Enigma Tales

I've been waiting for another book from Una McCormack. She's the most interesting and original writer in the Star Trek-verse right now, IMHO, and Enigma Tales doesn't disappoint. It's complex, it pulls the reader in, the characterizations are multilayered, the conflicts feel important, and the themes are subtle. Does that mean it's perfect? Well, no... but we'll get to that.Without giving too much away-- although this isn't really as plot-based as you'd think-- we see what Cardassian civilization is like about fifteen years after its total destruction at the end of the Dominion wars. And it all looks great-- it's a functioning democracy, complete with transparency of government and freedom of the press. In fact, the entire thing looks a little TOO good considering everything we know about the Cardassian past, and that's the main tension set up from the very beginning. It's a real treat to see it all through the cynical eyes of the blunt Dr. Katherine Pulaski, especially because she does fall under the spell of this culture, which isn't the result you'd expect at all. She's such a fascinating character, but she's also very hard to write, mostly because I think she'd be pretty hard to take for any length of time in real life. But she's likable here, and we see her best qualities. She becomes entangled in a lot of political intrigue, and of course the mysterious Garak is at the center of it all. NOBODY writes Garak like Una McCormack, so it's a real treat to see that portrayal again here. We don't see much of Julian Bashir, but we get a lot of tantalizing glimpses, and while there isn't exactly a happy ending as such, there's a lot of hope.It all becomes a meditation on whether or not a civilization can do such a dramatic 180 and keep it going for any length of time, or if it always, inevitably, reverts to what it once was. And like all good Star Trek writing, whether books, movies, TV shows, games, or whatever, it's applicable to our own culture.So what DOESN'T work? Without giving anything specific away... McCormack's is an amazing writer, but her biggest weakness *as* a writer is that she does not tie up all of her plot threads and leaves too many dangling. And her mistakes in this area just are not that hard to fix. Following up with a good outline would do it. But that doesn't happen, and so we're left with frustrating questions at the end (Who did what? Who was responsible for XYZ? When Katherine Pulaski seems to know the significance of who somebody really is, what did she mean? Etc, etc...) These don't feel like mysteries that will be solved in the next book, but rather like sloppy, amateur mistakes in writing. The irony is that McCormack succeeds at the most difficult tasks in writing (truly engaging characterizations, raising stakes, engaging the reader in action and theme) and then stumbles when it comes to simple mechanics that bad to mediocre writers can manage without any trouble. And this is an issue that this author has had repeatedly (remember the ending of *The Neverending Story*, and how it relied 100% on total coincidence?)So basically, while I just don't think that the ending of this book had enough problems to derail the entire narrative or anything close to that, it's something that readers should be aware of. If you love plot-based mysteries above all, you may have some issues with the way the story wraps up and the questions that are never really quite answered in a satisfying way. Otherwise, this is such great writing that I still have to give the book five stars. Read and enjoy! :)

This is mostly a world-builder, with plot lines of little immediate consequence. Which I like, every so often. In other words, "not a lot" happens, but I don't need every book to do that. So, don't get this if you are looking for things exploding and lots of "pew, pew, pew."What this book does is delve ever further into the mythos of Cardassia. The main players are academicians, and the main plots actually directly involve a Cardassian university, Cardassian literature and history, and the current political situation. A couple of legates are thrown in for comedic relief. The stage is set for future books regarding war crimes trials mentioned above.It's a nice book. The characters are nice and care about literature.I loved it, but I love Cardassia. This book is not necessarily going to please everyone nor, I think, does it try to. But it is well done, compact, and keeps the narrative going. And obviously a must if the culture and character of the different neighborhoods of the Cardassian capital interest you, if you just must know more about what Cardassians like to eat, drink and go on about.

I loved this book. It had great action, interesting character work, and plenty of intrigue and mystery as you'd expect in a work featuring Garak. Definitely one of my top Star Trek novels of all time. I tend to skip around when reading Star Trek novels, and so I hadn't read the books immediately preceding this one, but I still never felt lost or confused. I'm just bummed that there won't be a sequel!

Great read! This brings us more incite and further character development of the post Founder’s war. I couldn’t put the book down.

Garak, Pulaski, spy games, and Cardassians? What's not to love.I pre-ordered this book as soon as I saw it was coming out, because I've found McCormack's other work to be top notch - and, well, Garak, Pulaski, Cardassians and spy games! Need I say more?It was an awesome read - one of those books that you can't put down, and when you're finished you want to re-read. McCormack captures her characters so perfectly, it's a real pleasure. My only critique is that I think the antagonist could have been developed a bit more; but that is more an afterthought, in reflecting on the story after finishing. And otherwise the story and characters are amazingly well developed; it's a story that pulls you in, from beginning to end.5/5

Why yes, though the end of tbe plot was a bit anti climatic otherwise the pace was good and the dialogue authentic to tbe characters. Breezy times on Cardassia

An absolute wonderful read and would highly recommend it. Dr McCormack's take on the Cardassians and their homeworld is incredibly fascinating and bringing Dr Pulaski into the story was brilliant.For any Deep Space Nine fan, this is a must read and if you are just looking for a decent Star Trek novel to read then look no further.

Another magnificent DS9 tale by the best DS9 author! The political intrigue of Cardassia and how Garak navigates through them is always interesting to see, how comited he is about transforming his world and his people in something better than the sins of their past. On the negative side, Pulaski is one of the most annoying and blind characters ever created for Trek, living in a simplistic world of black & white, indisposed to aknowledge the multiple shades of grey in real, normal life...

I have read a lot of this author's work.in a lot of books it's safe to say she writes pointless side plots that bored the life out of me and seemed just to be filler.however not this book.it kept on point and didn't get side tracked