Red Sector

Star Trek: Double Helix #3

by Diane Carey

Like the biological weapons they employ, a sinister conspiracy has spread across the Alpha Quadrant and across many years of Starfleet history. Now the mysterious menace surfaces again – to strike at the heart of the Romulan Empire.
An artificial virus has infected the entire Romulan ruling family. Ambassador Spock must put aside his efforts at unification to summon his old friend, Dr. Leonard McCoy, who discovers that the only hope for a cure lies with a long lost Romulan heir whose blood and tissues have not been contaminated by the virus. But can the heir be found before the collapse of a ruling dynasty throws the entire Empire into chaos?

Genres: Star Trek, Science Fiction, Star Trek The Next Generation, Fiction, Ebooks, Media Tie In, Science Fiction Fantasy

336 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published July 1, 1999

About the author

Diane Carey also wrote the Distress Call 911 young adult series under the name D.L. Carey.

Diane Carey is primarily a science fiction author best known for her work in the Star Trek franchise. She has been the lead-off writer for two Star Trek spin-off book series: Star Trek The Next Generation with Star Trek: Ghost Ship, and the novelization of the Star Trek: Enterprise pilot, Broken Bow.

For more information, please see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diane_Carey

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oh God I'm done! How in the world does Carey keep getting put into these different events? I keep having to read her crap to follow the story along although this one spent so much time building up a Lt. Piper clone and his character that the narrative, and the characters we actually want to read about, are again lost behind this hip, cool, take-no-crap-from-anybody, joke of a character who should just admit to themselves that they love Spock and want to have his babies. There was a small trickle of a story that was lost in this tripe somewhere and I'm guessing it was by the ones who thought up the Double Helix series so they get the one star that makes this rise just slightly above pathetic. This is awful writing and awful characterizations of characters we already know. If you can stomach this to get through the Double Helix series then good for you but I had a hard time seeing through the vomit on these pages.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

As others have said, definitely not a next gen book. Crusher and Data are supporting characters but that's it. Spock is more prevalent but still the main character and most of the supporting characters are original.
I'm leery of trek books that focus heavily on OCs but this one wasn't bad. It was slow going at first and I thought it would be a long journey but once Eric is rescued things picked up.
This could be read stand alone but would be better enjoyed if read after the first two books.

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was hoping that Spock and McCoy would have a bigger part, especially since they're on the cover. Also, the story seemed to be more about Stiles and Sevron than the virus.

[Devin Copes · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn't finish it, it's that bad, which is a shame because the first 2 books in this series were quite enjoyable. Most of the book, that I was able to get through, focused on Stiles, a descendant of the character from "Balance of Terror". He is completely unlikable. If Spock hadn't been in it, though he's very out of character in this, I would have had to check the cover to make sure it was a Star Trek book. This one is a very easy skip for any Trek fan.

[Josiah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Plot: C
Writing: D-
Vocabulary: D
Level: Easy
Rating: PG13
Worldview: Good people vs bad people

[Will · Rating 2 out of 5]

Book 3 in this series has Spock and McCoy on the cover. Spock is in it most of the time, McCoy some. As for the TNG crew, only Dr. Crusher and Data has minor roles, and one scene with Data was good. Otherwise, the novel centered around Ensign Eric Stiles and the beginning, who became commander of a CST (Combat Support Tender), as the book progressed. The main plot revolves around the Romulan royal family being poisoned by a plague only affecting them. Meanwhile on a planet in the Red Sector, a Romulan prisoner, Zevon, is the only unaffected royal. Story begins with Eric trying to off-world Ambassador Spock from this planet in the Red Sector, meaning, its off limits to any outside aliens. Eric crashes and becomes prisoner meeting Zevon in the cells. A constrictor, which is some graviton wave, apparently developed by Zevon has been hitting the planet and causing death and destruction. This story runs for about 50 to 100 pages, before Stiles is rescued.

Many years pass, about 11, and Stiles along with Spock and McCoy go back to Pojanna, the planet in the Red Sector to try and find Zevon, to save the Romulan royal family with uninfected blood. Crusher and Data go to the Romulan Empire to treat the symptoms.

A disembodied voice has been leading this jail warden, become leader of Pojanna, to kill Zevon and prevent this rescue from happening.

Overall, it was an ok book, The last 50 pages were better than the first 3/4 of the book. So will give it 2 stars.
The ending kind of left it open whether the succeeded or not, but probably did, unless its mentioned in the next book in the series.

[Patrick Hayes · Rating 5 out of 5]

No reading of the previous two books is needed to enjoy this novel; some references are made to those books but their important elements are brought up easily for the reader to understand.

