Customer Reviews

Cloak and Dagger (Star Trek Voyager No 19 Dark Matters Book One of Three)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Even though, as an Original Series fan, I tend to lean only to books dealing with Kirk, Spock, McCoy, etc., sometimes I read other incarnations of Star Trek, such as The Next Generation and, in this case, Voyager. And this book certainly lived up to the legend we know as Star Trek. I have added it to space opera and sci-fi books such as: "2001", "Rendezvous with Rama", "Childhood's End", "Foundation", "Ringworld", "Advent of the Corps", and so forth.

"Cloak and Dagger" is the first installment in a trilogy of Voyager novels by Star Trek Voyager's premier author, Christie Golden. Going back all the way to her first Star Trek Voyager novel "The Murdered Sun," Christie Golden has quite well proven herself as the "authority" in Voyager novels as she's written several of them to include two relaunch novels that follow up with the crew after their return to Earth.

Among the typically more interesting Star Trek novels are those that are loosely or in whole based upon a character or two that appeared in a single episode. This is the formula that Christie Golden chose for this trilogy in which she takes the story told in Star Trek Voyager's first season episode "Eye of the Needle" and primarily the character of Telek R'Mor and expounds on it in beautiful fashion to create yet another great Star Trek Voyager tale.

The cover art for this novel is typical of Star Trek Voyager novels at the time in which it was published making it a cut above the majority.

The premise:

In Voyager's first season episode "Eye of the Needle" Ensign Harry Kim discovers a wormhole and raises his hopes thinking that it might lead the crew of Voyager home to the Alpha quadrant. Unfortunately, their hopes are dashed when they discover that the wormhole is ancient and way too small for Voyager to fly through. By a stroke of "luck" though, a Romulan scientist is experimenting with the wormhole in the Alpha quadrant and they make contact with him only to have their hopes dashed once again when they find out that this scientist, Telek R'Mor is from twenty years in the past and that the wormhole possesses temporal qualities...

Jump approximately five years in the future and Christie Golden's Dark Matters trilogy begins with "Cloak and Dagger" as the crew of Voyager find themselves running an obstacle course of multiple wormholes opening up in their path as they're making their way home to the Alpha quadrant...

What follows from there is one of the best Star Trek Voyager novels written up to its publishing date in which Christie Golden takes the character and events of "Eye of the Needle" and weaves an extremely well told tale involving Romulan intrigue and subterfuge that rarely falls short in the compelling read category.

I highly recommend this novel and the following two in the trilogy to any and all fans of Star Trek fiction as this Star Trek Voyager novel written by Christie Golden is very typical of her high standard of science fiction in which she writes with excellent pacing and characterizations resulting in a highly compelling read! {ssintrepid}

I don't worry too much about ST continuity with the books, so although, as the person said below, the Romulan government was already discussed in "Vulcan's Heart" and is presented differently here, I don't hold it against Golden for not using this information. (And just a note: In said book the Emperor is all powerful so I'm not sure why he/she was complaining below about the Empress not following the set perameters for a Romulan ruler. ST has many continuity problems, especially in the books that are not, except in few miraculous occasions (See "Reunion"), considered cannon or become cannon.)

What I found disturbing was her Coda at the end of the third book. All throughout the book there is the theme of the old Christian/Hebrew/(Zorastrian?) war in heaven where Lucifer falls - it is nearly transparent, but done well enough that it didn't bother me. It wasn't annoying within the story, but when she desided to have Janeway listen Telek R'Mor's final statement that he left behind it was too much--too clear exactly what myth she used to base her story on and it even got a little preachy, especially if you knew what you were reading. Liauh (sp!) the badguy, is so much like the Christian Devil and his aims and powers are so nearly the same that it felt like Golden was trying to make Christianity's beliefs fit into the Star Trek universe by giving it a scientific spin.

That was my only complaint. The rest of the 3 part series was great.

R

This is the first installment of a 3 part series called Dark Matters, part 1 is Cloak and Dagger written by Christie Golden.

This book begins slowly, but it builds to a warp core breach toward the ending, getting you ready for the second part of this series. There are villains and Romulans making this story one of treachery and deceit... right! Now, throw in some Dark Matter to the mix... interesting! Then have the Voyager crew involved trying to solve a mystery of universal balance due to the aforementioned... now, you got a story.

This Voyager story brings back an old friend from the "Eye of the Needle"...yes, you guessed it, Telek R'Mor. After he made a successful contact with Voyager earlier, the sinister folk back on Romulus want Voyager's technology from the future to battle the Federation of their past time.

