Deep Space Nine’s The Soul Key: Another Piece Of A Larger Puzzle That Stands Up!

The Good: Well-written, Engaging, Sense of movement/development
The Bad: Largely focused on characters with little empathy from readers, Technique is annoying at times.
The Basics: Fun, but very self-referential, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine The Soul Key wraps up the Iliana Ghemor story!


For those who might not know – and my wife and I had a discussion about this this morning when she revealed to me that she did not think I was as much of a science fiction geek based upon our first few communiqués – I am a big fan of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (reviewed here!). In fact, I am a big enough fan that it is almost shocking how ling it has taken me to get into Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Season Eight, which is happening in novel form. As the books have developed and the characters from my favorite television show have progressed, I have been more wary, much the way I suspect some fans of Buffy The Vampire Slayer are about the continuing effort with that franchise in comic book form. Still, I may be late to the party, but Season Eight of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is continuing and the nineteenth adventure has finally arrived (I had no conception how late I was until I counted up the book list at the front) as The Soul Key.

The Soul Key is a misleading title to the book, as it implies that the artifact in the title might be even remotely important to the story and it, shockingly, is not. Instead, The Soul Key continues the story of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and it does so with a self-referential tint that makes it rather inaccessible to anyone who hasn’t been keeping up with the books. As such, it is a very true sequel to Olivia Woods’ previous Star Trek: Deep Space Nine outing, Fearful Symmetry (reviewed here!). This novel picks up – sort of – right where the other one left off and it continues, possibly concludes, Pocket Books’ obsession with the Mirror Universe. As such, this is a very true sequel, but at the same time, it actually manages to hold up pretty well as its own work for those who might not remember the content of Fearful Symmetry as well as they ought to.

What makes The Soul Key difficult for fans of the series who have been keeping up is that much of the book is spent filling in gaps from prior installments and as a result, there is the sense that this is finally putting specific puzzle pieces together to allow readers to finally understand events they have read in other stories. And while most of that works, some of it is a little annoying or just plain sloppy. But before Olivia Woods is criticized for being sloppy – in truth the only real example that comes instantly to mind is in Chapter 16 (beginning on page 224) – most of The Soul Key is based upon a clever idea and is rewarding because it finally resolves dangling elements of the story of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine while building something bigger. The Epilogue, though, is also annoying because for some of us who have missed prior installments are lost until the very last line of the book and then it is a piece in a completely different puzzle!

Olivia Woods does something the very best Star Trek writers do, which is to tie together elements of the Star Trek universe that were created for single episodes or incidents and makes them have larger meaning or significance. So, for example, the Soul Key itself takes an element from the tragically unpopular “The Storyteller” (reviewed here!) and finally gives it context. As well, in order to truly understand The Soul Key, it helps for readers to understand the Mirror Universe episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and “Second Skin” (reviewed here!). In fact, even more than “The Storyteller,” like Fearful Symmetry, understanding The Soul Key is hinged upon seeing “Second Skin.” The elements that are germane to this book that aren’t in that episode tend to be found in Fearful Symmetry, which makes sense as the characters focused on most in this book were actually introduced in Fearful Symmetry.

With the mirror universe’s Iliana Ghemor advising Captain Kira Nerys to the threat to both universes, Captain Kira and first officer Vaughn have gone into the Mirror Universe to stop our universe’s Iliana from becoming the Emissary there. Flashing back, then, the backstory of Iliana Ghemor is filled in more with her time on Harkoum explored following her escape from Dukat’s private prison. After building a small army and taking control over Taran’atar – Deep Space Nine’s Jem’Hadar officer - Iliana captures Ke Hovath, the keeper of a Bajoran artifact used to keep the Dal’rok at bay over a small village on Bajor. Taking the artifact, Iliana becomes convinced that she can infiltrate the Mirror Universe and open the wormhole there, thus installing herself as Emissary and taking control of the Mirror Universe.

Iliana’s plan, though, is far more self-serving. She wants to use the Wormhole and the Prophets to move through all realities to kill Kira Nerys in each and every dimension. As she manipulates General Kurn with the idea that she can provide a loyal army of Jem’Hadar soldiers from the alternate universe, she works to stay alive and gain access to the Celestial Temple. While her machinations develop, Kira and Vaughn make contact with the Bajoran dissident movement which offers the best chance of thwarting Iliana . . . if only it can keep it together long enough to succeed, an unlikely possibility given that the Rebels in control of Terok Nor appear to have bombarded the Bajoran capital from orbit!