This book was not how I remembered it. I read this book when it initially came out in 1999 and had not returned to it. I don't know why, but I had a negative feeling going into it and, thankfully, found myself to be completely wrong.

This book is tremendous.

Yes, it ties into the Double Helix series of books, but the two original characters, especially the human lead in the first 100 pages, are amazing. If the book had been only about them, I would have been completely satisfied. I felt for both of these individuals and, I cannot lie, I found myself getting incredibly weepy as I read Chapter 10. I do not have any military background, but I absolutely felt everything that occurred in that chapter.

Carey can masterfully tell a story with several characters in different locations and make all engaging and true to their television personas. The dialogue from Spock and McCoy is brilliant. T

There's great tension, superior characters (both old and new), and the continuation of the mystery antagonist. Absolute must reading for Trek fans.

[Daniel Kukwa · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's an easy enough read, but it's not quite the read I was promised. About 2/3 of the novel isn't a Spock/McCoy/24th century adventure...it's actually the pilot episode of a never-made series that should be called "Eric Stiles...from Ensign to Captain". Diane Carey loves her original characters, but the Stiles/Spock buddy-cop adventure should have been its own novel...not shoved into a Trek mini-series that already has too much going on. Ms. Carey also doesn't have the greatest command of the TNG cast, compared to her handling of Spock and McCoy. The end result is entertaining, but it's too much pulling in too many directions.

[Sean Randall · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I don't mind being dead, but being dead for nothing stinks."

So says then Ensign Eric Stiles, unlikeliest of heroes. Eric was sent into a volatile political mess to evacuate an ambassador and an embassy no longer welcome. Things turned rough, and Eric winds up a prisoner with none but a Romulan companion, who despite all the odds, turns out to be one of the best things for him. The two make quite a team.

"Look what you and I have done here, with tricks and dirt and screwdrivers. I explain what I'm doing, and you provide the leap of imagination that sends us to the next step."

Erric and Zevon part ways when Eric is rescued, but when the deadly manufactured plague strikes once more - this time at the Royal family of the Romulan Star Empire, Eric remembers that Zevon had royal blood too - presumably safe from infection due to his political incarceration.

And the race is on, of course - to save as many of the Romulans as possible, to find an uncontaminated source of blood in a still locked-down sector of space, and to see if the strain of time and detention can still bind people in friendship, when years of imprisonment had bonded them closer than anyone could have guessed.

I have a love-hate relationship with Carey, I think - I either really enjoy the works or I hate them. more to the former than the latter and this no exception, the story was action-packed and the nuances brilliantly handled. I love the grunt side of trek; the opening scene where the transport and fighters land is superb, the chatter between the crew reminded me quite vividly of Robert A. Heinlein's [Book:Space cadet] - what was his name, Dodson? matthew Dodson, I think. The sort of camaraderie between mat and his mates was quite evident in this scene, and the CST duty with the Lafayette held some of that same magic.

"The cough made him seem perfectly mortal and gave Stiles a bit of comfort that otherwise might've slipped on past him."

Then there's the hero worship of legends Spock and McCoy - not just familiar faces to us, of course, but legends to the youth of the next generation as well. We know both these men are alive and active in Canon, but it does take a special blend of writing to make them come alive in the 24th century, surrounded by the contrivances of an era for which they aren't generally associated. Reading, it really does feel like the young men in the story appreciate Spock and co as much as we do.

"For a brief moment Beverly Crusher stood in awe of this elegant race, so Vulcan in their stature, so human in their passion."

and the final layer of complexity to draw your attention to is the portrayal of the Romulans, of course - proud yet vulnerable, embroiled in a political nightmare and ravaged by disease.

The first 2 novels in this series had a feeling of build-up but lacked much in the way of making us feel that the universe was about to end. This one would happily sit in as a standalone, yet adds that little bit extra to the disease story. because there's so much else happening, the fact that the virus isn't as centre-stage as it has been isn't a problem, in fact it's something of a plus because it gives us other things to focus on. Still, the virus is the arc - so on we go.

[Bernard · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a journey of one man. At the beginning of the novel he is but an ensign in charge of extracting Ambassador Spock from a world in political turmoil, and it does not go the way he intends. The first part of the book is about his life after that mission goes awry, and how he grows up from a young, unsure-of-himself officer to a hardened man. The second part of the book sees him take on a new challenge that is intertwined with the Double Helix plot, of which this book is part 3 of 6.

