Spectre

Star Trek: The Mirror Universe Trilogy #1

by William Shatner, Judith Reeves-Stevens, Garfield Reeves-Stevens

Retired and happily married, Kirk believes his adventuring days are over. But as he returns to Earth for the first time since his apparent death upon the Enterprise-B, events elsewhere in the galaxy set in motion a mystery that may provide Kirk with his greatest challenge yet.

Genres: Star Trek, Science Fiction, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy, Audiobook, Space Opera, Space

372 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published May 1, 1998

About the author

William Shatner is the author of nine Star Trek novels, including the New York Times bestsellers The Ashes of Eden and The Return. He is also the author of several nonfiction books, including Get a Life! and I'm Working on That. In addition to his role as Captain James T. Kirk, he stars as Denny Crane in the hit television series from David E. Kelley, Boston Legal -- a role for which he has won two Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe.

Reviews

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first of a trilogy involving conflict between our universe and the Mirror Universe. Some really cool ideas. I liked it quite a bit. Somewhat of a kinder, gentler Kirk, one who is aging and definitely in love. I didn't always love the way the character was going but the changes were not unbelievable. There is a satisfactory conclusion to the novel's story arc but, of course, the book ends on a huge cliffhanger as the second book is essentially introduced. It didn't bother me since I already have the second book and was planning on reading it immediately.

[Wreade1872 · Rating 4 out of 5]

By now the novelty of this 6 book sequence has well worn off and intellectually i still think the ideas in the previous book are my favourite. However this one is an utterly compelling, almost non-stop action adventure.

And at least for once the entire Federation isn’t in the balance. This is a smaller story like Insurrection but like good :P . The fate of the entire universe is not in the balance... at least not this universe ;) .

Kirk by the way is a complete ass in this one, utterly selfish and its pretty human and honest. Funny then that when he does act unselfishly at one point in the book lots of people try to argue against him because it means sacrificing a small number of people to save a greater.
Picard would have made the same decision in a heartbeat if he’d been in the room.. in fact he pretty much does.

This novel crosses over with DS9 and Voyager too in small ways. I think there might be a problem with the Voyager timeline here but i could be wrong.
There’s also an issue with the bad guys plan. We get no explanation why they started it now rather than waiting until all aspects of it where ready to go. Or why they got the Enterprise involved given that the Sovereign was clearly their initial target.

Oh and Data and especially Riker don’t get to do much here, this is especially annoying at one point where they have someone piloting, but this person given their background T’Val, couldn’t have had many (if any) opportunities to fly a starship. So why hell isn’t Data or Riker flying given their availability?

Anyway these are minor issues, as i said i found this to be a real page-turner. In addition i think this is the best attempt i’ve seen to try to make the Mirror-Universe make some kind of sense.
Unlike the previous books which each stood on their own this one is also really a two parter.

Sidenote: So the Mirror-Universe Alliance used in DS9 etc. is clearly an allegorical Germany and Japan during the second world war and given that in this book Curzon-Dax* made that strange alliance happen, it does make me wonder who was ultimately responsible for the seemingly unlikely Germany/Japan alliance in the real world?

*This is a total lie it wasn’t Curzon-Dax that made the Alliance, just my little joke :) .

[Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another book in the insane Star Trek sage that I love to hate, the Shatnerverse. "Spectre" finds Kirk retired with his super sexy Romulan/Klingon wife, living the good life but suffering from ennui. At his wife's insistence, he plugs back into the real world and meets up with some old friends: McCoy, Scotty, Captain Morgan Bateson (Kelsey Grammer! What a fantastic call back!) Kirk is quickly kidnapped by...Kathryn Janeway! And Mirror Universe Spock! And...another vulcan who is revealed to be Mirror Spock's daughter!!!

It turns out, all is not well in the mirror universe, where Tiberius (the mirror Kirk) became an evil emperor, caused the bad guys to join forces and long story short, everything turned to shit. Tiberius was ultimately deposed but it was too late.

Mirror Spock and company came to get Kirk to try and get him to set thing right. The raw ego on this book (just like the previous books) is insane. Here's some highlights:
- Of course Kirk is the ultimate good guy and ultimate bad guy. Of course!
- Janeway throws herself at him.
- Kirk thinks it's a good idea for him to start a new family...in his mid 60's! Just bonkers.
- Picard wants to bone Kirk's wife and comes across as a wuss.
- All of Kirk's ideas are brilliant and save the day...or do they?! Bum bum bummmmmmmm!

