascendants there's a lot more about the perils of fundamentalism and extremism in this one but this time there is also a very personal note by way of Kira discussing faith with her adversary in a very authentic tone. Add to that Captain Ro's unique experience with faith in the prophets and this story felt like it wasn't just banging out the same cautionary tale.
After the initial climax the book goes on to pick up some of the loose threads left over from 'Sacraments of Fire'. Nog gets back to work on Vic's holomatrix, Odo is still on the research facility where a potentially new shape shifting lifeform was discovered and the displaced Bajoran who mysteriously popped out of the wormhole is trying to work out what to do with himself.
It's strange that I am enjoying each of the apparently minor threads, but they really don't add any value to the main story and it seems like the author intends to continue to drip feed these to us across a run of his books. That's a bit of a tease, but from another perspective it is keeping us up to date with many of our Star Trek familiars.
There's a scene with Quark trying to trick Nog into revealing classified Starfleet intel which I thoroughly enjoyed.
In this story a shape shifter is able to manipulate itself through the infinitesimal gaps in Starfleet shields and force fields. This doesn't seem to agree with what we've seen on the screen, where those types of containment measures have appeared fit for purpose. This particular shape shifter also appears able to do a couple of other things that I'd query, but minor quibbles aside where this thread goes is conceptually very interesting even if in practice it was a little anticlimactic to read.
The first part of the epilogue seems so detached from the story and continues one of those minor threads, presumably to set up for another story. This holosuite situation is very samey, we've seen this holo-star in a similar situation and while it's thrilling to reunite with the character it doesn't build much anticipation. I was impressed that for once the holosuite safety protocols were working.
The final part of the epilogue puts the situation on the recently rattled Bajor in place for another story based on a dilemma of faith.
I enjoyed reading this story for the most part although found myself a little frustrated with it at times.
One thing that this story does very well is to flip the typical sequence of events. Instead of the chapters building up to a battle we start with a massive onslaught against Bajor. Thirteen thousand ships emerge from the wormhole and there's very little that DS9 or the planet can do to defend against such ridiculously stacked odds. Poor old Bajor is again to be devastated by a foreign menace.
Surprisingly, (because it had little to do with the story directly), we learn quite a bit of backstory for Ezri Dax and how she had switched to the command track. In the current timeline, I'm familiar with her as Captain of the Aventine but I haven't read the Mission Gamma books yet and now I'm wondering if that continuation of the DS9 story covered any of her trajectory from counsellor to commander.
Now. There are two distinct time settings in this story. And there's a Kira from the future, trying to help a Kira from the past or something to that effect. Yada yada. I'm not going to pretend I was always clear about which point in time I was reading, but I think I found a slip up by the author? Maybe? While questioning one of the Ascendants it seems like Kira from the past recalls the prophets telling her that she is Their Hand, which if I've been following properly, is something that she shouldn't know.... because that's something future Kira will be told. But I'm not sure if I'm right on this one.
Being a story about the Ascendants there's a lot more about the perils of fundamentalism and extremism in this one but this time there is also a very personal note by way of Kira discussing faith with her adversary in a very authentic tone. Add to that Captain Ro's unique experience with faith in the prophets and this story felt like it wasn't just banging out the same cautionary tale.
After the initial climax the book goes on to pick up some of the loose threads left over from 'Sacraments of Fire'. Nog gets back to work on Vic's holomatrix, Odo is still on the research facility where a potentially new shape shifting lifeform was discovered and the displaced Bajoran who mysteriously popped out of the wormhole is trying to work out what to do with himself.
It's strange that I am enjoying each of the apparently minor threads, but they really don't add any value to the main story and it seems like the author intends to continue to drip feed these to us across a run of his books. That's a bit of a tease, but from another perspective it is keeping us up to date with many of our Star Trek familiars.
There's a scene with Quark trying to trick Nog into revealing classified Starfleet intel which I thoroughly enjoyed.
In this story a shape shifter is able to manipulate itself through the infinitesimal gaps in Starfleet shields and force fields. This doesn't seem to agree with what we've seen on the screen, where those types of containment measures have appeared fit for purpose. This particular shape shifter also appears able to do a couple of other things that I'd query, but minor quibbles aside where this thread goes is conceptually very interesting even if in practice it was a little anticlimactic to read.
The first part of the epilogue seems so detached from the story and continues one of those minor threads, presumably to set up for another story. This holosuite situation is very samey, we've seen this holo-star in a similar situation and while it's thrilling to reunite with the character it doesn't build much anticipation. I was impressed that for once the holosuite safety protocols were working.
The final part of the epilogue puts the situation on the recently rattled Bajor in place for another story based on a dilemma of faith.
