The Captain's Table (Book 5 of 6): Once Burned. Star Trek the New Frontier edition by Peter David, October 1998.

The Captain's Table is a bar that is frequented only by those who are, by rank, captains. Only they are allowed entrance. This is usually interpreted as ship captains, although sometimes the admittance is more broad than that. The place is not somewhere you set out to go: it actually seems to find you.

It is actually a sort of interdimensional cross-time meeting place, much like Munden's Bar as seen in the 1980s comic book Grimjack. Anyone from any time and any place can enter...if they are a captain. And the first drink is paid for with a story. That is the device used to tell a set of Star Trek stories, in a six-book series. Captains Kirk, Picard, Sisko, Janeway, Calhoun, and Pike each got a volume to tell a story in the first person. In this one, Peter David writes another volume in the life of his character, Mackenzie Calhoun, this time in a first-person style.

Calhoun first encounters the bar as he has just killed the first man, the first of many in his war to free his home planet of Xenex while still a teenager. Emotionally spent from the experience, he stumbles onto the bar, and is greeted by the barman, "Cap," and is provided free drinks. He is told that, in the future, he will have to pay...with a story.

Some years later, in a holodeck program, Calhoun again comes upon the bar, and enters. Reminded of the establishment's requirement, he tells his tale to another man, and gives the story of his original departure from StarFleet, when he was first officer of the Grissom.

Calhoun had just gotten promoted to first officer on a new ship, and was settling in, when the crew had the assignment of taking a diplomatic team to a system with a pacifist society that was being attacked by a militaristic one. The diplomatic team turned out to be the captain's brother and daughter. The aggressive society killed the two relatives, and the captain slowly started coming unhinged, requiring Calhoun to do something about it. Something drastic.

The story goes a long way toward exploring Calhoun's background in the service, and provides a good story as well. Once again, Peter David fans will like it, and those who don't like his books won't like this one either. There is action leavened with humor, sexual situations, and bloody fights. It's not for the weak of heart.

Star Trek #6: New Frontier; Fire On High by Peter David (April 1998).

The crew of the Excalibur is finishing up operations on Zontar. Science officer Soleta is examining the cave where she and other members of the crew were disabled by some still unknown force. She unearths a disk with a strange emblem. Immediately afterward, the ground beneath her gives way and she finds herself in an underground cavern.

Janos, the Mugato security guard (named for Janos Prohaska, who was in the costume when Captain Kirk first encountered a mugato) hears the commotion and goes to Soleta's aid. The ground has reformed, so Janos uses his phaser to blast it open again, and takes Soleta to safety, just as the entire mountain blows up. Soleta does, however, manage to hold onto the disk.

With nothing left to investigate, the Excalibur proceeds to the planet Momid, where a Federation citizen has been held for five years after being apprehended on the planet's surface. As it turns out, this is Lt. Robin Lefler's mother, whom she has thought dead for ten years.

Captain Calhoun must find out what Lefler's mother, Morgan, wants, and also solve the problem of the energy creature inhabiting the warp engines. It won't be easy, as Morgan is secretive, and the energy creature resists all efforts to get it to leave...and they may not want it to, if it does. Then there's the problem of Morgan's friend Tarella is on the planet Ahmista, the previous inhabitants of the planet are dead, and Tarella holds a weapon that can destroy a starship.

It's another Peter David adventure, with fun, thrills, blood, and deadly peril. Something for everyone. Once again, if you like other Peter David books, you'll like this one, and if not, well then.

Star Trek: New Frontier #5; Martyr by Peter David (March 1998)

500 years ago on the planet Zondar, the prophet Ontear left behind a scroll saying that the civil war on the planet would only end when the savior appeared. Ontear said, "Look to the stars, from there will come the messiah! The bird of flame will signal his coming! He will bear and scar, and he will be a great leader! He will come from air and return to air! And he will be slain by the appointed one!" Although that last sentence was not widely publicized. Given that description, it certainly sounds like a description of Captain Mackenzie Calhoun of the starship Excalibur.

Calhoun and his ship are still on patrol in sector 221-G (not 221-B, because that would be where Sherlock Holmes lives) and are receiving requests for visits and help, most funneled through Si Cwan, formerly of the royal family of the now-dead planet Thellonia. All of the characters return: Captain Calhoun, visibly scarrred warlord of the planet Xenex; Commander Elizabeth Shelby, tactical expert and first officer; Lt. Soleta, Vulcan science officer and archaeologist; Dr. Selar, Vulcan chief medical officer with an oncoming pon farr; Burgoyne 172, the Hermat (hermaphrodite) chief engineer; Lt. Robin Lefler, optimistic ops officer with a crush on Si Cwan; Lt. Mark McHenry, oddball navigator and playmate of Burgoyne; and Zak Kebron, rock-solid Brikar security chief.

A call for help arrives from the usually insular Zondarians. Si Cwan recommends pushing this request to the top of the pile, if for nothing than its sheer unusual nature. The Zondarians send a ship to intercept and receive the Excalibur, to escort their prophesied savior to Zondar. This is a double-edged sword; being called the savior might make Calhoun's job easier, but failing to live up to expectations might make the situation fall apart and prolong the 500-year civil war. Calhoun must walk a fine line.

Meantime, Dr. Selar prevails on the Captain to help her with her mating drive. She will soon have to heed it, and she has settled on Calhoun as the logical alternative. That Calhoun has served the same role before as a tribal leader on his home planet leads to the logical request. After consideration, Calhoun accedes.

However, Calhoun turns up missing on Zondar. With the Zondarian diplomats being unhelpful, the starship crew must find him themselves. When the rescue team ends up injured or dead, it is up to Burgoyne 172 to find the captain.

It's another Peter David romp in his own section of the Star Trek universe. David has either created these characters or gotten permission to use them (Shelby, Lefler, and Selar) and he has a lot of fun putting them through their paces in a quickly-moving plot. As usual in a David book, there is lots of action, there are amusing moments, and there is blood and gore. The story clips along very fast, and the pages will keep turning.