The biggest liability to The Soul Key is that it is so self-referential as to be stifling to those who have not been fans of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. But as a fan, it was enjoyable to see how Olivia Woods managed to tie together the disparate elements of the series in order to create a tense, engaging character study. Unfortunately, the liability is not entirely limited to new readers. Almost the entire book is focused on Iliana Ghemor, a character who Woods fleshed out almost entirely in the prior novel. The character is intriguing and Woods finally makes her make sense, but the end result of The Soul Key is an overall lack of a sense of real consequence to anyone the reader is likely to care about. After all, the Mirror Universe characters are almost all dead and they are recurring guest stars in the overall narrative of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. So, too, is Iliana Ghemor and what happens to her ultimately only matters to most readers for how it affects the characters we care about.

Most notable among these is Kira Nerys, who is Iliana’s doppelganger. Unfortunately, Kira’s growth is stiflingly small in this book and most of it is related to her dealing with the Taran’atar. Taran’atar actually has a fairly decent arc in this book as he makes the inevitable leap from Iliana’s tool to an actualized character. If nothing else, while the other characters may seem peripheral, Taran’atar finally feels like he has an arc worthy of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Ever an outsider, the Jem’Hadar officer finally comes into his own as a character who is more than just the Deep Space Nine “type.” And Woods gives him an interesting character path one is actually interested in seeing the consequences of.

As for Iliana, the character finally becomes a villain worth watching when she has a motivation – if flimsy – for her plan. Until now, readers have seen the effects of her machinations, but not known why she is doing what she is doing. The Soul Key satisfactorily explains that and the sense of revenge is a very classic one.

Unfortunately, because of the gaps in the prior novels, Olivia Woods is left filling in vital pieces of information throughout The Soul Key. For the most part, it works because after the “teaser,” Woods sends the reader back to the gap of time on Harkoum nine months prior where Iliana’s story left off before. Woods then works up to the present day and she does a decent job of painting in the details in Iliana’s story that one needs to make sense of the convoluted machinations the character is engaged in. This sense of telling the story as details become necessary becomes problematic when the reader reaches the “present” and Woods seems stuck with her own technique. So, for example, in on page 224 a line comes up mid-chapter that is instantly flashed back for several pages from and the reader has to work back up to the line and it seems more sloppy than a matter of technique. So, it works when Woods clearly labels the timeframe and jumps around, but when she jumbles the times up within a chapter, it seems less engaging and more confusing.

And things are confusing enough in a book with two Iliana Ghemors, at least one of whom looks like Kira Nerys! But for those looking for a good character study, The Soul Key is a pretty classic revenge tale with a madwoman who is bent on manipulating two universes out of her sense of injustice. Woods does what all of the best writers working in the Mirror Universe do, which is to bring familiar characters into play in the alternate universe with little twists and readers will delight at the way she places Martok, Kurn, Entek and Dukat in the Mirror Universe.

And if this sounds very confusing, it is because The Soul Key is exactly what it promises to be, a science fiction adventure set in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine franchise. It is not designed to be overly accessible to those who do not know the television show. That said, if one has read Fearful Symmetry, it is remarkably easy to follow and is quite enjoyable.

Finally, for all of my problems with moments of sloppy narrative technique, Olivia Woods deserves a lot of credit for her level of diction throughout The Soul Key. Instead of making the language more adult-oriented by including curses in made up languages, she peppers the books with words that are a higher level of diction than most Star Trek novels. There was even a word I had to look up (I can’t even find it now, but it impressed me that Woods was writing at something above a high school level of vocabulary).

Anyone who likes science fiction and alternate identity stories will enjoy this, but it truly is only for the fans. But those who might have been more lukewarm to Fearful Symmetry will find this justifies their faith in Olivia Woods and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

For other books featuring Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, check out my reviews of:
The Best Of Deep Space Nine – Mike W. Barr
Twist Of Faith
Millennium – Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens

7.5/10

For other Star Trek books, be sure to check out my specialized Star Trek Book Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2012, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Somewhere In The Middle Of A Convoluted Story, Fearful Symmetry Underwhelms On Its Own.

The Good: Interesting plot, Strong sense of knowledge of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Cool gimmick
The Bad: Light on character development, Predictable, Terribly incomplete story
The Basics: In a VERY weak recommend, Olivia Woods sets to cleaning up the mess from the last Star Trek: Deep Space Nine novel while telling the story of Iliana Ghemor.