I enjoyed reading this story for the most part although found myself a little frustrated with it at times.
January 16, 2016
A solid entry in the 24th century continuity, and an explanation of the Ascendant attack on Bajor that has been a long time in coming! I enjoyed this story for the most part, and I am thrilled that Deep Space Nine is a regular feature in the novel line up once again. Here's hoping for many more stories to come aboard this new DS9. We won't have to wait long; Force and Motion by Jeffrey Lang is coming soon!
Full review: http://treklit.blogspot.com/2016/01/A...
Full review: http://treklit.blogspot.com/2016/01/A...
April 10, 2018
***Probably there are spoilers below. You've been warned.***
This definitely wasn’t my favorite Trek novel. It took forever to grab my attention. I found this to be generally a meandering, hodgepodge example of a book that was a struggle to pay attention to. What should have taken me maybe three days to read took me closer to three weeks, literally. I found myself procrastinating, doing housework, writing other things, to avoid reading this book. At one point, I even did yard work, which I loathe. Possibly it would have been better on audiobook, but for whatever reason, Star Trek seems not to do full length audiobooks on any but the most recent books, which is disappointing for those of us who enjoy a good audiobook. Just saying. Dear Star Trek/Simon and Schuster: If you want a narrator for Star Trek books, I am available. Just not for this one. This one was not my favorite. I have a list of older ones I’d love to read for you, though. Feel free to contact me. :-)
There was a lot of action in the first part of the book, then not so much. It was like two entirely different narratives crammed into one. I think it would have been better served as two separate books. Both narratives could have been fleshed out better that way. I felt there were quite a few unanswered questions, or spots that just could have been addressed more thoroughly if it had been given its own book. And the whole thing with Vic Fontaine just felt tacked on. What was even the point of that at all, other than VF is a popular character? Just delete the program already.
A quirk DRG3 has is that he recaps stuff that we literally just read. Like a couple pages previously. It’s annoying. It is understandable when referencing events that happened in previous books, but I find it intrusive to have a reminder from just a few pages back.
There’s some really good discussion about religion, which I did enjoy. I think it has always been a strength of DS9 that religion was a focal point in so many story lines, and that it shows how religion can impact politics in so many ways. Sci-fi is so well suited to discuss social topics like this in a meaningful way because it provides distance to examine what can be sensitive issues with something approaching logic and critical thought. It was probably the most interesting part of the book.
HOWEVER. Ro Laren finds religion? No. That was so out of character. A couple sentences thrown in saying she had thought about it a bit does not make a convincing argument in favor of her conversion, especially after a lifetime of being an unbeliever. If it had been explained better, maybe I could buy it. People do have conversion experiences. But the way Ro’s was handled was, to me, unsatisfying and unbelievable. Asking questions and wondering and doubting is one thing, and believers and skeptics alike can do it. But it didn’t seem like that was the case. It seemed that Ro had become a believer, or was very soon going to become one, and it just doesn’t really fit with her in a way that I can see. On the flip side, her super religious first officer, Cenn Deska, lost his faith based on the same evidence that was making Ro have questions in the other direction. He had to face evidence and ask some hard questions and he had a difficult time dealing with it, but if he is a logical being, he will find a way to reconcile the evidence with his belief, if he still wants to be religious. Plenty of people manage to be religious as well as scientific. It gives me cognitive dissonance, so I’m atheist, but you do you and I know plenty of people who have no problem reconciling the two. Deska will probably manage it. Or he’ll sink into a pit of despair and blow himself out an airlock. Whatever.
It was good to see Taran’atar, who is an interesting character anyway. I kind of have to give a side eye to the way the Ascendants were taken care of. Kind of similar to how David Mack took care of the Borg a little bit, isn’t it? I mean, yay for not killing everything all the time forever! And it was interesting that THAT’S where that wormhole planet came from! But absorbing/changing big threats has been done now. I do like that it was Taran’atar who figured out how to do it without destroying everything forever, though. That was pretty shiny.
Also, this totally isn’t DRG3’s fault, but the font in this book was fucking tiny. I thought it was just me being an old, but I got another recent Trek mass market paperback off my shelf to compare and nope. The font in that one was noticeably larger and easier to read. What, they couldn’t add 30 pages and use a bigger font? It made an already fairly tedious reading experience that much less enjoyable.
Overall, though I didn’t hate this book, I didn’t love it, either. I’m disappointed - I had been so looking forward to reading some Star Trek, now that I had time to do so, and I was just underwhelmed. I really miss the old days of the numbered, stand-alone Trek novels, actually. The writing seemed tighter and didn’t involve a floppity billion interwoven crossover novels that you have to read all of them or you have no fucking clue what’s going on. If I go a long time between reading the relaunch novels, as I do now because of various and sundry adult reasons, I feel like I almost have to reread all of them to keep things straight, and it’s not because I’m old. It’s because they are convoluted now.