If you like Peter David Star Trek novels, you'll like this one. If you don't like David's stuff, you probably won't like this either. That's the best way to tell you what is going on here. It's fun, it's fast-paced, it has character moments. And anything, anything can happen. I recommend this book.

Star Trek: New Frontier #3 and #4 by Peter David. "The Two-Front War" and "End Game." August 1997.

The final two books of the New Frontier saga resolve many, though not all, of the plot threads in the first two parts. The characters now all introduced, we get to see many of them in action. Si Cwan and Kebron are in trouble, apparently blown to bits at the end of the second book: they are "rescued," to be taken to Thellon. In the meantime, Captain Calhoun must deal with the refugees found by the Excalibur, and find a place to resettle them.

A solution is reached for the refugees when the planet Nelkar offers to give them safe haven. That seems workable, except that Calhoun has a funny feeling about it, which is borne out when the Nelkar hold the refugees hostage and demand Federation technology. Most of book 3 is taken up by these problems, as well as the problem of Dr. Selar: she asks Soleta's help in determining the nature of her difficulties.

Book 4 resolves the problem of the refugees, as well as reuniting the ship with its missing crew members. However, Calhoun must face the son of a man he killed 20 years ago, in ritual combat. At the same time, Thallon seems to be tearing itself apart...or perhaps, something else is doing it. Great Bird of the Galaxy!

It's more adventure from Peter David, romping in this section of the Star Trek universe that he has created. There's lots of fun, action, and humor. A good time will be had by all.

Star Trek: New Frontier Book Two (Into the Void) by Peter David, July 1997.

This book continues the story from the previous novelette, which was produced in four parts. As we begin this volume, the Excalibur is being readied for launch. Si Cwan, Thallionian prince, is surreptiously loaded onto the ship as part of Soleta's luggage. Ah, but Soleta lets Captain Calhoun know of Si Cwan's presence. Calhoun allows the bag to be loaded anyway, and has security chief Zak Kebron greet the stowaway in the cargo bay. Kebron is a Brikar, a race from a heavy-gravity planet who resembles nothing so much as a small mountain. Cwan holds his own, but is stopped by Calhoun, and sent to the brig. He is released by Calhoun later to be an "ambassador" to his home region of space.

In the meantime, we meet more of the crew. Burgoyne 172 is the chief engineer, and also a Hermat, a race of hermaphrodites. Mark McHenry is the navigator, and often looks like he isn't paying attention even when he is. An affair between Captain Calhoun and first officer Shelby from years ago is also revealed.

When a damaged ship of refugees is found, they greet Si Cwan like a savior returning to bring hope. While attending to them, a distress call is received from a Thallionian ship that reports having Cwan's younger sister on the passenger list. Cwan sets out at one in a runabout with Kebron, who does not trust him. But all is not as it seems....

This is part two of a four-part story, which was also printed in a collected "Omnibus" edition with all the parts. It is Peter David, one of the best Star Trek authors, getting to play around in a Star Trek universe with some familiar one-shot characters from the show, and others of his own creation. On the way, he also takes a few shots at Star Trek: Voyager in this book.

This is good stuff, as David works always are, even if it is incomplete.

Star Trek: New Frontier #1 (House of Cards) by Peter David: July 1997.

Imagine getting a chance to develop your own part of the Star Trek universe. That was the opportunity Peter David, noted Writer of Stuff, had when he was presented with the idea for New Frontier. With Pocket Books editor John J. Ordover, David developed the framework for a new ship and crew, set in the Star Trek universe and with roots firmly set in the series canon.

The series itself was something of an experiment. There is limited tension in the regular novels, because no lead characters can be killed off in a novel. No matter what peril Captain Picard may find himself in within a book, we know that he must survive. In a new series, however, there are no such guarantees. It was this idea that lead to the creation of this series, and that drew David, one of the most successful ST novelists, to it.

The characters are a mix of the familiar and the totally new. Dr. Selar, seen on the Next Generation crew, and Lt. Commander Shelby, seen in the two-part Borg episode as an anti-Borg strategist, are used, as is Robin Lefler, who also was seen on the TNG crew. None were regulars, but all are familiar faces. This helps connect the crew to the familiar, and to ground them for the reading audience. Around these characters, David creates a new set for a new series.

Introduced this time is our new captain, M'k'n'zy of Calhoun, or the standarized version, Mackenzie Calhoun. Calhoun was a freedom fighter on his home work of Xenex against a race, the Danteri, that seeks empire. Although just 19, Calhoun succeeds in leading the resistance that drives the Danteri to give up the planet. Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the Stargazer is suitably impressed, and sponsors the young man to Starfleet Academy.

We are also introduced to Soleta, a half-Vulcan half-Romulan who first appeared in the youth-aimed novels about Starfleet Academy. Soleta, an archaeologist, will become the science officer for Calhoun. But there is more to her story. (Also in the series are two other characters David created for the StarFleet Academy books, Zak Kebron and Mark McHenry.)

The book is written in sections ranging from 20 years past to the present day. First the story of Calhoun's battle for his home planet is recounted, as is his first encounter with Picard. Next, we move to 10 years ago, when Soleta came into contact with Ambassador Spock on the Thallonian homeworld. An undercover Spock rescued her from certain death. She also went to the academy.

In the next section, we see Dr. Selar leaving the Enterprise to answer the savage call of the Vulcan mating ritual, pon farr. In the mating act, her betrothed suffers a heart attack and dies. Selar interprets this as a need to shut off all emotion, and shut out feeling from her life. This is two years before the book's present.

Finally we come to the present day, as on the Enterprise, Picard and Commander Riker meet with Admirals Jellico and Nechayev, both seen previously on Next Generation, both as adversaries of our heroes. At this meeting, they discuss the situation of the Thallonian Empire, which has collapsed. What should be done? It is decided to send a starship, but with whom in command? Picard recommends Mackenzie Calhoun, who is from a nearby world. Jellico is outraged, but Nechayev is intrigued. This might be just the thing. In the meantime, Soleta is called to duty on the recommissioned Excalibur because of her experience on Thallonia, but finds herself threatened....

