Review of
Rise of the Federation: Live by the Code
Published:
March 2016
Reviewer Rating:
Avg User Rating:
(3.57)
Honestly, there's a lot going on in this book! And that's actually a good thing! Principally, Bennett continues the stories from two television episodes of Enterprise ("Dead Stop" and "The Breach") and brings them to worthwhile and satisfying conclusions. Bennett has been excellent at picking up these plot threads and building on them to create rich stories that are deep and compelling to read. I've really enjoyed the comprehensive plotting he does to include so many elements from disparate sources to create a really unified Star Trek universe.
I love that a big section of this book was devoted to Phlox. He hasn't seemed to get the greatest exposure or use in the novels, so this was a real breakout. It expands not only on his character, but on the culture and complete nature of Denobula which we were never able to see on television. This was a fun piece of world building that I am glad we get here. We also get more growth for Phlox himself as the story of the Antaran conflict is expanded and his role in the acceptance of the two peoples is truly revealed. We also get to see more of his personal side by seeing him interact with his family (really BIG family), as well as the relationship with his estranged son. Of course that bubbles into a major plot point and explores the idea of hate groups and racism.
The Ware story is kind of tragic to say the least. The book begins with one of the Andorian ships in the task force disabling the Ware on a planet only to cause a major collapse of their civilization. This ups the ante for a resolution to the Ware crisis, but that's not so easily accomplished. It really brings about more discussion about the idea of non-interference, even with the best of intentions.
There's a lot of things to think about in this book, and that's what makes for good science fiction! A really entertaining read that kept me engaged all the way through.
I love that a big section of this book was devoted to Phlox. He hasn't seemed to get the greatest exposure or use in the novels, so this was a real breakout. It expands not only on his character, but on the culture and complete nature of Denobula which we were never able to see on television. This was a fun piece of world building that I am glad we get here. We also get more growth for Phlox himself as the story of the Antaran conflict is expanded and his role in the acceptance of the two peoples is truly revealed. We also get to see more of his personal side by seeing him interact with his family (really BIG family), as well as the relationship with his estranged son. Of course that bubbles into a major plot point and explores the idea of hate groups and racism.
The Ware story is kind of tragic to say the least. The book begins with one of the Andorian ships in the task force disabling the Ware on a planet only to cause a major collapse of their civilization. This ups the ante for a resolution to the Ware crisis, but that's not so easily accomplished. It really brings about more discussion about the idea of non-interference, even with the best of intentions.
There's a lot of things to think about in this book, and that's what makes for good science fiction! A really entertaining read that kept me engaged all the way through.