This definitely wasn’t my favorite Trek novel. It took forever to grab my attention. I found this to be generally a meandering, hodgepodge example of a book that was a struggle to pay attention to. What should have taken me maybe three days to read took me closer to three weeks, literally. I found myself procrastinating, doing housework, writing other things, to avoid reading this book. At one point, I even did yard work, which I loathe. Possibly it would have been better on audiobook, but for whatever reason, Star Trek seems not to do full length audiobooks on any but the most recent books, which is disappointing for those of us who enjoy a good audiobook. Just saying. Dear Star Trek/Simon and Schuster: If you want a narrator for Star Trek books, I am available. Just not for this one. This one was not my favorite. I have a list of older ones I’d love to read for you, though. Feel free to contact me. :-)
There was a lot of action in the first part of the book, then not so much. It was like two entirely different narratives crammed into one. I think it would have been better served as two separate books. Both narratives could have been fleshed out better that way. I felt there were quite a few unanswered questions, or spots that just could have been addressed more thoroughly if it had been given its own book. And the whole thing with Vic Fontaine just felt tacked on. What was even the point of that at all, other than VF is a popular character? Just delete the program already.
A quirk DRG3 has is that he recaps stuff that we literally just read. Like a couple pages previously. It’s annoying. It is understandable when referencing events that happened in previous books, but I find it intrusive to have a reminder from just a few pages back.
There’s some really good discussion about religion, which I did enjoy. I think it has always been a strength of DS9 that religion was a focal point in so many story lines, and that it shows how religion can impact politics in so many ways. Sci-fi is so well suited to discuss social topics like this in a meaningful way because it provides distance to examine what can be sensitive issues with something approaching logic and critical thought. It was probably the most interesting part of the book.
HOWEVER. Ro Laren finds religion? No. That was so out of character. A couple sentences thrown in saying she had thought about it a bit does not make a convincing argument in favor of her conversion, especially after a lifetime of being an unbeliever. If it had been explained better, maybe I could buy it. People do have conversion experiences. But the way Ro’s was handled was, to me, unsatisfying and unbelievable. Asking questions and wondering and doubting is one thing, and believers and skeptics alike can do it. But it didn’t seem like that was the case. It seemed that Ro had become a believer, or was very soon going to become one, and it just doesn’t really fit with her in a way that I can see. On the flip side, her super religious first officer, Cenn Deska, lost his faith based on the same evidence that was making Ro have questions in the other direction. He had to face evidence and ask some hard questions and he had a difficult time dealing with it, but if he is a logical being, he will find a way to reconcile the evidence with his belief, if he still wants to be religious. Plenty of people manage to be religious as well as scientific. It gives me cognitive dissonance, so I’m atheist, but you do you and I know plenty of people who have no problem reconciling the two. Deska will probably manage it. Or he’ll sink into a pit of despair and blow himself out an airlock. Whatever.
It was good to see Taran’atar, who is an interesting character anyway. I kind of have to give a side eye to the way the Ascendants were taken care of. Kind of similar to how David Mack took care of the Borg a little bit, isn’t it? I mean, yay for not killing everything all the time forever! And it was interesting that THAT’S where that wormhole planet came from! But absorbing/changing big threats has been done now. I do like that it was Taran’atar who figured out how to do it without destroying everything forever, though. That was pretty shiny.
Also, this totally isn’t DRG3’s fault, but the font in this book was fucking tiny. I thought it was just me being an old, but I got another recent Trek mass market paperback off my shelf to compare and nope. The font in that one was noticeably larger and easier to read. What, they couldn’t add 30 pages and use a bigger font? It made an already fairly tedious reading experience that much less enjoyable.
Overall, though I didn’t hate this book, I didn’t love it, either. I’m disappointed - I had been so looking forward to reading some Star Trek, now that I had time to do so, and I was just underwhelmed. I really miss the old days of the numbered, stand-alone Trek novels, actually. The writing seemed tighter and didn’t involve a floppity billion interwoven crossover novels that you have to read all of them or you have no fucking clue what’s going on. If I go a long time between reading the relaunch novels, as I do now because of various and sundry adult reasons, I feel like I almost have to reread all of them to keep things straight, and it’s not because I’m old. It’s because they are convoluted now.