These books are complete garbage and I love them. I know Shatner didn't really write them. There's no way he has an encyclopedic knowledge of the TNG universe. However, you can definitely see his ego directing the action behind the scenes. "Now have that alien kiss me but them I'm all like 'no, i'm married.' Yeah, that'd be cool!"

Just the absolute best/worst books.

[Leo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Shatner is no literary genius, but this book was fun. There are a lot of problems with the writing, inconsistencies in the plot, and muddled motivations of supporting characters, but I want to touch on the things I did like. Shatner is most definitely a Trekkie and it shows in this book. He knows the story lines, the Star Trek lore and the characters very well. No one writes Kirk better than Shatner for obvious reasons. In the dialogue (especially between Kirk, Bones and Spock) you can really hear the character's voices come through.

I've always found Shatner's ego entertaining, but I know it's just a persona that Shatner cultivates. It comes through loud and clear in this book with Kirk saving the day page after page. But it makes you feel like you know Shatner better. Kirk is portrayed as wanting to live the simple life, but continually getting drawn into the dazzle of his Starfleet career. You could say the same about Shatner. He does have a normal life beyond the Shatnerverse, but is constantly being drawn back into the Star Trek spotlight. Part of him wishes he could be mortal, but most of him doesn't.

It's good to see that despite dying in the movie "Generations", Kirk is alive and well in Shatner's universe.

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Spectre, like most of the novels of the Shatnerverse, suffers a bit from the ego of William Shatner, in my opinion. It seems that Kirk has to be superhuman and can never have an equal among the people around him. And fair enough, it's written by William Shatner (along with Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens), and his face is on the cover, so it's understandable the story has to be centered on him. However, the TNG crew's "voices" never seem to ring true for me, and the idea of Kirk being this awesome this late in his life strains credibility as the books go on. However, there is enough to like in this novel that I can give it a safe three out of five stars, and the story itself was interesting enough to make me want to pick up the next book, Dark Victory.

Full review: http://treklit.blogspot.com/2018/02/s...

[Cherie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I cannot get enough! On to the next, Dark Victory to see what happens. :0)

[Sean Randall · Rating 3 out of 5]

the mirror Universe is hardly an overdone trek concept, and I can only admire the level of detail that went into the research for the characterisations. It's quite a thrilling read, although everything is Kirk, Kirk, Kirk.

[Lois Merritt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Also found the audiobook for this one - still rather liked it.

-------
7/15/21 - listened to it unabridged - yeah, at times, kind of thought that with this one, abridged isn't a bad thing, but still okay.

[Graham · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent yarn, the Shatner/Kirk ego did get a bit much at times I thought though as Kirk appears to be totally invincible - all the same, it is what it is - and it is a decent book that isn't totally ruined by trekie babble

[Joshua Lemke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shatner knows how to grab a persons attention. While he mostly over-exaggerated his character, like he did in the TV series and movies, he stayed true to the Star Trek fans and have them something they wanted.

[Mike Dyer-Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is pulpy as all heck, and absolutely an ego trip for Shatner as Kirk, but it was nonetheless highly enjoyable. It navigates the various strands of Trek lore it intersects with well, and has some fun sci fi action to boot. Would recommend to Trekkies, not so much to a general reader.

[Jeff Gudzune, M.A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

In every revolution, there is one man with a vision.
--Captain James T. Kirk

In 2267, Captain James Kirk and three crew members from the U.S.S. Enterprise took a trip through the looking glass. Transporting from the planet Halka, Kirk and his party materialized on an Enterprise that was a stark contrast to their own. Instead of the familiar Starfleet Delta, the ship was emblazoned with a stylized Earth savagely pierced by a sword. Spock was sporting a Mephistopheles beard and Kirk was wearing a flashy muscle shirt trimmed in gold bunting—with matching sash. Lt. Uhura was looking fierce in a mini-skirt and hip boots. This was the I.S.S. Enterprise—the brutal hand of vengeance for the Terran Empire.

