Opinions of a Wolf

Summary:
Our universe has been invaded by the inhabitants of the Mirror Universe–a parallel universe that is a dark, twisted version of our own.  Now, Captain Kirk, with the captains and crews of The Next Generation and Voyager must battle evil versions of themselves, led by the evil version of Kirk — Tiberius Kirk.  What nightmares does Tiberius have planned for the Federation?

Review:
Back in December, my fiancé and I road-tripped to Michigan to visit his family.  It’s about a 13 hour drive, and I had Audible credits, so I suggested we pick out a book.  We both love Star Trek so we investigated what Star Trek options are available.  This one jumped out at us for the obvious reason that it’s narrated by William Shatner himself!  Other reviewers complained about sound effects, but that just made us more excited, so we downloaded it, oblivious to the fact that it’s the second book in a series.  This book reads like a radio program version of a Star Trek movie featuring a crazy mash-up of the Original Series, Next Generation, and Voyager.

The action starts right away, which was admittedly a bit confusing, since we hadn’t read the first book.  It starts with Tiberius and his crew escaping into our own universe, and Kirk and his trying to battle them.  Also, Kirk’s hands are mysteriously mangled from something that happened in the first book.  Ultimately, we were able to catch up with the plot and follow it somewhat.  Kirk is in love with a woman who is pregnant with his baby.  Tiberius seems intent on getting to some orbs that the Federation wants to protect.  Kirk wants to stop him, but the Federation and some spy branch of theirs are trying to keep him from engaging in the fight anymore.  They even go so far as to lie to him and tell him that Tiberius is dead.  It’s a complex, twisting plot that makes some sense when listening to it, although summarizing it is nigh on impossible.  Suffice to say, that if you enjoy the concept of the mirror universe and the characters from three series all interacting together, you’ll probably enjoy this plot.  Plus, there’s also Kirk’s wedding in this book, and that is just not to be missed.  (There are horses! And red leather outfits!)

What really made the book for me was the audiobook presentation of it.  It is presented like a radio program, complete with amazing sound effects.  The communicator actually beeps! There are impact noises from shots at the Enterprise! There are even whinnies from the horses.  If you’re a more serious Star Trek fan, you might be irritated by the relative kitsch of this book and its reading, but if you enjoy Star Trek for its periodic utter ridiculous, then you’ll enjoy the way this audiobook is presented.

Shatner’s narration is sometimes good but often hilariously bad.  His voice for women is unnaturally high and soft, making me giggle each time, and mysteriously, he uses the same voice for Captain Picard as for women.  Listening to him narrate anyone who is not Captain Kirk is a bit like watching Captain Kirk “fight” in the Original Series.  I enjoyed it for its ridiculousness, not for its quality.

Overall, if you’re a Star Trek fan who doesn’t take the show too seriously, you’ll enjoy this radio program like audiobook with a plot mashing up everything from a mirror universe to somehow placing Captains Kirk, Picard, and Janeway on the same ship.

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4 out of 5 stars

Length: 303 pages – average but on the longer side

Source: Audible

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Previous Books in Series:
Spectre