With guest appearances by Spock, McCoy, Dr. Crusher and other characters in the NCC-1701-D crew compliment, this book centers on the journey of this young man from adolescence to adulthood, and I was gripped from beginning to end by the inner turmoil and outer emotions that the main character, Eric Stiles, is expertly described to undergo by Diane Carey. Ms. Carey's expertise in naval technical details shines in this book, as also seen in her hardback novel, _Ship of the Line_, about the first mission of the Enterprise NCC-1707-E, starring Captain "Frazier" (Kelsey Grammar from Cheers' TNG character) and the NCC-1701-D crew after the movie Star Trek Generations. Both that book and this one have the characters on board vessels not normally seen in Star Trek TV episodes, for example border cutters (like the Coast Guard) and CSTs -- Combat Supply Tenders, one of which plays a major role in both book 3's plot and the ongoing double helix plot in this novel.

I highly recommend the Double Helix series--all six volumes. They are entertaining, bring in characters from other eras and Star Trek series, and the underlying virus plot is also a great mystery.

If you're just looking for the further adventures of 130-something year old Bones McCoy, and his green blooded pal Spock, this is a great book. She depicts those characters true to their form from TV and the expanded universe of their appearances in various novels since then. Bravo to Diane Carey!

[Jimyanni · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a pretty fair to middling Star Trek story, much better than usual for Diane Carey in the she MOSTLY resists the temptation to get overly cute with the language (except for her pathological inablility to use the phrase "he said", and her tendancy to really reach sometimes to avoid it.) This allows her to concentrate on character, plot, and pacing, which are usually her strong suits as a writer. None of the three are as good in this book as she has sometimes been, but none are bad, either. If there's a flaw to this book other than just not quite measuring up to her usual standards (if one discounts her usual silly games with the language) it's that the backstory is rapidly getting old; this is really not a plot that can hold up over six books. It was getting a bit stale in the second of the series, and is truly starting to smell by this point. Fortunately, Carey doesn't emphasise the medical aspects as heavily as they were emphasised in the first two books, which helped. Also, some fans might consider it a flaw that the book is listed as being a "Next Generation" title, but has barely a few cameo appearances by the Next Generation characters: a bit of Bev Crusher, a chapter in which Picard, Riker, Data and Worf get a couple of lines apiece, and that's it. The main characters in the book are a young ensign named Stiles, and Ambassador Spock, which makes it somewhat dubious as a "Next Generation" story.

[Joe · Rating 1 out of 5]

If I didn't have to finish this to get to the next books in the series I would have quit in chapter 1. The writing feels like the author has never seen Star Trek. Imagine my surprise to find she's written tons of Trek books. Everything feels off, from the way the characters act, to the lingo (since when does Trek use fighters and coaches?), to the flavor of the science fiction (small craft don't struggle to reach escape velocity while cruising over a planet or leave scorch marks on the pavement from landing thrusters in a world of antigrav propulsion and people don't talk about getting rich from book deals in a post scarcity federation that doesn't use money anymore).

I know books that focus on the TOS era are often a bit rougher in detail which fits with a setting that wasn't as fleshed out, but this is a TNG era book and should feel like it. Maybe as a stand alone Sci Fi book it could work, but it's just not good Trek.

[Rocky Sunico · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an unusual direction for the over-all story arc, mainly since it did not focus on medical personnel per se. The first two books had us following different Enterprise doctors of the TNG era, whereas this book contrived a way to get TNG-era Spock and McCoy reunited but with a new Ensign character as our true protagonist.

And while this book still connects to the larger designer virus scenario that has been the general theme of these Double Helix books, it's interesting how it remains focused on the TNG time period but has found ways to still do a little tour of the different crews. We've seen past events that had forced different show crews deal with a related problem in their respective time periods in previous crossover novel events. But this one is focused on a general time range and instead shows us different show characters as they would appear at that time. Hence the last book gave us Cardassian Occupation-era Bajor and Terok Nor instead of Deep Space Nine.

So this is the effort to connect to the crew of the Original Series enterprise, even if we only get Spock and McCoy. And it was nice to have our Ensign styles pretty much worship the ground Spock walks on even as his life goes through a series of bad turns that makes it look like Stiles is terribly unlucky. But really, he's just an inexperienced ensign who gets in way over his head but manages to survive the ordeal regardless.

While there is a bigger medical mystery that ties to the larger story, this book actually wasn't a big medical drama and instead focused on surviving incarceration followed by solving a big scientific problem that was killing millions? It was a weird tonal shift but Stiles' character arc in this book is pretty great and totally worth the read. Spock and McCoy are really more of background/supporting characters, but they do get their digs in when needed.

