Date: 18 Jul 2014 08:14 Title: Volume One - Chapter 1
Ba'el Sarine is having some disturbing nightmares. I could feel like I was there with him as he awakens from his nightmare. I couldn’t imagine what it might have been like to live through the Occupation. I saw through his eyes as he tries to shake the nightmare from himself. Sounds like he isn’t too enthusiastic about meeting up with Kovat. Now you’ve got my interest piqued. I want to know what Kovat wants from Captain Sarine. Good start to this story. I’ll continue reading to see where you take this. Thanks for sharing this and keep writing.
Date: 22 Oct 2013 08:36 Title: Volume One - Chapter 1
It can be hard to get readers into a reasonably complex AU without relying on huge amounts of exposition, and I think you did a good job of not falling into that trap. We get information in chunks here and there--enough so we're not lost and stay interested, but not so much as to get bored and wonder when something's going to happen. In fact the action keeps on coming at a nice clip that makes this a consistent read, something else that's tricky in an establishment piece like this.
I like how Sarine's presented to us almost as a sort of mystery man; it makes him a lead you want to scrutinize and consider instead of just write off as The Good Guy Leading Us. This helps keep things unpredictable.
Related to this, I like that we don't get all the answers, to him or to numerous other things. It leaves more for the future and lets all those possibilities create an atmosphere that's not rigid or defined.
I basically have nothing but sympathy for Kalara. Not sure if that was intended but there you are. This is not to say I agree with how she acted towards Sarine, but I also get where she's coming from and the kind of position she's now in.
Date: 13 Jun 2013 01:34 Title: Chapter 14
Beautifully done - I don't think I've ever seen what is essentially a story about a power transfer done so compellingly.
Kudos!
Date: 13 Jun 2013 01:27 Title: Chapter 13
Well timed, well played and perfectly memorable.
Date: 13 Jun 2013 01:13 Title: Chapter 12
Whew! Another great, exciting sequence!
I really loved the bow to canon - of course Wesley Crusher created a static warp bubble in Remember Me, and now there's a weaponized use for it.
Date: 13 Jun 2013 00:57 Title: Chapter 11
It's a bit like Pearl Harbor in a way, and I thought a bit about the USS Arizona as I was reading about the destruction in the construction yard.
Good job on telling and showing just enough. Space battles are very, very difficult to write about. It's a lot of action and angles, and POVs, and you need to move it all very quickly as the action needs to really move and turn, much like a battle would.
No exagerration - this is one of the best fan fic battle scenes I think I have ever read.
Date: 11 Jun 2013 22:33 Title: Chapter 10
So he's hands-on, which is really terrific. And this means, he's taking responsibility for his people already, despite his past.
I like Turner! She's confident but doesn't seem overly so, that would be risky.
Date: 11 Jun 2013 22:17 Title: Chapter 9
Here's where the brilliance of Keene shows through, for even if his primary mission fails, he's still sown discord and creating an inhospitable working environment for two key people.
Astrid! I was a little confused (I wonder, is there a paragraph missing?), as she was not introduced with the senior staff yet she's mentioned as reacting with Q'Sar, so that's a little confusing.
Also, since Q'Sar is the last Vulcan in Starfleet, is this post-nuTrek, with their planet destroyed?
Date: 11 Jun 2013 21:25 Title: Chapter 8
Intrigue ....
Interesting how K'mpek is different here. The presence of the slave is creepy and tells the reader more about him than nearly anything else - and about their society.
Date: 11 Jun 2013 02:31 Title: Chapter 7
Very believable tension and, again, a lot of information, effortlessly handled.
Date: 11 Jun 2013 02:19 Title: Chapter 6
Ah, so that's Lutara.
Which makes Bay, well, it makes him Mengele in Argentina, in a way, or John Demjanjuk.
Again, Kalara is very believable and sympathetic. She wanted that command SO badly. And Korvath agrees that she deserves it. But, it's politics, and they've gotta play along, at least for now.
I love Qwert, too; he's a good, oily politician.
Date: 11 Jun 2013 02:09 Title: Chapter 5
Just the right amount of action - a good, tight scene at the 'house and then into the runabout. It was very easy to follow everything that was happening. Again, you had a lot of information to get across in ordert to let the reader in on what's happening, and to set up more of the story - and it flowed effortlessly.
Date: 11 Jun 2013 02:00 Title: Chapter 4
This is a great chapter, and I want to talk about the technical aspects of it first.
You have a great deal of expository information to get across, and you do so effortlessly. I often see writers doing a data dump and it doesn't quite work. But here, it does, as the reader is buffeted from Ianto and his information, to Jasto and what's really happening behind his eyes with Haebron, and then to Astrid and back again.
