Yesterday's Son

Star Trek: The Original Series #11

by A.C. Crispin

With the help of the Vulcan leader T'Pau, Spock gets permission to use the Guardian of Forever, a portal through time constructed by a long-vanished race, to venture into the past. On another trip into history, on the planet Sarpeidon, Spock had loved a woman who could not return with him to the future, and now Spock wishes to see the son she bore him, 5,000 years earlier. But a Romulan attack on the Guardian's planet could interfere, unless the Enterprise™ can keep the Guardian out of their hands.

Genres: Star Trek, Science Fiction, Fiction, Time Travel, Media Tie In, Science Fiction Fantasy, Adventure

Hardcover

First published August 1, 1983

About the author

Ann Carol Crispin (1950-2013) was an American science fiction writer, the author of over twenty published novels. She wrote professionally since 1983. She wrote several Star Trek and Star Wars novels, and created her own original science fiction series called Starbridge.

Crispin also served as Eastern Regional Director, and then Vice President, of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. With Victoria Strauss, she founded Writer Beware, a "watchdog" group that is part of SFWA that warns aspiring writers about the dangers of scam agents, editors, and publishers. Writer Beware was founded in 1998, and has assisted law enforcement and civil authorities in tracking and shutting down writing scams.

Crispin, who also wrote a prequel providing the back story for the popular Pirates of the Caribbean movie series, died on September 6th, 2013 at the Hospice of Charles County in Waldorf, aged 63.

She was married to science fiction author Michael Capobianco.

Reviews

[Buggy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Opening Line: "Captain's Personal Log Stardate 6324.09"

A while ago I caught the classic Star Trek episode All Our Yesterdays on late night TV and got sucked right into the story, as well as just how awesomely cheesy the original series is (I really have to watch it more often) Anyways, I happened to mention the episode to my long time Trekkie Mum who found this tie-in book tucked away on a dust covered shelf (amongst hundreds of others)

YESTERDAY’S SON is a continuation of sorts to that original TV episode, playing on the "what-if" scenario that Spock and Zarabeth’s little indiscretion 5,000 years ago (due to Gateway Time travel) resulted in a child. (It seems Starfleet doesn’t issue condoms)

Spock goes back to the planet Sarpedion and using the mysterious time portal meets his 5,000 year old son. Time travel is so much fun, anything is possible, and while this is way out of the realm of what I usually read, I have to say that I enjoyed it. It’s a well written, clever story, capturing the essence of the original series perfectly while giving us a peek into the minds of our favourite characters.

The author obviously knows her Star Trek, managing to include mention of several other episodes along the way which will have Trekkies smiling. There’s a good amount of action involved here including a strategic space battle with the Enterprise outnumbered by the Romulan fleet Go Scottie! and some good old fashioned hand to hand combat too. We also get a ton of Vulcan history - is there like a bible of this stuff somewhere?

All the characters are represented in one way or another, remaining true to form. Kirk in all his Captainly awesomeness, Bones who is less grouchy then I remember, taking on a more father like role here and Spock who I honestly didn’t like very much. His character is cold, heartless condescending and frustrating. Yeah I know he’s Vulcan and emotionless but he’s also an a-hole. We also get a glimpse of some doomed red-shirts and spend just enough time with Scotty, Uhura, Chechov and Sulu to make it feel like a real episode.

Speaking of Sulu, he has one of my favourite lines from the whole book which is only ironic now 20 years later. He and Uhura are discussing how much Zar and Spock look alike

"Have you ever looked into Zar’s eyes?” Uhura leaned forward a little, lowering her voice.

“No--other men’s eyes don’t do anything for me, I’m afraid” Sulu grinned.

Ah yes, the science of Star Trek. Cheers.
285jb4

[Patryx · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sono sempre stata una fan di Star Trek (nonostante gli imbarazzanti pigiamini indossati dall'equipaggio) ma non avevo mai letto alcun libro o fumetto sul capitano Kirk & co.