[Octavia Cade · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three and a half stars. Carey tends to be one of my preferred Star Trek authors, because her focus on characterisation is something that appeals to me. In this book, that characterisation is pretty much entirely on the main character... who is not on the cover. I suspect marketing took over there, as while Spock and McCoy are in this book, neither of them are the protagonist. A random human isn't as likely to get casual fans to pick up the novel. Stiles, the Starfleet officer who is the central character here, is I think original. I don't love a focus on original characters in Trek - honestly I prefer canon protagonists - but it's nice to have a change occasionally and this is done reasonably well. I do think there's some repetition here, and I'm sure this book is quite a bit longer than the first two in the series. That gives it scope for a bit of extra depth, however, and the fact that the book takes place over a number of years allows for character development over time, which we don't always get in the tie-in novels.

It's not Carey's best work, but if I'm going to be stuck with original characters in Trek, I'd rather read another novel about Stiles than anything with, for example, MacKenzie Calhoun, who I find absolutely unbearable.

[John Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book covers one starfleet officer's life over the course of 20 years, and how his (and the friends he meets along the way's) actions help change starfleet's relationship to a sector of space that initially didn't want any contact at all. I enjoyed seeing how he changed, where his career took him, and I especially enjoyed the boldness to make any character you've heard of a supporting character rather than heavily involved in the plot. The TNG cast especially are only used lightly, tho I really enjoyed Dr. Crusher's scenes. I've seen some reviews say Spock and McCoy are not written well, seem sillier than usual. But hey, they're both elderly, McCoy only a few years away from death, so I was able to excuse that they'd not be the rigid officers they were many years earlier. I wasn't sure if I would like this at first but by the end I was really enjoying how it was telling it's own story and wasn't too concerned with being what you'd think it should be. I might check out more of this writer's books in the future, I've heard they also focus on original characters. Definitely reccomend this one and wish it got sequels honestly.

[Jessica Edmonds · Rating 1 out of 5]

Diane Carey can’t write Star Trek. She doesn’t know the technology. She doesn’t know the terminology. She doesn’t know in world politics. She can’t write the voices or behaviors of established characters. She insists on focusing on original characters that are unlikable and tedious. This is book 3 in a series about designer viruses repeatedly threatening plantwide genocide. Yet the virus is not even mentioned ‘til over a third of the way into this book. And it only is targeting the Romulan “Royal family”. The book primarily focuses on an original character that is completely annoying and very much a “Gary Sue”. This is the third book I have read by Carey, the previous two were also midway through established series. And in all three books it very much felt like she had written a completely unrelated stories and the publishers allowed her to make tiny modifications to shoehorn it into an existing series.

I only read this because I’m a completionist and wanted to finish the whole series. I truly hated every second of this book.

[Caryn Smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

So, this is a series about a genetically engineered "prion based virus" (yes, the science is pretty poor for a lot of the books but that's not the point - this one also has the Romulan royal family with completely different genetics to any other Romulan). We have Diane Carey writing a book with no Kirk in. But she can write a book with some original characters and some unknown extras if she needs them. So what do we get? Enter Eric Stiles, our Kirk-substitute. The book revolves around him and Sevron, his Romulan friend. Oh yes, the Romulan royal family may all die from the latest strain of the bug. It's a bit important they don't so we can have about 20 pages on that. Send a poorly written Crusher off to sort that out while Stiles, Spock and McCoy have some fun. In fact, let's just cure them three pages after the book ends, it is that important. In a series of books about a genetically engineered pandemic.

It's not a dreadful book, it just doesn't belong in the series.

[Frank Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one was pretty good and thankfully was getting better as the story progressed. It seemed to me that the running thread of the series took a back seat in this book... for about the first half of the book I couldn't tell how this story would be linked with the series.

I enjoy a good deal of hero worship but even I thought it came on too strong at times in this book. Still the same it was nice to see our "old" pals. They played a mentor role in this story which was quite nice and felt true to the spirit of their characters.

The dilemma gets very interesting near the end and as it begins to resolve we are finally given a clue as to our lurking menace.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good read. I liked the character of Stiles and getting to see him grow up. This only advanced the overall series plot a little. I'm hoping the next one will give some more clues as to what is going on.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best Star Trek novels that I've yet read. McCoy and Spock are the featured players but Ensign Eric Styles is the lead and he's a great guy to spend some time with.

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great addition to the Double Helix series of Star Trek novels. Recommended for anyone interested in fiction and Star Trek!