I don't really know DS9 and I don't follow it much but I do know the Trill, and they are an interesting idea but I feel you've hit upon something that was missing from canon Trek - the fact that, amidst all of those voices and individuals and souls and memories, there were/are bound to be some that aren't so nice and neat and, well, sane.
Every time the reader feels that the explanation is going along just fine, Haebron hollers again, and that jarringly pulls you into what is happening with Jasto. Jasto is, potentially, going to be an addict and a basket case, even more than he is, and in short order.
And what of Astrid? Was she raped by Haebron? It seems plausible.
Ianto feels like what B4 in Nemesis, maybe, became. Is he?
Date: 11 Jun 2013 01:45 Title: Chapter 3
Oh Bay, my heart aches for you.
But - eek - the last line is a real corker. Lots and lots of weird pressures here, and I suspect that, if Kovat had had to order the deed, and didn't, that it would be Korat's head on the block.
What kinda people are you fellows working for, anyway?
Date: 11 Jun 2013 01:24 Title: Chapter 2
Oh, Kalara. I love you already.
And I'd be pretty peeved, too.
I love the interplay with Damien, too - they feel very real and very loving, despite their obvious differences. It feels like it works for them.
Date: 01 Jun 2013 07:59 Title: Volume One - Chapter 1
This is an interesting start. I'm already intrigued by Ba'el - a man who's still having nightmares about the Incident even though he's been living on Earth, apparently out of Starfleet, for at least three months.
Your style had a nice flow and cadence to it, and the description of the Mediterranean as part and parcel of the view out of the window practically had me smelling the salt air, feeling the sea breeze ruffling my hair.
And what of Kovat? That the two have a history is obvious, but Ba'el seems more eager to forget it and leave the past behind that Kovat. I'm with Ba'el - I smell an ulterior motive behind the visit as well. I have no doubt that Ba'el won't like it, either, but I get the distinct impression that he's a man of honor, and won't shirk doing what needs to be done, even if that duty is pressed upon him.
Date: 28 May 2013 18:17 Title: Volume One - Chapter 1
Just when I think I'm out ... they pull me ... back in!
So, Ba'El (a part-Vulcan?) is retired, or thinks he is, but now he's needed for ... something. This Laurentine Hegemony does not seem to be up to any good.
Author's Response: Hi jespah! Welcome to the wild world of Restoration! Thanks for the comment, hope you continue on past the first chapter. Ba'el is actually part-Romulan, though at this point I was leaving it a little vague. And no, the Hegemony does not have puppy dogs on the brain. :)
Date: 27 May 2013 23:48 Title: Chapter 14
I came to this first for this review hunt based on the ficlets and I was not disappointed. You have woven this fantastically intristic universe with an array of characters, it's quite enviable. You'll forgive me for lumping the review at the end rather than over chapters.
I was most drawn to the character of Kalara (Klingons in Starfleet is something I like), her sense of honour and her sense of duty to Starfleet. The parallels between Ianto and a Trill is striking in that Ianto has Data's life experiences. His sacrifice is much akin to Spock's in Wrath of Khan or indeed, to a lesser extent, Data's own in Nemesis.
This world, or universe rather, in the future is dark, grim and deadly and for that reason and more I found it quite something. I'll do what I can for volume II.
Author's Response: Thanks for the review! I love it when people who have never read Restoration before come to it new, and to see what they enjoy, or not as the case may be. No problem for the review of it all, I know how long it can take to go back over something chapter by chapter. Look forward to hearing your thoughts on Volume 2!
Date: 19 Apr 2011 21:49 Title: Chapter 14
Wow. What a great read. I loved every single character in here...and I really feel for Kalara. She just had to kill some of her own people, had to witness the death of her dearest friend, and lost her command...
Ba'el put on quite a show as a fighter pilot-he seems to be just as shrewd as a captain of a starship too...but I hope he can patch things up with Kalara. Though I don't know if she'll ever forgive him.
All the way around, just a great execution of an even better idea. Top notch stuff, couldn't stop reading.
Author's Response: Thanks so much for the comment. So great to get some new commentary on this. Gives me a boost to get back on the horse as it were to write some more of volume 3! I'm glad you enjoyed the characters - they are a huge part of this story and I miss them! Kalara is one of my personal favourites, so I'm glad she got to you. Cool that it kept you reading! On to volume 2, then... :)
Date: 31 Aug 2010 15:16 Title: Chapter 14
Now that's an interesting collection of characters! I enjoyed interaction between them,and can't wait to see how it solves.
Ba'el seems to be a very promising fellow: not ideal, not perfect, so a lot of opportunities to explore. I like characters shining all shades of gray, they're a lot more interesting than perfect captains, following all rules.
Author's Response: Hi Gul Rejal!
Thanks so much for leaving this comment, means a world to me to read the thoughts of a new reader and to see that you enjoyed this story.