It has been quite a while since I picked up a Star Trek novel. I stopped collecting them when Star Trek: Voyager began and Pocket books began churning out so many books that it became clear they were just in it for the money. That may sound like a silly overstatement of the obvious, but the truth is, reading the first Star Trek: Voyager book, it became clear that the writers were going off original notes for the series; none of the characters sounded like they were supposed to and the book just stunk. I've picked up a few since then, but my time has been pretty limited, so it has been a while . . .

But on my recent trip out to Las Vegas, I found myself absolutely fascinated by Fearful Symmetry, the latest novel in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine storyline. For those unfamiliar with my reviews, I absolutely love Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (reviewed here!). It is my favorite Star Trek series and, to date, my favorite television program of all time. As I understand it, Pocket Books has been given license to freely develop the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine storyline as it has become apparent that it is one of the portions of the franchise that is cinematically dead and buried. Fearful Symmetry instantly intrigued me because it is a book with two covers and no indication of what is inside outside those covers. Arranged like an old audio cassette or record, the book starts with "Side One," as a book with Kira Nerys on the cover. Midway through the book, the story ends and the novel must be physically flipped over to reveal "Side Two," a book with Iliana Ghemor on the cover.

And as I leap into my review of Fearful Symmetry, it is worth noting right off the bat that reading this book on its own is futile for two reasons. First, it relies so heavily on specific information presented in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Second Skin" (reviewed here!) that anyone who has not seen that episode will be so completely lost and unable to suspend their disbelief long enough to even enjoy Fearful Symmetry. It helps, as well, to have seen "Ties Of Blood And Water" (reviewed here!), though for most of the rest of the book, there is adequate explanation or the inside jokes can be safely missed without truly missing anything essential. (So, for example, only the true die-hard fans are going to catch the beautifully obscure reference to Gul Danar on page 95 of "Side Two." In a discussion on how many aliens look like Cardassians and they could be surgically altered with minimal effort, Gul Danar is referenced as being an ideal match for humans, Klingons, and Romulans, a reference that means absolutely nothing save to those who know that Danar was played by Vaughn Armstrong, who appears in various episodes of various Star Trek series' as a human, Klingon, and Romulan - as well as several others.). But even more than being an Alpha Geek in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, it quickly becomes apparent in reading Fearful Symmetry that one needs to have read the other Star Trek: Deep Space Nine novels, most notably Warpath, which immediately precedes this one. Sure, the reader can fudge through the changes in personnel, but all of "Side One" is a reaction to events in Warpath and as a result, it is singularly insular. This has, almost from its outset, the feeling of being a middle act in a much bigger piece and that is carried through to the last pages of both sides.

The problem with Fearful Symmetry boils down to a simple truth: the writers and executive producers of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine earned my trust by planting threads and paying them off, allowing for a few episodes wherein nothing truly happens, but it bridges a larger story. Author Olivia Woods has not earned that trust (yet) and whether she is creating on her own or working from another's larger sense of where and what the Star Trek universe ought to be (Pocket Books, just scanning their current Star Trek reading list, does seem completely obsessed with alternate universes and the Mirror Universe in particular), Fearful Symmetry is a bridging novel and some aspects of what it appears to be setting up are terribly predictable, at least to astute readers (loyal Star Trek: Deep Space Nine book readers, I'd be expecting a casualty in the near future!).

Following an assassination attempt by the station's resident Jem'Hadar, Captain Kira Nerys of Deep Space Nine welcomes home her first officer, Elias Vaughn, only to relieve him of duty for disobeying orders after she was nearly killed. Recovering from being stabbed through the heart, Kira finds herself interrogating a prisoner recovered from Harkoum, Iliana Ghemor. Iliana, however, is not native to this universe, she is the Mirror Universe Iliana and she has made a crossover to try to stop our universe's Iliana Ghemor - who is disguised as Kira Nerys - from entering the Mirror Universe to replace their Intendant Kira, become the Emissary and overthrow the Alliance. Kira slowly validates Ghemor's story and . . . [her story ends, flip the book]

Starting during the Occupation of Bajor, Iliana Ghemor (our universe's Iliana) is raised by Tekeny Ghemor as an artist. She falls in love with an officer who is assigned to Bajor and as a result, she joins the Obsidian Order until she is given a deep cover assignment. Unfortunately for her, her assignment is cut short after she is surgically altered to look like Kira Nerys and she spends the next fifteen years imprisoned, being raped by Gul Dukat.

