What's Past Book Five: 10 is Better than 01

Title: Star Trek: S.C.E. #65, What's Past Book Five, 10 is Better than 01
Author: Heather Jarman
Release Date: September 2006
Format: Ebook
ISBN: 1-4165-3308-7

Like many Federation member worlds, Bynaus has always been a bit of a mystery-but no longer. The new Starfleet Corps of Engineers eBook 10 is Better than 01 by Heather Jarman, not only takes readers to that world but also expands on what is known about the history and societal structure of the Bynars.

The year is 2374. In an effort to step up recruiting during the Dominion War Starfleet dispatches personnel recruiter Lieutenant Temperance Brewster to Bynaus in the hopes of enticing Bynar units to join Starfleet. When one of the potential Bynar recruits turns up dead Lt. Brewster is the prime suspect and her only hope is that the JAG officer dispatched by Starfleet, Commander Henry Winter, can get to the bottom of the matter and clear her name.

Part five of the six-part S.C.E. event What's Past, 10 is Better Than 01 is unusual in a number of ways that make for a highly entertaining reading experience. The Starfleet Corps of Engineers series is the only one with a regularly recurring Bynar character, Soloman (formerly 110), which makes this series the ideal place to explore Bynar cultural norms and Heather Jarman is the ideal author to do just that.

Told primarily through a series of reports and personal log entries the narrative in 10 is Better Than 01 is enhanced by providing more than one point of view. As the story unfolds the reader experiences the investigation from the standpoint of both the Starfleet officers and the Bynar characters.

10 is Better than 01 is also distinctive because the S.C.E. series regulars, with the exception of 110/111, don't factor into the story in any way but that in no way detracts from the tale Jarman tells. The story also provides the added bonus of illuminating how and why unit 110/111 joined the S.C.E. as civilian advisors.

Jarman's previous writings attest to the fact that she excels at world building and in 10 is Better than 01 that skill does for the Bynars what S.C.E. #27 Balance of Nature did for the Nasat race; it enhances our knowledge of the rich tapestry of Star Trek cultures in a very enjoyable way.

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