“Seasons of Light and Darkness” by Michael A. Martin is an Original Series novella which focuses on part of Dr. McCoy’s life before he joined the Enterprise that was mentioned in the TV episode, “Friday's Child”. This period of his life is when he spent time on the planet Capella IV as part of time sent there to look at accessing a highly valued mineral. Whilst there he discovers that the natives have a rather warrior ideology where people live and die by their own wits and it is wrong to interfere in that with medicine or other sciences. McCoy of course doesn’t appreciate this view point and must try to walk the line between his oath to Starfleet in regards to respecting other cultures and his oaths as a Doctor to try and save lives.

In addition to this main storyline there is also a framing story set in 2285 which focuses on McCoy trying to relate his own experiences to that of Kirk who was suffering from his time as a desk bound Admiral. This was actually one of things I didn’t really get with the novella to be honest. I saw the link between the two points but the story he tells just didn’t feel something that McCoy would have only finally revealed at that point.

In regards to the Capella part of the story, well it was fun to follow and I found the titbits about Capellan culture rather interesting to follow. In addition McCoy felt in character and I appreciated that this novella was being used as a character piece rather than just trying to be a short version of standard Star Trek novels. Although I do have to say that whilst I did enjoy reading it I am not sure if really revealed anything new about the character.

Overall, this is a okay novella that acts an interesting character piece on McCoy. I do think the framing story didn’t work as well as it could have done and I am not sure if we really learned that much new about McCoy but I still enjoyed it and appreciated the way in which it reminded me of DeForest Kelly who created this great character.
2 s Christopher Backa143 5

I really d this McCoy short story. McCoy shares with Spock the details in his first mission to Capella. This planet was shown in the episode Friday's Child. McCoy is forced to decide between his principles and the interests of Starfleet and the Federation. The framing story is McCoy's concern for his friend Admiral Kirk who is rotting away at Starfleet command instead of commanding a starship I highly recommend reading this novella. Great character moments between McCoy and Spock. The author also captures the voice of the characters as seen in The Wrath of Khan and a younger inexperienced Dr. McCoy. 1 Mark Oppenlander809 24

This ebook novella focuses on Leonard McCoy's character. A framing story, set near the outset of Star Trek II, has the good doctor coming to Spock's doorstep late at night with a bottle of Romulan ale in hand that loosens his tongue. He then shares a tale from early in his Starfleet career, where he was forced to choose between saving a native patient on Capella IV and following regulations. Most of the book plays out in flashback, with McCoy being the only character from the regular series in the mix.

Martin emphasizes the inherent tension, long present in McCoy, between his fundamental love of being a physician and his status as a Starfleet officer, stuck in a bureaucratic chain of command that doesn't always align with his values. I don't know that anything particularly revelatory comes out in this piece, but Martin handles the characters with aplomb, providing them with mostly believable dialogue and action. There are a few nuggets thrown in that add color about McCoy's estrangement from his wife and daughter, and there are a few tidbits about how Kirk developed his rogue command style. None of it is particularly new or profound, but it is comfortable, an old slipper that slides easily onto one's foot. The book ends with the Enterprise setting out to face Khan.

As a quick read, this novella is fine, but it may not offer enough unique material for the casual fan to go out of there way to read it. If Goodreads allowed half-points, this would be a 2.5 star read.science-fiction star-trek Alan919

Rating 4

Really enjoyed this novella which concentrated on McCoy.
Felt you got a lot of story in very few pages.
To me the voices of the 3 TOS characters rang true and my minds eye could see the original actors performing this story.
A new author for me so no idea if they have done anything else in the universe. Haven’t read much ST fiction of any era for a lot of years but this was excellent.

Definitely recommend Benjamin A191 7

It was a good story about Doctor McCoy's (who has become a favorite character of mine as of late) first visit to the planet Capella IV and how he was forced to decide between his oath as a healer and the good of the planet and even the Federation (as referenced in the TOS "Friday's Child" episode). It was also cool that the framing of the story was set after we see him bring Romulan Ale to Admiral Kirk's quarters during The Wrath of Khan.3 s Peter Rydén230

Eftersom detta var en novell kunde författaren satsa på EN historia, en kortare sådan, där friheten då även kunde bli större för att utveckla karaktärerna inom berättelsen. Martin gjorde detta med bravur. Att vi samtidigt fick lära känna en intressant och karaktärsdrivande period i doktor McCoys liv som tidigare varit okänd är ju då en stor bonus dessutom.star-trek Lauren551 6

A quick little novella that expands on McCoy's time on Capella IV, the planet featured in the original series episode Friday's Child. Good characterization of McCoy (and Kirk & Spock, who feature in the prologue and interlude chapters). Kristina Brown683 6

A philosophical look back at an interesting juncture of McCoy's life, between wife and divorce, and still finding his way in Starfleet. Set on Capella IV, the choices made here clearly reflect through his life afterwards, making him the doctor we know and love. The tale is being told to Spock just pre-Wrath of Khan thereby also giving us an insight into their unique dynamic.ebook star-trek Kris Hill6

I loved this expanding of the McCoy and Spock dynamic Preston Pendergraft215

A unique story of McCoy.star-trek Kim Williams219 4

A great, short read focused on a tale of Doctor McCoy's past. My only problem with this book was that the weapons were referred to as lasers, not phasers. Other than that an excellent book. Mike Grady251 2

Interesting short story centered on Dr McCoy of the TOS series. The story centers around a conflicting choice he has between the Hippocratic Oath and the Prime Directive.2020s Shea4

Short story that features Dr. McCoy backstory on how he came to be on the Enterprise. Excellent execution by the author. Dan321 6

An interesting character piece that gives insight into the character of Dr. McCoy. Martin has a good handle on his character, and I could definitely hear the late Deforest Kelley's "voice" as I read this novella. A fun read that one is able to get through in an afternoon. The author uses the e-book novella format very well here. This is one that I recommend for any fan of McCoy.

Full review: http://treklit.blogspot.com/2014/06/s...e-books star-trek tos Tom158 4

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