Valhalla (Star Trek Deep Space Nine, No 10) (Mass Market Paperback)

by Nathan Archer (Author) "THE ALIEN SHIP came in hot and fast, popping out of the wormhole like a champagne cork from a bottle, the strange, smooth hull as..." (more)
Key Phrases: Gul Dukat, Gul Kaidan, Major Kira (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Tensions caused by speculation that Cardassia is about to reoccupy Bajor are complicated by the arrival of a strange alien ship. When it's discovered that the crew is dead and the ship is carrying valuable Gamma-quadrant technology, it becomes a sought after prize, which Commander Sisko must fight to keep out of Cardassian hands. Meanwhile, Sisko also finds himself at odds with Major Kira, who believes the ship is Bajoran property.

When the alien ship suddenly seizes control of Deep Space Nine™, and the Cardassians move in to try to capture it, Sisko must face off against a shipload of angry Cardassians -- and the alien being controlling Deep Space Nine!

From the Publisher
Tensions caused by speculation that Cardassia is about to reoccupy Bajor are complicated by the arrival of a strange alien ship. When it's discovered that the crew is dead and the ship is carrying valuable Gamma-quadrant technology, it becomes a sought after prize, which Commander Sisko must fight to keep out of Cardassian hands. Meanwhile, Sisko also finds himself at odds with Major Kira, who believes the ship is Bajoran property.

When the alien ship suddenly seizes control of Deep Space Nine^TM, and the Cardassians move in to try to capture it, Sisko must face off against a shipload of angry Cardassians, and the alien being controlling Deep Space Nine.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 277 pages
• Publisher: Star Trek (April 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671881159
• ISBN-13: 978-0671881153
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,360,550 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #6 in	Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Authors, A-Z > ( A ) > Archer, Nathan
  #78 in	Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Media > Star Trek > Deep Space Nine

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars creepy and intriguing yarn, December 13, 2000

By	Kevin D. Flythe "yesterdays_son" (Greenville, NC USA) - See all my reviews

This is one of my most favorite DS9 novels ever written, for many reasons. If you've read the plot summary above, then you know that the gist of this book is as follows: strange ship comes through wormhole from Gamma Quadrant with incredible technology, Bajor/Federation and Cardassia dispute ownership, crew of ship is dead killed by ship, ship is sentient, takes over station.

Okay, now that the plot summary is out of the way, let me tell you why I like this book. This is vintage DS9. The station is still rather run-down and defenseless and every once in a while the Cardassians come to pester them and there's not much they can do about it. I loved that era, because I'm one of the true DS9er's who was loyal to the series from day one, before Worf and wars and all that. Another thing is the "pup" that one of the reviewers on this page was so confused about. The "computer pup" in the book is actually a sentient computer program that pestered the crew in the DS9 episode "The Forsaken" (fans may not remember it well because its presence in that episode was rather overshadowed by Lwaxana and Odo's being stuck in an elevator together). I love it when a writer puts stuff from the TV show in the books. It's a rewarding experience for fans to be able to recognize these moments, and besides that it lets you know that the writer is himself a fan, which boosts your opinion of them and also your enjoyment of the book. Plus, the ship comes from the Gamma Quadrant. We saw little enough of the Gamma Quadrant in the early seasons of the show anyways, but when the Dominion came in we were almost entirely cut off. This gave us a peek into some of the mysteries that lay across the galaxy.

This book also reminded me of a second season TNG episode, "Where Silence Has Lease." In that episode, a powerful entity known as Nagilum toys with the crew, and wishes to understand the concept of death and so starts killing crew members, treating them as lab rats. It ended up that no one was actually killed and Picard and Nagilum developed an understanding of one another (making the show end with a reminiscent tip of the hat to the TOS episode, "The Corbomite Maneuver"). However, to get back on track, in this book the ship mirrors Nagilum, killing crewmembers to gain an understanding of death, but the deaths in this case are real.

It's a hard-hitting book, action-packed and very complex, working on many different levels. Nathan Archer has a very fresh and exciting writing style. It's definitely one of the best stories DS9 has to offer, TV series included. If you're a DS9 fan, you owe it to yourself to read this one.

4.0 out of 5 stars Through alien eyes, November 13, 2007

By	Jeanne Tassotto (Trapped in the Midwest) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Star Trek:Valhalla (Unbound)

This is the tenth in the series of DEEP SPACE 9 tie-in novels and is set early in the series chronology. STAR TREK tie in novels come in many forms. Some are action adventures, others are thrillers, or mysteries, or romances or comedies or just about any sort of genre set in the STAR TREK universe. Some actually do actually actually do take the reader 'where no one has gone before' and to look at the universe from a totally different point of view. VALHALLA is one of those.

Bajor has been experiencing a series of Cardassian incursions into their airspace. Sisko and his staff investigate what is behind these violations of the treaty and discover that once again Cardassia is experiencing political turmoil with various factions vying for control. Some of the most likely winners in this contest are those who want to retake control of Bajor and the wormhole - a goal that Bajor cannot prevent.

This already volital situation is made worse when an alien ship emerges through the wormhole on a course for Cardassia. The DS9 crew investigates when their hails are unanswered and discover that the crew is dead. They also find that some of the technology is quite advanced and very desirable. Soon the Federation, Bajor and Cardassia are at odds over it. They find that there is another factor to be considered though, the technology is sentient which raises the question of just where the lines between 'being' and 'property' lie. This conflict in echoed in the 'B' story line involving one of Quark's business deals.

VALHALLA is an interesting story to read on a superficial level but the questions it raises, like many of the DS9 TV episodes, will stay with the reader/viewer long after.

On the down side, VALHALLA, like many of the early DS9 novels suffers a bit because the reader has probably already seen the full TV series. DS9 differs from the original series and THE NEXT GENERATION in that it had an overlying arc of stories. There were many major events that definitely dated the stories. The characters, and their relationships evolved over the course of the series so the stories that were written early on feel a little strange. Fans (and who else will be reading a tie-in novel?) should keep in mind how early in the series this is set while reading and focus on the differences in the various cultures.

3.0 out of 5 stars Pretty good..., December 16, 2004

By	T. J. Doss (Commonwealth of Virginia, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Pretty good "Ghost in the Machine" (think Hal 2000 from 2001: A Space Odyssey) story from the early pre-Worf/War days of Deep Space Nine. Major Kira is definitely her "old" self as she is frequently at odds with Commander Sisko - as was the case in the beginning of the series. There is a complex Cardassian conspiracy B-Story (involving Gul Dukat among others) that comes to be interwoven with the A-Story. All-in-all a good read from the early days.