The Mirror Universe:

Since its introduction in the original Star Trek series, the Mirror Universe has had its own dedicated fanbase. It is the antithesis of the future envisioned by Gene Rodenberry. It’s a reality where man’s baser nature boils to the surface and the id runs unchecked. William Shatner and his co-authors return to this dark reflection of reality in Star Trek: Spectre. What sets this story apart from other forays into the Mirror Universe is its dedication to continuity. This is not the case with many of the subsequent Mirror Universe stories by other authors—including a lamentable anthology series that seemed to just create its own history and recon everything to suit the author’s own view of how things should have been.

Through a Glass Darkly:

Living a peaceful existence on Chal, Captain James T. Kirk wants nothing to do with the politics of the 24th century. His blissful exile is disrupted by the arrival of visitors from the Mirror Universe. Kate Janeway and T’Val, members of the Vulcan Resistance, abduct Kirk and transport him to the Moon. In the ruins of an abandoned base on the Lunar surface, Kirk meets with Intendant Spock—the goateed counterpart to Ambassador Spock. Weakened by illness and despondent at his own failures, Spock points an accusatory finger at the man responsible for it all—James T. Kirk. Shatner and his co-authors paint a tragic and plausible picture of how the political situation in the Mirror Universe changed between its introduction in the original series and its revival in Deep Space Nine. It is the most canonical storyline, as it ties in with what was established in the televised episodes.

Sic Semper Tyrannis:

After convincing Spock that his empire was illogical because it was doomed to collapse, Kirk returned to his reality—wherein, he immediately began flirting with a junior officer (yes…why not?). Mirror Spock convinced Mirror Kirk to spare the Halkans from the death sentence they incurred for defying the Terran Empire. In return, Spock aided Kirk in his rise to ultimate power. Within five years of the crossover incident, Kirk was Commander-in-Chief of Starfleet. Five years after that, he was Emperor. Choosing the regnal name Tiberius the First, he quickly solidified his power base and began one of the bloodiest reigns in Terran history. But it was short-lived. Spock overthrew Tiberius in a bloodless coup and proclaimed himself Commander-in Chief.

Ill-timed Reforms:

Spock demilitarized and reformed the Terran Empire to be more conciliatory and charitable. Tiberius went to the leaders of the Klingon and Cardassian governments and convinced them to help him regain his empire. The result of his machinations was the Alliance—a union of the Klingon and Cardassian people. A brutal intragalactic war followed. A year later, the Terran Empire was no more. Earth was ravaged—bombarded for weeks until it was nothing more than a dying world. Vulcan was ransacked and left shattered.

Caesar’s Return:

Tiberius and several of his generals managed to escape in a sleeper ship, emerging 78 years later to find the empire gone, Terrans enslaved, and Spock living the life of a hunted fugitive. Mirror Spock lays the blame for these abominates on the James T. Kirk of the Prime Universe. Not an overlay fair assessment. True, Kirk did plant the seed of revolution, but it was the Mirror Spock whose actions neutered an empire surrounded by hostile powers. His good intentions were ill-timed and the Terrans and Vulcans were enslaved as a result. Mirror Spock ends his lament with a warning for Kirk—the Alliance is now trying to invade the Prime Universe.

Invasion:

Surveying the Goldin Discontinuity, Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise happen upon a heavily damaged U.S.S. Voyager. Adrift amid the chaotic energy storms of the phenomenon, Voyager sends out a distress call. Commander Tom Paris tells a tale of how they managed to escape the Delta Quadrant with heavy losses. Good intention once again overwhelming logic, Picard orders the survivors beamed aboard. Paris and his crew immediately begin attacking the Enterprise crew—aided by dozens of Cardassian soldiers. The U.S.S. Enterprise falls to the vanguard of an invasion from the Mirror Universe—led by soldiers from the Alliance and their Terran confederates. But who is behind this nefarious plot? What dark force manipulated the Alliance into invading the Prime Reality?

Analysis:

Spectre is good writing and remarkably in-line with established canon as seen in the Deep Space Nine series—even suggesting a point of divergence for the two realities that was later hinted at in Star Trek: Enterprise. The authors were careful to construct a believable narrative of what happened after the famous crossover, filling in gaps with information that many fans of the Mirror Universe craved. The narrative stands out as more original and less pedantic as later works set in the Mirror Universe. Whereas much of the writing from subsequent authors centers around a fantastically unbelievable concept of an “Emperor” Spock and a convoluted long-term plan to sow the seeds of revolution, Shatner’s work is more in keeping with the believable. Its not cerebral, its good fantasy. As an introductory novel to a series, it has all the required elements--even a twist ending.

