Author: Michelle Erica Green
Date: 1/8/01
Trek Books: Star Trek: Dark Passions Book Two
When we left our heroes in the alternate universe at the end of Dark Passions Book One, Intendant Kira had become Overseer for the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance and had taken control of all trade and shipping in the vast network. Kira has many enemies, including Gul Dukat, Deanna Troi, the allies of Winn Adami who don`t even realize Kira ordered Winn`s assassination, and B`Elanna Torres, Intendant of the Sol system. But Kira also has two things going for her: she has acquired an Iconian portal that allows her to travel to any point in time and space, and Seven of Nine has become her ally and lover. If Intendant Kira weren`t such a needy, greedy person, she could live contentedly as the second most important person in the Alliance, answering only to Regent Worf.
But as we all know, the Intendant places a higher value on her lusts and her ego even than power. When Deanna Troi seduces her, hoping to win back the rights to regional gambling licenses so that she can build a retreat for herself and Worf in the Betazed system, Kira jeopardizes everything to attempt to take revenge against a woman she once loved. In her ruthlessness, Kira sells Seven as a slave, unaware that the Cardassian-reared human is secretly an agent of the Obsidian Order. It appears as if nothing can save Seven, not even her budding friendship with Torres, until Seven encounters a group of rebel miners led by a woman named Kathryn Janeway.
F/F slash fans, rejoice, for although the men are apparently as straight in the mirror universe as they are on regular Trek, the women are much more interested in each other. Deanna, who thinks of Worf as the great love of her life, nevertheless spends most of her energy in Dark Passions seducing Kira—and she does a good job convincing readers as well as the Intendant that her desire is sincere. B`Elanna, who wants to impress Worf and bolster the Sol system, develops a strong bond with Seven, who has already become Kira`s intimate. Unfortunately, lesbian Leeta barely gets mentioned in book two and Ziyal forgets her crush on Winn Adami during the trauma of discovering her true parentage, but there`s still plenty of female bonding.
Janeway/Seven fans will be particularly pleased, for although Seven and her mentor don`t actually get together in Dark Passions, they meet on more equal footing and build a more mature bond than their temperamental mother-daughter relationship on Voyager. When Seven first encounters Janeway, she cannot even speak, having had her vocal chords tampered with by Kira. Yet she manages to win the trust of the older women after Janeway impresses her with her resourcefulness, and by the fact that she never acts like a slave. Chakotay, Paris and Kim are also prisoners in the mining complex, along with Beverly Crusher and Robin Lefler; J/Cers may be pleased to know that Chakotay remains Janeway`s devoted second in command even in the alternate universe, though unfortunately he doesn`t get to say much.
I`m not sure why, but I like Wright`s Seven better than Voyager`s. The two are in analogous situations, since the mirror universe`s Cardassians raised Annika Hansen in much the same way as the Borg reared Seven of Nine, with her individuality subsumed to the violent dictates of duty. Seven retains her childlike vulnerability while performing extraordinary feats, and doesn`t sound like nearly as much of a know-it-all, perhaps because the Intendant and her cronies behave so badly. Although she was born Human, Seven knows far more about nearly every alien species, and hasn`t found much to like about her own kind until she encounters Janeway. The transition seems more natural somehow, more balanced.
The ending is a bit unsatisfactory only because these books precede Deep Space Nine`s "Crossover." It`s hard not to wonder what happened to the balance of power in the months between the events of Dark Passions and the television episodes. But maybe Wright will write a sequel, and get some of the men naked for a change.
Date: 1/8/01
Trek Books: Star Trek: Dark Passions Book Two
When we left our heroes in the alternate universe at the end of Dark Passions Book One, Intendant Kira had become Overseer for the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance and had taken control of all trade and shipping in the vast network. Kira has many enemies, including Gul Dukat, Deanna Troi, the allies of Winn Adami who don`t even realize Kira ordered Winn`s assassination, and B`Elanna Torres, Intendant of the Sol system. But Kira also has two things going for her: she has acquired an Iconian portal that allows her to travel to any point in time and space, and Seven of Nine has become her ally and lover. If Intendant Kira weren`t such a needy, greedy person, she could live contentedly as the second most important person in the Alliance, answering only to Regent Worf.
But as we all know, the Intendant places a higher value on her lusts and her ego even than power. When Deanna Troi seduces her, hoping to win back the rights to regional gambling licenses so that she can build a retreat for herself and Worf in the Betazed system, Kira jeopardizes everything to attempt to take revenge against a woman she once loved. In her ruthlessness, Kira sells Seven as a slave, unaware that the Cardassian-reared human is secretly an agent of the Obsidian Order. It appears as if nothing can save Seven, not even her budding friendship with Torres, until Seven encounters a group of rebel miners led by a woman named Kathryn Janeway.
F/F slash fans, rejoice, for although the men are apparently as straight in the mirror universe as they are on regular Trek, the women are much more interested in each other. Deanna, who thinks of Worf as the great love of her life, nevertheless spends most of her energy in Dark Passions seducing Kira—and she does a good job convincing readers as well as the Intendant that her desire is sincere. B`Elanna, who wants to impress Worf and bolster the Sol system, develops a strong bond with Seven, who has already become Kira`s intimate. Unfortunately, lesbian Leeta barely gets mentioned in book two and Ziyal forgets her crush on Winn Adami during the trauma of discovering her true parentage, but there`s still plenty of female bonding.
Janeway/Seven fans will be particularly pleased, for although Seven and her mentor don`t actually get together in Dark Passions, they meet on more equal footing and build a more mature bond than their temperamental mother-daughter relationship on Voyager. When Seven first encounters Janeway, she cannot even speak, having had her vocal chords tampered with by Kira. Yet she manages to win the trust of the older women after Janeway impresses her with her resourcefulness, and by the fact that she never acts like a slave. Chakotay, Paris and Kim are also prisoners in the mining complex, along with Beverly Crusher and Robin Lefler; J/Cers may be pleased to know that Chakotay remains Janeway`s devoted second in command even in the alternate universe, though unfortunately he doesn`t get to say much.
I`m not sure why, but I like Wright`s Seven better than Voyager`s. The two are in analogous situations, since the mirror universe`s Cardassians raised Annika Hansen in much the same way as the Borg reared Seven of Nine, with her individuality subsumed to the violent dictates of duty. Seven retains her childlike vulnerability while performing extraordinary feats, and doesn`t sound like nearly as much of a know-it-all, perhaps because the Intendant and her cronies behave so badly. Although she was born Human, Seven knows far more about nearly every alien species, and hasn`t found much to like about her own kind until she encounters Janeway. The transition seems more natural somehow, more balanced.
The ending is a bit unsatisfactory only because these books precede Deep Space Nine`s "Crossover." It`s hard not to wonder what happened to the balance of power in the months between the events of Dark Passions and the television episodes. But maybe Wright will write a sequel, and get some of the men naked for a change.
