Twilight (Star Trek Deep Space Nine: Mission Gamma, Book 1) [Mass Market Paperback]

Prior to reading Twilight, I hadn't read any of the relaunch series so far, but this book is written so clearly that I immediately picked up on all the small details of the plot.

Set 6 months after the end of the Dominion War, DS9 is recovering from the conflict that changed the face of the galaxy, and the new crew are settling into their positions.

The plot follows two very ineteresting lines. First is the Defiant's mission into the Gamma Quadrant, a strictly exploratory mission sanctioned by Odo himself. The second plot line revolves around Bajor joining the Federation, and it's obvious that something very big is beginning there.

The book proceeds at a slow but steady pace, rich in descriptive detail and the finer points of trek lore, yet both are inserted so subtlely into the plot that the reader simply accepts these extra details as part of the literary experience.

While the book doesn't resolve all the issues presented in it by the end, it does show the respective parties making progress with these issues, such as the Vaughn/Prynn relationship or Quark/Ro relationship. Neither reach an obvious conclusion by the end of the book, but it is obvious that progress has been made, and ultimately the reader is left satisfied and eager to read the next volume.

My one critcism of the book is that it is a touch slow in parts, especially some of the parts that involve Kasidy on Bajor, or Vaughn/Akaar's dinner, which is why I gave this book 4 stars and not 5. I'm all one for rich detail, but these scenes dragged on a little too much for my liking.

One much smaller criticism of the book is on a technical level, regarding a character from the series, Admiral Ross. Ross was Sisko's immediate superior and one of the key decision makers during the Dominion War, and although it was never confirmed, many people say that he was the Bajoran Sector Commander. Either way, Ross was an important official, and to not have him somehow involved with Bajor's joining the Federation simply doesn't sit right with me.

But overall, the book is a great story, and is well worth purchasing.

Although like the series in general, this book is mostly character driven, it still has all of the elements of a good sci fi novel. Stumbling upon strange new worlds and beings, making new discoveries and learning of infinite possibilities beyond the realm of what we experience every day is the stuff of good science fiction. This book has all of that

The Mission Gamma part 1 revolves around three main plots which are:

Vaughn and a crew from DS9 go on a mission of exploration into the Gamma quadrant.

The crew stumbles upon two new worlds and three different kinds of alien species. One of these species communicates by changing epidermal colors and patterns. The other two species are not not of corporeal form and live in a different realm. Not much is known about them (or it) other than something called the thoughtscape is the most prominent part of its existence and has the ability to establish communion with others rather then to communicate.

Quark's relationship with Ro (security officer)

A Romance develops between the two. I was a bit skeptical that anything would come of it at first and did not like the idea. As I read more about their relationship however, I've become more interested in seeing how far it would go.

Elias Vaughn's relationship with his daughter

Before this story a was puzzled as the way Prynn resented her father. This story clarifies everything nicely

Bajor's future as it moves closer to joining the United Federation of Planets and how this may effect Ro and Quark's future as well.

Quark is concerned that when the federation takes over the station, he will be out of a job because the Federation is essentially a moneyless organization. Ro is concerned because she and starfleet don't have good relations. So what will be her new place on a federation controlled space station (assuming she is even allowed to stay)?

While new relations are forged, others face an uncertain future, and some explore uncharted territory in the Gamma Quadrant; Taranatar continues to explore and observe humanity on the space station. Some parts involving Taranatar are very funny. A Jemhadar would be the last I would think to be in a holosuite studying partial differential equations. That's the beauty to this entire genre, just when you think you've read it all you find something that takes you by surprise. Star Trek is so full of surprises.

I also would like to add that the writer (David R. George III) is one of the best I've read so far. The character development is superp and he brings things together well with no inconsistentcies while writing a relatively complex plot.

Now that the series is over and the books have taken over the grand <b>Deep Space Nine</b> story, it's time to open up the exploration again. Twilight, by David R. George III, is the beginning of a four-part story which details this. It's a huge novel with a very large story to tell, one which it tells effectively for the most part. However, it's a bit bloated with so much information, and George's occasionally heavy prose and repetition make this problem worse. Still, it's a great read for any DS9 fan.

I have never seen a 500 page Trek novel before, but George has a lot of ground to cover. I'm glad to say that he doesn't waste much of it, though the book could have been trimmed a bit here and there. George's style is very workmanlike and enjoyable. One thing it is not is boring. However, he does repeat himself at times, seemingly to emphasize points that he thinks the reader should definitely remember. Kira's attainder against practicing her religion gets mentioned many times. Other times, repetition is not the problem, but heavy-handed prose is. George allows his characters to get very introspective, but sometimes he goes a bit too far, with pages going by with nothing but a character thinking. I really loved the book, but I found it dragging at times because of this.

The main place where this happens is on the planet where the pulse originated. George does a wonderful job examining his characters, especially Vaughn. Vaughn has a lot of soul-searching to do. His relationship with his daughter is non-existent, as she blames him for her mother's death and for abandoning her afterward in his own guilt. He has always dreamed of exploring, but most of his career has been spent fighting various menaces. He has a lot of regrets in his past, and he ends up reliving a lot of them on the planet. While this was fascinating stuff, it began to get tedious as the pages roll by. Sometimes, I just wanted Vaughn to shut up and get on with it. There are some passages for Dax like this as well, and each character has just a bit too much introspection for my taste. The book just feels a bit bloated because of this.

George captures the other characters wonderfully, getting to the heart of the various conflicts between them. The ongoing tension between ch'Thane and his family is beautifully drawn, finally extracting a promise that he never wanted to make to his fellow Andorians. Ro and Quark tap dance around their feelings, making a wonderful contrast with Quark's relationship with Odo in the series. Kira, and Kassidy are both equally well-done. Taran'atar, the Jem'Hadar warrior who has been assigned by Odo to observe the Alpha Quadrant and learn something, has some wonderful scenes as he moves out of the Operations area and tries to observe the rest of the station. The only characters who are given short shrift are Bashir and Nog (who does get a wonderful scene with Taran'atar), but that's to be expected. George has already tried to pack the book full. However, if the book had to be this big, it would have been nice to chop some of the bloat and give it to these two.

Twilight is a wonderful beginning to the "Mission: Gamma" series, and a wonderful addition to the Deep Space Nine mythos. I'm loving the continuation of the television series, and there hasn't been a bad book yet. I'm hoping the other three books in the series are just as good, if not better.

David Roy