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Product Description As the U.S.S. Titan ventures beyond the outermost reaches of known space, the telepaths in her crew -- including Diplomatic Officer Deanna Troi -- are overwhelmed by an alien cryof distress, leading the ship to the scene of a shocking act of carnage: a civilization of interstellar "whalers" preying upon and exploiting a familiar species of sentient spaceborne giants.
Appalled but reluctant to rush to judgment, Captain William Riker and his crew investigate, discovering a cosmic spawning ground in a region of active star formation -- the ecosystem for a bewildering array of diverse but similarly vast life-forms. While attempting to negotiate an end to the victimization of these creatures, Riker's crew inadvertently grants them the means to defeat their hunters' purpose...only to learn that things are not exactly as they seem.
Excellent!!!!November 20, 2008 TJAMES03(CA) "Orion's Hounds" is an excellent addition to the TREK universe of novels. I highly suggest that you read it.
skip this oneNovember 28, 2007 Karen 0 out of 2 found this review helpful
I've been working my way through all the Star Trek paperbacks. I just read the first few pages of this one online, enough to see that it referred to Troi being raped, as it says for the second time. As it happened, I'd just finished another Star trek paperback in which another lead female character was raped.
What sick thing is this on the part of whoever is vetting these plots for Star Trek? Do we see the lead male characters being sodomized? No, we do not. Is someone out to degrade the women of Star Trek in these books? I thought we'd made some progress since the original Star Trek, when the powers that be nixed a woman as second in command. Apparently there are still cretins around who can't deal with the thought of powerful women.
The author of this one seems to have his brain out to lunch in general, judging from another comment about Troi "having an orgasm on the bridge."
Not one cent of my money for books like this.
Imagination and optimism: this is Star Trek at its bestFebruary 11, 2007 David Mack(New York) 1 out of 2 found this review helpful
ORION'S HOUNDS by Christopher L. Bennett is a book that amply showcases the author's gift for thinking on a grand scale while remembering to tell stories on a deeply personal level.
Bennett has conceived a richly layered and complex space-based ecology made up of enormous "cosmozoans," creatures that live in deep space, travel between the stars, and experience life in ways that small planet-bound beings never do. The variety of these "astrocoelenterates" --- some seen in the Star Trek: The Next Generation television series, others wholly original to Bennett's novel --- coexist in a shifting balance of symbiosis, cooperation, and predation. Some are intelligent, while others are more like massive animals.
Living among these creatures are the Pa'haquel clans, bipedal avians who lord over a multispecies community that hunts and harnesses the bodies of one species of cosmozoan, then uses those mechanically reanimated shells to hunt other space-beasts and defend worlds from the interstellar giants' ravenous appetites.
Then enter the Starship Titan and her crew, led by Captain Riker. Drawn by psychic pleas for help from the sentient cosmozoans hunted by the Pa'haquel, Riker and his crew do their best to stop the slaughter of the beings they affectionately know as "star-jellies." But their well-intentioned efforts to foster peace and understanding have unexpected and tragic consequences.
The same richness and diversity that Bennett brings to his deep-space "ecosystem" also informs his wonderful handling of the Titan's multispecies crew. When it comes to describing the points of view of beings that are truly alien and not just "humans with bumpy foreheads," Bennett ranks at the top of the current roster of Star Trek authors, alongside Heather Jarman.
A welcome discovery is that the crew of the Titan --- though their diversity often leads to misunderstanding, unease, and sometimes conflict --- demonstrate the spirit of tolerance that is at the heart of Star Trek. They don't give in to their fears or their resentments; they confront their prejudices; they reach out to those they don't understand and try to bridge the gap. Bennett understands that exploration is not just about venturing out into space but also about looking into our own souls. Another refreshing trait that they exhibit, with each other and with those they encounter, is one that is not often seen in Star Trek crews: humility.
Bennett's seamless fusion of real science with Star Trek's pseudo-science gives the book great verisimilitude, and his deft plotting and snappy dialogue make the book a genuine pleasure to read. Its resolution is one that builds logically on all the pieces of his narrative puzzle, and one that reinforces what many of the best Star Trek tales have been about: optimism, communication, peacemaking, and trying to make the places you visit better and safer for all the life-forms that exist there.
This is a book that embodies the noblest, bravest, and most hopeful aspects of Star Trek's enduring legacy. Add this one to your collection now.
The Best of the First Three in the SeriesFebruary 7, 2007 Dindy Robinson(Arlington, TX United States) 2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Titan: Orion's Hounds by Christopher Bennett is the best of the first three books in the Titan series. Bennett has a better handle on how to use Deanna Troi than Martin and Mangels did, and the crew is finally starting to gel as a team. Bennett also touches on aspects of a multi-species crew that are often overlooked-- for instance, how does a group of carnivorous predators get along with a group of herbivores?
However, this series continuing weakness regarding Riker is disturbing. He fares slightly better in this book but is still much too tentative and unsure. Come on folks-- bring back the Will Riker of The Best of Both Worlds!
This book revisits a familiar set of aliens, the telepathic space jellies from Encounter at Far Point, and sets up an interesting conundrum regarding the Prime Directive. It also dares to question the wisdom and purpose of the Prime Directive, which, although bordering on heresy in the Star Trek universe, is an idea whose time may have come.
I have read several reviews of this book and the first two in this series who are critical of the openly homosexual relationship between two of the crewmembers. I did not feel this relationship was inappropriate or over emphasized, it was treated the same as heterosexual relationships have always been treated in the series. Indeed, much of the first episode of DS-9 dealt with Sisko's resentment of Picard because of the death of Sisco's wife during the Borg wars. Star Trek has always been in the forefront of inclusiveness, and these books continue in that tradition.
I could, however, have done without the very public orgasm Troi experienced on the bridge of the Titan during a mating of the aliens. That was just a little too much TMI.
Titan , Book 3 , Orion's HoundsJanuary 6, 2007 Ms. Vicki L. Parnell(Woodbridge, VA) 1 out of 2 found this review helpful
I have to state that all of the Titan books, this one included, are excellent and have been a long time coming. Reading about Will Ryker as captain and Deanna Troi as his wife and first lady, plus as counselor on the ship has been most enjoyable! I am so glad that the Star Trek series lives on in books at least! I recommend these books to any Star Trek fan or perhaps any Star Trek fan wannabes!
