The Romulan War: Beneath the Raptor's Wing (Star Trek: Enterprise) (2009)

by Michael A. Martin

Tough times for Archer's Enterprise and Starfleet, fresh off the demoralizing loss of the Kobayashi Maru and striving without much success to rally their allies against a Romulan Empire that seems unbeatable because of a devastating new weapon.

 

"The Romulan War: Under the Wings of the Bird of Prey I" (German)

Michael A. Martin has devised a basically interesting story, but several factors mitigate against its complete success.

 

Michael A. Martin

I came to this series because I wanted more stories about the cast of characters that I enjoyed so much on television. 

"The Romulan War: Under the Wings of the Bird of Prey II" (German)

Martin spends far too much time padding the narrative with peripheral characters like journalist Gannett Brooks and Admiral Valdore while giving short shrift to Travis, Malcolm, Hoshi, and Dr. Phlox. The goal of using POV characters that can give us an expansive view of the action is laudable, but unfortunately, those parts of the story really drag. The Romulan sections are littered with unpronounceable, ugly alien vocabulary. Finally, as much as I enjoyed Trip Tucker on TV, I think they should have left him dead in the novels. His espionage behind enemy lines has not been very interesting and is a further drag on the action. Lest I leave the impression that I found nothing to appreciate, Archer and T’Pol have interesting story arcs, and the overall development of the war narrative is well done.