I tried to make the crew of Redemption as eclectic as possible to reflect this new galactic order. I also did my best to make all of the characters, not just Ba'el, a character painted in greys, with a loaded history and a lot of possible character developments. I'm glad that Ba'el in particular stuck out.
I hope you enjoy the other parts of this story.
Joel
[Report This]Date: 01 Jul 2010 12:13 Title: Chapter 14
I agree with the previous reviews here; ugly relationships have formed here, put simply.
Perhaps what I appreciate most about this story is the dystopian bent it's taken; the hellish future of the shiny, happy story fed to us in the canon series. Some of the outcomes of diplomacy, as you've described, do my head in - perhaps the key one is the Human-Romulan relationship, which is something I've always wanted to write about myself, wanted to read about even more, but no one (including myself) has had the guts to.
And on that dystopian note, we have real characters - fully-formed, passionate and lively. Their harsh upbringing echoes in their personalities; there's not a moment where it all falls apart, where it becomes less believable.
This is properly-written stuff. This story is amazing. Your two main characters, Ba'el and Kalara...I absolutely adore them. One is raw, the other is numb...and the fact that they have decided they hate each other just makes things far more interesting.
And also on the note of making things a little different to Star Trek as we know it, another star here. Nothing like a few hundred years of future through a brutal occupation to change technology, dress it up, engage the reader...
Absolutely fantastic. Five stars, sir.
Author's Response: Hi Shale,
So sorry I have only just seen your review of this, I haven't been very active on here recently. So glad to know that you enjoyed this.
I really wanted to work out this future history where things have fallen apart, but also to have a true resonance to the relationships between these people. Star Trek has had so many opportunities to work through difficult relations (Worf as a Klingon on the bridge of a Starfleet vessel, the whole Voyager crew) but rarely managed to do it in a satisfying way (DS9 being the only one as far as I am concerned). I wanted to show how these disparate people would rub one another up the wrong way while still writing a real adventure.
I'm so happy that you found my characters to be fully-formed, passionate and lively, that is definitely what i wanted to do with Ba'el, Kalara, etc.
Thank you so much for your review, made my day!
Joel
[Report This]Date: 01 Jul 2010 12:13 Title: Chapter 10
I'm in the midst of getting lost in the world (galaxy?) you have created here. I can hardly bear to pause to do anything without bashing the 'next' button, but I must simply add... iTunes decided that Another Planet, by Pendulum, was the right song to play while I read this chapter. If stuff gets any more awesome, I will actually start crying with glee.
You'll get a proper review out of me when I'm done frantically reading the rest of your work. ONWARD!
(ps: reposted for rating misfire.)
Date: 12 Jan 2010 23:18 Title: Chapter 14
Well glad to see Sarine lives to fight another day - though it nearly came down to fight in a minute or two. The command decisions re: Redemption's captaincy was always going to be a sticky point, but for circumstances to aggravate it and bring it to a head so soon only brings this into a rather intense and heated maelstrom of shit for all to contend with. The forecasted problems between the two certainly bore out but how or will they be repaired. The Redemption's launch has been a real baptism of fire and a costly one all round. Look forward to Volume II.
On another note must remark on the technology and holographic systems. All brilliantly conveyed throughout this story. Very well realised and written and a terific feature about your story that also helps to mark it out.
Author's Response: Can't wait to hear your comments and thoughts on Volume II now! Yes, Sarine and Kalara was always going to come to a head. As to whether she will be able to carry on aboard the ship is not at all a given, as you will see in the next part of the story. Thanks for the comments on the tech and holo systems, I wanted to make this different to the Star Trek we know and this was one of the ways to do it. So thanks!
Date: 12 Jan 2010 23:11 Title: Chapter 13
Oh wow! Just wow. I'm reminded of TWoK and Nemesis and the brave sacrifices Spock and Data made then and the impact their actions had. To have two such moments here is a real gut punch for the reader. Ianto's cold mechanical voice especially at the end is spine tingling as one grapples with what he has done and indeed with the loss not just of Ianto but Data in his memories too. Real powerful stuff all coming of Dax's horrendous decision, that brings back so many painful memories. Just brilliant.
Author's Response: Thanks so much! I'm thrilled you've enjoyed this wrap-up to volume one so much. The next volume has much less of an action-packed ending, so I really wanted this to work as an action story. Glad you enjoyed it, and that the impact of Sarine and Ianto sacrificing themselves sent that tingle down your spine!
Date: 12 Jan 2010 22:57 Title: Chapter 12
Wow! I wonder do the crew of the Redemption understand how devious and smart their commanding officers are. Two perfectly executed and brilliant plans from Ba'el and Kalara. Really good scenarios you've written. Exciting and action packed with a fast pace and an element of the unknown. Really well done.
Author's Response: Yeah, Ba'el and Kalara are both sneaky b*****ds! :) They know their stuff and have good tactical know-how. I'm glad you enjoyed this chapter.