July 29, 2022
Much better sequel to Sacraments of Fire than I was expecting, having not really enjoyed that book much. Ascendance has some truly emotional moments as it brings some of the characters' arcs to a close and finally moves the story on from the missing section of time between Soul Key and Destiny. The theme of people moving on in life was nicely done throughout and the ending was great. While I still find that George over explains the characters' motivations and actions, it was a lot less noticeable in this book than others, which was nice.
I do think that the later DS9 books are suffering from such a disjointed timeline. Ever since Typhon Pact began, they've rarely been in linear order and even within some books there is a lot of jumping backward and forward through time. This makes it pretty difficult at points to keep up with events and where all the characters are.
I also think Iliana Ghemor could have been done a little better. We've had such a long build up to her attack that to see her die only a third into the book felt a little anticlimactic. It would have been nice to see a proper showdown between her and Kira, and also to see Kira properly reckon with all the ways their lives have intersected. There's been no discussion at all about how she feels about Dukat keeping Iliana-as-Kira captive, or about their shared father figure, (as far as I remember?) which has been a really strange missed opportunity to add more emotional depth to their antagonistic relationship from Kira's POV.
I do think that the later DS9 books are suffering from such a disjointed timeline. Ever since Typhon Pact began, they've rarely been in linear order and even within some books there is a lot of jumping backward and forward through time. This makes it pretty difficult at points to keep up with events and where all the characters are.
I also think Iliana Ghemor could have been done a little better. We've had such a long build up to her attack that to see her die only a third into the book felt a little anticlimactic. It would have been nice to see a proper showdown between her and Kira, and also to see Kira properly reckon with all the ways their lives have intersected. There's been no discussion at all about how she feels about Dukat keeping Iliana-as-Kira captive, or about their shared father figure, (as far as I remember?) which has been a really strange missed opportunity to add more emotional depth to their antagonistic relationship from Kira's POV.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 4, 2017
This book follows Star Trek: DS9: Sacraments of Fire, which I recommend that you read before this one. I really enjoyed this one. Next up: Star Trek: DS9: The Long Mirage.
February 6, 2016
This is a GREAT book for fans of the DS9 relaunch, and even further back. Plenty of loose ends tied up from some previous books that I thought they were going to just ignore or forget. A newcomer might be slightly lost, but it's still a good read. Glad to see them throwing a bone to those of us that have been reading these for a while.
February 5, 2016
A little slow at times but a good entry for the DS9 series. Looking forward to the next one!
January 24, 2022
I actually really enjoyed this book, and George III certainly tied up years(!) of DS9 Relaunch plots together in this excellent novel.
It’s an interesting format. There are no chapters here. Instead, the first half of the novel takes place during the original DS9 and the Ascendant assault on Bajor, while the second half takes place during the new DS9 and picks up plots there, including the loss of Vic Fontaine and the mysterious Changeling.
Both plots end up tying together nicely, and the entire story serves as both an elegant (dare I say) swan song for Taran’atar, the years-long Ascendant plot, and even as far back as the first episode of DS9 and the mysterious Wormhole Planet.
Overall, it was an absolutely excellent novel. The first half was a bit lagging in my opinion, but this novel certainly helped pave the way for the future and some exciting plots we should see.
It’s an interesting format. There are no chapters here. Instead, the first half of the novel takes place during the original DS9 and the Ascendant assault on Bajor, while the second half takes place during the new DS9 and picks up plots there, including the loss of Vic Fontaine and the mysterious Changeling.
Both plots end up tying together nicely, and the entire story serves as both an elegant (dare I say) swan song for Taran’atar, the years-long Ascendant plot, and even as far back as the first episode of DS9 and the mysterious Wormhole Planet.
Overall, it was an absolutely excellent novel. The first half was a bit lagging in my opinion, but this novel certainly helped pave the way for the future and some exciting plots we should see.
February 17, 2018
I gave Ascendance a 5 star rating because it managed to confuse me! There are several story lines, time lines, and several main characters dispersed throughout each, which made it a little difficult to follow. . I have enjoyed Star Trek novels for over 20 years, and am always happy to see a life further explored, a new species developed, an old species' beginning explained. There was all of this and more, in "Ascendance". Deep Space Nine is a favorite of mine also, and I was sorry to see the show end. Thankfully I can continue to enjoy it, through these books.
July 14, 2024
Much like Voyager Full Circle, this seems like multiple books weaved together. The difference is the two stories feel both connected and complete. While some see rushed, part of that is because I used the starting part of the story to determine my reading order... even though the back half takes place after The Fall crossover event.
While part of this seems a bit of a stretch, it works.
While part of this seems a bit of a stretch, it works.
