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4.0 out of 5 stars
'Treason' Review [MINOR SPOILERS], April 12, 2010
This review is from: Star Trek: New Frontier: Treason (Star Trek: New Frontier (Unnumbered)) (Mass Market Paperback)
The latest novel of the Star Trek: New Frontier series is definitely not a let down. I was a bit concerned that with how disappointing Peter David's previous Trek novel,
Before Dishonor (Star Trek: The Next Generation), was that this one would suffer from the same poor writing and decline. Not so. 'Treason' was, for me, one of the best 'New Frontier' novels. It has a bit of everything that sets this series apart from the other novels and series: there's action, there's not too much science to bog down or complicate the plot, the novel is very character-centric and there are tons of twists and turns to keep you guessing all the way through to the final pages of the novel.
The Bad: One of my main gripes with this, as other reviewers have noted, is that this series feels like the 'Lost' of Star Trek: if you've missed a novel, sure, you could jump in but there are so many plots and minor details embedded in each book that it's hard to keep up at times. Not only that but the cast of characters is rather large considering the focus is split among two ships and each ship's crew and what you could consider Command/bureaucrat characters including the admirals. It's been a while since I've read the previous novel
Missing in Action (Star Trek: New Frontier) so certain references and minor plots weren't very clear to me. The second complaint is that 'New Frontier' has also had a few graphic novels/comic books that I'm sure many fans haven't read. While these didn't seem to play in too much, it was a bit annoying to encounter a reference to the comic book events and not having read them or having access to them. Oh well.
The Good: There's actually more to praise with 'Treason' than there is to gripe about. For 'New Frontier' to be such a comic book, un-Trek like series, I felt Peter David really did a good job of reeling in some of the more outlandish and ridiculous dialogue and actions without sacrificing the quality of the story. The dialogue is still edgy and snippy but I didn't find it as distracting as usual. I enjoyed the tone and dialogue the most in the novel because none of the characters came off as particularly stiff or dull. What they say is what any normal modern person would say or think and considering 'The Next Generation', 'Voyager' and 'Deep Space Nine', not to mention the Original Series novels all are pretty grounded and formal ... this just felt more fun, realistic and refreshing. I also liked that there was no real 'science phenomena of the week' for the crew to deal with. The plot focused on characters, mostly the character of Doctor Selar, and everything moved smoothly and steadily with non-stop action, twists, and unexpected developments. For those who are a fan of David Mack and his knack for having lots of battles, blood and death, this novel will appeal to you because it's the first 'New Frontier' novel I can think of that really kills off a lot of characters that have been with the series for a while and leaves others damaged or injured. Another good thing about the plot is that like most of 'New Frontier' it stands on its own. Other Trek novels of the past year or two set in this era have been focused on the Borg and other similar plots - 'Treason' doesn't do much to reference what's happening elsewhere which makes the novel feel fresh, stronger plot wise and far more exciting.
In all, I liked the novel. It ends on an odd note, nothing feeling resolved or over but gives the feeling that this novel, despite all the action and developments, is nothing more than a stepping stone to the next novel coming in the series. Definitely a fun, easy and enjoyable read and worth your time and money.
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