Star Trek New Frontier Book Three: The Two-Front War - by Peter David

Si Cwan and Zak Kebron fight to escape the deadly snare that has entrapped them.  Calhoun is distrustful of the generous offer made by a scavenging species.  Dr. Selar demands a special favor from Soleta.

The third part of the four book set that launched Peter David's popular Star Trek New Frontier series bubbles with action, excitement, and healthy doses of the author's trademark humor.  It's terrific reading, if taken as part of a larger whole, which it is.  But the book is as far removed from a stand alone novel as it could get.  So any and all newcomers to the series will be hopelessly lost if s/he should choose The Two-Front War as the book to start the series with.  Stuff happens, you know?

That having been said, David breaks in some of his supporting cast members with some rousing action set pieces (the Si Cwan/Zak Kebron section) and more than a few intense emotional fireworks displays (the Dr. Selar/Soleta section).  The former, as entertaining as it is, is pretty much your average buddy action movie arc.  Si Cwan and Kebron dislike each other intensely, but eventually learn to work together and even manage to bond...a little bit.  Although he has not, to my somewhat limited Trek knowledge, appeared in any "canonical" Trek adventure (i.e. in an actual episode or film) Zak Kebron is fast becoming one of my all time favorite Star Trek characters.  The dude is awesome.

Then there is the emotional journey that Dr. Selar and Soleta undertake.  For all of their supposed unemotional aloofness, Vulcans always seem to be struggling with some serious repressed emotional issues.  Still waters running deep, I guess.  Deep and murky.

It all "ends" with yet another series of life and death cliffhangers for Calhoun and his crew.  Come now, you didn't think that any plot threads would be tied up just yet, did you?  There is still one more book to go.

I should be cracking it open in a week, perhaps two.