Yes, it's a thrilling story. Actually, to her credit, Olivia Woods makes two (potentially) good observations in Fearful Symmetry. The first is in the character of Benjamin Sisko as he relates to the Mirror Universe. Woods observes that there is a certain naivete that allows fans to believe that the incursion into the Mirror Universe in the episode "Crossover” (reviewed here!), which happened while a Runabout passed through the Wormhole was a random event. With everything else in his life being orchestrated by the Prophets, Woods rightly notes (in the guise of the Prophets) that it can hardly be considered random that the Wormhole was involved in the crossover. This would be a compelling and actually insightful observation that worked the way Woods wants it to, save for one nagging detail: Sisko wasn't in that Runabout in that episode. The idea that the Prophets were guiding our Sisko to the alternate Sisko only truly works if Sisko were involved in the crossover (which he wasn't). Woods is making do with the best she has at her disposal, but it's still a bit of a stretch.

Sadly, this results in a rather convoluted plot being spelled out over the course of the first 137 pages ("Side One"). The thing is, all "Side Two" then becomes is an explicit explanation of the backstory divined in "Side One." The pieces that are slowly put together in the first half of the book are reassembled in order in "Side Two" and lead to the lack of resolution that sets up the next volume. This allows Woods to make a very neat, if convoluted, connection between Iliana and Kira that works. Borrowing from a few lines of "The Darkness And The Light" and the story of Silaran Prin, Woods connects Iliana and Kira in a very close way.

Unfortunately for Woods, the connection - by that point - is predictable. Many of the things that seem set up to try to surprise the reader, like how much Entek and the Obsidian Order have orchestrated is obvious from the outset to those who are savvy with Star Trek or spy stories. Whether from watching all of Alias or Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, from the moment Woods puts Iliana in a holodeck scenario against her first Bajoran, it is obvious to the reader that the Bajoran is not a hologram. Sorry, it's not a huge plot point and, as noted, it's not a surprise to the caliber of reader who will be engaged by Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

The final problem with Fearful Symmetry is that it makes one big leap that was never made in "Second Skin," a leap that stretches the suspension of disbelief for the reader. In "Second Skin," Kira is used as a pawn by the Obsidian Order because of her resemblance to Iliana Ghemor. Iliana had been surgically altered to appear like a Bajoran, just as Kira is surgically altered to appear like Iliana in the episode. The problem with Fearful Symmetry is that it operates on the premise that Iliana was surgically altered to appear like Kira Nerys. Given Kira's relative unimportance for most of the Occupation, this seems a big leap and it only works in the narrow terms of this plotline. In other words, if Ghemor had been altered to look like Kira, it would have given Tekeny and the agents searching for her something solid to look for, something that they did not have in the television series. In the case of this book, it is explained (rather horrifically and without a lot of respect for the character of Gul Dukat, who is taken from being the smarmy football captain who might date rape the drunken cheerleaders, obliviously believing that they wanted it to an outright serial rapist motivated by hate), but the answer stretches our suspension of disbelief and seems patently designed to fit the rather convoluted direction this book insists on going in.

And that direction is truncated because this is very much a middle act and the story is far from complete. Instead, this is a piece in a puzzle and the puzzle continues an obsession with the Mirror Universe that serves only to further convolute the Pocket Books version of Star Trek. After all, William Shatner gave his interpretation of the Mirror Universe in his mini-series that began with Spectre (reviewed here!). This might be a more complete and intetresting vision, but it is no better so far.

Ultimately, I'm giving Woods this one. Despite the typo on page 41 (Side One, hey, my first novel had several so I'm blaming the editors - who still seem to be rushing these books to press - here!), I'm giving Woods the benefit of the doubt, but if the book that follows this one doesn't pay off, I'm coming back for this one. The story of Iliana Ghemor is interesting enough - even if it is a bit obvious - to thrill Star Trek: Deep Space Nine fans with the concept, even if it will have no real appeal to a mass audience.

Then again, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine never did . . .

For other Star Trek: Deep Space Nine novels, be sure to check out my reviews of:
Millennium
Twist Of Faith

5/10

For other book reviews, visit my Book Review Index Page for an organized listing of all the books I have reviewed!

© 2012, 2008 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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