Customer Reviews

The Wounded Sky (Star Trek, No 13)

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I have a full shelf of Star Trek original series novels. If you look at the spines you can see which are well read. My copy of The Wounded Sky is easily the most battered. The story line continues to grip me each time I re-read it. It actually starts out as a 'let's go explore' storyline, and doesn't turn into a 'here we are saving the universe again' until sudden sad realisation near the end of the book. The classic interactions between the regular characters are masterfully written, and we seem to find more depth to each of them. The new people spring off the page, straight into your imagination, in full 3D. If you read it and love the glass spider, she's in Spock's World too. Read and enjoy - I'm sure you will

It's quite strange, to say the least, to see The Wounded Sky described as a "mass consumption paperback". Even if some other Star Trek novels are, this is certainly not the sort of watered-down, commercialized novel that name would indicate. This is a novel of many, many levels, that draws the reader back over and over--there is always something new to be found lurking underneath what you saw the first time around. I honestly believe that had it not been put out as a specifically "Star Trek" novel, it would be gaining *far* more widespread public acclaim.

What I most love about this work is its ability to weave together plot, physics, music, philosophy, humour, and more into a single cohesive story that truly has a lifelike sweep to it. Although some may object to this metaphor, I found a similar experience with the movie The Matrix...in that movie, there are subtle clues, references that you might not catch on the first viewing, but one by one become obvious as you watch it again. So too does The Wounded Sky. I'm certain that each time I reread the book, I will arrive at some new understanding.

Diane Duane is more than an author, in my opinion. She is very much a modern philosopher, and in this work it shows more clearly than any other. There is an entire worldview contained within this book that perhaps speaks to the recent efforts to reconcile the warring factions of science and religion, and more.

However, don't let the description of this book's philosophical angle scare you off. The book has excellent character development, and nowhere else but in Diane Duane's works does the crew of the Enterprise seems so *alive*, so *diverse*, and such a family. It is a beautiful sort of patchwork rather than the streamlined unit that other books--even the Series--portray. Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations, you could say.

This is easily the best Star Trek novel ever written. Even those who Scorn the series in favour of less commercial science fiction should try this book. Since it will forever be stuck with this "mass consumption" label, be sure to tell your friends the *real* story about The Wounded Sky. That will be the only way to get the word out.

Well done, Ms. Duane!

I have read a lot of Star Trek books, ranging from absolutely horrible to great. This is one of the great ones. (I have read these Star Trek books by Diane Duane: Doctor's Orders; The Wounded Sky;My Enemy, My Ally; The Romulan Way; Spock's World; Swordhunt; Honor Blade; and Dark Mirror. I loathed Dark Mirror [The Dark Universe concept is horrible- honestly, if there's an infinite number of alternate universes, why do we only get into the evil one?] and loved the rest. I have all of them except Dark Mirror and Doctor's Orders. The Rihannsu books I got on the same day, without having heard of them before or recognizing the author. I never do that. Thank goodness I did.)

There are a lot of minor characters, such as Amekentra, Mayri, Ensign Niliet, Mr Athende, Lia Burke, and others, who just have one or two mentions in the book. They give you the feeling htat there are people here who don't have roles in the series but nonetheless EXIST. And details like where Lia Burke lives (on a gas-giant moon inhabited by non-physical beings who live on a different level of reality, so they can be seen, but not toached)and the relationship between Mayri and ensign d'Hennish, a Sadrao who has no sense of "duration", or time in the usual sense.

The main people- Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Scotty, Uhura, Sulu, and Checkov- all have their parts. In particular, Sulu, Chekov, and Scotty have a far bigger role than usual. Scotty's friendship with K't'lk is fun. So is the way he and Chekov defend the ship. Sulu has a great scene where he destroys a Klingon fleet with his flying of the ship and NO weapons. Uhura has, I think, scenes in the anentropic univerce where she explains that for hte Others to invent communication they msut invent inventing... and to all appearances they haven't. Kirk, Spock, and McCoy have big roles, but they are not the only people in the story.

K't'lk is really a wonderful character. The idea of sentient spider beings is neat- espessially with some of the truly weird, alien concepts of their society. The way that they link love, death, birth, rebirth, and building is resonant, even when we meet only K't'lk. The Hamalki, her species, are not the least bit like humans. Their physics is flexible, their customs and religion aren't. K't'lk speaks lightly of holy wars, and the fact that when Hamalki mate, the male dies, gives the darker aspects of their society without making them seem evil. And as Spock says (and K't'lk demonstrates in the last pages) "even in this universe- death has its exceptions." To the Hamalki, not only is rebirth a physical rather than strictly religious part of life- K't'lk (in later books, K's't'lk) is reincarnated during tfe story and has been dead and born again several times before. She dies in 'giving birth'to a univerce- in giving it entropy, death, and time, all of which are necesery to life. In many ways K't'lk is a voice for a civilization- but she's also a fun character. One of her quirks is sometimes getting English idioms wrong, usually to be corrected by one of the others.

