This was unexpectedly kinda great. I saw these—this book and two for TNG—on my shelf today and sustained some confusion trying to remember where I got them, why I have them, and why I've never even tried to read them before. Regardless, this book transcended my expectations on every count. It felt a bit pulpy in a good way: the tropes were cool and engaging, the pacing was on, the characterization was way better than I could've hoped. It captured the sense that DS9 gives where things are quite serious and there are some war crimes on, but also, Odo is a liquid and this causes him problems. It's also just a good YA book, with a good plot, solid characterization, and a good balance of political issues with personal problems appropriate for a young audience.

It's not perfect. I can't do a reasonable analysis of Ferengi or the Cardassian-Bajoran conflict in DS9 here on good reads dot edu. Either we hand-wave all this or we don't. This book is hypothetically just as ham-fisted as one of the weaker episodes of Star Trek, and as it's targeted to a young audience, I've elected to be forgiving. Overall a very pleasant YA story not whatsoever out of place in the canon, with some cool dimensional shifting and well handled prose and characterization. To my surprise I would read another just like it. A one-sitting read. Thanks to this pro fanfic.