Doctor's Orders

I’m pretty sure I picked this up because it’s on the list of “Best Star Trek Novels” floating around somewhere on the internet. But I was surprised that it was really, really good! I usually enjoy most of the Star Trek novels I read, but they’re pretty bad on the whole--not this one! The worldbuilding is great! It features three really distinct races that were far too creative to have ever been shown on the show. I loved the way they touched on linguistic difficulties and they way each of them thought so differently than humans. And best of all--there were no Mary Sues! There are several original characters, and none of them really steals the spotlight. Bones himself is written believably and I enjoyed that he got to take the show more center stage for once. Some of the dialog was campy at times, but I don’t really think it detracted from my enjoyment overall. This one was a winner! show less

Diane Duane is one of the better pro writers to expand Star Trek’s original series in novel form, and her name on the cover is generally enough to make me pick up the book. Doctor’s Orders doesn't disappoint, although it’s not without flaws.

The core of the tale is that Kirk, almost on a whim, puts McCoy in command (Unlikely Event #1) while he visits (and promptly disappears on) the newly discovered planet they have been assigned to study. The major difficulty with the study is something Duane acknowledges and something many SF writers determinedly ignore -- the extreme difficulty of overcoming language barriers (including abstract concepts, worldview, and idiom) when encountering new civilizations. (That's been a pet peeve of mine show more for a while in SF, even though one must acknowledge that a novel which takes several hundred pages to get past “Hello” would be a real snoozer.) At any rate, the notion of communication and miscommunication is deep at the heart of this novel before, during, and after the obligatory space battles that erupt when not just one, but two threats arise to darken the skies of this apparent paradise, with the reluctant and inexperienced McCoy in command of the Enterprise.

And here’s where Unlikely Event #2 raises its head -- Duane has come up with a convoluted (and utterly nonsensical) reason why McCoy can't be relieved of command when Kirk disappears on the planet and a Klingon ship shows up with its own agenda. It's necessary for the core of the story that the doctor be pressed into this uncomfortable position and see it through, but one wishes a more realistic justification had been developed. However, it’s almost worth overlooking UE2 to be able to witness McCoy’s verbal sparring with the Klingon ship’s commander.

There's also an odd blooper involving a Klingon shore party seeking the roots of a plant which grows on the planet and an apparent setup that would reveal a connection between the plant and one of the planet’s three intelligent species. Unfortunately, that connection is never developed, possibly because of length restrictions in the Pocket Books' Trek novel template, or possibly because of an editorial or authorial decision to concentrate on the external threat that leads to the usual Enterprise-in-peril space battle. Unfortunately when the dust settles and the Klingon need for the plant is again addressed, it’s suddenly the leaves they need, not the roots (which caused all the kerfluffle a hundred pages earlier).

Whether the reader will forgive the flaws in Doctor’s Orders probably depends on how delighted one is to see McCoy front and center, handling interstellar diplomacy with his own inimitable flair. The major players are present and well-used, but except for Kirk (whose part in the story takes place almost entirely while he’s incommunicado), this is definitely a star turn for an often-overlooked character. show less

This Star Trek book is a showcase for McCoy. While the Enterprise is orbiting a planet the crew is surveying and all is meant to be quiet and dull, Kirk, on a whim, puts McCoy in command for the afternoon. And then Kirk disappears and Klingons show up (natch) and McCoy can't be relieved of command by someone who knows what he's doing (read: Spock) because of StarFleet regs blah blah blah. And then McCoy turns on the badass and performs better in command than anyone expected.

There's a lot of world-building and culture-exploring while members of the crew are doing the planet survey, and those sections of the book are the most interesting. We also get a fairly nifty outsider's view of commanding a starship while McCoy is in command, and show more some of the interiority from McCoy is nice. But at about the two-thirds point, the whole thing just becomes a Big Space Battle, and while it's a well-done BSB, it pales in comparison to the rest of the book. Guardedly recommended to TOS fans for the good McCoy stuff (and some good Kirk stuff, too), but if "Evasive manuevers! Lock phasers! More power to the shields! Blardy blardy blardy" wears thin for you, the last 80 pages or so will drag. show less

I'm no longer pretending that these Star Trek novels keep popping up in my library by accident, or for a dare, now! I love 'em, and this is currently my favourite (listen to me, I've only read four!) Bones McCoy is my second favourite TOS character, and Duane gets his droll Southern humour and friendship with Jim/Spock spot on. I was even amused by the alien life forms which Kirk et al liaise with ('greet, greet, greet'). Basically, Bones has to take command of the Enterprise while Kirk goes AWOL yet again - no surprises, but the final battle scenes were well paced and the captain's return suitably impressive for this fangirl. I can never get enough of the banter between the three lead officers, but I love McCoy's different approach to show more commanding a starship too. show less

The notable thing about Diane Duane's Star Trek novels is that they aren't just good Star Trek novels, they are good science fiction - richly populated with cheerful creative aliens, appropriately loopy plots and worldbuilding, and smart moral dilemmas, with a sort of added bonus of Kirk, Spock and McCoy. I especially like how she writes McCoy, and he gets a starring role in this novel - after complaining about Kirk one too many times, he gets accidentially left in command of a routine survey mission. And then Kirk goes missing, the Klingons attack and that's before the real problems start.

But, really, the swashbuckling in space is not what you read this sort of thing for. The characters are their usual charming selves, and the show more worldbuilding is absolutely excellent - the three alien races whom the crew are surveying are beautifully drawn and engaging, the politicking expertly done. It's gentle, it's very sweet, it leaves you with a a gentle fondness for the characters, which is exactly how things should be. show less

Through a series of more-or-less unconnected events - a mission to study new alien life, a conversation with the Captain, and an unexpected encounter with a hostile ship - Doctor McCoy is in command of the Enterprise when they come under attack.

Generally I don't read tv tie-in books, but Diane Duane is one of my favorite authors, so I decided to give it a try - and I'm glad I did. This is not only an enjoyably Star Trek story; it's also simply a good book. The aliens are fantastic, as they generally are in Duane's books, and the characterization of the Enterprise crew seems spot-on. I did skim through some of the battle scene toward the end, but that was due to a lack of interest, not a lack of quality.

Certainly recommended to people show more who enjoy Star Trek, especially if you happen to be a Diane Duane fan as well. show less

A Diane Duane Star Trek novel is always a treat, for the stories themselves and her excellent understanding and portrayal of the characters' relationships and motivations. This one is especially fine in that regard, when Kirk goes planetside, leaving a reluctant Dr. McCoy in charge. When the captain goes missing and a crisis erupts, the good doctor is forced by regulations to retain command, and his eventual inventiveness in a difficult situation is a delight. Also a delight is the ;At, a rocklike being of surprising power and personality who has a long and fascinating interview with Kirk.