Creative physics, the idea that you create a law of physics by finding it, is also interesting, if over my head. So is the idea of breaking laws of physics- that is supposedly impossible. But I wonder... is Einstein's equation valid in the Trek univerce as Duane sees it? Is warp drive itself creative physics? Questions are the root of science and science ficiton. Add Duane has great questions.

K't'lk is the center of the story. She is an inventor of a transwarp (not as in the Voyager eppisode, if you leapt to that conclusion)device called inversion drive, whcih involves infinite mass, de Sitter space, and other terms which are much more beleivable in the story. A starship must test the device, and Enterprise is, of course, chosen. Then, they use it to evade some Klingons, causing at least two stars to go (super?)nova. But all of the crew except for K't'lk and d'Hennish have weird, emotional experiances. Spock finds himself "on" a planet where each time a certain comet blazes in the skies, they have a war. (earlier in the story, the Enterprise breaks the comet by accident, but it continues on its course. It is never stated that this is the comet in question, or the ship, but I think that it is). But this time, it comes as a rain of shooting stars, the sign for peace. So the war ends. Kirk finds himself inside the "mindset" of his ship.

Each time they use the inversion drive, they have deeper experiances. They get each others memories, and finaly are "together" in these situations. But something has gone wrong. They have torn a hole in their univerce, and it is mixing with an anentropic univerce, where there is no time or entropy. No death- but no real life, either.

This is having hellish consequences, because the absense of time and, yes, of death, is upsetting the natural balance of their own univerce. So they must heal the breach.

But nothing is that simple. They have woken the Others, what they describe as a proto-God. They want to close the gap and restore each univerce to its origional state. But the Others don't want to loose their new understanding of life. Ultimately K't'lk introduces entropy and deaht into their space, because they must have death to have life.

At one point the Others almost destroy the Enterprise. McCoy talks them out of doing it, asking them if they want their first two acts to be the attempt of murder, and success at it. It's a great scene, but I'm describing it badly. The one thing he never mentions is that if the Others destory the Enterprise, they will destroy themselves, too. As he tells Kirk, "I wanted to see if They really had that much divinity- or what the humanities take for divinity- in Them." And if he had failed, the Enterprise would have been destroyed, and the Others with it. "And a good thing, too. What could we unleash on any univerce that would be worse than a God that wasn't godly?" THe idea that death is not a negative thing, that it is necessery to life, is facinating. In Diane Duane's non-trek books she treats entropy as a negative hting. Here, it's positive. K't'lk's introduction of death and time to the Other's univerce gives them life. It's an origional idea. I like the philosphical aspect of this book a lot, and the way it blends with the science and the people so well.

The philosophy of htis book was one of the best parts. The good of the many is not necesserially any more important than the good of the one. That's a valid idea, and a really hard question. Would you sacrifice one person for the good of a univerce? If that person was anyone but yourself, would it be moral? K't'lk dies (she is reborn, but she does die, and her self-sacrifice is important) to save two univerces. She makes the decision herself. McCoy is willing to let Enterprise be destroyed, again for the sake of that nascent univerce. He's risking all of them. Long before, Kirk had let Edith Keeler die for the sake of the Fedaration's existance. When does the ends justify the means? Does it ever? What is the lesser evil?

I like the deepness of this story- the moral depth, and the world it takes place in. The alien species are very alien, completely different than us- but no less "human". (Terran is used in referance to our species; the "humanities" are all the sentient species in existance. A good way of solving the dual meaning of "human". It also fixes a common flaw in sci-fi- all alien races are capitalized,[Vulcans, Tellerites, Hamalk]but humans is not. It becomes desperately annoying. "Terrans" fixes the problem.) They are nothing like us; their values and mindsets are different. But they are as good and evil, as human, as we are. The story is like the surface of a deep pool. You see the surface, but the water is there.

Harb Tanzer, the cheif of Recreation, is the one who suggests that they give the Others "the game of life" to play now that they have time to do it with. He is an interesting, fun character, and I can see both why he and his department are necessery, vital even, and why they wouldn't have appeared on the show.

Last, I liked Duane's concept of Starfleet itself. It explains why there are so few nonhominid aliens on Enterprise- they are on other ships, such as Inaiu, which appears in other books. Since their physical requirements- atmosphere, gravity, and so on- are not like human requirments, they have their own ships. These are registered on other Fedaration planets than Earth, and they have alien names rather than those like Enterprise, Constitution, Excalibur.