Ah, but the villains have other thoughts... not that the deceit from the Romulans is not enough... but a double cross. You've got to read this book to appreciate this story.

The plot is interesting, the characters are engrossing, and the story will fascinate you. This is a fast read... captivating.

Cloak and Dagger is yet another great Voyager book written by one of the best authors in the Star Trek genre, Christie Golden. This first book in the Dark Matters series begins slowly and in the past. Remember Telek R'Mor, the Romulan doctor who traveled across a micro-wormhole that spanned not just light years but also time (from the television episode 'Eye of the Needle')? When he returned to Romulus, his government was very interested to hear of his encounter with Voyager and her crew. With the assistance of a sinister new race called the Shepherds, they set out to capture Voyager in its own timeframe by using Telek's wormhole technology and the Shepherds' ability to manipulate dark matter. If successful, the Romulans would have a great advantage over the Federation and its Starfleet of the past. But does the Shepherd's help come at too great a price?

Dark matter can mutate, becoming highly lethal and able to infect anything it comes into contact with. After the Voyager crew becomes deathly ill and the ship's systems begin to fail, Captain Janeway sets out to find the Shepherds of her time. And then an even greater mystery surfaces when a planet flips in and out of existence, crew members go missing and a 'magical' orb in the hands of a determined Voyager crew holds the fate of the entire Universe. I hope I didn't give too much away! ;-)

Author Christie Golden is excellent at creating fascinating stories with intriguing plots. The suspense in this novel is palpable, and it reads as smoothly as watching a television episode. I can't wait to get to the final two books in the Dark Matters series!

This book is definitely not Star trek writing at it's best, but I find that is typical of most of the Voyager books written. Don't get me wrong, I really like the Voyager series, but most of the books have been second rate.
I won't reveal too much of the plot, but suffice to say it involves a mysterious wormhole phenomena and the Romulan Empire. I really like the idea of the dark matter, but it wasn't really used properly, the idea of so many wormholes opening near Voyager is ridiculous, and even more ridiculous is the idea that Telek R'mor was so successful at making them, in 2344 I might add.
There are numerous errors, within the Romulan Empire, it has been established in a great many episodes that the Praetor has the real power, the Emperor is merely a figurehead, much like the Queen of England nowadays. The central character, the head of the Tal Shiar, is fairly hollow, the old story of a person who has struggled against the oppresive forces of society to a position of great power. She seemed more like some sort of rogue that the head of one of the most feared organisations in existence. If you want to see a real Romulan, look no further than Koval from 'Inter arma enim silent leges', although he was a traitor, he had so much more poise about him, something about him just said 'Romulan'.
Another problem is the continuity of the plot. 'Vulcan's Heart' clearly established the Romulan figureheads in 2344, this book, set in the same era, is nearly perpendicular in it's characters. I'm not a nitpicker, but Christie Golden really should of picked that one up, 'Vulcan's Heart' was very popular.
Other than that, I thought the actual story on Voyager itself was alright, a bit predictable at times, but nonetheless enjoyable.
This isn't a great book, I doubt it will be a great series, only pick it up if you're desperate for some Star Trek Voyager.

Voyager: Cloak and Dagger was one of the best Voyager books I have ever read.(and I have read plenty)The whole plot makes this a book you will not want to put down. Of all the Voyager books, Cloak and Dagger (as well as the other two in the trilogy) was the fastest read. I really enjoyed Golden bringing back Telek R'Mor, and the way it was done was magnificient! Christie Golden has gone beyond expectations.Again. If you are a Voyager fan or a fan of other Star Trek; you must read this trilogy.

It's obvious when you start reading this book that the author knows they need to stretch out the story line over 3 books. I've seen long movies that haven't needed to be this slow at starting yet the book crawls along at its beginning. Don't let this stop you though. Once you get into it a diverse story begins to unfold with your mind trying to second-guess what's coming next. Unless you jump to the end chapter you won't be able to so don't try. A good read and one that preps you for the next installment.

If you're hoping to be amazed, excited, or to have you beliefs questioned, this is not the book for you. If, on the other hand, you're looking for a few hours of enjoyable reading with a star trek theme (or you are already beginning to feel nostalgic for Janeway and crew) this book might fit the bill. Though Golden (author) deals with some rather big issues (like the end of the universe) very little weight is given to them. This book is of the flavor that perhaps Q summarized best as "Another spatial anomaly, another day at the office." While the book is certainly worth reading it creates very little suspense. Upon finishing the book, you are left with more of an "ok -- I guess that was interesting" feeling than a "I've got to go get the next one in the series" feeling.

I f you want to have fun, get this one, N0 20 and No.21 you will get a great ride