This book comes from my personal collection, but I am leaving a professional review

[Leo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book breaks all the rules given to the authors of Star Trek novels such as:
Don't bring back to life characters that are dead or should be dead by know, don't mix classic series characters with Next Generations or the characters of other series, don't bring characters to a timeline when they shouldn't be, don't base your novel on episodes from the TV show, etc.
The parallel Universe storyline was kind of over used in the Star Trek Enterprise series and this book came out years before that show, so at the time it may have sound as an interesting idea, but to me it seemed as the cheapest idea to bring back from the old TV show.
The original three books from Shatner that brought Kirk back to life were actually good. At least I liked them better than the idea of the rebook of the classic series in a new alternative timeline for the new Movies. I have to say that I read the book before watching ST Into Darkness and the Shatner verse really felt as Star Trek more than the new movies which were good as Action movies, but were not Star Trek and were not Cannon.
I only give this book 3 stars because it was just passable, but it ended in a cliffhanger, so I'll have to read the next two books in the series.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll give it 3 stars for nostalgia's sake. When I first read the book years and years ago, I loved it. Mirror Universe! Goatee Spock! Alternate history/what-if! But upon reading it now, I see it almost as the ultimate "Kirk is better than Picard" story. Spoilers ahead:





Picard loses his ship right away. Picard is easily fooled by the bad guys. Picard has to be rescued by Kirk several times. At one point, Picard is even attracted (artificially) to Kirk's girlfriend (?) The plot seems recycled from earlier in the series as well. Kirk is trying to figure out his life and has to go to space to find himself. The other problem I have is his love interest, Teilani. She is introduced in the first book in the series and is written as another one of his "conquests" from the Original Series, when he seemed to have a new woman every episode. I don't get the chemistry between them, so when he decides to destroy a prison camp and kill innocent lives because he thinks she's dead, it just seems over-dramatic.

Also, if one more chapter ends with "he faded to the absolute blackness of oblivion" or some similar construction when everyone knows the character is still alive, I might have to throw the book against a wall.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book reads like fan-fiction in both good and bad ways. (Yes, there are good ways to be like fanfic.)

The good ways:
It has tons of "OMG! That is so cool!" moments and weaves in a lot of Star Trek lore. There are appearances by lots of characters and/or their mirror-universe duplicates. I am guessing Shatner had a lot of assistance from his co-authors with the Star Trek lore because I don't see him knowing so much about TNG, DS9 or Voyager (all of which are mentioned and used at some way during the story). The story is a lot of fun and has a good roller-coaster feel.

The book uses the Mirror Universe pretty well.

Now for the bad points:

All of the TNG crew seem to talk and behave out of character. Again, I get the feel that Shatner doesn't know the TNG characters very well.

Kirk is made out to be a little too awesome, while other characters seem to be around to remind us how much in awe they are of him.

Kirk's love for the heroine is put on a little too thick. We are reminded at least once a chapter how much he loves her.


In general, its a fun and fast read, as long as you can look past its flaws.

[Matt Pollicove · Rating 4 out of 5]

So I'm giving the same review to all the books in this part of the "Shatnerverse"

I basically enjoyed them, being fans of his co-authors, Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Judith Reeves-Stevens.

The stories were better than average, and the author / editor team, knew their ST history, touching just about every branch established so far in the "Prime" timeline. I don't remember if there were any Archer era references.

It was pleasant, it was entertaining, it did the job. The books mostly moved along, would have been perfect vacation reads, entertaining, fairly mindless, and some fun moments.

What did tick me off was the uneven copy-editing. I got these books as part of a $.99 special from the publisher. I love offers like this since it lets me fill in my collection, and reduce my reliance on paper books, but I digress. The books have been available for years, they undoubtedly came from an electronic catalog, so why are there spelling and spacing errors???? I can get over (barely) the lack of spaces / indicators for scene shifts, but spelling errors are a HUGE issue with me, and I hope it's taken care of.