February 25, 2025
It takes a lot for me to dislike anything "Star Trek." I hated this novel. It was a discombobulated mess with stories that seem to have absolutely nothing to do with what was introduced at the beginning, and so I could not have cared less what I was reading. Each page was a slough and a chore, and I just wanted it to be over. Now it is, and I can't say enough how much I hated this book.
August 7, 2018
Follows closely on Sacrament of Fire, continuing the story of the Acendants attack on Bajor and the mystery (maybe) Changeling. Ends cleverly with another hook onto the next book in the last sentence.
Enjoyed it and want to find out what happens next.
Enjoyed it and want to find out what happens next.
July 17, 2019
A new shape shifter of unknown origin appears. Bajor is attacked by a race of religious zealots from the gamma quadrant. DS9 is destroyed and rebuilt. Life goes on as the years pass after the DS9 tv series.
December 21, 2023
poorly written
the plot is disjointed and jumps atound so much its confusing. also does not seem to follow cannon all the time. i only read half of it before i gave up. do not recommend
the plot is disjointed and jumps atound so much its confusing. also does not seem to follow cannon all the time. i only read half of it before i gave up. do not recommend
September 28, 2024
Maybe a little better than Sacraments of Fire, but I got tired of reading a story divided into two different DS9 eras. I wanna get back to DS9 stories that stay in one era, preferably the furthest one. Again, my favorite parts involved Nog working on Vic.
August 31, 2018
some stories were finished - some went on - some are unknown - felt like a season finale in a way - a good one
February 13, 2019
If it's a Star Trek book...pretty much I will like it. Kudos to all those who keep the series alive in the books.
December 29, 2019
Illana is trying to destroy Bajor while kira is on her heels.
September 7, 2020
Nice finish of previous book. Better structured and I'm glad author didn't forget to finish almost everything he started.
October 15, 2020
Review forthcoming
December 17, 2020
A great continuation of the DS9 arc. Wrapped up the ascendants plot.
March 31, 2021
Another good book in the Post Nemesis Universe
February 5, 2016
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: Ascendance by David R. George III Ascendance continues the story right from where "Sacraments of Fire" left off, so you should have read at least that one before starting this.
The focus here lies on finishing up the Ascendants-storyline that was begun during the pre-Destiny relaunch books and picked up in Sacraments. Now we know what happened with Taran'atar and a bunch of Ascendants... and, although the Ascendants' attack takes place 6 years in the past, it still comes full circle in the end. I guess this is one of the perks of this story, its construction because the parts which seemed quite without connection, the attack and the events at the scientific research outpost suddenly come together. Otherwise, while I quite enjoyed the one-on-one scenes with Ro and Taran'atar and Kira and Ascendant respectively, this part of the story didn't touch me all that much - but I don't blame that on the book itself, but rather that I don't have the background of having read the earlier parts of the relaunch where the Ascendants and Ghemor first appeared.
The other, to me more interesting part of Sacraments, namely the upheaval after the discovery of alien technology on one of Bajor's moon and its ramifications for Bajor were unfortunately a bit sidelined. At least marooned Altek Dans finally is allowed to actually step foot on Bajor - after becoming romantically involved with Ro (who hasn't told Quark yet - cowardice? Or trying to keep a fall-back option?)... and this is threatening to become an interesting triangle with the final paragraph of this book. But I really don't understand the investigation into Altek's story. Given that he hails from the distant past, from a time where Bajor wasn't yet united, isn't it possible that the names of places could have changed? Instead of just reiterating that there are no places with the names Altek gave on Bajor... why not try to narrow the search by looking for landmarks or approaching the issue via geographical site rather than name. For instance my home town had quite a few different names throughout history, so why shouldn't that be the case for Bajoran cities as well? And speaking of which: If Altek studied Bajor and DS9's history, did he never come across a picture of Kira, his lover in the distant past?
Overall, much of Ascendance feels like tying up loose ends, and it was good to see Captain Kira and Commander Vaughn again as the leading officers of DS9, or get a glimpse of Vic Fontaine (although I hope he just remains a background story, and won't get a book of his own. I'm not that interested in Fontaine after all - although I appreciated the nod to The Light Fantastic). Much of Ascendance also deals with life changing decisions, such as Dax's being restless on DS9 (and malcontent and all-knowing after one course on advanced tactics...) and eventually pursuing a command for herself, such as Kira joining the clergy, or Odo deciding to return to the Gamma Quadrant (albeit at a time before Kira's return), even Taran'atar and the Ascendants finding peace and a purpose. Although each of these character-moments could have been fleshed out more. They feel a bit squeezed in among all the war-mongering of the Ascendants and jumping between the different locations, more like an afterthought of putting to paper what had already been inferred in previous books (especially concerning Dax who we know assumes command of the Aventine eventually, and Kira). I quite like the status quo on the station now, I like the new crew, and definitely liked that Blackmer was appointed First Officer. But I have to admit, save for Blackmer the other characters do need some background as well. But for those little character moments, however, Ascendance was a rather average book.
