Lesser evil Book

"So I now find myself wondering... which is the lesser evil? To complete what Shakaar started, when I know he acted ignominiously in his pursuit of it? Or to reject it, even though I know that a different evil may be attempting to pit us and the Federation against each other?"
3 1/2 stars. There's a lot going on in this novel, and it's one helluva ride. It's that kind of novel where you want to read "just" one more chapter before you put the book down.

The two main stories here are to figure out who murdered Bajor's First Minister Shakaar Edon and a mysterious mission for the Defiant crew on their way back from their explorations in the Gamma Quadrant. I found both of these to be really interesting and, from time to time, even shocking.

The murder investigation puts Ro Laren in a situation where she needs to go against her superiors. This is a case that's not only loaded in a political sense, but it also turns out to be way more complicated than that. Way more. I liked the twists and turns in all of this as I was trying to figure out what was really going on and why. Not to mention a comeback from an old, and really creepy, nemesis to the Federation...

The unplanned mission in the Gamma Quadrant also had its twists and turns with, to begin with, Commander Vaughn acting out of character going after an old transponder signal. Without letting the crew know what's going on. It made for some interesting discoveries, I can tell you that much. During all of this madness we also got some glimpses from Vaughn's past that I think really let us get to know him on a more personal level.

Hesitantly Vaughn reached out and put his arms around his daughter, pulling her close. "Oh, God," he wispered, unable to keep the laughter out of his voice. "You are so screwed up."
Holding her father tightly, Prynn echoed the laugh. "Chip off the old block, that's me."
The relationship between Vaughn and his daughter is so beautiful in this quote. It speaks to one of the many things that I love about getting to follow this crew through novel after novel, and that's to see how the characters and their relationships to each other evolve. You feel like you get to know them, and in the end the character's are the most important thing.