But definitely worth the sale price :)

[Steven Shinder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Following the Odyssey trilogy, Star Trek: Spectre continues the adventures of Captain James Tiberius Kirk in the twenty-fourth century. This novel takes place in the year 2375. The prologue and first chapter are inconsistent with chronology (the events of Star Trek: First Contact are said to have taken place a year prior as opposed to 2372 as stated in Star Trek: Avenger, and the virogen crisis in Avenger, which took place 2373, is, at one point, said to have taken place two years before this novel and then, at another point, one year before this novel). This story sees the return of the Mirror Universe depicted in Star Trek: The Original Series and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Familiar faces from Star Trek: Voyager and, once again, Star Trek: The Next Generation appear. Unlike Avenger, which ended with closure and seemed to end a trilogy, Spectre, being the first book in another trilogy, ends with a cliffhanger, leading into the events of Star Trek: Dark Victory.

[Patrick McWilliams · Rating 2 out of 5]

Book 4 in the Shatnerverse, and the first book of the Mirror Universe trilogy.

Pros: The Shatner/Reeves-Stevens author combo is good at writing and pacing. The major plot ideas are fun.

Cons: This one struggled to hold my interest. It’s been said that the Shatner novels feel like Kirk fan fiction, and so far this one is the worst offender. Kirk always outshines everyone else, especially Picard and the TNG crew, and in this book, (mirror) Janeway as well. At several points, the actions of characters seemed to contradict their normal traits in ways that were jarring, Picard and Kirk himself in particular.

Although this novel ends in a huge cliffhanger setting up Dark Victory, I think I’m going to take a break from Shatner for a while. Maybe visit Arrakis…?

[Stasia Bruhn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok to b honest I have mixed feelings about this book..I loved all the different ST characters in the book ..That was very nice..I liked Janeway as a warrior.

I didn't like the way Picard was written in this book..even with the revelation at the end. Umm I don't see Kirk acting like a love sick teenager I just don't ..There was so much wrong with that..

I debated about giving this a 3 but the story was interesting and to me unique so that's why I'm giving it a 4..Also I am interested enough to read the others so that also goes into why I rated as I did.

[Kim Friant · Rating 4 out of 5]

Best Star Trek book to date! I’m always joking that Shatner is a cheese ball and nothing shows that better than Star Trek V. I didn’t have high expectations for this book, but I was pleasantly surprised! This is my favorite one so far! Shatner has a grasp on Kirk that comes from years of study and portrayal and it shows! He’s a wonderful story teller and I can’t wait to continue the series! I can’t recommend it to just anybody, This book requires more than just basic Star Trek knowledge. But trekkies everywhere would really love this book!

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the fourth in a series of six books (actually, two trilogies). This series was my introduction to Star Trek novels, and I very much enjoyed these books. I actually read them out of order by mistake, and then re-read the whole thing in the correct order. Good stuff for the avid Trek fan!

(Note: if you think Shatner really wrote these books, you don't know much about publishing. His ghost writers, the Reeves-Stevenses, deserve the kudos here.)

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable romp through the Trek universe. It isn't great sci-fi writing, and Shatner's ego is very present, but,really, what else would you expect? That's what makes him Shatner/Kirk. He stayed pretty true to the premise of Trek and the characters he wrote about.It ended in a cliff hanger and I am looking forward to the next book! An easy, enjoyable read for any Trekkie.

[Nicolas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book! The mirror trilogy was by far my favorite of the Shatnerverse of novels.

Tune in here for my discussion on some favorite Trek books and comics: https://soundcloud.com/allthebooks/ep...

[Todd · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have read a few of the Shatner Star Trek novels, and I love the plot of this one ... but the execution could have been better. Not the best one he has done, but a decent set up for a real battle with the Mirror Universe.

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been a Trekker since I saw the first episode on TV in the early 70's, it's lite fun reading. I've liked Shatner's other books, The 'Tek"one's although disappointed with the TV series. Good easy enjoyable read.

[Christy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was brilliant. I always love Shatner's novels. It portrayed Kirk and Picard so well, illustrating the differences between them and the way they handle things, while toying against mirror universe fates.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun for Trekkies! I am not so schooled in the all the characters through all the Star Trek's as I once was, and Shatner does try to incorporate many characters from all the tv shows. It was entertaining, though I probably won't pursue the rest of the trilogy.

[Mikael Kuoppala · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit too heavily action packed and less substantial, this Trek book by Shatner and Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens is still a joy to read due to its wonderfully ambitious plotting.

[Bob Bello · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is Shatner at his best! Best storytelling, best language, writing style--everything! I believe this is his best Star Trek book written to date. Highly recommended!

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shatner knows star trek well. I loved how all the characters from the best series got together and the mirror universe too!