And at the end, almost all of the Fleet comes to Sol system to welcome Enterprise home. There are the ships of Enterprise's class (Surak, Isshasshte, Intrepid, Tao Feng, Kennedy) battleships like Inaiu, Arizona, Divine Wind(translation of kamikaze?) Dataphda. "Light cruisers" wiht names like Malacandra and Constellation, Constitution and Sadat and Bohamme Richard. "Even alien-crewed 'visitor' ships of Fleet were there, to his amazement- Sorithias and Mor'anh Merin'hen, Na'i'in and Sulam and Kame." Commadore Katha'sat (yes, it is an alien, and it is the pronoun used) says that "Jim, we are Starfleet. A fact that sometimes gets lost at the brass...but did not get lost today." Maybe not quite the precice quotation, but a fine note toward the end of the story. This time at least, the people who save the univerce are thanked properly. All too often it's ignored. I like "knowing" that sometimes the people whose lives are saved appriciate it.

And just after that, Jim (I've called him Kirk until now, but Jim is appropriate at the moment) drops a brickabrak piece K't'lk gave him. It breaks, then comes togetehr in the form of a tiny K't'lk who asks after "Mt'gm'ry". It may confuse those who don't read the sequels first- but it's a lovely note to end a story on.


A Note on Not-History - K't'lk's daughter-self goes on to continue her work in physics, and appears in "Spock's World, I beleive in "Swordhunt", and in "Honor Blade".

A Note About Names - Hamal, the sun of the Hamalki, Sadr, the sun of the Sadrao, and Mizar, which I can only assume is the sun of the dragon-python Mizarthu, are all real stars. Technically they're too hot for life, but they give splendid names- it's a common thing for Sci-fi writers to do, espessially in Trek. Sheliak, Izar, 40Eridani(Vulcan) and so on- they all exist for real.

I appologize for the spelling mistakes I have not managed to catch.

Diane Duane has always been one of my favourite Trek authors. Her stories are very well written, with the emphasis always being on characters and plotlines, with a firm grasp of scientific concepts. This was Diane's first novel, and even after reading her others (My Enemy, My Ally and Doctor's Orders) this still remains one of my favourite Trek novels.

K'tlk, a scientist from a race of sentient arachnids (called the Hamalki), has discovered an `inversion drive'. Essentially, it allows any vessel to instaneously transport itself from one point in space to another. The theory is explained by K'tlk in a debriefing she gives to the crew. This passage is a perfect example of how Diane can seamlessly combine `real' science with Trek...something that's been sorely lacking in the official series over the past few years.

So what makes `The Wounded Sky' so special? Because the novel focuses on Star Trek's original premise - "To Boldly Go Where No One has gone Before". The emphasis in this novel is on exploration, and the danger comes from the Enterprise's encounters with the unknown. There is however, a spectacular space battle with the Klingons near the beginning of the novel. The description are extremely vivid, and assumes that a starship will be subject to real physics, which adds real tension to this scene.

The second strength of this novel also lies with the characterisation. Unlike the original series, Kirk treats his crew with respect, and they're all given extra dimensions never seen in the series or the films. Uhura is given a chance to demonstrate her talent at translating alien languages, Sulu is given the spotlight during a battle with the Klingons (and seriously kicks butt!), and Chekov acts the hero in a sequence near the end of the book. They're not portrayed or treated as expendable crew members. In Diane's Trek universe, everybody has something useful to contribute, and we care about what happens to them. Kudos to the author for making such a courageous move.

One character in particular should be given special mention, and that is K'tlk. The Hamalki are hands-down, in my opinion, the most intriguing alien species created for Star Trek. Their entire culture is genuinely alien, and I think some people are going to get a kick out of finding out about how they reproduce. I was thrilled to see K'tlk return in Diane's other novel (`Spock's World'), this is one character I wouldn't mind seeing more of.

So, in conclusion, Wounded Sky is an extremely well-written debut novel. It's unfortunate that Star Trek novels aren't accepted by Paramount as being canon. There are certain aspects of this novel that I wouldn't have minded being put into the TV series. Having a sun go supernova when a starship goes into warp near it's corona makes perfect sense.

Again, if anyone wants to read a good example of Star Trek, I strongly reccommend this novel.

The Enterprise is field-testing a device that can theoretically take it anywhere in the Universe. However, the chief side effect is that the Universe begins to unravel, and another Universe intrudes into ours. Some sections of this book just exceed my level of `suspension of disbelief' for Star Trek. The scientific rationale behind the device is one of them. The other is in the concluding section of the book, where the crew comes to the boundary with the other Universe. Their `best natures' are allowed to show through, and the results are sometimes unbelievably strange. That all said, the writing is very good, the descriptions are great, and the one combat scene is very theatrical and fun reading. The dialogue though is where the book really shines. It is excellent, and almost always humorous, no matter the situation, but also profound when required. The philosophical/scientific debates are good reading, even if I don't agree with them. This is well written and quite entertaining book.

