The Rising (Doohan, James. Flight Engineer, V. 1.)

Rating:
Summary: Clean, technical, and humorous, accurate, well written
Review: "The Rising" has a good story line, and contains the humor which is one aspect of the draw of the original "Star Trek" line. This is not one of those non-technical "science-fantasies" but will rivet the book to the hands of the most technically oriented. Also like the original series it has a people side to it and it has lessons on leadership. And as a special bonus, it's morally clean! No sex scenes and only 4 or 5 "cuss" words, and all of them quite appropriate for the situation. I can recommend this to my children as well as adults with a clear conscience. Yet the book is quite enjoyable - why can't other authors do this??!

Rating:
Summary: Clean, technical, and humorous, accurate, well written
Review: "The Rising" has a good story line, and contains the humor which is one aspect of the draw of the original "Star Trek" line. This is not one of those non-technical "science-fantasies" but will rivet the book to the hands of the most technically oriented. Also like the original series it has a people side to it and it has lessons on leadership. And as a special bonus, it's morally clean! No sex scenes and only 4 or 5 "cuss" words, and all of them quite appropriate for the situation. I can recommend this to my children as well as adults with a clear conscience. Yet the book is quite enjoyable - why can't other authors do this??!

Rating:
Summary: "Scotty" has done it again!
Review: A miracle worker as an engineer and now as a writter. Can't wait until the next book of the Flight Engineer.

Rating:
Summary: A good read. I'm waiting for book 2!
Review: An excellent story (apparently Jimmy Doohan's) told well (apparently Stirlings writing). Not real deep, not a work of art, but a very good read and very entertaining. (A lot like Star Trek.) I am waiting for book 2, not because book 1 leaves the plot hanging or anything, but like candy, I want more

Rating:
Summary: Great read about a hero who isn't a twenty-something genius
Review: Being an adult sci fi reader I've had my fill of reading about central characters who are young guys or gals. This one is about a guy in at least his fifties as the hero of the story. That is what appealed to me so much here. The story is told from the viewpoint about a guy who isn't super human. That makes it all the more interesting.

Rating:
Summary: Great read about a hero who isn't a twenty-something genius
Review: Being an adult sci fi reader I've had my fill of reading about central characters who are young guys or gals. This one is about a guy in at least his fifties as the hero of the story. That is what appealed to me so much here. The story is told from the viewpoint about a guy who isn't super human. That makes it all the more interesting.

Rating:
Summary: Review
Review: First of all something to congratulate the author with is it has nicely escaped the Star Trek genre. It is not just another romp through the galaxy USS Enterprise story, not that there is anything wrong with those.
This book drops the reader into the life of ex-pilot turned Flight Engineer Peter Raeder as he leaves his flying days behind him and ventures onto the deck of a spick and span state of the art spaceship. However all is not well, a lot happens in this story with several plot lines and sub plots. From intergalactic wars right down to the quirkiness of Raeders subordinates it feels like a real, plausible environment.
Of course no SF story is complete without science, luckily this book does not drown us in techno babble. The science is believable and doesn't distract the reader from the story.
Another thing that I enjoyed about this book is it is not a perfect place. Even on the "good guys" side not everything is well. Space Command has its fair share of incompetence and blundering bureaucracy, which gives rough edges to the futuristic world. It is good to see some things never change.
The camaraderie and relationships, and especially Raeders own thoughts about the people he knows give an interesting insight in his world. A well-rounded novel, however one complaint that the demise of Larkin at the end of the novel is somewhat of an anti-climax, but it is hardly a major spoiler.

Rating:
Summary: Space opera -- not!
Review: Good SF from an actor is not what I expected. I picked up the book in an airport just for old times' sake, and was more than pleasantly surprised. The technology is believable, the situations and conflicts well-described, the flow from scene to scene is smooth, scene changes don't leave you teetering and feeling dissatisfied, and the character development is quite good. While Shatner's Tek novels clearly show the influence of his mentor (Ron Goulart), Doohan has outdone him in establishing a unique 'voice.' Stirling's expertise at depicting elements of conflict meshes indistinguishably. If you're an SF reader, and/or a Trekkie, this book is outstanding and well worth it. It stands well alone, so you needn't get the next in the series to achieve a sense of closure.

Rating:
Summary: Space opera -- not!
Review: Good SF from an actor is not what I expected. I picked up the book in an airport just for old times' sake, and was more than pleasantly surprised. The technology is believable, the situations and conflicts well-described, the flow from scene to scene is smooth, scene changes don't leave you teetering and feeling dissatisfied, and the character development is quite good. While Shatner's Tek novels clearly show the influence of his mentor (Ron Goulart), Doohan has outdone him in establishing a unique 'voice.' Stirling's expertise at depicting elements of conflict meshes indistinguishably. If you're an SF reader, and/or a Trekkie, this book is outstanding and well worth it. It stands well alone, so you needn't get the next in the series to achieve a sense of closure.

Rating:
Summary: I stayed up till 1 AM!
Review: I bought this book because it was the only SF title the convenience store had that wasn't #3 or #4 in a series. I couldn't stop reading it until the end though. Bonus points if you spot something from a Niven/Pournelle book! Really a good book, except for the cover art. Does it really have to have Doohan's face looming over a ship that looks almost, but not quite, exactly unlike the ships described in the book? I'm looking forward to the next 10 books in this series, but cringing at the thought of yet more incredibly innacurate cover art.