Originally simply titled "Book 1," this volume was later designated "House of Cards." It is largely introductory material, serving to introduce us to Calhoun and also to set up the situation. The book is short at 168 pages. The first four books of the series were released at nearly the same time, in a smaller and somewhat cheaper format, to allow for reader sampling. It was successful, no doubt because David was the writer. The four books were also later collected into a hardcover volume with some new material.

It's Peter David, it's Star Trek. There is humor, and action, and really more blood than is required, but it's a page-turning story. In other words, this is what we have come to expect from Peter David. The series is good, solid entertainment.

The Siege by Peter David: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine #2, May 1993.

This is Peter David's only Deep Space 9 novel, and the first original novel written although it is numbered #2, after the novelization of the first episode.

The wormhole adjacent to the planet Bajor is unstable and must be shut down, so space station Deep Space 9 must play host to unhappy folks who were planning to visit the gamma quadrant. It doesn't seem so bad when a Borg ship comes through....in pieces. Among the uncomfortable guests are an Edemian priest, who was planning to spread the word of his god, K'olkr, to the gamma quadrant. Instead, he and his family proselytize DS9. It doesn't go well, especially when one of the party is murdered. And he is only the first.

Odo quickly sees that this is a "locked-room" murder, and suspicions begin to flow. When more murders are committed, it eventually becomes obvious that the killer is a shapeshifter, much like Odo. With hundreds trapped aboard the space station, the being has a rich killing field. The situation only worsens when Edemian and Cardassian warships show up, demanding justice for those of their race that have been killed.

Peter David, as usual, writes an entertaining and involving book. You'll read through this one fast, as the plot keeps the pages turning and the light writing style makes it easy to consume. David is gifted at writing serious, often gory, plots with a leavening of humor. One scene, a body will get ripped apart, and a few pages later you'll laugh out loud. This is the dichotomy of a Peter David book.

Considering that he had just the series character guides and five episodes to write from, David gets the characters right. Part of this is due no doubt to the guidelines, as DS9 is the best written and best acted of all Star Trek series and deserves more recognition as such. Primary series creator Ira Stephen Behr is responsible for much of that. Behr would later create "The 4400" for cable, and should be put in charge of current Star Trek projects. Oh, well.

The murder mystery is the main plot, but there is more going on here. David examines fundamentalist religions through the Edemians, who are dedicated to their deity but have warships, and have an ill son whom they do not want treated medically. Of course, Dr. Bashir will have none of this, and coerces the mother into letting him treat the child. This has serious consequences.

Of course, the Cardassians have to show up. It would hardly be DS9 if they didn't. Gul Dukat dispatches an emissary (read: spy) to DS9, but he is among those murdered, in the act of an attempted rape of a Bajoran woman. Why do the Cardassians, who profess no love of Barjoran or similar races, tend to ravage their women so? I know, it's more about the violence. The murder gives Dukat a reason to show up at DS9 armed to the teeth and threatening. It also raises the stakes for the climax.

Quark plays a major role, and as often happens becomes a focal point of the action. David captures the Ferengi rather well in this novel. It's hard to imagine that the Ferengi were originally proposed as the Federation's big rivals and enemies, based on what they have become. David captures both the humor and the ruthlessness of Quark.

Sisko and his untenable situation are also captured. O'Brien, Kira, and Dax get scenes, although they are not center to the action. Of course, you can't get them there every time.

Odo is really the central character. The murder mystery, and the search for a being like himself, consume the shapeshifter. This was a good use of Odo, who at this time did not have a lot of his background revealed. David manages to write a story that is not strongly contradicted by future events, but still hangs together well and uses the characters. Quite an achievement in a licensed novel.

"Ship of the Line" by Diane Carey. Star Trek: The Next Generation hardcover, October 1997.

A ship of the line is an impressive craft, and built for that purpose. It is meant for exploration, and often for defense, to "hold the line" against those who would do harm. Author Diane Carey takes that theme, and others from the stories of Horatio Hornblower, and characterizes the starship Enterprise as that "ship of the line."

Star Trek has been referred to as "Horatio Hornblower in Space" by numerous people, including Nicholas Meyer, director of Star Trek movies II and VI starring the original cast. This novel takes on those themes of the starship as "naval" vessel (StarFleet has always used navy terminology) and relies on author Diane Carey's own experiences with sailing.

This book was the only hardcover Next Generation novel published in 1997. It is one of a long list of Carey's novels, and one of her three Next Generation hardcovers. Her strengths and weaknesses are all on display here, but unlike many of Carey's books, on this one the strengths outweigh the weaknesses.

Carey grounds her story in established Star Trek lore. The book begins on a Klingon ship, a ship that is about to launch a solo attack on a Federation starbase while the rest of the Klingon fleet distracts StarFleet elsewhere. Only the cutter Bozeman is left to defend the border, helmed by Captain Morgan Bateson. Bateson (played on the show by Kelsey Grammer, a big Star Trek fan) was seen very briefly in the Next Generation episode "Cause and Effect," in which the Enterprise shockingly collides with another ship and explodes in the episode teaser, then seems to return unharmed when the show comes back from commercial. As it happens, the ship is caught in a temporal feedback loop, continually repeating the same crash over and over until the Enterprise takes action to prevent it. The loop is caused by the Bozeman traveling through time.

Carey's story begins back before the causation of that loop, in the time of the original series. The Bozeman encounters the Enterprise of Kirk and Spock in a somewhat gratuitous scene, which leads to a too-long scene of tedious naval discussion of interest only to avid sailors. It is one of Carey's weaknesses, the need for heavy editing, but thankfully this is the only serious instance of the problem.

The Bozeman encounters the Klingon ship, and engages it in spite of being outgunned. Bateson hopes to keep the Klingons busy long enough to get help and save the starbase that is undoubtedly the target. It works, and the Bozeman is likewise saved when it falls into the temporal field and moves 90 years into the future, and the time of Next Generation, encountering the Enterprise of Picard and Riker.

