DC FONTANA!! Now we're talking!! This was a very fun (though very Jossed now) story that addressed Spock's relationships to T'Pring, Amanda, and Sarek in a way that I found extremely satisfying. It also felt very TOS-y - as one might expect from Fontana. I highly recommend it to anyone who's trying to see how at least one TOS writer thought of Spock!

I always enjoy reading the rare Star Trek novels written by writers from the original series, as well as ones set during Pike's tenure as captain of the Enterprise. In this respect D.C. Fontana's book is a double treat, as she lends her considerable experience as a writer and script editor for the show to tell the story of Spock's first mission aboard the starship. Her characterization is assured, as she adds to the existing base of characters from the original pilot several new creations that provide greater depth to her tale. This crew soon finds itself involved in a series of events — some related, others not — that range from the important to the amusingly mundane, all of which combine to provide the rare sense of the complex interactions taking place in a vessel as large as the Enterprise. It's a testament to Fontana's skills as an author that she makes it all work as well as it does, and when I finished the book I did so with considerable regret that she never returned to the precursor she created for further adventures, for she demonstrated the fresh storytelling possibilities that exist with an Enterprise that contains within it a unique mix of the familiar and the new. ( )

So, not too long ago I watched "The Enterprise Incident", one of my favorite Original Series episodes. While looking into the costuming for the episode (I want to make the Commander's dress), I read a little about the making of the episode, including the creative differences between how Mr. Roddenberry wanted to handle the romantic bits and how Mr. Nimoy and Ms. Fontana thought they should be done. Thankfully, the latter's vision was aired, and made for a very compelling (read: hawt, at least to this nerd girl's heart) scene.

That same reading mentioned this book, saying that it explored how Ms. Fontana envisioned Vulcan romance to play out. So, of course, I had to read it.

Think Star Trek romance novel, without the cheese factor usually involved in the romance genre. The story was good, the writing excellent, and the Vulcan smut alone was worth the price of admission. Mind you, there wasn't anything terribly explicit; all nudity was implication and allusion. But Vulcans are touch telepaths; the imtimate yet not at all explicit possibilities are delightfully vast.

Since I've marked this as containing spoilers, I won't just hint at the bit I didn't like. I saw T'Pris's murder coming from so far away it was amazing. My dog saw that coming, and she can't read. It was terribly, terribly trite. I fussed about it, but kept reading. Ms. Fontana did manage to make that death work as part of Spock's development as a character. It was a good bridge between Spock of "The Cage" and Spock of the rest of the series.

All in all, a very good read :)

( )

The stuff about the young Spock was interesting, the sub-plot about Pike's mission to the planet much less so. And the comic relief with Scotty and his still felt really out-of-place and jarring, considering people on board the ship were being murdered. I'm a little disappointed in this one, but then I don't really follow the books much. Read this one because of who wrote it. ( )

Spock's first mission aboard the Enterprise. And Scotty's too, as it happens. This fine book is a whodunit regarding a long-lost immense emerald treasured by Vulcan, the Glory. But the emotional center of the book is with Spock, still estranged from Sarek, unwillingly bonded to T'Pring, struggling to learn the intricacies of humans and his captain, Christopher Pike. It is also the story of Spock's first love, and told very well and touchingly. There is much here that explains and expands upon Spock's later demeanor. ( )