Fortunately, there's still much to look forward to, upheaval on Bajor, Sisko's mission into the Gamma Quadrant, Odo's wish to return to the Founders... a bright new future ahead for DS9, after the, I guess, necessary clean up of past events. Bring it on.
The focus here lies on finishing up the Ascendants-storyline that was begun during the pre-Destiny relaunch books and picked up in Sacraments. Now we know what happened with Taran'atar and a bunch of Ascendants... and, although the Ascendants' attack takes place 6 years in the past, it still comes full circle in the end. I guess this is one of the perks of this story, its construction because the parts which seemed quite without connection, the attack and the events at the scientific research outpost suddenly come together. Otherwise, while I quite enjoyed the one-on-one scenes with Ro and Taran'atar and Kira and Ascendant respectively, this part of the story didn't touch me all that much - but I don't blame that on the book itself, but rather that I don't have the background of having read the earlier parts of the relaunch where the Ascendants and Ghemor first appeared.
The other, to me more interesting part of Sacraments, namely the upheaval after the discovery of alien technology on one of Bajor's moon and its ramifications for Bajor were unfortunately a bit sidelined. At least marooned Altek Dans finally is allowed to actually step foot on Bajor - after becoming romantically involved with Ro (who hasn't told Quark yet - cowardice? Or trying to keep a fall-back option?)... and this is threatening to become an interesting triangle with the final paragraph of this book. But I really don't understand the investigation into Altek's story. Given that he hails from the distant past, from a time where Bajor wasn't yet united, isn't it possible that the names of places could have changed? Instead of just reiterating that there are no places with the names Altek gave on Bajor... why not try to narrow the search by looking for landmarks or approaching the issue via geographical site rather than name. For instance my home town had quite a few different names throughout history, so why shouldn't that be the case for Bajoran cities as well? And speaking of which: If Altek studied Bajor and DS9's history, did he never come across a picture of Kira, his lover in the distant past?
Overall, much of Ascendance feels like tying up loose ends, and it was good to see Captain Kira and Commander Vaughn again as the leading officers of DS9, or get a glimpse of Vic Fontaine (although I hope he just remains a background story, and won't get a book of his own. I'm not that interested in Fontaine after all - although I appreciated the nod to The Light Fantastic). Much of Ascendance also deals with life changing decisions, such as Dax's being restless on DS9 (and malcontent and all-knowing after one course on advanced tactics...) and eventually pursuing a command for herself, such as Kira joining the clergy, or Odo deciding to return to the Gamma Quadrant (albeit at a time before Kira's return), even Taran'atar and the Ascendants finding peace and a purpose. Although each of these character-moments could have been fleshed out more. They feel a bit squeezed in among all the war-mongering of the Ascendants and jumping between the different locations, more like an afterthought of putting to paper what had already been inferred in previous books (especially concerning Dax who we know assumes command of the Aventine eventually, and Kira). I quite like the status quo on the station now, I like the new crew, and definitely liked that Blackmer was appointed First Officer. But I have to admit, save for Blackmer the other characters do need some background as well. But for those little character moments, however, Ascendance was a rather average book.
Fortunately, there's still much to look forward to, upheaval on Bajor, Sisko's mission into the Gamma Quadrant, Odo's wish to return to the Founders... a bright new future ahead for DS9, after the, I guess, necessary clean up of past events. Bring it on.
March 21, 2016
The world of "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" has at times been one of the more complicated universes in the relaunch era simply because it was forced to a do a jump in the Destiny trilogy that left a few things unexplained. Then again, the series especially as of late has been running parallel plots trying to resolve events in 2377-8 & what is now the present day 2385-6. In "Ascendance", David R. George III manages to not only wrap up the parallel universe story arc involving Ileana Ghemor, but also manages to advance us into the present day with a lot of new information & an ending that has this reader awaiting the next phase of this story.
In the "past", we find Ileana Ghemor's fleet of Ascendant craft coming through the wormhole heading for Bajor in an attempt to wipe the planet off the face of the galaxy ignoring warnings by Captain Kira to stop what they're doing. The fleet itself is trailed by Taran'atar who of his own volition & with the knowledge provided by Vedek Kira puts an end to Ghemor's threat thus saving the day. In the section of the book following the events in how early 2378, we see the inclinations that Ezri Dax might finally want to expand her Starfleet training & become a captain of a starship something she eventually does. We also learn the reasons why Kira abandons the military & turns to the Vedek Assembly. It's a rather important 30 pages of this book since it fills in the gaps of missing time.
