Customer Reviews

The Left Hand of Destiny, Book 2 (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is the second part to the two part series. It's a great Klingon action story! BTW, I thought the spiritual aspects were just great! One of the most interesting things about the Klingons, they are like the Samurai of ancient Japan, with their spirituality and warrior culture! This story would make a great series premier for a new Star Trek TV series! The female characters get a lot of respect, unlike on the past TV series, where they are either sex maniacs or frigid housewives. Martok's wife gets a chance to show some real heroism here! As a female fan of the Klingons, I was surprised and pleased by this two part novel! Thank you, Mr. Lang and Hertzler! I recommend the book highly. I deducted a point only because in many paqrts it seems copied directly from John Ford's "The Final Reflection" and Kat Ramo's "Citizen Of The Empire."

The Book keeps you reading and wondering what will happen on the next page. For any real Star Trek lover this is a book for you. I would not suggest this book to someone who can't stand Klingons though, and like every book there are a few dry reading pages.

"The Left Hand of Destiny" Book Two continues the epic saga from Book One. A brilliant but utterly mad geneticist from Martok's past has revived a monstrous threat from the Klingon homeworld's own past. And Martok, the reluctant Chancellor, heeding omens from the ancient Goddess of Destiny, is the only hope for his Empire's survival. What is the mystery which Destiny holds in Her left hand? Martok realizes that in accepting it, he will save his people but endure heartbreaking sacrifice...
This is a Klingon novel, set wholly in the Empire, with very few Federation characters. As such, it will likely appeal mainly to that Trek audience known as the klinfandom. And inevitably, it must be compared to John M. Ford's "The Final Reflection", which has provided for nigh two decades the template upon which the klinfandom is structured. Klinfans who read "The Left Hand of Destiny" will take delight in the numerous concepts derived from Ford's definitive work, including Klingon-alien genetic fusions, Battle Language, kuve, and a smattering of vocabulary straight from Ford's own klingonaase, including "kai"! Admirers of Ford (and the FASA and fanfic materials inspired by his books) will notice much in "The Left Hand of Destiny" which is remarkably familiar, and might wonder, as do I, why no mention is made of him in the authors' lengthy list of credits. (It is a glaring omission.) This is not to say that "The Left Hand of Destiny" is based on "The Final Reflection"; it is not. Like that novel, this saga has developed the Klingon history, culture, and characters beyond their definition by the Trek Franchise to date. But while "The Final Reflection" is an intricate tale of intrigue, this is pure rollicking adventure, with comic-relief in the form of a Ferengi sidekick (with no lobes for business). I thoroughly enjoyed the fighting action-scenes. They smack of realism suggesting the authors' familiarity with hand-to-hand combat. Also greatly appreciated are the prominant female roles. Sirella is vastly improved from the petulant and indulged shrew seen on DS9. The insanely obsessed Gothmara is not only a frightening fictional villainess; she evokes a certain reallife terrorist mastermind who poses heinous threat to our own world.

On the one hand, it was pretty cool that J.G. Hertzler took this opportunity to further explore the character of Martok, featuring him in this two-part adventure. The writing is all right but not spectacular. The authors do well in picking up on some of the events from DS9 episodes, so it does feel like a continuation of the series, and legitimate as one of the books included in the "relaunch" novels according the Star Trek's Memory Alpha website. I'd probably give this 2.5 stars, but I'm rounding up to 3 here because of a great scene with Ezri Dax in an EVA suit (I won't reveal more in order to avoid a spoiler).

The book does have its weaknesses. For one, a few of the ideas are ripped off from other science fiction stories a little too closely, including the use of "Voice." That is too specific to the universe of Dune to appropriate it here, in my opinion. There are some slow patches, too, in which I felt like time was being wasted in order to make this long enough. In the end, I feel this two-part story could have better been told in one book, or it could have been improved by including more about Worf, who I think got a bit short-changed.

So, it's not the best Star Trek novel I've ever read, but it's a decent entry, and it's nice to pay a visit to the Klingons every once in a while.

I read this book within 24 hours as I simply could NOT put it down! Even though I have not been able to get my hands on Book 1, this is an EXCELLENT stand-alone story! J. G. Hertzler (a.k.a. Martok) and his co-writer, Mr. Lang, did themselves proud! I'm looking forward to any future Star Trek writings done by this duo!

The Left Hand of Destiny Book I and II have been some of my favorites of the continuing stories of DS9. I think this was the most exciting set of books so far. There were many references to the DS9 episodes, and quite a few characters were pulled in for this set of books. It's sometimes shocking yet strangely satisfying when some of the characters are killed off and "put to rest" in the relaunch. It kind of brings a finality to that part of the series and story.

The action in this LHoD was superb. I stayed up very late at night reading these books - I could not put them down.

Great book and well-written characters(especjally :Worf and Martok, plus Pchar)and relationships beetwen them.I think that the writters tried to tell something more
about Martok's family,Drex and Sirella than we got to know from the tv,and make Drex a litte smarter,than he was in tv:).
I also like Alexander -It's look like he can find his own path among Klingons,althrough having still human attitudes.

