3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
STNG #33 Balance of Power - A very good STNG novel!, October 13, 2003
After the serious nature of author Dafydd Ab Hugh's first Star Trek novel, Deep Space Nines #5 "Fallen Heroes," "Balance of Power" is a lighter hearted, much more whimsical novel, while still possessing a story of a serious nature that is well told. I definitely like Dafydd Ab Hugh's writing style as well, as it is fluidic, with good pacing that doesn't bog down too often. The characterizations for this novel were "dead on" accurate for the known characters in each situation.
The cover art for this novel is pretty much the bland, standard fare for when it was published.
The premise:
In an unusual premise for a STNG novel, the author draws primarily from known characters between STNG and DS9, bringing them into a hilarious, well told tale. It was especially nice to see Grand Nagus Zek get some time in a novel!
A famous Federation scientist dies and his son puts up many of his quirky inventions for auction to the highest bidder. Many Federation and non Federation races come to this auction, in hopes of acquiring the technology. Among those items being auctioned is a powerful photon pulse canon that is capable of punching right through a starships shields; an item that the Federation would definitely not like to see in the hands of the Klingons, Romulans or Cardassians.
In a bold move for a novel, the author also brings Wesley Crusher at Starfleet Academy into the story. (I say bold move because for some reason, many "fans" totally rejected this character out of hand.) While attempting to aide his best friend, Wesley finds himself kidnapped by outlaw Ferengi that are bent on controlling the universe through commerce and they've set their sights on the photon pulse canon. Captain Picard now finds himself in a race to save not only the Enterprise but the entire Federation from this deadly weapon and those controlling it while having every antagonistic race in the Alpha Quadrant aligned against him.
What follows from there is an extremely hilarious and enjoyable STNG novel that I highly recommend to any and all fans of the genre! {ssintrepid}
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not your Father's Oldsmobile; atypical but great Trek novel, March 13, 2002
It would appear to me, after having read a handful of reviews, that readers either loved this book or hated it. Those who loved it, I happen to agree with and will not argue with. But those who hated it, I beg to differ with. The haters claim that these Star Trek characters were wildly out of character, one reader even going so far as to claim (paraphrasing) that anyone, even the most casual observer, could tell that the characters didn't ring true, even for someone who has watched only two episodes of the TV series. Er, excuse me, but is it logical to presume to know the characters so well, after only two 43 minute episodes (less commercials), so as to even recognize when they are out of character? Bologna.
What this author did, aside from not taking himself too terribly seriously, was entertain me like no other Star Trek author has ever done, even causing me to laugh out loud, embarassing myself in public, while reading on a bus. The fact that Paramount and the Simon & Schuster people sanctioned this book and published it, clearly illustrates that it passes whatever mysterious criteria there might be for a ST:TNG novel.
Rather than bore me endlessly by introducing an entirely new race of aliens, cultures and customs, as many Star Trek novels do, forcing you to only guess at how to pronounce weird, funky alien names, that never quite sound right in your head as you're reading -- instead, this author made the book about what we already know and love, and even love to hate -- I refer to the Ferengi, who in this novel are the "bad guys", although the author was clever in that not all Ferengi were bad, only these two renegades, and even includes the Grand Nagus as a sort of "good guy" who lends his assistance after the Federation gets itself, as Data puts it, "up the proverbial aquatic waterway without an oar", thanks to the criminal avarice of the outlaw Ferengi, Tunk and Munk (God bless this author for giving me names I can easily pronouce in my mind's ear!!)
I could TOTALLY envision Wallace Shawn, who portrays the Grand Nagus in numerous Deep Space Nine episodes, whining, squeaking and spitting out his dialouge; the author gave depth and humor to these supporting characters, unlike any Star Trek novel I've read.
It's inportant here to mention that one of the ideals conveyed in the novel, as realized by Wesley, is that not all Starfleet officers are the same, nor should they be, in that the uniqueness of each individual offers a fresh perspective to the rest, otherwise, why not dispense with Starfleet Academy entirely, and replicate 73 million Commander Datas, and be done with it?
Likewise, this book doesn't necessarily squash itself into a preconceived mold, and its uniqueness offered me a fresh perspective that made me laugh, made me think, and above all, kept the pages turning.
Here's a litmus test: Read the first paragraph, and if you fail to see the humor in the description of the unpronouncable Klingon scoutship, which, loosely translates into "Strange Legendary Klingon Fish That Hides in Rocks and Spies on Enemies of the Warrior Gods," then this book isn't for you.
If, however, you find it amusing that the Ferengi, Tunk, unable to recall the name of The Enterprise, refers to it instead as "The Business Venture," as only a Ferengi could, this book is for you.
So as to remain as impartial as possible for a positive review, I will make mention of one small detail, or oversight, and that is that the Ferengi home world is referred to repeatedly as Ferengi, when in the DS9's, it's referred to as Ferengenar. But hey, for as well executed as this novel was, I can live with that minor annoyance.
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