In the present, we've got the Odo near death after an attack by the changeling on Newton Outpost. Ro's first officer Cenn Desca facing a crisis of faith & career after the revelations of the Olvahru. There's also Altek who remains a man out of time & Nog is back trying to figure out just how to fix Vic's program. There's a lot going on in this arc as well including a trip by the Defiant to intercept an escaped changeling from Newton Outpost. Through all the confusion, George manages to unite all parts of this story & move our characters forward in new directions with changes aboard the station as well as changes in beliefs as Bajor as the kai acknowledges the find on Endalla.
Overall this is a fast moving book with a lot of action & emotions galore with one big issue - there are no chapters which makes the book a bit hard to read. "Ascendance" is divided into 6 parts w/ 2 short interludes used to fill in gaps which are long overdue but it does tend to make we the reader pace him or herself when reading. Overall though the book does its job & leaves us with a cliffhanger that has this reader waiting our next journey back into this universe.
In the "past", we find Ileana Ghemor's fleet of Ascendant craft coming through the wormhole heading for Bajor in an attempt to wipe the planet off the face of the galaxy ignoring warnings by Captain Kira to stop what they're doing. The fleet itself is trailed by Taran'atar who of his own volition & with the knowledge provided by Vedek Kira puts an end to Ghemor's threat thus saving the day. In the section of the book following the events in how early 2378, we see the inclinations that Ezri Dax might finally want to expand her Starfleet training & become a captain of a starship something she eventually does. We also learn the reasons why Kira abandons the military & turns to the Vedek Assembly. It's a rather important 30 pages of this book since it fills in the gaps of missing time.
In the present, we've got the Odo near death after an attack by the changeling on Newton Outpost. Ro's first officer Cenn Desca facing a crisis of faith & career after the revelations of the Olvahru. There's also Altek who remains a man out of time & Nog is back trying to figure out just how to fix Vic's program. There's a lot going on in this arc as well including a trip by the Defiant to intercept an escaped changeling from Newton Outpost. Through all the confusion, George manages to unite all parts of this story & move our characters forward in new directions with changes aboard the station as well as changes in beliefs as Bajor as the kai acknowledges the find on Endalla.
Overall this is a fast moving book with a lot of action & emotions galore with one big issue - there are no chapters which makes the book a bit hard to read. "Ascendance" is divided into 6 parts w/ 2 short interludes used to fill in gaps which are long overdue but it does tend to make we the reader pace him or herself when reading. Overall though the book does its job & leaves us with a cliffhanger that has this reader waiting our next journey back into this universe.
Read
February 28, 2019an ok read. sometimes the characters did not feel like themselves at all. especially Ezri. i felt her a little off. but it was nice to read something with Kira and Ro!
July 6, 2016
Ascendance is the latest novel in the continuing Star Trek Deep Space Nine series continuing beyond the television show. The novel takes place in 2 periods. The first continues the story from The Soul Key. A group of religious fanatics is poised to attack Deep Space Nine and the planet Bajor which it gatekeeps. The only people able to stop them are Tarantar a former soldier, and Kira Nerys, a time-traveller who has gone back in time, unsure of what she can do without risking the future (her past).
The second period takes place after Star Trek - Deep Space Nine: Sacraments of Fire. A mysterious alien life form has come alive and attacked the secret research installation where it was thought contained. Upon its escape, it too sets a course for DS9.
The book handles well the idea of religion, how people deal with doubts and questions to their religion. How some are destroyed by loss of religion and how others can find religion even in the doubts.
Where the book falls flat is the fact is has to straddle both of these time periods. [Several years ago to bring the DS9 books jumped ahead to match other Star Trek book series.] Rather than devoting an entire book to the earlier period it ungainly provides a convenient mirror story in both places. Being that Sacraments had just also done this, I feel this would have been better to provide each period a full book.
Another misstep I felt was the power of the Ascendant ships. They are indicated to be untouchable by Federation ships. The fact that they are this advanced while their society is essentially nomadic and without infrastructure bothered me. The fact that there were thousands could have led them through their place in the book, the imperviousness bothered me.
All told, it does move the DS9 narrative forward. The characters are not mis-characterized. And you are left with the feeling of a story completed. If not for the splitting of the two stories across two novels, I feel I would have received it better.
The second period takes place after Star Trek - Deep Space Nine: Sacraments of Fire. A mysterious alien life form has come alive and attacked the secret research installation where it was thought contained. Upon its escape, it too sets a course for DS9.
