World Famous Comics: Star Trek: Terok Nor: Day of the Vipers (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)
Star Trek: Terok Nor: Day of the Vipers (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)
By: James Swallow Publisher: Star Trek Average Rating: Binding: Mass Market Paperback Label: Star Trek Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 528 Publication Date: March 25, 2008
Product Description: Before the Dominion War and the decimation of Cardassia...before the coming of the Emissary and the discovery of the wormhole...before space station Terok Nor became Deep Space 9™...there was the Occupation: the military takeover of an alien planet and the violent insurgency that fought against it. Now that fifty-year tale of warring ideologies, terrorism, greed, secret intelligence, moral compromises, and embattled faiths is at last given its due in the three-book saga of Star Trek's Lost Era...
A seemingly benign visitation to the bountiful world of Bajor from the resource-poor Cardassian Union is viewed with cautious optimism by some, trepidation by others, and a calculating gleam by unscrupulous opportunists. What begins as a gesture of compassion soon becomes something very different. Seen through the eyes of participants on both sides -- including those of a young officer named Skrain Dukat -- the personal, political, and religious tensions between the Bajorans and the Cardassians quickly spiral out of control, irrevocably shaping the futures of both worlds in an emotionally charged and unforgettable tale of treachery, tragedy, and hope.
The Story of Bajor's Occupation Finally Told Terok Nor Book One: Day of the Vipers is the strongest of the three part trilogy and tells the story of how Bajor came to be under Cardassia rule for fifty years. A lot of the characters we meet have already been seen in various DS9 episodes while others are created and established in this book. The writer sets up the story very, very well with the characters being well established.
We finally get to know the reason why Terok Nor (later to become DS9) was built and the rise and fall of Gul Dukat. The book has many different things going on at once that at times, it is hard to remember who's who and what's what but the book is pretty violent with lots of action.
This is not your typical Star Trek book as it does not have any of the regular characters we have come to know and love. It is essentially a book about Bajor, it's history, culture, religion and why it became occupied by the Cardassians.
In the end though, Day of the Vipers is a must read for any Trek fan who ever wanted to know the story behind Bajor's occupation.
A Great Beginning... This is MUST read for fans of Deep Space Nine and especially for those who want to see how it all went down with the Occupation. Most Bajorans are as naive as you'd think and the Cardassians are equally as ruthless and calculating. This is a slow build towards domination but we know how it all ends. It's how we get there that is magic for this book. Well conceived and a top choice for any serious Star Trek fiction fan! Welcome to the fold, James Swallow!
Disappointing DS9 is one of my favorites of the Star Trek franchise. I was looking forward to this series and really wanted to like it. The biggest drawback was the characterization of Dukat.
In DS9 he can be charming, intelligent, and a monster all at once. In other words he's a socio/psychopath. In the TV series this gradually comes to light. It's also surmised it developed over the years; not from day one. In this novel he has this burr under his saddle from the beginning. He's mad at everyone and it shows. This is not a guy who could win loyalty from the likes of Damar or seduce a wide array of women.
This novel is realistic in showing how a world can fall into subjugation. It's depressing as all get out. The creation of the character, Darrah Mace, works by showing the Bajoran Everyman.
I will read parts 2 and three.
Excellent Read This is an excellent novel that's very well written. It fills a gap most of us who have watched DS9 have wondered about for years. Reading it is a lot like watching one of those old black and white horror movies. You know the monster is coming and you know what's going to happen is going to be bad and the characters have no idea. The threat of the Occupation lingers so heavily over the book and adds another level of intensity. It's also interesting to see a pre-Occupation Bajor and how the Bajorans existed before their world was basically shattered. I can't wait to see how this series ends. Very well done.
I'd recommend picking up A Stitch in Time by Andrew J. Robinson for a bit of background reading about the Oralian Way as well.
This Exactly What I've Been Waiting For!!! Deep Space Nine is my favourite series of all time, and the Cardassians have become my favourite aliens (sorry Vulcans!). I found the situation of a military based society having to come to a peaceful coexistence (and even being aided by, in the later years) with the very people whom they had occupied and exploited to be endlessly fascinating and insightful in our own culture (this is what Trek has always done, and what many non Trekkers have missed when they deride the series). This book answers all of the questions about the early years of the occupation of Bajor: why it happened, what were the Cardassians' motives towards Bajor and its people and how they changed, the social unrest in Bajor over their caste system prior to the occupation, the evolution of the future Gul Dukat and his career, how many Cardassians opposed the enslavement of the Bajorans, and how a peaceful people like those of Bajor can be transformed into a bloody guerrilla. Everything that DS9 had left you wanting to know more about in concern to the Bajorian Occupation, the cultures of the Cardassian and Bajorian peoples, and the hopes of both for the future are covered here. This is a well written, awesome book that even the most discriminating Star Trek fan will enjoy. I can't wait for the next two in the trilogy!
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