This is a novel from Star Trek: The Next Generation set between the films First Contact and Insurrection. The story is centered around the character of Data.Data is the only known functional positronic android and since his activation, the Federation has been trying to duplicate the experiment and/or constructing something even better.During this process, the Federation was able to came up with laws that protect the civil rights of artificial intelligence life forms. I think, then I exist.Jeffrey Lang, the author, did a marvelous job putting together and fitting in the right places and moments, the most relevant episodes about Data, but also other episodes involving the topic of artificial intelligence not only on The Next Generation, but also The Original Series, even reaching Voyager.While some references of episodes are less crutial than others. Definitely, there are some episodes that are the key structure where the novel were based on. Such cases as "The Measure of a Man" and "The Offspring", specially since known characters as Commander Maddox and Admiral Haftel appear on the book. And a happy reunion was that Reginald Barclay was able to interact again with the crew of the Enterprise-E.There is an odd comment by Riker about not having brothers and while that's technically true, I felt it odd due the existence of Thomas Riker from "Second Chances" episode. And due to some development in the plot of the novel involving Data, I felt odd too a total omission of refering to the events in the episode "In Theory". Nothing that could ruin any of this wonderful novel but since the author showed an impressive knowledge and handling of a lot of episodes of The Next Generation and The Original Series, well, my inner Trekker was compelled to mention this non-essential omissions.If you are not familiar with the relevant episodes, don't worry, because the narrative will explain the basics that you need to understand to enjoy the current adventure. However, I can't deny that if you would be indeed familiar with the mentioned episodes, you will be able to get the full potential of excitement in the story.I was delighted reading this novel, and even more since it surprised me not once but twice. Well, actually it surprised me a lot of times. But, there are two related big surprises that I didn't see coming and I was stunned (in a good way) about those.You will realize how the author not only exploited, in a remarkable way, many of the most recognizable elements related to artificial intelligence in Star Trek, but also a direct tribute about Arthur C. Clarke's work and a "hidden" in plain sight reference to Douglas Adams' work (which definitely is one of the few to understand the struggles of an advanced artificial intelligence trying to interact with much less inferior intelligences, namely... humans)If you are fan of the character of Data, this is your book. If you are fan of stories related with artificial intelligence, this is your book. And if you are looking for a really good Star Trek novel, well, this is your book!
I've recently been on a Star Trek novels kick. This is due largely in part to the fact that I liked the realignment of the Trek universe's political landscape with the Typhon Pact series, and it's also partly to do with the fact that author David Mack is releasing a new Next Generation series called The Cold Equations at the end of the month. It's known that this series will be the first post-Nemesis book to revisit the Data-clone B-4, and it's my hope that the major change that has been discussed will be return of Data.That said, Immortal Coil was released in 2002, which just happened to be the same year as the not-so-good Star Trek: Nemesis. If I didn't know any better, I'd think that this was the ST Novels answer to the movie that should have been. It clearly puts Data front and center throughout most of the book, and it deals with death as a major theme; Data's, the other androids in his "family", and the rest of the Next Generation crew.The beginning of the book has all the things that I loved about Next Generation: the character's regular banter, Data trying to make sense of his existence, and (since emotions are a new thing for him) how exactly one goes about falling in love. I particularly enjoyed the scene where Data wakes Geordi up in the middle of the night so that he can ask a string of questions relating to properly courting a woman. It was amusing, even while it was clear that Data didn't seem to understand that Geordi wasn't the most successful one with the ladies.Of course, as the book goes on, we start getting into the meat of the plot, and without spoiling too much of it, I'll toss a few teasers out there. We get to see Dr. Soong and Ira Graves as young men, along with their teacher (in the academic sense), Emil Vaslovik. It also delves into the existence of synthetic life forms in the Star Trek universe, how they are different, and how they will likely re-emerge in a universe following the destruction of Data. As mentioned before, this book takes Data's character into a realm we've only seen hinted at in the past - love, and it's handled in a believable and enjoyable way.I'd like to think that when they do finally get around to bringing Data back from the dead (it is inevitable, right? We're dealing with the same universe where Spock could hide out in Dr. McCoy's head while his body regenerated, and Data's memories were preserved in B-4), they'll draw on this book for source material. There's a wealth of amazing material here, not to mention a couple of backdoors that are embedded here that would allow for a non-ambiguous resurrection of Data.All in all, this is one of the best Star Trek books I've read (and I've read many over the last thirty years), ranking right up there with the Destiny series. My recommendation: Must-Read.
What do You think about Immortal Coil (2002)?
Why read a ten year old, out of print Star Trek novel? Because it does an excellent job of exploring Data's emotions. How would he feel about living forever and watching group after group of his friends die? Ideas like that are probed here. My all-time favorite Star Trek author, David Mack, mentioned it when writing about his new Cold Equations trilogy. Anything Mack references is worth looking into, and this novel did not disappoint. The author does a good job of tying androids from multiple episodes of The Original Series and The Next Generation into a coherent story. My only nit-pick is that some of Picard's statements seemed a bit off. Threatening to fire Geordi during a space battle didn't sound right to me.
—Andrew
I very much enjoyed Immortal Coil. The exploration of Data's emotions and what immortality would truly mean is fascinating, and a great topic for a novel featuring him. This particular story and the knowledge of the existence of a group that Data could call "his people" makes his death in Nemesis even more tragic than it already was. This novel has gotten me extremely excited for David Mack's new trilogy, and I can't wait to crack open the pages and get reading. I really recommend Immortal Coil, even if it's just because I'm jonesing for more Data in my life, as well as my love of "continuity porn."Full review: http://treklit.blogspot.com/2012/10/i...
—Dan
Before there were hardcover Star Trek novels, there were the Star Trek Giant novels--books that were a bit thicker in length, a bit heftier in the price and a lot deeper than most of the standard, monthly Star Trek novels coming out on the market. Immortal Coil is one of the few Trek books I've read of late that acutally reminds me of the glory days when the huge, series-tying together, taking Trek to new depths novels often happened first in the paperback editions.A lot of praise has been heaped on this book and it's well deserved. If you're a Trek fan of all the shows, you're in for a real treat. This one has ties to at least three different TOS episodes, a half-dozen or more TNG stories and a smattering of DS9 and Voyager. In short--it's a Trek geek's dream to sit back and let the references come and try to place them. But if you're not a die-hard Trek fan, there's still an enjoyable story in this novel. At the heart of the book is a mystery that's as good as any I've read by the person I consider to be the greatest modern mystery writer, Elizabeth George. Like George's novels, the story is about more than just the mystery--it's about the lives of the characters involved. Lang makes his supporting cast come alive with depth, intelligence and sympathy. There aren't really any bad guys per se, so much as different sides being motivated to achieve their own ends. Each side percieves they are doing the right thing and that makes for an immensely enjoyable book.Why only four stars you say? Well, I'd give it four and a half if I could. There were some things in the book that struck me as odd. For one thing, one of the plot revelations was easily deduced after reading the first fifty pages.After January's superlative In the Name of Honor, Immortal Coil continues the (so-far) new year trend of bringing out enjoyable and entertaining Trek books. These two books have set a high standard for entertaining, intelligent Trek fiction to start the year 2002 off right. Let's just hope they keep getting it right.
—Michael