Now, the crew of the Bozeman must face the loss of family and friends, and knowledge that is 90 years out of date. Captain Bateson manages to keep his crew together, and manages a job supervising starship construction. Thus, when the Enterprise-D is destroyed in the events of Star Trek:Generations (the crossover movie involving the original series and Next Generation, basically the first Next Generation movie) Bateson is supervising the building of the new Enterprise-E. The Enterprise command crew gathers, hoping that Captain Picard will be offered, and will accept, command of the new ship.

StarFleet, however, has other ideas. Bateson is given command of the Enterprise for the shakedown cruise, and Picard is given a diplomatic mission to Cardassia, negotiating for prisoners of war. He takes Dr. Crusher and Worf with him. The other officers, including Riker, are assigned to the Enterprise. LaForge assists Montgomery Scott in engineering, and Data takes ops. Troi is on medical/science staff, the old-fashioned Bateson not believing in the need for a ship's counselor. Riker gives Picard a gift: he has the civilian ship Picard uses fitted with a holodeck, and provides him with tapes of Captain Kirk's exploits.

While Picard watches the original series crew (in scenes from "Balance of Terror," featuring an encounter with the Romulans, and "The Enemy Within," when Kirk is split into passive and aggressive personalities by a transporter accident) his thought processes coalesce, and he decides both that he does want another command, and that simply pleading with the Cardassians, and his former torturer (from the two-part episode "Chain of Command") is not the proper way to deal with the situation.

Meanwhile aboard the Enterprise, Bateson is convinced that the Klingons are being aggressive again, and takes a still-incomplete Enterprise to the site where he expects trouble. Trouble indeed shows up, in the form of the still-living Klingon commander who was once his nemesis. With his knowledge of Bateson, and 90 years of experience, Commander Kozara defeats the Enterprise and boards her, imprisoning the crew. Bateson, Riker, and Scott must regroup and take back the ship.

As you can see from the plot description, this is quite an involved book with a lot going on. This is a welcome difference from the usual Carey habit of packing 100 pages of plot into 300 pages of overblown writing. While at times she gets a bit wordy, most of her usual weaknesses are avoided, although some dialogue is too cute by half and Riker is generally out of character. Too cute? This exchange is early in the book, when Bateson informs the crew that they can ask the soon-to-be-visiting Mr. Spock any question:
"Did Adam and Eve have belly buttons?"
"How do you know when to tune bagpipes?"
"What's the French word for 'bouquet'?"
"Was 'dead reckoning' ever alive?"

And this exchange between Bateson and Troi on the subject of his and Riker's similar beards:
"You know, we have a problem. One of us is going to have to shave this D'Artagnan imitation. Either that, or everybody aboard is going to have to grow one."
"Don't look at me!"

Funny, but reaching. However, it doesn't hurt the overall book. It's a good read, even if the climax is a bit anticlimactic. This one will also be popular with lovers of sailing.

Q-Squared by Peter David: Star Trek the Next Generation hardcover novel, published July 1994.

Commander Jean-Luc Picard of the starship Enterprise has agreed with his best friend and commander, Captain Jack Crusher, to be the go-between for normal command communications with the new chief medical officer, Dr. Beverly Howard, Captain Crusher's ex-wife. It's the least he can do, since the captain will handle most dealings with families, as Picard does not deal well with children.

As the ship proceeds on its first mission, they encounter an enormously powerful being who stops their ship cold: Trelane, an odd fellow who alternately seems charming and petulant, and somewhat threatening. As they encounter him again, his level of threat increases to an alarming point. Then, another odd being, named Q, materializes out of a wall, saying, "You have no idea how screwed up this is."

So begins Peter David's novel of the Q continuum and alternate histories, as he returns again to familiar territory. David cut his writer's teeth writing comic books, so exploring origins and alternate time lines is old hat to him. David is also adept at using a dollop of humor to lighten very serious happenings. These things all hold true here.

David makes the very logical leap of tying Trelane, a character who encountered the original Star Trek crew in the episode "The Squire of Gothos," to the Q continuum. At the end of that original episode, Trelane's "parents" reprimanded him for harming lesser species. His father says, "Stop that nonsense at once! Or you'll not be permitted to make any more planets!" It is obvious that Trelane is a child of a very advanced race. In the novel, Q is something of an "uncle" given charge of a part of Trelane's education.

As part of the plot, Trelane manipulates, and brings together, three separate timelines or universes of the Next Generation crew: a timeline with Jack Crusher as captain, Picard as his first officer busted after court-martial following the events at Maxia, and Worf as a member of the Klingon Empire, who frees a captive Will Riker from a prison/torture planet of the Romulans and Cardassians. Riker is then reunited with his wife Deanna and son Tommy; the second, the familiar universe of the Next Generation; and the third, the more militaristic version seen in the episode "Yesterday's Enterprise," where the Klingons are at war with the Federation and months from victory. David skillfully weaves these timelines together, and shows the similarities and differences between the versions fans know, and other stories that might have been.

It is a well-written novel of excellent characterizations, a twisting plot, and plenty of moments of interest for both those who do not know the series, who can enjoy a book on a surface level, and the deeper levels of continuity for fans of the series. This is good stuff. As David remarks in the introduction, "there is a lot going on in this one."

The Devil's Heart by Carmen Carter; Star Trek: The Next Generation hardcover novel, April 1993 (paperback February 1994).

The Enterprise is diverted to the site of a Vulcan archaeological survey, as the senior member of that team, T'Sara, is believed by her staff to be suffering from Bendii's syndrome, the Vulcan version of Alzheimer's disease. When the ship arrives, they find all the Vulcans dead, apparently at each other's hand. Further investigation show that the scene was staged, and the scientists actually murdered by other parties. Picard, who of course has followed T'Sara's career, seeks the item that would lead someone to cause such carnage, and then cover it up. He finds "The Devil's Heart," an artifact found in the history of many races, reputed to have tremendous powers to make its holder invincible.

Such an artifact naturally draws a lot of attention, and much of it goes through a nearby starbase, which is so out of the way it is lightly staffed with Federation personnel, but a crossroads of species from all over the galaxy. The bar owner there is a member of Guinan's race, who has turned her listening skills into a profitable trade in information. Guinan is not pleased with this turn of events.

