TREK REVIEW: "The Face of the Unknown" by Christopher L. Bennett

Of all the alien civilisations introduced in TOS, the First Federation is perhaps the most intriguing. The gigantic starship Fesarius, commanded by Balok, seemingly by a ghoulish alien creature, before being revealed as a tiny, childlike being, all alone on his huge ship. Was the first Federation as powerful as it appeared? Or was it all smoke and mirrors, like the puppet Balok used to strike fear into the Enterprise crew?

It seems strange that we never saw the First Federation again. Part of this might be down to the word Federation becoming the name of the primary setting some episodes later, and a simple desire to avoid confusion. On the other hand, perhaps the writers simply never wanted to bring them back, in TOS or any of the sequel series. Even the novel range has barely featured Balok and his people, and the nature of the First Federation remains a mystery.

In The Face of the Unknown, Christopher Bennett rectifies that by taking us into the heart of the First Federation. Taking place between TOS and TAS, at the opposite end of the Five Year Mission to first contact between the two Federations, the novel presents a vision of an ancient, secretive civilisation hidden within the Alpha Quadrant. Bennet has form with this sort of thing; his Trek novels are full of archaic societies, exotic environments and non-humanoid species. So it is with the First Federation. A collective of alien races, of which Balok's people, the Linnik, are the most human-like, who hid from their enemies 12,000 years ago. They now exist in the Web of Worlds, a gigantic construct of various environments deep within the atmosphere of a jovian planet. It's a breathtaking visual, one that is screaming out to be visualised onscreen, and a far cry from the usual Class-M planets we see in Star Trek.

The sudden reestablishment of contact with the First Federation comes about due to sudden attacks on ships in a disputed sector, perpetrated by a malicious alien race. It turns out that the Linnik have secrets even from the rest of the First Federation. The puppet used by Balok to frighten outsiders supposedly represents a sort of bogeyman from his culture, but it turns out that there is more to the creatures than mere myth. The presence of the Enterprise acts as the catalyst that reveals the nature of the marauders and their relationship to the Linnik, but also sets off a cataclysmic crisis on the Web of Worlds.

Bennett has a fine grasp of the characters of TOS, in particular Kirk and Spock. He enjoys adding, at the very least, a hint of romance to the story, with both Spock and Kirk getting some attention – par for the course for Kirk, but this time with a far less humanoid lady than usual. Sulu and Chekov also get some very heroic moments on the Web of Worlds. Outside the regular characters, it's a pleasure to get to know both Balok and young ambassador to the First Federation, Mr. Bailey, both of whom achieve more depth here than in their screen appearance. An enjoyable adventure that provides much needed exploration of a forgotten corner of the Star Trek galaxy.

This review is also available at Ex Astris Scientia