Tra i miei personaggi preferiti ci sono il signor Spock e il Dr. McCoy che in questo libro hanno un ruolo centrale. Il libro si legge velocemente ed è piacevole (non me lo aspettavo!) ma l'ho trovato poco verosimile: non perché si tratta di fantascienza, ma piuttosto per la capcità di adattamento del personaggio principale e cioè il figlio di Spock; capisco che i geni vulcaniani sono di primissima qualità e rappresentano di per sé una garanzia di successo, ma qui l'autrice ha certamente esagerato. Il finale è abbastanza scontato e prevedibile ma questo non toglie nulla al piacere della lettura.

[Clint Hall · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the fourth (fictional) Star Trek book I have read to try to remind myself of the good ol' years of Trek. And I find it difficult to review.

In my mind, I have created certain criteria for how a Star Trek novel should read. Do the Seven Wonders of the 60's have accurate voices? Is the story science-y? Is the story fun and exciting? Does it satisfy my hunger for more episodes of this cancelled series? Well, let me tell you, this book nails the voices of the characters, and feels like you're watching an episode of the show back in the 60's--a forgettable episode, though.

That isn't necessarily a bad thing. You can only watch "Amok Time", "Mirror, Mirror", "Arena", "The Enterprise Incident", "The Doomsday Machine", etc., so many times before you go back to "Charlie X" because you can't quite remember what happened in it when you last watched it ten years ago. And that's what this feels like: "Charlie X", except with Spock in the father role.

Give it a read, if you're a Trekkie. You won't hate it. Maybe you will read it again in ten years.

[Jerry (Rebel With a Massive Media Library) · Rating 4 out of 5]

The late A.C. Crispin lives on through her sci-fi works, such as this one, which I enjoyed.

[Oleta Blaylock · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love any book that has a good portion of the story dedicated to Spock and/or Vulcan. This is the story of the son Spock and Zarabeth had following the ALL OUR YESTERDAYS episode. It is quite a surprise when Spock realizes that he had a son and that he surviving on a planet in the middle of an ice age. While there isn't a great deal about how Spock really feels he is affected much more than he ever has been. It is wonder to watch Zar learn about the Federation and his father. Unfortunately Spock start off like his father must have been with him as he grew up and left for Starfleet. Luckily both men finally come to an understanding of each other. There are a few sad parts to this story and I think that is becoming part of any story involving Spock and his family.

It is always nice to read any adventure that involves all the Enterprise crew. It would so nice if there was actually some place that was actually like that in the real world. This story is a wonderful distraction from the worries of everyday life and it is a quick easy read. I look forward to the follow on book TIME FOR YESTERDAY.

[Nadienne Williams · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm becoming increasingly convinced that the Romulan Empire does not represent a credible threat to the Federation. This is the second book which indicates that they are resource-poor and economically backward. In the last installment (Book #10), nearly 1/3 of the population of the Empire had died from Space COVID, and in this one, at least 15 Romulan Ships are destroyed, as they are otherwise incapable of taking on 2 Constitution-class Cruisers, not to mention a reference to their scientific technology being significantly behind that of the Federation. It's a wonder that they haven't been conquered by Risa at this point. It would be like the United States being directly threatened by, oh let's say, North Korea, or maybe Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan...oh, wait...maybe they are actually dangerous...lol

At any rate, Spock apparently had a kid with Zarabeth in the TOS episode "All Our Yesterdays" and learns about it from a 5,000-year old cave painting, which causes him to use the Guardian of Forever to retrieve his child, and hilarious hijinks ensure...actually, it's more Spock being an absolute asshole to his child for some reason, and then his child eventually deciding that he doesn't belong in the modern time and returning to Sarpeidon 5,000 years ago, via the Guardian, and becoming a leader who ushers in civilization to the planet, all the while, the Romulans are yet again invading Federation space, this time to find out why the system named "Gateway" is of such importance to the Federation (spoiler: they don't).

Totally pass-up-able.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Note: I listened to the abridged audio recording.

If you watched the Star Trek episode, All Our Yesterdays, you will find this book a good sequel. I enjoyed listening to the audio production of this story.