The book handles well the idea of religion, how people deal with doubts and questions to their religion. How some are destroyed by loss of religion and how others can find religion even in the doubts.
Where the book falls flat is the fact is has to straddle both of these time periods. [Several years ago to bring the DS9 books jumped ahead to match other Star Trek book series.] Rather than devoting an entire book to the earlier period it ungainly provides a convenient mirror story in both places. Being that Sacraments had just also done this, I feel this would have been better to provide each period a full book.
Another misstep I felt was the power of the Ascendant ships. They are indicated to be untouchable by Federation ships. The fact that they are this advanced while their society is essentially nomadic and without infrastructure bothered me. The fact that there were thousands could have led them through their place in the book, the imperviousness bothered me.
All told, it does move the DS9 narrative forward. The characters are not mis-characterized. And you are left with the feeling of a story completed. If not for the splitting of the two stories across two novels, I feel I would have received it better.
August 20, 2025
It's taken years, but we finally have details on the resolution to the Iliana Ghemor/Kira Nerys storyline began in Fearful Symmetry and The Soul Key, and it was well done.
I appreciate how deftly the aspects from a few years in the past were woven into the present time, mainly due to the wormhole aliens known as the Prophets not existing in linear time. It was nice to see Lieutenant Dax on the path that led her to become Captain Dax, and Captain Kira on her new journey as well. We also got a look at right now, mainly the career paths of Commanders Jefferson Blackmer and Wheeler Stinson and Nog's ongoing quest to fix Vic Fontaine's program. Oh, and we also got resolution on the story of Odo and the suspected shape-shifter he went to investigate.
I am dumbfounded that, in their mad quest to become one with their gods, one of the Ascendants added some of the remains of the planet-sized shape shifter (the one the Founders called The Progenitor) to the isolytic weapon she acquired to assist them in "burning" with their gods for all eternity. And I'm more dumbfounded that in a sense, it worked! The morphogenic particles combined with the weapon's energy and when Tarantar unleashed the Wa in the midst of their fleet, they merged into one being and became the suspected shape shifter Odo investigated.
Once Tarantar and the surviving Ascendants (Ghemor was killed in the blast before she could be changed) realized what happened, they entered the wormhole to live there forever, and it worked. They became that planet that Captain Sisko and Lieutenant Dax landed on years ago, and since there is no linear time in the wormhole, they as the planet always were there, are there and always will be there.
I still have questions, mainly what was the extra-dimensional portal on the lower deck of the Even Odds (the Wa), and what happened to her crew? Are they still stranded where Tarantar left them in the previous book or did they get back into space somehow? Is Kira ever going to get back out of the Celestial Temple in the time period she belongs in? How about Altek Dans? I'm guessing these questions are going to be answered in future books, but for now, I appreciate knowing what ultimately happened to Tarantar, Iliana Ghemor and the Ascendant fleet.
I appreciate how deftly the aspects from a few years in the past were woven into the present time, mainly due to the wormhole aliens known as the Prophets not existing in linear time. It was nice to see Lieutenant Dax on the path that led her to become Captain Dax, and Captain Kira on her new journey as well. We also got a look at right now, mainly the career paths of Commanders Jefferson Blackmer and Wheeler Stinson and Nog's ongoing quest to fix Vic Fontaine's program. Oh, and we also got resolution on the story of Odo and the suspected shape-shifter he went to investigate.
I am dumbfounded that, in their mad quest to become one with their gods, one of the Ascendants added some of the remains of the planet-sized shape shifter (the one the Founders called The Progenitor) to the isolytic weapon she acquired to assist them in "burning" with their gods for all eternity. And I'm more dumbfounded that in a sense, it worked! The morphogenic particles combined with the weapon's energy and when Tarantar unleashed the Wa in the midst of their fleet, they merged into one being and became the suspected shape shifter Odo investigated.
Once Tarantar and the surviving Ascendants (Ghemor was killed in the blast before she could be changed) realized what happened, they entered the wormhole to live there forever, and it worked. They became that planet that Captain Sisko and Lieutenant Dax landed on years ago, and since there is no linear time in the wormhole, they as the planet always were there, are there and always will be there.
I still have questions, mainly what was the extra-dimensional portal on the lower deck of the Even Odds (the Wa), and what happened to her crew? Are they still stranded where Tarantar left them in the previous book or did they get back into space somehow? Is Kira ever going to get back out of the Celestial Temple in the time period she belongs in? How about Altek Dans? I'm guessing these questions are going to be answered in future books, but for now, I appreciate knowing what ultimately happened to Tarantar, Iliana Ghemor and the Ascendant fleet.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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