While Orions and Ferengi seek the Enterprise for the gemstone, Picard begins to receive telepathic dreams of the history of the stone itself. The captain becomes convinced that the stone itself, apparently a fragment of the Guardian of Forever, a powerful time-travel device, has a destiny that must be fulfilled. And so, he sets out to fulfill it, all the while becoming more attached to the Heart and more loath to let it out of his possession.

As the parties involved get closer to the rock, a confrontation is inevitable. And Picard must fulfill a destiny, even if it means overcoming his obsession.

This is Carmen Carter's last Star Trek novel to date, after a production of four. Her stories were usually off-beat, and this one sort of fits that bill. She often tells tales of a somewhat supernatural or mystical nature, and this is no exception. However, her writing in this book is somewhat repetitive, and the climax becomes an anticlimax. The ending is somewhat satisfying, but the promise of the premise is not fulfilled. On the other hand, the author seems to reach the conclusion she was attempting. A shoot-em-up ending is not the normal modus operandi of Carter. Instead, this one goes out with more of a whimper.

And that, in the end, may be the problem. The ending seems too easy, and there is no explanation of why this fragment of the Guardian of Forever would want such a disposition, as intimated in the plot. Not to give too much away, but the end did not make much sense to me. It was not emotionally satisfying. The reconciliation between Guinan and Camanae (Carmen Carter?) was nice, but not enough.

Can't really recommend this one. If you find it in a bargain bin or a library, a Star Trek fan might like it.

Imzadi by Peter David; Star Trek: The Next Generation hardcover novel (#2), August 1992, paperback July 1993.

We begin in the future (in reference to general ST:TNG continuity) with an embittered Admiral Will Riker, commanding an out-of-the-way, backwater starbase. He cares little for duty any more. Meanwhile, Data, now a starship captain, seeks an audience with the Guardian of Forever, a time-traveling machine that is also a historical viewer. Word reaches Riker that the ambassador from Betazed, Lwaxana Troi, is dying and wishes to see him. Captain Wesley Crusher's ship, the Hood, comes to pick him up.

On her deathbed, Lwaxana accuses Riker of being responsible for the death of her daughter, and his lover, Deanna Troi, many years earlier. This is what has embittered Riker, for he too blames himself. We give way to an extended flashback of how the relationship began.

After a vignette revealing the circumstances of Deanna's death, most of the book looks at how the relationship of Riker and Troi began. He was a young officer, posted on Betazed between starship assignments, to help defend the planet from space raiders. She was a university student. The young military man is smitten with the empath's beauty, and pursues her, but she can see what he is out for, and reads the usual impermanence of his "flings." This one, somehow, is different. A stormy but deep bond forms between the two, through months on the planet. Both find their views of the universe expanded. They meet again, when both are assigned to the newly designed Enterprise.

Riker is informed by Data that Deanna was likely killed due to actions she would otherwise have taken, and lives in an alternate history. Riker has Doctor Crusher perform an autopsy, which reveals a poison developed only in the years since her death, leading Riker to suspect a time traveler. He proposes to go back in time, but Data refuses, saying use of the Guardian is against regulations. Riker goes back to his starbase, still a beaten man.

Of course, things can't remain that way, and the action builds to a quick conclusion as Riker determines to act. Data is just as determined to stop him. Deanna's life hangs in the balance.

It is another Peter David triumph, tying together pieces of Star Trek history and blazing new trails, opening new paths. It also provides an interesting look into the formation of one of the central relationships of Next Generation, and how it came to be. It is a very plausible and fascinating explanation of how these two very different people came to be so attached.

Given the gravity of the story, it becomes hard for David to use much of his trademark humor, but there is room for that in the flashback session. Riker discovering Betazoid customs, such as nudity at weddings, is always amusing. The novel moves along quickly, and provides an interesting read. It also rings true in Star Trek history, with one exception: Betazed is referred to as a Federation "ally" rather than a "member." A strange distinction, and one that doesn't seem to work. It makes more sense for Betazed to be a Federation member.

Still, the book works very well. There are those who simply do not like Peter David's writing, but for a fun, adventurous, and sometimes funny novel, about a very serious subject (for Star Trek fans, at least) this is a terrific book.

Reunion by Michael Jan Friedman, Star Trek: the Next Generation hardcover novel, November 1991 (hardcover), August 1992 (paperback).

Captain Morgen, skipper of the Excalibur, is going to be promoted...to the leader of his people, the Daa'V. This Starfleet officer and former member of the crew of the Stargazer, Jean-Luc Picard's old ship, is gathering with him a number of the members of that crew as an "honor guard" of sorts. Seven members of the Stargazer crew join on the decks of the Enterprise to travel for the ceremony. But while there is joy in reunion, and pathos over the remembrance of their former crewmate, Jack Crusher, there is a problem: someone begins trying to murder the former crew of the Stargazer. The former Stargazer crew and the current Enterprise crew must join to find out who is doing this, and why.

Some references are made in Star Trek to the Stargazer and its crew and mission during the original series. It is part of Captain Picard's backstory, and his command prior to his appointment to Enterprise. As part of the crew of the Stargazer, Picard took command of the ship when the captain was killed and the first officer injured. When Picard resolved the situation, he was appointed captain of the ship, a post he would hold for 22 years on the deep-space exploration vessel. It was on the Stargazer that Picard is said to have come up with his strategem, "the Picard Maneuver," to defeat a Ferengi ship at Maxia. The ship, however, was heavily damaged and had to be abandoned after this action.

This is the first of what turned out to be a series of novels by Friedman about the Stargazer and its crew. After this one and another, the books were identified as their own series. It is part of the expanding universe of Trek in books.

The novel offers the opportunity to look into the characters of Picard and Doctor Crusher, who comes face to face with her husband's memory in the form of his old shipmates. Also, Wesley Crusher sees in the flesh the people he has heard about only from his father's tapes. It is a rich area of Trek history, mostly unexplored. There is a vast world available to explore.