Content notes: Some minor cussing and illusions to sexual activity.

[Ute · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one is a classic, isn't it? Well, I never liked the episode it was based on much. It was a (lesser) repeat of This Side of Paradise that didn't make much sense. But the two books that followed were quite good - if you overlook the genetic problem of Spock fathering a child with a woman of another species, but this was his own problem too (I guess back than nobody thought about genetics very much, TV audience were supposed to be stupid anyway). There are a few points that grate a bit, like the telepathic contact between Kirk and Spock in the beginning (what was the point of this? basically none), but it also has a lot of really good stuff. It also offers an explanation who the Sarpeidons managed to go from hunter-gatherers to timetravel in only 5000 years.

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. The idea behind it is pretty cool. Love these tie-ins with the old series.

[Katie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nope nope nope nope nope

[Lesr · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was pretty good!!!!

I appreciated the adventure was quick.
There were a few sentences I didn’t understand why she would word them that way, but it was written a while ago so perhaps that had something to do with it.
Don’t think one, in particular, would fly.

But the story was very very fast paced and I prefer that to very slow.

For my first star trek story, issa win.

[Lyndon · Rating 3 out of 5]

See my update for the review. Just okay.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two years after the U.S.S. Enterprise's visit to the dying planet Sarpedion, a young crew member finds evidence that, when transported to the past during his time there, Spock fathered a son. Determined to rescue the boy and his mother, Spock, Kirk, and McCoy use the Guardian of Forever to journey to the planet's prehistory, where they meet Zar, Spock's son, and bring him back to their time. Though Zar acclimates quickly to his new surroundings, bonding with his father proves difficult until an incursion by the Romulans forces the two to work together — and Zar to confront his future.

A.C. Crispin's novel was one of the first of the Star Trek Pocket Books series that I read, and one of the ones I remembered most fondly. I was a little worried that revisiting it would cheapen my recollection; instead it only deepened my appreciation of what the author achieved with it. Crispin manages to achieve an ideal balance between the original series (integrating details and characters from five episodes) and her own creations for the book. Foremost among the latter, of course, is Spock's son Zar; while not an original idea (with the introduction of Kirk's son in the movie Wrath of Khan predating this book by a year), he is introduced in a way that is extremely faithful to the series. Yet the strongest element of the book is Zar's relationship with his father, which manages the difficult trick of being emotionally moving while remaining true to the depiction of Vulcans. Taken together, it makes for a model of what a Star Trek novel should be, setting a high bar for the many works that followed.

[Sheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a fan of the Big Misunderstanding plot, but it bugged me less this second time through (I was re-reading before tackling the sequel). It's not the main plot by any means, and it's a fairly reasonable mix up. On the whole, the plot buzzes right along, the action keeps my interest, and the original character (who is as important as any of the series characters in this book) is likeable enough.

[Clay Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book with good call backs to episodes of the orginal series.

[kitkat · Rating 4 out of 5]

8/8/19 second read through this time listening to the audiobook. I originally gave it 5 stars... I’m gonna now give it 3.75 ✨

[Joe Santoro · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'd call this one good, not great. I love that it piggy backs of actual episodes of the show, and FEELS like it could definitely be an episode in the series. The author definitely nailed Kirk, Spock and McCoy as characters, but definitely portrays their relationship as a closer than I picture it. Such things, of course, are always subject to interpretation.

As many Trek novels do, the author creates a character, then the book makes it so we'll never see them again.. leaving the property the way they found it. I was a bit disappointed (but not surprised) by that. It's a perfectly logical way to keep continuity intact (if you never change anything), but some things are always a bit weird about it. It seems like the Enterprise gets serviced or re-fitted in every one of these books.. the '5 year mission' must be at least 15 by now ;).

I also though the relative power of the ships were off... I feel like in most episodes of TOS, a Warbird was close to on part with the Enterprise (certainly 2 would be) where is here the crew were unfazed at 3-1 odds, and fought pretty successful with a squadron of 10 against the Enterprise and one other ship. Again, though, such things are difficult, and it wasn't explicited stated WHAT sort of ships anything were (definitely the space battle was incidental to the story), just felt odd.

