Avatar

by S.D. Perry

Book Overview

A new era begins in the annals of Deep Space Nine... As the story begun in Book One continues, the Federation prepares to launch a counterstrike against the Dominion. Searching for a way to prevent another galactic holocaust, Colonel Kira is forced to make a choice between being true to her faith and being true to her loyalties. Meanwhile, as the combined crews of Deep Space Nine and the USS Enterprise struggle to stop a treacherous plot from destroying...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0743400518
• ISBN13: 9780743400510
• Release Date: May 2001
• Publisher: Pocket Books
• Length: 234 Pages
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 4.2" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

Really the launching of Season 8 DS9. No ending!

I loved the way this book ended. It did not wrap everything up in a neat little package, but rather ends with the words: The Beginning. Since that is what these books are. They are the beginning of the DS9 relaunch, and are set up as an introduction to new characters who have replaced those gone on (Worf, O'Brien, Garak and Rom make no appearances at all. Odo is talked about and briefly seen in action, and Sisko...well there's mystery surrounding that guy!). Other people have had problems with the way the book ends, but I loved it. A reviewer said that Book 1 could have been the opening episode of DS9's eighth season, and I completely agree! Book 2 would be the continuation of the season premiere, and WHAT A CONTINUATION! Book 2 is much better than the necessary Book 1. All the new characters are well flushed out and relationships are solidified (Ro and Kira; Dax and Bashir; Vaughn and everyone; ch'Thane and Nog; etc.). The plot quickens and the truth behind Kitana'klan's statements is revealed... with a neat twist. I can say for sure that I want to keep reading the rest of the "episodes" in the DS9 relaunch. The way they are set up (the other books that is) is that they flow from Avatar in a sequence so that there's great continuity! "Abyss", Bashir's section 31 romp continues where Avatar left off, and it's good to see that it doesn't bother reintroducing everyone, but assumes you've read Avatar and know the deal. For this reason, I love that Avatar does not get wrapped up, but leaves itself open for plenty more books (which were subsequently written). I especially like the manner in which the idea of exploring the Gamma Quadrant opens up.Problems: One will have to ignore the Dominion Books (1 & 3) since it contradicts Ro and Picard's relationship. Personally I liked how it was dealt with in this book (and I liked how it clears up why Ro didn't got to a Federation penal colony). However, it cheapens the Dominion Books which saw some great action for Ro and Picard... so you be the judge if you can deal with the HUGE discrepancy.Missed Opportunities: Seeing the TNG crew in action!!! Riker does virtually nothing, when so much could have been done, especially considering the Thomas Riker incident! Crusher does a good job filling in as CMO. Troi does a little. But a real disappointment was the lack of any Data dialogue with Bashir (common, seeing an android and genetically engineered human interact would have been brilliant) or even ch'Thane or Dax or others who are curious about Data.The biggest mistake I think was the lack of seeing Geordi LaForge work on DS9's repairs! We learn that O'Brien has kept in touch with Geordi and told him all about DS9's screw ups... so how cool would it have been to see Geordi trying to tackle some of those problems... and seeing the Chief's innovations... and commenting on them and whatnot! That was definetely a missed opportunity.But, ignoring what wasn't in the book, what was in it was excellent. It was good to see

The Deep Space 9 saga continues

This is a review of the two part Star Trek: Deep Space Nine story called Avatar. The only disappointment I with the Deep Space Nine TV series was with the way they ended it. It was a bit anti-climactic, the final episode wasn't well-written, but it also left me really wishing that we could see where the characters would go from there. Thus, I was overjoyed when I saw that Pocket Books was going to continue the Deep Space Nine story, starting with the two book series called Avatar, by S.D. Perry. Was it worth the wait? Was it worthy of the Deep Space Nine name?To quote a famous 60s persona stuck in the 90s, "YEAH, BABY!" Avatar contains a wonderful mix of the characters fans love along with a selection of new characters that have a lot of potential. Perry has come up with a very plausible way for the story to continue, that contains action, intrigue, romance, and personal strife. Probably the best portrayed, though, is Colonel Kira. Kira was one of my favourites on the TV show, and it's a testament to Perry's writing that I could hear Nana Visitor speaking the lines and going through the conflicts that the story puts her through. Kira is so well-rounded (though it does help that the TV show provided a wonderful springboard for this), and Perry paints the angles and the gray areas of the character marvelously. When Kira has to go through a crisis of faith, with the prophecy making her choose between her religious beliefs and what's best for the people of Bajor, I could feel the tension radiating off of the page.The rest of the returning characters succeed admirably as well. Dr. Julian Bashir and Ezri Dax continue the relationship that they formed during the last season of the TV, but they find that interspecies romance isn't always what it's cracked up to be. Nog, the young Ferengi ensign who matured greatly during his fighting in the war, especially when he lost his leg in battle, has become the new Chief of Operations on the station. He's still dealing with the emotional trauma of the war, and it doesn't help when a Jem'Hadar warrior from the Dominion beams on board and claims to be there on a peace mission. All of the characters are very true to their characterization from the series, but Perry expands on that as well. All of them seem real, but they show the ability to grow in interesting ways. I look forward to more character growth in the rest of the series.The new characters are just as good. I found Ro Laren the most intriguing. She's a character from the Star Trek: The Next Generation series, a Bajoran who joined a rebel group against the Federation, but is now the new security chief on the station. She brings a real emotional conflict with her, trying to decide where she belongs, and whether or not she belongs among her fellow Bajorans. She doesn't have the same faith in the Prophets that her people do, and this often puts her into conflict with Kira. I found that Ro's character really stood out in this one, and I th

