George Zebrowski (1945–2024)

I started this book with low expectations thinking it would be just another rip-roaring space adventure and I must say I was pleasantly surprised. It IS an adventure (a tragic adventure) for sure, but it is also a fantastical lecture on physics and biology, a theological discourse, and an interesting debate on life, the universe, and everything else. Add a bit of dark satire plus a few cheeky cameos from the likes of Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke, and Jesus and his friend Buddha (sort of) show more and you have a pretty cool novel that kept me up way past my bedtime. show less

Every fan of Star Trek knows that the books set in each universe of the franchise are often problematic. Sometimes the story is ho-hum, other times the writing isn’t that good, occasionally, especially with books written early in the show’s run, the writer seems to have no grasp of the characters, and they don’t conform to the crew as we came to know them through television. For these reasons, perhaps 2/3 of the books aren’t as good as we’d like them to be. I’d been lucky with a show more few in the past, but also obtained some that sounded good, and ended up not being so — which I didn’t review. When I had a chance to pick up several at one go recently, I spent a great deal of time researching them, and haven’t come across a dud yet among the several I acquired in both the Voyager and Next Generation universes.

A Fury Scorned in the Next Generation universe had some mixed reviews, but I read enough about it to take a chance on it, and threw this one in at the last second. I’m very glad I did! Pamela Sargent and George Zebrowski have written an excellent book for Next Generation fans, that is no ordinary entry. There’s a real story here, and it’s big. A world is created, and it’s done slowly through the inhabitants so that by the end, we feel for what happens to them. Red Shirts — Star Trek fans will know the term well — are not just there to be extinguished. Some in fact, survive, and when one does go down, we’ve been made through the dense and involving narrative to like the individual Star Fleet officer so much that we’re uttering unpleasant things under our breath when it happens.

The characters we grew so fond of in the show seem very much themselves for the vast majority of A Fury Scorned. There is much less light-hearted banter here than in some books, because this is a more serious “episode” in the Next Generation universe. This doesn’t detract from enjoying the story, however, as the writers deftly draw us into the mood and ambiance of this particular story. With characters so familiar, and perimeters so pre-outlined, it’s difficult to do what Sargent and Zebrowski have done here, which is to write a human-driven science fiction story about a world in need of a miracle, then drop the Next Generation characters and Federation into the mix as the element responsible for the miracle — which comes at a great price.

There is in fact, probably more story here than a lot of fans are used to in the books. It’s layered, it’s involving, and it adds to what happens rather than detract from it. The characters on the world of Epictetus III are shaded in gray, becoming distinct; ranging from selfish to noble, brave to misguided, as their world is bathed in hopelessness. And even once Data comes up with a plan, it’s so out there, and dangerous for both the planet and the Enterprise itself, even Data isn’t positive it will work. With 20 million lives at stake, Picard must weight the danger for not only his own crew, but the lives that might be saved if Data’s extremely risky plan works. And the latter he must way against the handful that they can definitely save and keep the Enterprise safe, against the millions who will die on the planet when the sun goes Nova if he does.

Where many have a problem is Star Fleet ordering Picard to keep from the inhabitants Data’s plan, leaving them so hopeless that some on the planet are committing suicide, preferring to die in a less horrific manner than they are certain to within days. It’s a moral dilemma Picard has on his hands, one he shares with his crew, who all feel the weight of their actions, whatever they decide. It truly is a no-win situation, and there’s no way to cheat it as Kirk did. While on the surface the reasoning of Star Fleet to forbid Picard from giving what may turn out to be false hope to the inhabitants of Epictetus III seems lame, even flimsy, it is exactly like all organizations and entities in any government react — protecting their own backs and own reputation when push comes to shove. Once you realize that, you just get on with the story.

The story gradually morphs from a cerebral study of the morality of choices, to an exciting action story as Data’s plan is put into motion, and not everything goes to plan. There are consequences in this one, lives lost, but a world — for the most part — saved, if still devastated. The ending is exciting, the enterprise crew themselves touched by a deep loss, but there is also hope. It’s pretty terrific in a quiet, almost subdued way, but is somewhat different from most entries in the book arm of the universe. It is only in the last conversation between Picard and Data that I felt the intrusion of the writers’ thoughts and feelings, as it seemed a tick off for the characters, but it’s a minor quibble. Mostly Sargent and Zebrowski stay out of the way of this involving story. They give us real and clearly defined characters, a terrific story, and the crew seem to be the crew we know for the vast majority of this one. This one doesn’t have much light-heartedness, none of the feel-good or humorous moments that might mark it as a favorite, but in this universe I think it ranks among the best as per writing and story and execution. Great stuff, just maybe a bit more story than a lot of readers expect when they pick up a Star Trek book. Recommended. show less

This is an excellent novel. I can easily understand why it was included in the Masterpieces of Science Fiction series from Easton Press. As others have noted in their reviews, Zebrowski considers both the philosophy and consequences of long term incarceration from an extrapolation of the prison industry in 20th (now 21st) century America using an ingenious thought experiment of placing the unwanted, the unrepentant, and those unable to be rehabilitated in hollowed out long term (decades show more long) orbits. There are a couple of descriptions of sexual violence which are difficult to read and in today’s age makes me question why those details were necessary. On the one hand they allow the reader to enter the mind of the incarcerated. On the other, I am not sure I need those images to be with me. So as good as this book is, it does haunt the reader. So why did I like it? The descriptions of the prison, the reasons for building the brute orbits, the consideration of the consequences of life imprisonment on both the guilty (mostly) and innocent (sometimes) are thought-provoking. Is it possible to punish without creating a new crime in doing so? Is rehabilitation of the violent always possible? Is life imprisonment without possible parole... ever... better than death? These are the questions that Zebrowski asks the reader of Brute Orbits. show less

A twilight zone premise that sees virtually all life in the solar system destroyed in the very first pages, and then follows the handful of survivors in a series of vignettes (Chaucer style), in turn taking on various other sci fi concepts from sentient AI to a Jesus clone, to grey goo nanobots and an alien zoo.

Packed so full of sci fi ideas it hits hard for a modest page count, but also suffers a bit from not being able to sustain any one singular story for more than the equivalent of a show more novelette. In different hands this could easily have been a whole Expanse series of books following multiple threads of humanity struggling to survive. show less