Spock Must Die!: A Star Trek Novel

by James Blish

Book Overview

An unexpected Klingon attack has put the Federation in deadly peril and forced Kirk to take an unprecedented gamble. But the experiment fails when a freak transporter malfunction produces two Spocks... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0553246348
• ISBN13: 9780553246346
• Release Date: March 1985
• Publisher: Spectra Books
• Length: 128 Pages
• Weight: 0.19 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 4.7" x 6.9"

Customer Reviews

The Blish Adaptions

When I was a kid and the show was entering syndication and apparent oblivion, I read (and still have) the Blish adaptations (Books 1-11), as well as the new novels and "The Making of Star Trek". I even relished the animated series, such as it was, when it arrived on Saturday mornings. I hope that the new Star Trek movie will allow the Blish novels to finally hit the big screen. As for "Star Trek: Enterprise", I never saw it at the beginning, and therefore could not get into the characters. Once it was almost done, I got the DVDs and found that the story lines were quite good. My personal opinion is that the series was just never properly advertised. At least Trineer went on to be a great Wraith.

Chirality of molecules

I remember reading Spock Must Die back when it was first published. I thought its explanation of how some molecules come in different mirror image configurations was a big help in understanding stereoisomers when I took organic chemistry in college. I now tutor chemistry and I wish I had a copy of this book to help explain the concept of chirality to my students. It would be great if they would republish it someday.

Great Story, although it doesn't fit in with the rest of the StarTrek universe

I read this book years ago. It was the first StarTrek novel I'd ever seen. I bought it back in 1970 at the tender age of 16. I thought that the story was great. The plot was geared for the young Sci-Fi fan with just the right mix of techno-babble and human (vulcan?) interest. While it's not a piece of classic literature, it is a great story.

Maintains continuity with the series

This novel is more like the series than any other that I have read. Blish wrote many of the screenplay-to-paperback adaptations. His wife wrote the rest after his death. Blish had the feel and the taste to do justice to the series. Most of the authors who penned the myriad novels that followed, were too nerdy and lacking in scientific creativity to meet the high standards set by the writers who penned the screenplays. The plot goes roughly like this: Spock is duplicated by a force unknown to the crew of the Enterprise. Which Spock is the original and which is the copy? Was the duplication a freak accident or are sinister forces involved? Read the book to find out.

A Star Trek Novel - The original Star Trek Novel

It is so good to see this book republished.As a collector of Sci-Fi and other paper backs I always feared that this masterpiece would be lost forever. To be truthfull it is not the best ever Star Trek novel ever printed, but it was the first! It almost certainly created the written Star Trek universe.A MUST read!The original cover is magic: A STAR TREK NOVEL, SPOCK MUST DIE, By James Blish, An exciting new adventure of interplanetary adventure.Go on - Buy it ( but it only cost me 25 English Pence for my copy, published 1970 Bantam Books ). If you think that you collect Star Trek books then you can only believe in it when you have this!