That is perhaps the most disappointing part of the book. Given a rich palette to use in creating a novel, Friedman produces a so-so murder mystery with a lot of hand-wringing by the main characters. If you pay attention, the would-be killer is telegraphed about the middle of the book, although the motives are leaked out only a bit at a time later. It isn't even a real "fair-play" mystery, where the reader gets enough information to figure out the killer on his (or her) own. This is a common problem for Friedman's books: they promise much, but don't deliver very well.

The writing style is straightforward adventure stuff, with limited humor, and a serious expression all around. There isn't much fun here, and while there is some reminiscing, it gets lost in the main thrust of the plot. This may be why so many other Stargazer books were required (I only read this one) if only this much of the backstory gets revealed here.

I am not a fan of Friedman's books, though I was sometimes lured by the storyline as I was here. I was often disappointed. Such was the case with this one.

Q-In-Law by Peter David, Star Trek: The Next Generation #18, October 1991.

The Enterprise is to play host to a wedding: not just any wedding, but a wedding that will cement an alliance between to factions of a spacefaring trading race, the Tizarin, something like the Ferengi but fair dealers. The occasion is momentous, enough to require the Federation's flagship and guests of the highest rank, including the ambassador from Betazed, Lwaxana Troi. Since Mrs. Troi always brings out the worst in her daughter, Enterprise counselor Deanna Troi, and fear in the object of her affections, Enterprise captain Jean-Luc Picard, this promises to bring difficulties. Since she is both a powerful telepath and unafraid to speak her mind, Mrs. Troi can also bring discomfort to a variety of situations. So much more so, then, when the seemingly all-powerful being Q shows up. Q states that he intends to study that most curious of human emotions--love.

This pairing of two of the most popular guest stars of the Next Generation series, Lwaxana Troi and Q, is a story made to be written by Peter David. With the humor and sense of adventure that accompanies the appearance of either of these popular characters, David combines the abilities needed to write such a story. He does not disappoint here, bringing a comical tone at times, and a note of pathos at others. Lwaxana becomes infatuated with Q, a being whose mind she cannot read, and finds herself marvelling at his power. When he shares that power, then rejects her love, the tale becomes the story of a woman scorned on a level never before seen in the galaxy.

This would have made a great TV episode, except that it would have been too expensive to film. That's the great benefit of books, the effects budget is unlimited. The age of computer graphics has brought that down somewhat, but some of these scenes would have been the devil to film. It makes great mind pictures, though.

David juggles character bits with the regulars, builds lives for the new characters (mostly the Tizarin) and shines the spotlight on the two "guest stars," all with the deft hand of the confident writer. David would go on to write several other Q books, and continue to display an affinity for the character. After all, characters who can do virtually anything are not easy to write. How do you beat them, for instance? Not an easy task, to write a believable outcome with such an antagonist.

David also excels at getting into the minds of his characters. When Kerin, the bridegroom-to-be, comes upon a waterfall in the holodeck, he expresses amazement: "I've never seen anything like it." Q is somewhat nonplussed: "Running water? Something as trivial as that, and you've never seen it?" Kerin replies, "When you've lived your entire life in space, nothing to do with nature is trivial." David gets his characters, really gets them and what makes them tick.

It's another fine book by Peter David, and features two of the most popular Next Generation characters. It's a win-win all around.

Strike Zone by Peter David, Star Trek: The Next Generation novel #5, March 1989.

An alien race called the Kreel is considered barbaric even by the Klingons. Brutal and relentlessly warlike, they scavenge what they can and take whatever they can bully away from others. However, few races will trade with them, and their technology and weaponry trails far behind other races, making them something of the jackals of the universe. Then, one ship of Kreel stumbles onto a planet with a large number of weapons, powerful weapons. Weapons that allow them to destroy a Klingon ship, and give this group of Kreel some very nasty ideas, indeed.

Things are going as usual on the starship Enterprise when the crew encounters the Kreel. The alien weapon clumsily attached to the Kreel ship cuts easily through the Enterprise shields, but when the Kreel stop firing to make demands, Captain Picard orders the weapon to simply be beamed into the cargo bay. Thus disarmed, the Kreel are of little more trouble.

However, Kreel still occupy the planet with the weapons, and this poses a problem. The Klingons prevail upon the Federation to broker a deal, and so the Enterprise is dispatched to pick up Klingon and Kreel ambassadors to go to the planet and at the same time negotiate an agreement. This proves touchy, seeing as how Klingons and Kreel cannot stand the sight of each other. Picard must cleverly navigate the parties involved, and find a way to keep these deadly weapons out of hostile hands, which turns out to be even harder when the advanced race that created them shows up.

This was Peter David's very first Star Trek novel, a number that now numbers dozens, and includes his own series, "New Frontiers." David was a veteran comic book writer, Star Trek fan, and was writing the Original Series comic for DC at the time the novel was published. He uses some of his own characters from the comic book, a practice frowned upon from time to time in the novels, but at other times allowed, as well as people he knows, a common practice by Mr. David. In this case, his former Marvel Comics cohort Bobbie Chase pops up as an ensign with a crush on Cmdr. Riker.

One of David's characters is in fact a key character, the Klingon ambassador. David had placed a half-human, half-Klingon in his comic, abandoned by the Klingons but adopted by a Klingon defector in the Enterprise crew and his human girlfriend, later wife. In this book, the dwarf now named Kobry has become an honored Klingon for brokering the peace between the Klingon Empire and the Federation. In fact, he is always addressed with the honorific, "The Honorable Kobry." It is quite a step up in the world for the character, and those of us who had read the comics were glad to see it.

The novel is set in the time period early in the second season. Dr. Pulaski is the medical officer, and Guinan is now on the ship. The second season had apparently not yet aired, and David was just working from notes, because there are some references that ended up changed in the TV episodes. Ten-Forward of often referred to as the "Ten-Four Lounge," which had passed out of use by the time the season began. Picard is still a bit stiff, and Worf's character not yet fleshed out, common problems of the time. David does deftly handle Wesley Crusher's character, taking the often-reviled (in those days) boy off the main story line and giving him a problem he cannot solve. Wesley does return in time to help save the ship, but it is a narrow thing.