This book was two "firsts" for me: the first Star Trek novel I ever read, and my first introduction to Diane Duane's writing. Let me tell you, it set the standard very high. Ms. Duane has a feel for the original Trek characters I have rarely seen matched (especially Dr. McCoy!). She gets inside them like they were her own characters but still maintains the integrity of what we have seen onscreen. Her new characters are vivid and well-drawn, the mindsets of the aliens truly unique. (Including one young cat-being that has no understanding of time besides "now.") Ms. Duane's main "guest star," the alien scientist K'tl'k, is as memorable a character as she's ever written.
But even better is her completely original plot. The *Enterprise* and her crew have been selected to test the first-ever star drive that has the capacity to travel to new galaxies, through an inversion process that takes them (briefly) into a completely different dimension. But what at first seems like a simple process instead begins to break down all the barriers between the mental and the physical, between this world and the next.
The story becomes almost metaphysical from this point on, where the characters have nothing to rely on but what is at the core of their being. Yet there is still a srong current of scientific plausability, if not probability, that keeps the story solid and more-than-readable. The physics and ethics theories presented are fascinating even for the "science-challenged" and the plot is a true page-turner.
I highly recommend this book; even if you are not a Star Trek fan, there is plenty here to fully satisfy any fan of Ms. Duane. One of her very best!

These books, which date from the period when fans had to wait for a film every 2 years, are kind of filler fixes for hardcore ST fans. They only very rarely would stand on their own as scifi novels, relying instead on a stock set of characters and a predictable formula.

In this one, there is an arachnoid scientist who has a new technology to test. Something goes awry, of course, but by the end the Enterprise crew has (literally) saved the day, reconciled some alien cultures who were blood enemies, and revealed the beauty of their souls. All's well that ends well. This is nice to read if you don't have the option of the actual show (I was going to say the "real thing"!), but it is just a way to pass the time. Recommended as such.

According to the book "Voyages of Imagination", Diane Duane set about writing "The Wounded Sky" with the intention of creating the best "Star Trek" book anyone had ever seen. Well, she certainly succeeded.

I first attempted to read "The Wounded Sky" about fifteen years ago, and got bogged down about halfway into the book. There was no question of the richness and depth of Duane's prose, of a far higher quality than that found in most "Star Trek" novels, but the intellectual complexity of the story made it almost the opposite of a light read.

I've now finally gotten around to finishing the book, and I'm very glad I did. Perhaps my previous experience with the book made it easier to get through, or perhaps my increased familiarity with Duane's influences made it more accessible. Somewhere in this book Duane gets in a reference to practically every major work of twentieth-century British fantasy and science fiction. While I was always something of an Anglophile, this tendency has blossomed in my reading and TV and film-viewing over the past ten years. The books Duane read before writing "The Wounded Sky" are now, to a large extent, the same books I've read, making the reading experience even more rewarding.

At the heart of "The Wounded Sky" is K'tl'k, an alien scientist resembling a glass spider who is surely the single most memorable "Star Trek" character who has never appeared on screen. Despite her wildly alien physiognomy, her wise and humorous personality is so richly and beautifully revealed over the course of Duane's tale that, by the end, we love her as much as Scotty, who clearly loses his heart to her. K'tl'k's final fate is as emotional for the reader as it is for the characters.

Not only is "The Wounded Sky" the best "Star Trek" book I have read, it stands alongside such acclaimed "Doctor Who" novels as "Venusian Lullaby" and "Human Nature" in transcending the limitations of media tie-in novels and resonating longer in the reader's memory than many works of "serious literature".

This is the first of a series of Star Trek books that Ms. Duane has written, and it introduces a completely new dimension to the characters we've come to know through the Original Series. What do I mean by that? Simply put, Ms. Duane's exquisite prose allows the heros to jump right off the page and become quite real. We get to see how Kirk really feels about his staff, or how crotchety yet caring McCoy is with the crew; we see how talented Uhura, Sulu and Chekov can be -- but were never given the chance during each episode. Above all, we are given incredible insight into how the crew of the Enterprise pulls together during a mind-boggling crisis. Want to read the best TV Episode that never was? This is the one. Trust me, you'll be hooked!

Diane Duane has always been a favorite of mine for both her believable characters and wondrous dialogue... and this is beautifully showcased with a powerful and thought-provoking story. Just about every one of her novels that I have read has given me shivers at some point in the story, and this one is no exception, even with multiple readings. The only problem I have with this book is that a lot of other "Trek" novels fall far short of the standard of this one, and the movies are disappointing too. I wish that the screenwriters could ask for her assistance with dialogue at least....