That's certainly not the author's fault though, just the foibles of a shared universe. She's definitely a good writer.. .I'm intrigued at what the sequel will contain.

[Francisco · Rating 4 out of 5]

This Star Trek novel is the debut of A.C. Crispin, who would go on to write a number of Star Trek and Star Wars novels. It is actually a pretty good story. We find here that Spock actually has a lost son, lost because he doesn't know about him until some archeologists see something in the Guardian of Forever which points to Spock having impregnated a woman in one of his time travels (in the events of the TOS episode "All Our Yesterdays").

As a little recap what happened involved time travel and Spock reverting to a more primitive self in a doomed pre-historic world. That explains why he would have had sex outside of Pon Farr. The story here is good because it focuses a lot on emotions or lack of them. Spock feels an obligation towards his child, but he is also cold and distant with him. The "child" who Spock manages to recover is actually already in his 20s and is resentful of a cold and distant father.

Crispin chucks some Romulans into the mix which eventually make Spock and Zar (his son) have to work together leading to a pretty cool conclusion and an overall above average Trek novel.

[Lucas Lima · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cara, que leitura divertida!

Não sou um fã hardcore do universo de Star Trek. Me vejo como um fã mais recente. Conheço a série clássica, adoro os filmes do J.J. Abrams, além de Star Trek Discovery. Portanto, sabia que iria gostar desse livro.

Ele é um tie in de um episódio da série clássica, onde os personagens da Enterprise voltam no tempo para tentar impedir que um planeta seja destruído. Lá, Spock se apaixona por uma mulher chamada Zarabeth. Nesse livro, A.C. Crispin magicamente traz a possibilidade: e se, dessa relação, tivessemos uma criança?

Leitura super rápida, com os personagens clássicos, os inimigos e os mesmos valores positivos e imporantes que Star Trek traz: a convivência entre a diversidade, o respeito a todas as raças e o quão pequeno o ser humano é perto de tudo isso. Livro recomendadissímo.

[Natalie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe it's because I haven't watched Star Trek in awhile, but this book didn't hit me the way I was expecting it to. I thought it would be a home run- my favorite TOG character has a secret son he can spend time getting to know and teaching, all while basing the story off a well-known episode, with tons of McCoy to boot? Sign me up! For whatever reason, it fell flat for me. The story dragged, even though it was only just shy of 200 pages. Spock treated his son with contempt for much of the story, which really didn't make for a decent reading experience. McCoy was more of a father to Zar than Spock was, honestly. I suppose it was mostly in character for him, since it was a sudden shock and he had to be thrust into parenthood, after having to collect Zar through a time-gate near a destroyed planet. I guess I was just expecting more from the story. It would have been better had they shown Zar more of the galaxy, including Earth and Vulcan, and he got to go to the academy or helped on the bridge of the Enterprise or something. As it was, it was serviceable, but forgettable. I'd highly recommend watching the TOS episode "All Our Yesterdays" before reading this book, or you'll be lost.

[Michel Siskoid Albert · Rating 3 out of 5]

I must have been 12 years old or so when I read Yesterday's Son, my first Star Trek tie-in novel. Ann Crispin offers a slim volume (only 140 pages) that serves as sequel to the episode "All Our Yesterdays", revealing that Spock gave Zarabeth (Mariette Hartley) a son in that story. By introducing elements from other stories, including the Guardian of Forever and a known Romulan from the TOS era, she skirts quite close to fanwankery, but I think mostly manages to avoid it, making each reference simply a good use of the established world. Obviously, the draw is seeing how Spock would deal with having a son, and it goes about how well you think it would, with the climax providing a chance for bonding and, amusingly, Spock giving Zar "the talk". The story could have been expanded fairly easily, as some of the action happens offscreen, but it doesn't feel too short. The three main characters are well characterized and Crispin also gives Uhura more to do than usual. A pleasant episode sequel I didn't mind revisiting, in preparation for my reading ITS sequel. Stay tuned.