David's trademark humor is apparent throughout, as it usually is. Picard remarks to Kobry, "I cannot recall seeing a Klingon of your advanced years." Then Kobry replies, "The advantage of my stature, Captain. I'm a smaller target." This is a mild example, as the best ones come out of the situations. But while there are some who cannot abide Peter David's humor, many of us love it.

This is a top-notch ST:TNG outing, albeit early in the show with characters that were still developing. It makes for an interesting adventure nonetheless.

The Janus Gate by L.A. Graf. Series in three parts: Present Tense, June 2002, Future Imperfect, also June 2002, and Past Prologue, July 2002.

After the events of "The Naked Time" episode on the TV series (first season) when the Enterprise was thrown back in time three days, the Enterprise returns to the planet Tlaoli to pick up a research team, rather than risk stumbling over themselves and damaging the timeline (oh, if they only knew). The geology team has been having trouble with instrument failure, and one of the three groups has gone missing while investigating a cave. When Captain Kirk goes down to the planet with a team to rescue them, he finds more trouble, and then disappears. Soon the problem is found: in a cave is a device, a "Janus Gate," that can send people through time, exchanging them with a future or past self. Spock and the rest of the crew must figure out how to restore Captain Kirk and their timeline before an alternate history where the Gorn defeat the Federation in the future comes to pass.

L.A. Graf, actually the writing team of Julia Ecklar and Karen Rose Cercone, writes a trilogy of books billed as "a bold new era for Star Trek storytelling!" where the five-year mission is reimagined through the eyes of the "below decks" crew. This set was part of the 2002 "relaunch" of Original Series novels after an absence of about a year. The set aims high, but badly misses the target.

First, some nitpicking. The advertising blurbs on the back are almost hilarously inaccurate. One wonders if the blurbs were written without actually looking at the plots, or if the books were rewritten and the blurbs not changed. Either way, what is on the back cover has almost nothing to do with what is inside the book. Truthfully, what is in the blurbs would likely have made for a better book than what actually appeared.

Then, there is the writing itself. While advertising indicated that characters often ignored would be featured, this does not actually happen. This is actually a typical Graf outing by Ecklar and Cercone, in that it features Chekov, Sulu and Uhura. In fact, two versions of Sulu and Chekov are here. The authors' fascination with security and Chekov as "tough guy" also are here as usual. The typical lack of writing aplomb is here as well.

Characters who were featured in one episode, like Carolyn Palamas, or Anne Mulhall, or Geologist Jaeger, as here, as well as frequent background characters like Transporter Chief Kyle. But they don't do anything much, except stand around in the background. The authors use their own characters, Cave Specialist Spanner and Security guard Yuki Smith, much more than the "below decks" characters. That part is annoying, as we just learn about the authors' favorites rather than characters we may already have some interest in learning more about their personalities and backgrounds. Ecklar and Cercone also pick up on Diane Carey's version of "teenage Kirk as rebel" and his prickly relationship with his StarFleet security man father, shown previously in several Carey novels.

That continutity with other books is a plus, although better points could have been used. So too could better storytelling. The three books feel horribly padded, as though the events could easily have been told in 400-500 pages rather than about 750. That might have produced just a two-book set but a set that was leaner, stronger, and not filled with as much filler as "they are going through the tunnel. They are still going through the tunnel. The tunnel is dark and difficult to crawl through." That's not an actual passage, but it will seem like one if you read these. There is just not enough plot here to sustain three books.

This was my last buy of an original series novel, and that was largely because of the poor quality of this release. I couldn't stomach any more tedium with characters that I love.

Fans of this blog would surely be interested in a book coming out this month. Titled "Voyages of the Imagination: The Definitive Star Trek Fiction Companion," and written by Jeff Ayers, it sets out to cover all forty years or professionally published Star Trek fiction, with pictures of the covers and interviews with the authors. Sounds like an interesting book.

Invasion: First Strike by Diane Carey (Star Trek #79, July 1996).

A Klingon ship witnesses, and barely survives, a crisis as mass in the solar system they are monitoring suddenly drops to nearly zero. When that happens, particles accelerate to light speed, and matter explodes. Able to shield themselves against the last bit of the mass drain, the ship survives to see a vessel emerge from a tear in the fabric of space. Klingon General Kellen beams aboard the ship, and sees creatures that are the stuff of nightmares. To fight these "demons," he decides to summon one of his own: Captain James T. Kirk.

The Klingon ship streaks to gather the Enterprise, which is engaged on a planet with a hostile group of Klingons. Several crewmen are killed and Spock is badly injured, when General Kellen calls a stop to the fighting. He leads the Enterprise back to the new ship, and is disappointed when Kirk does not immediately try to destroy it. Instead, Kirk tries to communicate with the ship, which claims to hold species who were driven from this part of the galaxy over 5000 years ago. Now, they want their space back....

This was the first book of a series, conceived by author Carey and Pocket Books editor John Ordover, to work across the various Star Trek series. This volume was issued first, followed by books with the crew of the Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager. The books sold well, and the process has been repeated several times.

This book is a normal Diane Carey book. There are those who like Carey's books. I am not among them. I find her writing style to be tedious, overwrought, and boring. Her tendency to dwell in the minds of some characters, in this book Captain Kirk, tends to make things move very slowly. We often seem to explore every single thought of Kirk through the whole sequence of events. Plus, a description is made, and then in the next chapter altered to make it a bit less dangerous. The science is played fast and loose. The whole process is frustrating to me.

For this and other reasons, this was the last of my consecutive run of Star Trek novels purchased. The frequency was diminishing, as publishing efforts were spread across four franchises. No longer was there a monthly novel, but instead three or four a year of the original characters, and others of the newer versions. I was more interested in the old characters, especially while the newer ones were still available on screen. Plus, too many of the books were of poor quality. Franchised stories can be frustrating. So, this ends my consecutive writing of reviews, posted here and repeated on Epinions whenever they are listed at that website.