DS9 begins 8th season in novel form

In May 2001, Pocket Books published Avatar, a Star Trek: Deep Space Nine novel, in two volumes. It's written by S.D. Perry, who has previously contributed two stories to The Lives of Dax and has written the novelizations of Timecop and Virus. Under the name Stella Howard, Ms. Perry has written an original novel based on the series Xena: Warrior Princess.Avatar begins three months after DS9's finale, "What You Leave Behind," and focuses on Colonel Kira's command of the station. A surprise attack by what's left of the Dominion kills hundreds of Starfleet and Bajoran militia officers as well as civilians. As well, an ancient Bajoran text is discovered that incites religious controversy among the populace - one of its prophecies is that the birth of the son of the Emissary (Kasidy Yates' unborn child) will require the death of 10,000. What that actually means will be revealed at the end of the second volume, but several of the more conservative elements of Bajoran religious hierarchy have their own interpretation of it.We meet again a former Enterprise officer who becomes the station's new chief of security, and are introduced to three new characters - Commander Tiris Jast, a Bolian senior officer who commands the Defiant; Shar, the reticent Andorian science officer; and Elias Vaughn, a longtime Starfleet officer at a crossroads in his life.I found both volumes of the novel hard to put down. In the post-TOS era, Deep Space Nine has always been my favorite and I'm glad to see the "8th season" begin with a well-considered blend of action, characterization and thought-provoking issues of religion, culture and society. Pocket Books is taking up the threads of themes begun in Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine quite effectively and I look forward to further adventures in this series.

It sparkles!

I believe that Stephani gives us a taste of the new direction the makers of ST are engaging. Do we love it? Yes, definitely yes. She describes the thoughts of Kira, Ro, Ezri, Julian and the others in such a magnificent way that I had the impression to live inside them as I was reading along. I guess that some people will be shocked by this new vision but they better get used to it for there is no way back after this compelling story full of action, mystery, intimate revelations and twists and turns. We want more of this, a lot more. We want to know how Kira will cope with her fate. How will that old Jem'Hadar fit in on DS9? We want to read about the adventures of Vaughn and Ezri on the brink of exploring the Gamma Quadrant and poor Jake...what is going on in the Wormhole? Please hurry, write...write... Special congratulations also to the graphic artists.. The new look is superb!

Deep Space Nine Reborn!

Well, it seems DS9's story is not yet over, and if the next books in the series are as good as the Avatar Duology, then Star Trek fans have a great time ahead. Set 3 months after the events of "What You Leave Behind..", Avatar returns us to Starbase DS9 (is it the first time DS9 is reffered to as a STARBASE?) and to its key personnel : Kira, Bashir, Dax et al. (not to mention some new characters, some introduced earlier in the comic book series N-Vector). The plot? well, a real page-turner that deals with a newly-discovered ancient Bajoran text which deals with Sisko and Kassidy's unborn child. The effect of this text, as well as its future implications for Jake and Kira (above all others) keep the reader at the edge of his\hers seat and set the stage quite nicely for future tales. The new characters? I, for one , really like the new Jem'Hadar "observer" (and I won't spoil it for people who haven't read the books, but not all is what it seems..). I also took quite a liking to Commander Vaughn - the new soldier "first officer" in much the same way that Kira used to be.. ..quite a reversal, where once this was a Starfleet station with a Bajoran second-in-command, it is now , more than before, a Bajoran station with a Starfleet second-in-command.All in all, a great start to the next phase of Star Trek in general and DS9 in particular. It is actually almost as good as the Millennium Trilogy, which ranks as my all-time favorite Trek story (including ALL incarnations!).HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!