Star Trek: The Original Series: River of Blood (Errand of Vengeance Book 3) - Kevin Ryan

Title: River of Blood (Errand of Vengeance Book 3)
Author: Kevin Ryan
Published: 2002
Chronological Period: 2266

Available at:
Amazon
Amazon UK

Review:
“River of Blood” is the final novel in Kevin Ryan’s “Errand of Vengeance” trilogy. The novel continues to follow the exploits of Kell aka Jon Anderson, a Klingon spy currently serving on the USS Enterprise. In particular the story is focussed on the defence of Starbase 42 against a Klingon attempt to obtain a large quantity of starship-grade dilithium crystals which are held on the planet below.

I have thoroughly enjoyed this series of novels, with particular interest deriving from the development of the various “lower deck” characters. Therefore it was a little bit disappointing to see that Ryan has changed tack with this book and has pushed the character elements of the story aside in order to create one big action packed finale. This different focus does result in a fast paced and thoroughly entertaining novel but it felt like it was missing something.

Another issue related to this different focus is that Kell himself is reduced to a very minor role. It feels to me like Ryan had maybe developed the character too quickly and was left with an entire novel in which he just had to give the character some sort of ending; an ending which I have to say was pretty predictable. I did note that this does allow Kirk and the main crew to take more of an active role in the story which will I am sure appeal to some people but I was a little bit disappointed as I had really enjoyed the freshness of concentrating on Kell and the other “minor” characters.

Whilst this review does appear a bit negative I do want to clarify that I did enjoy the book, it is a fun read and the characters acted and behaved in a manner I have come to expect. In addition, it was nice to see that whilst the character elements in the novel were diminished Ryan has tried to give all them at least one important moment with Admiral Justman in particular getting an exceptional finale.

Overall, this book is a decent finale to the series with entertaining action scenes aplenty but it was probably my least favourite due to the reduction in character elements and the loss of focus on Kell’s story. The series as a whole has been a wonderful adventure for me and I have really enjoyed its focus on the secondary characters which has given it a very fresh feeling. It is a bit of a shame that this experiment was abandoned and most books have gone back to following the main three crew members but either way I am now looking forward to reading Ryan’s follow up series “Errand of Fury” which continues the story of Klingon-Federation tensions right up until the events of the TV episode “Errand of Mercy”.

Star Trek: The Original Series: Killing Blow (Errand of Vengeance Book 2) - Kevin Ryan

Title: Killing Blow (Errand of Vengeance Book 2)
Author: Kevin Ryan
Published: 2002
Chronological Period: 2266

Available at:
Amazon
Amazon UK

Review:
“Killing Blow” is the 2nd Novel in Kevin Ryan’s “Errand of Vengeance” trilogy that takes a look at the tension between the Federation and Klingon Empire which results in war as seen in the Star Trek Original series episode “Errand of Mercy”. The main focus of the novel continues to be on Kell, the Klingon infiltrator who is current disguised as a human aboard the Enterprise. Kell has come to realise that the way in which the Empire portrays Kirk and humanity as a whole is not accurate, in fact his viewpoint has changed so much that he has ended up in a relationship with a human woman called Leslie Parrish. However, despite his reservations he is still determined to complete his mission and assassinate Kirk.

When I started reading this book I wasn’t expecting much as middle novels in trilogies do tend to be weakest of the three. However, Ryan has managed to continue the overall plotline adequately whilst also giving us an interesting and enjoyable story specific to this novel. There are of course still some elements of the novel dedicated to setting things up for the finale but the inclusion of a specific mission to follow that contains a start and finish ensures that the when you finish the novel you still feel satisfied with the conclusion.

In regards to the writing, the quick pacing and action packed storyline ensures the novel feels like an episode of the TV series with us never dwelling to long on any one area. Also, the loss of red shirted personnel left, right and centre really reinforces that Original series feeling. Probably the only element that really differs strongly from one of the TV episodes is that most of the viewpoints are from people outside the regular cast. These new characters introduced in the first novel continue to grow and provide a feeling of freshness to the Star Trek Universe.

Overall this was an enjoyable continuation of the Errand of Vengeance trilogy which continues to highlight and develop the lives of the “regular” people aboard the Enterprise. In addition, Kell’s personal struggles are well portrayed and whilst we know that Kirk won’t be killed, how Kell’s journey will conclude does remain a mystery and I am eager to see how this will be resolved.

Star Trek: The Original Series: The Edge of the Sword (Errand of Vengeance Book 1) - Kevin Ryan

Title: The Edge of the Sword (Errand of Vengeance Book 1)
Author: Kevin Ryan
Published: 2002
Chronological Period: 2266

Available at:
Amazon
Amazon UK

Review:
“The Edge of the Sword” by Kevin Ryan is the first in a trilogy of Star Trek novels known as the “Errand of Vengeance” trilogy that revolves around the slow build up to war between the Federation & the Klingon Empire as seen in the TV episode, “Errand of Mercy”. This novel mainly follows the actions of a Klingon infiltrator who has been sent to the Enterprise to assassinate Kirk. However we also get to see what is happening to the spy’s brother who is on-board a Klingon ship, witness the events as they unfold at Starfleet Command and finally we get to see what is happening with the main Enterprise crew itself.

First off I have to say that I really enjoyed the book, I specifically appreciated seeing life on-board the Enterprise from the viewpoint of the red shirts within Security. In the TV series they were treated as throwaway characters but here we get to see a group of professional and proud people who understand and acknowledge the high mortality rate but are determined to do their job. This slightly different viewpoint also give the novel a fresh and interesting feeling which was highly appreciated by me as I try and read through the entire Star Trek collection.

In regards to the plot, well it was well-written, exciting and action packed but to me it felt secondary to the exploration of the life of a red shirt and Ryan’s attempts to link various TV episodes and events into his overall Klingon-Federation story arc. This attempt at trying to resolve aspects of the Original Series’ very episodic format into a coherent flow was impressive and worked very well.

As for the characters, well the new ones are all lovingly crafted by Ryan and I found myself quickly coming to like them all. They really do take over the narrative of the story so if you are a big fan of Kirk, Spock and McCoy then you may be disappointed as they felt rather side-lined. Personally, I liked this diversion from standard Star Trek formula, especially as the new characters are all interesting and well developed but there may be some out there who don’t.

One of the weakest aspects of the novel in my opinion however was the way in which the Klingon seems to resolve his feelings on Kirk. I appreciated how he slowly came to accept his fellow Security officers as he worked and fought alongside them but with Kirk it all felt a little bit too rushed and easy. I found it hard to believe that he would suddenly flip his viewpoint in the way he does. In my opinion it would have been nicer and more realistic to see a much more drawn out process.

Overall, this was an enjoyable first book in the trilogy and it was wonderfully utilised to set up the new characters and viewpoint from the Security team. The new viewpoints used by Ryan have resulted in a much more action packed Star Trek novel than I am used but this just helped to increase the feeling of freshness around the entire thing. I am now really looking forward to seeing where Ryan is going to take the characters and the story next.