Customer Reviews

The Quiet Place (Star Trek New Frontier, No 7)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Peter David's 7th attempt at his own created Star Trek series is both very good and dissapointing at the same time.

What makes this a great book, is that the story is truly that of Star Trek lore: New species, new civilations, places where man has not been before. There is also wonderful chracter development, an introduction to a few new characters (handled expertly), and some reminders of a few past characters. This book did have a plot and made a great journey towards its end.

And as always the humor between Si Cwan and Kebron is always fun, as is the new wit of chracter 'Xyon'.

The bad: Well, if you're looking for all your dangling plot lines from the previous 6 books, they aren't addressed here. This book really centers on two chracters who aren't in the previous 6, or even in Star Fleet. If you want to see Capt. Calhoun, the Excalibur and her crew, you're not gonna find it here.

Also, though there was some action spots, for those that are used to that big climatic Starfleet or ship face off with blasters firing away, this book is a bit shy on that typ eof action.

However this is an excellent read that reminds me more or less of those individual 'filler' episodes you see once in a while....a refreshing change, but still longing for the whole crew.

After two entries as part of a Pocket Book "series" of novels, David returns to the New Frontier universe with a book that revolves around the current events facing Thallonian Space and the crew of the U.S.S. Excaliber. And it's with good results, overall, though I suspect much of this will be set-up for events in book eight.

After the two previous efforts that were extremely Calhoune heavy, it's nice to get to see other members of the crew get to shine. David also provides a diverse, interesting supporting cast that is caught up in a race against time....At stake: the Quiet Place, the Thallonian's version of heaven.

David blends his usual humor and quick plotting along with strong characters for an enjoyable, if quick read. The Excaliber crew plays a side role to some of the new characters we meet in this book (Xyon for one, the Dogs of War for another) and we can only hope that this development pays off in future books.

Personally, I recommend this entire series. It's a series that is willing to take chances and these are the Trek novels I always look forward to.

As is usual with this series, Peter David's writing is very strong. This is an intriguing and enthralling story, which like most, if not all of Peter David's stories, is a page turner that is very hard to put down. The premise: The Quiet Place, most of all, is the realization of Si Cwan's quest to find his sister. Previous New Frontier novels have established that Zoran, Si Cwan's childhood friend, turned traitor, had kidnapped and hidden his sister Kalinda. The Quiet Place begins with Kalinda, who doesn't know who she actually is, living on a backwater planet name Montos, going by the name of Riella. She's living with Malia, whom Riella (Kalinda), believes to be her mother. There are some very interesting scenes here.

We also meet Xyon who is an adventurous young man, who in his first chapter, is in a very dire situation. He's about to be put to death. As you read about Xyon, you almost get the impression you're reading about Captain Calhoun. We're then introduced to the Dogs of War. Only Peter David can convincingly create this warrior race of genetically engineered dogs and write them into a story so well. Throw in the Redeemers and what we have here is not only one of the best New Frontier novels written, this one falls into the category of one of the best Star Trek books ever written. As is usual with this wonderful series, it ends with the big bold To Be Continued..... This was of course preceded by a shocking discovery. Thank you very much to Peter David for this excellent addition to the New Frontier Series.

MINOR SPOILER - One note of interest, in past New Frontier novels, Peter David fairly well detailed the Redeemers as far as skin color, facial features and general demeanor. If I remember correctly, he had not talked much about their height. Somehow, I never figured the Redeemers to be somewhat similar to Star Wars Jawas, in height at least. It almost makes them sort of comical, whereas my previous impression of them had been of average to large bad guys. This almost makes them funny except that they have some personal abilities that more or less takes the humor right out of these little villains

There are, basically, three ways to write a book that ends with "to be continued": One is to simply have a basic plotline that is larger than will fit in the page allotment for the book, and to stop before you're done. That was the method Peter David used in the first four books of this series; and I don't care for that method.

My preferred method is to have a complete story within the scope of each book, while various subplots from one book carry over into, and perhaps become the major focus of, later books. This is the method used by Peter David in books five and six of the series.

The third method is the one Peter David uses in this book, and while it isn't my preferred method, it is far preferable to the first method: to overshoot the ending of the story by a chapter, thus giving a teaser into the action for the next installment.

As with all of the books in this series, (and indeed, almost all Star Trek books by Peter David), this book has fascinating character development, a lively plot, and a good mix of drama and humor.

The Quiet Place is the next leg of Si Cwan's journey to find his sister, who was kidnapped when their empire fell. Si Cwan, the Vulcan scientist Soleta, and the Brickar security officer are sent on a diplomatic mission which goes bad. Meanwhile, on that planet, a young girl named Riella has strange dreams (you don't have to be a rocket scientist to guess who she really is) about a "quiet place," that many others (including the Dogs of War & the Redeemers)want to find. Enter Xyon, a soldier of fortune who turns out to be. . . .You'll have to read it to find that out! It's great fun.

I've followed the crew of Excalibur for the past seven books now, and found Quiet Place entertaining. Not the best in the series, but worth a read. Mr. David has a wonderful prose that allows the reader to "sink" into the story, a trait that this reader most enjoys.

A little bit too shy on action for my tastes, but the character develoment is worthwhile (including a few interesting facts about Brikar physiology).

The ending is fantastic... don't spoil it for yourself... read the whole book through and be amazed!

Peter David has a great handle on the characters he's created in this series. His style makes for that familiar StarTrek fun. In fact I almost wish these characters had been given life on TV rather than Voyager. (Although the chances that Ashley Judd would have reprised her role as Lefler are slim and none!) With all the current Sci-fi chatter about the next incarnation of Roddenberry's Universe, it's a shame that these characters are being touted. Even though these books are really not full length novels, the stories are fully developed and over the course of 8 novellas, the reader can't help but be drawn in by the banter between Si Cwan and Kebron. Plus two Vulcan women and a Hermat! I'm one of those "I read EVERY night before bed" people. These stories were like a good night time snack.

Though this book isn't completely focused on the Excalibur crew, it does set up a few nice (if somewhat predictable) surprises for Calhoun and company. What is the secret of the Quiet Place and what does a young woman and her unlikely rescuer have to do with the Redeemers and the Dogs of War? Though some of my fellow reviewers disliked some of the familiarity and comedy of the story, that's Peter David's hallmark -- and I daresay had he written a few Next Generation TV episodes, we might see Picard and his team with a few more foibles and less as the "perfect" crew. The fleshing out of these characters is a delight. This is a great book to read and I highly recommend the entire series!

I started reading Peter David's Star Trek: New Frontier series when the first four novels were put out in a single volume. Since then I have been waiting paitently for these and other follow up novels. Not the best of David's work, but a great read. I really like the crew and it was fun to find out who this new, and very interesting, character was. Can't wait until some more of the seris comes out. The additional stuff on The Redeemers was handled very well; the best part of the book in my opinion. Overall, a great read - pick it up, but don't expect it to be as good as some of the earlier novels, but it is worth it.

The Quiet Place, as well as the rest of the New Frontier books, is really in true Star Trek form. What characterizes this new series is its freshness. The seventh in the series, Quiet Place isn't centered on Calhoun as most of the books have been, but what we get is new characters and new plot beginnings. We meet Xyon, smart and witty, as well as a mysterious young women who might be the missing sister Si Cwan has been searching for.

The only complaint I have is that the books are all so frustratingly short. The finish of each book leaves readers with so many more questions about what will happen next then they started with. Each book is a joy, but waiting for the next installment is so very hard.

We get to know more about the crew, which is good, but this book is clearly setting up for the next one. I can't wait to find out what'll happen on the Excaliber next.