[Susan Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best Star Trek book I’ve ever read. Unexpected & compelling. Great characters. I couldn’t put it down. Diane Carey did an excellent job.

[Guy Dresher · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this one!

[S.J. Saunders · Rating 5 out of 5]

Was very pleasantly surprised by this one. I dunno, the Stiles and Zevon relationship really worked for me.

4.5/5 Aside from some minor quibbles, my favorite Trek in a while!

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

PLOT OR PREMISE:
This is the third of six books dealing with biological terrorism by an unknown foe. This novel focuses heavily on two known characters (a great portrayal of Spock and an annoying version of McCoy), and introduces a really interesting character -- Ensign Eric Stiles. Stiles is assigned to evacuate Spock and friends from a planet in turmoil, but Stiles gets captured during the otherwise successful mission. Subsequent imprisonment for four years has a definite effect on Stiles and he establishes a strong bond with a fellow prisoner, Zevon. Fast forward several years and the biological terrorist has attacked the Romulans. The Romulans can't save themselves...perhaps the Federation can help?
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WHAT I LIKED:
I am not a die-hard sci-fi fan, but I do like Star Trek and Star Wars. This is a great story, and Stiles is a fantastic character. Definitely the best addition to the series so far, not surprising given Carey's strong ties to the Starfleet universe!
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WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:
My complaints related to characterization for the previous two books are not as strong here, but McCoy is a bit annoying.
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BOTTOM-LINE:
Best of the first three in the series.
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DISCLOSURE:
I received no compensation, not even a free copy, in exchange for this review. I am not personal friends with the author, and I do not follow her on social media.

[Adam]

Proof why Diane Carey is one of the better, more unheralded Star Trek writers. In lesser hands, this would have been a tired story about an unsung hero tearing through space to help solve a quadrant-spanning problem. Instead, we're treated to a TOS-style story in the TNG universe, complete with a one-off lead character who helps solve problems without being a one-dimensional martyr.

Even better, unlike the first two installments, the reader isn't bogged down with the minutiae of the medical situation. While that perspective is important, each book can't re-invent that same situation. This one advances the story by setting the stakes away from the actual medical problem and tying the pieces together via our main characters.

It's also great to see pre-Unification Spock and post-Farpoint McCoy find themselves in the TNG universe. Both of them feel fully fleshed out without being caricatures of themselves. It helps that the lead character of this book - Eric Stiles - is far from perfect. In fact, much of the story revolves around him coming to believe in himself as a leader and not a failure who's fallen backwards into his career accolades. But it's his lack of perfection and his willingness to improve himself while solving the problems of the plot that truly connects with the reader.

Easily the best book yet in this series.

[Joshua Palmatier · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first two book in this series were rather . . . uninspiring, let's say. Entertaining, easy to read, and fun in a sense, but I didn't get caught up in them.

Not so for this book. Diane Carey has crafted an actual story here, one that's ostensibly about the virus that is plaguing the Romulan royalty, but is in actuality about Eric Stiles and his trials, coming to terms with himself, his family, his career in Starfleet, and his friendship forged by adversity with a fellow Romulan prisoner.

A very engaging story. This is the reason I read Star Trek fiction. Not all of the books are stellar, but one in every three or four is spectacular. This was one of those.

[Mike McDevitt · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s a pain-wracked tale of tortured prisoners and combat tenders (not chicken tenders, sadly). Also, sadly, a marketing fail. The multi-prion virus is an afterthought. Was the Romulan royal family even saved despite that being the Enterprise-D’s whole reason for becoming barely involved? The book shouldn’t be part of the Double Helix Saga, and it doesn’t want to have a ST:TNG imprint on it, either. The story seems to begrudge even being in the right year: references to Deep Space Nine place it after 2369, leaning toward 2370, but McCoy thinks he’s still ‘130-odd’ and an earlier adventure in the hexology was ‘3 years ago’, so it’s 2366.

[David Palazzolo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was really tempted to give Red Sector a 5 star review, but could not because it seemed to me that Diane Carey was more interested in writing a pilot adventurel for a new Trek novel series rather than writing the third part of the Double Helix story arc. Now, that's not to say that I wouldn't want to read the further adventures of Lt Cdr Eric Stiles and the CST Saskatoon, but I would have liked to find out more on our mysterious bio-terrorist and what put a bug up his posterior.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is not really a TNG book, it's just set during that time. It concentrates on a young ensign and his friendship with Ambassador Spock. This is a really good book because it covers the life of a prisoner of war very well, only reason I gave it 3 stars is that its not TNG. Should just have been a general star trek book.