Everyone knows what has to happen in this miniseries, but the question is how will Martok get his planet back and who will have to die in the process? It was a bit surprising if not shocking who was killed in this installment. I just thought that the Star Trek authors would find some other interesting things to do with those characters. I never knew that Martok had any children, so that was interesting to read. I found the story of Pharh (the Klingon raised Faringi) rather touching and his relationship with Martok was one of the best parts of the whole book.

I don't know, but I thought that Klingons never smiled. If Kingons aren't supposed to smile, then this book isn't consistent with the Kilingon personality.

In a nutshell this was a good book, but not all that engaging or maybe I just wasn't that interested in it out of the anticipation of the next book in the series "Unity".

Hertzler and Lang have created characters and a story line that keeps even a non Trekkie and non-Sci-fi fan engrossed from cover to cover. There are characters that endear themselves and others who you love to hate. I recommend these books to all readers. Great humorous asides that bring a chuckle even while the blood is flowing. May seem strange, but Hertzler and Lang pull if off.

The Left Hand of Destiny: Book 2 continues almost exactly where Book 1 left off. Unfortunately, while the quality of the book is still high, it's marred by some heavy mystical content that overpowers the book and brings it almost to a standstill at times.

Martok, the new chancellor of the Klingon Empire, has been deposed and is on the run. The secret behind the usurper has been revealed to be a woman from Martok's past, a woman who Martok spurned when she tried to get him to join her and her father in their genetic manipulation schemes. Using her genetic talents, she has reincarnated the Hur'q, the bane of the Klingon existence hundreds of years ago. Now that she and the usurper have gained control of the Empire, what's next? Is there a more personal slant to all of this?

Ezri Dax goes on personal leave from space station Deep Space 9 in order to help, and finds herself caught in a the middle of a lot of Klingon claptrap that she spoke out against earlier. She does her duty to the Martok family anyway, aiding Worf and the crew of the Rotarran find an ancient Klingon weapon that will give Martok the power to wrest control of the Empire back from its thief.

Culminating in a final battle on the monastery planet Boreth, Martok's victory or defeat will result in major changes to the Empire. Martok will have to win if he wants to guide the new Empire during its first baby steps. If he doesn't, the Empire will crumble.

The writing in this book is almost better than the first book, as none of the mishaps that occurred in the first book present themselves. There are no continuity errors (whether Trek-related or internal) and the prose seems to be tightened considerably. The pacing at the start is very nice. However, when things get to Boreth, the book takes a major nosedive.

The main problem with the book is the overpowering mysticism. I do not have any problem with visions, dreams, fantasy figures, etc. There has always been a small mystic undercurrent in some Trek stories that doesn't detract from them at all. However, this time it drags the book to a screeching halt as Martok has yet more visions. I have to admit I started losing track of things at this point, and just wanted the book to get moving again. This mainly becomes a problem on Boreth, as I have no problems with the few times it happens to Martok before.

The mysticism, combined with the seemingly endless battle on the snow-clad plains makes the last third of the book a real struggle to get through. Every time it seemed like the battle was going to end, something else happened to continue it. It got very monotonous very quickly, and turned me right off. The climax was is stunning yet a little too abrupt. After the monotony of the final sequence, the climax suddenly happens and then it's over, with just a small epilogue taking place two months later. While the pacing of earlier sections of the book is fine, the pacing of the ending really stinks.

All is not lost, however. The fact that the television show is over gives Hertzler and Lang free reign with most of the characters, and some surprising fates await them. I liked the fact that, for the most part, the reader has no idea whether or not danger will be fatal for a character. It makes the book more suspenseful and it does help make the final battle a little more palatable. If none of the characters were in any danger, this sequence would have been even more boring. What's even better is that the fates of the characters are logical and believable.

The characterization is still strong and is one of the high points of the book (and its predecessor). Martok has visibly grown into his role and he slowly begins to accept that he is what the Empire needs. Kahless, the cloned Klingon emperor, also comes full circle and realizes what his place is in Klingon society. Worf, Dax, and Worf's son Alexander are also in character, and interesting characters to boot. The characterization of the villains isn't quite as good, but it's not as bad as the first book, where they were ciphers. There were a few "I'm so evil" moments, especially for the female villain, but they weren't too bad. I found the usurper extremely dull, though. He gets more face-time in the book, but in this case it's a bad thing. He rarely does anything but rant about his mother or Martok.

Pharh, though, is the breakthrough original character. He grows away from his Ferengi heritage of commerce and business to become a very well-rounded character, so much so that Martok comes to respect him as he never would any other Ferengi. Unfortunately, his is the one fate that is most predictable, but he's still interesting to read about. While one would expect Hertzler to have Martok's characterization down pat (since he played Martok on the show), it's Pharh who shows that Hertzler is a very talented writer.

It's just the pacing that needs work. If that improves, Hertzler will continue to be a fine Trek writer (assuming that's what he wants to do). Still, this opening 2-book series is a wonderful step in the right direction and shows a lot of promise. I wish I knew who was responsible for what in the book, because if it's Lang's fault, I'll apologize to Hertzler. The problems just strike me as "new-writer syndrome" that will hopefully go away in time. If you're a DS9 fan, you owe it to yourself to check out these two books. Just try not to fall asleep getting to the end of the second one.

David Roy