[Reesha · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun, quick read, with a reasonable (for Star Trek) premise and a very likeable original character. The crew is in character here, and the awkward father-son dynamic is explored with realism.

Zar is an interesting enough character that I'd quite enjoy a spin-off series of what he got up to after the conclusion of this book!

I also love the role Uhura was given in the story. She got to take control a few times and show her command and problem-solving abilities, something that was still far too uncommon in Star Trek novels written by this time.

I'm definitely looking forward to reaching the second in the Yesterday Saga, a ways down the road (35 other books to read, by publication date order, between this one and the second).

I liked it!

[Heylin Le · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to it and loved “Scotty’s” many different voices for the different characters. I especially loved hearing Leonard Nimoy’s voice as well.

[Dan Herrera · Rating 4 out of 5]

very nice read. loved the call-backs to original series episodes.

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked it because the author wrote the fairly decent Han Solo trilogy and it contained time travel. Passable; reads like a solid Star Trek episode. It mimics the same over dramatic tropes, which is admirable in its own way even if it makes the novel as faintly ridiculous as the Original Series it’s aping.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read. Poses the question , if you could alter the past would you? One thing I didn’t love was how cold the author made Spock, I know he restrains his emotions but it went to the extreme. Although, Spock’s son did say, “..although the emotion Zar senses his father felt for Kirk was strong, Kirk was not here, he was.” Even Spock’s son picks up on their strong bond.

[K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Depois do desafio de leitura de 2016 (li 14 dos 12 livros que havia adicionado ao desafio), o primeiro de 2017 é um presente da minha caríssima Karlinne.

E falando em primeiro, foi o primeiro livro com temática Star Trek que li (um universo muito mais interessante que o outro Star não sei o que, aquele conto de fadas sci-fi...) e gostei muito. A história envolve os personagens da série clássica, James T Kirk, McCoy, Spock, Scott, Uhura, Sulu...

Gostei demais da representação do Dr. McCoy, o "magro". Como seria um médico no século 23? O escocês é praticamente uma mãe, sempre cuidando não só do bem estar físico mas também mental dos tripulantes da Enterprise.

Spock também bem representado, mas acho uma pena que ele não ilustre mais espaço na história, sendo um dos personagens principais. Kirk teve seus momentos, mas não me afeiçoei tanto quanto o doutor. Uhura teve pouco espaço, mas brilhou nos momentos em que apareceu.

Zar praticamente tem todos os holofotes, várias vezes protagonista e também personagem com um desenvolvimento interessante.

Me senti como se estivesse assistindo um episódio dessa que é uma das minhas séries favoritas.

[Octavia Cade · Rating 3 out of 5]

A follow-up from one of the original episodes, in which Spock gets an adult son who is brought forward in time from the alien ice age past of his conception. It was an enjoyable, easy read, and Zar was a sympathetic character. I particularly liked his relationship with McCoy, who he seemed to bond with a whole lot easier than Spock. The relationship between father and son was strained at best, but there wasn't a whole lot of tension because I was expecting the reset button, which arrived on schedule and to obvious effect. However, given that so much of the early story focused on Spock, it was a little strange how he almost moved into the background as the story progressed - Zar was very much the main character for most of the book, with the Enterprise crew as much supporting cast as anything. On the one hand this has made for an interesting character study, but on the other I wonder if a more sustained focus on Spock might have made the story more compelling. Still, I understand there's a sequel, so I'm curious to know how that works out.

[Mikael Kuoppala · Rating 4 out of 5]

A.C. Crispin started her long and productive career with a streamlined and compact novel. In “Yesterday’s Son” she takes the classic Star Trek episodes “City on the Edge of Forever” and “All Our Yesterdays” and creates a solid continuations to those tales.

The tale is rather simple in structure, but the focus is clearly and thankfully in prose and character instead of plot twists and narrative gimmicks. We get to follow an original character go through a revolutionary changes in life and this small story of personal development emerges as the soul of the book. This is stylish science fiction that never forgets its characters and conveys a strong sense of the author’s affection towards them.