One of the things that makes the Original Series of Star Trek so great, especially in the books, is the sheer believability of the whole thing. This is one of those books which manages somehow to squeeze in everything you'd expect from an episode, and more. Recently I've read quite a few ST:OS books, which I got as a job lot, and I've been quite disappointed, and left this one to last because I knew that if I read this one, there were three others I'd have to read. BIG MISTAKE. This should have been #1 in the list!
The story is absolutely amazing, as far-reaching as any of the
film plots, and as well executed. This is a Star Trek tour-de-force. As you progress through the story, you'll find your heart
beating faster as the pace hots up. In other parts, you'll find
yourself puzzling what's really going on. I think you'd call this book a "real page-turner".
For me, I always wondered what happened after that game of chess where spock loses, or what some of the other starships in Star Fleet looked like, or what the internal politics of the Romulan Star Empire was really like. This book fills in so much of the background, the mental imagery created makes you firmly believe you've watched an episode.
By the title, I'm not giving away any state secrets in saying that the focus of the book is the Romulan Star Empire. The romulans have cropped up all over the place, but never have they been dealt with, with such care and attention. For one, they all talk romulan! And you don't need subtitles to figure out what they're saying. The writing style is absolutely formidable. It's precise, clean, effective, and leaves you in absolutely no doubt what's going on.
The humour from the episodes is precisely replicated in the book, and will have anybody who has ever seen the Kirk-McCoy-Spock trio have a verbal sparring match, chuckling away. Nor does it over-do it, like some of the other books which try too hard.
If you like Sci-fi, and have, in any way, enjoyed Star Trek, this book must be a first port of call. the sheer quality of
execution is brilliant. I am looking forward to the next three
books.