I will post a few more reviews, of books not quite sequential as well as those from other series. The big run, however, is ended.

The Rings of Tautee by Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch (Star Trek #78, May 1996).

Subspace waves are coming from the Tautee star system, home of a civilization capable of spaceflight but pre-warp technology. The Enterprise arrives to find rubble where planets and moons used to be. They also begin receiving a distress signal from amongst the rubble. A small group of Tauteeans is found, who have destroyed their system by means of a fusion power casting experiment. It is this experiment that still casts destructive waves through the system, and could in time destroy both Earth and Vulcan. With the help of the USS Farragut, but faced with four Klingon vessels convinced the system has been destroyed by a test of a new Federation superweapon, Kirk must find a way to rescue more survivors and stop the energy wave causing the rings of Tautee.

Smith and Rusch here write their first original series novel, but their third in the series overall after writing a Deep Space Nine novel under the name Sandy Schofield (which also involved destructive subspace waves). This book does little with the characters, but does keep some plot balls moving. Trouble is, we all know where this one is going. It uses the bag of cheap plot devices, such as key ship systems cutting out at inopportune moments, Kirk pushing everyone and everything to the limit, and a dispute over the Prime Directive. It seems like at each point, the writers decided to pull another card from the deck. "OK, insert a call from Scotty that the engines have failed." "Now, the Klingons show up and start making threats." It's all pretty by the book, the tired old book.

Nothing to see here. Just move along. For completists only.

Twilight's End by Jerry Oltion (Star Trek #77, January 1996).

The Enterprise is badly in need of resupply, but is once again called away to deal with an emergency. This time, it is to the planet Rimillia, a world with no rotation. The people living on this world have already moved from another when conditions worsened there, and now the atmosphere is again becoming too thin, oxygen levels dropping as trees have been cut down to make more living space on the thin strip that does support life. The Dumada have come up with a desperate plan: use hundreds of impulse engines to start the planet spinning again, as it did millions of years before. The problem is, part of the population that does not want the project to go forward. They have sabotagued some of the engines, and kidnapped the scientist in charge of the project. Captain Kirk and the crew must set things right, and rescue a civilization.

This is the first of a handful of Star Trek novels for Oltion, an honored science fiction writer both before and after his ST work. Oltion didn't need Star Trek to make his mark, but it probably made for a good paycheck and raised his profile among those less involved with the genre. Licensed titles can help in that.

Oltion deftly moves back and forth between the Enterprise crew, presenting each of them with some screen time, with the exception of Uhura. I am not sure if Oltion often has a problem writing women, or if it is just Uhura. We get a point of view of the other six Enterprise main characters in turn, and of course all are males. We switch back and forth every half-chapter or so between focus points, with Kirk, then McCoy, then Scotty, then Spock, and so on, giving us a look inside their head and how they view the action. This allows for more of a spread of the story than just using one point-of-view character. It is also more cinematic in approach, although some movies do focus on one character. So, in a way, it is more of a television approach.

The plot, involving the problem of getting a planet to rotate, the problems when it doesn't (only a ring of habitation, in perpetual twilight, is usable land that isn't too hot or too cold) and the problems involved with the first days of rotation are treated in fine science fiction fashion, with emphasis on the science. This is an involving book for true fans of science fiction, Star Trek fans or not.

Oltion is not quite as smooth with characterization or dialogue, but there is no reason to complain in these departments. We have reasonable conversations, and the characters are not out of character. The only serious problem is after Sulu has been assigned to a botany problem, and Kirk, Spock and Scotty are all down on the planet. Uhura should be the conn officer, but instead it is Chekov in command on the bridge. That's a bit of a stretch, since Chekov is an Ensign. There is mention made of Dr. McCoy being the ranking officer, but not on the bridge. That's a bit of a stretch too, since McCoy is not in the usual line of command succession. However, this is a minor point.

Oltion has a good first Star Trek effort here, and a good SF novel. I can recommend it to fans of both.

The Captain's Daughter by Peter David (Star Trek #76, December 1995).

The Enterprise-B, captained by John Harriman, is called to Askalon Five by a repeating distress beacon. A team beams down to the planet to investigate the call, as sensors are having trouble getting through to the surface. Ensign Demora Sulu, on the away team, comes back as a berserker, naked and screaming, and attacks the captain. Harriman shoots her in self-defense, and Demora Sulu is dead.

The Ensign's father, Captain Hikaru Sulu, is devastated by her death. So is her godfather, Commander Pavel Chekov, who slugs Captain Harriman at the memorial service. But it is Captain Sulu, so soon after losing his mentor James T. Kirk, who struggles most with the situation. He recalls how he met Demora's mother, and raising the precocious young child. And, he decides he must do something to find out how she died on a deserted planet.

Peter David stories are always a gem. The plot is advanced bit by bit, something that will be important in Act III is revealed and introduced in Act I, and there is a crispness and light touch to the writing. The stories are well-constructed, the actions logical and human. It was soon after this that I stopped buying the Star Trek books, and a lot of it was because of the poor quality, though that's not a problem with this one.

Like all of David's books, this one is highly recommended.

First Frontier by Diane Carey and Dr. James I. Kirkland (Star Trek #75, August 1995).

The Enterprise is testing new shielding technology which takes the energy used against it and channels it through the warp drive, displacing it in time and space. Cool idea, which proves quite effective in weapons tests. Then they try it by going very close to a blue giant star, the hottest stars known. While in the star's outer corona, the Enterprise encounters a gravitational well, that throws them off course deeper into the star, and a quick maneuver pulls them out, but the observing starships are gone. In fact, subspace is quiet. Protocol says that starships encountering these conditions should proceed to StarFleet Command on Earth to rendezvous with any other available personnel.

Earth, rather than teeming with people and the very heart of the Federation, has no human life at all. Lush flora, and copious animal species, mostly reptiles, but no humans or humanoids. No satellites, no signs of advanced spacefaring culture. An alternate future? A dimensional gap? Romulans and Klingons are found, and then Vulcans, but no humans at all. With only one option left, Captain Kirk orders a trip to the planet of the Guardian of Forever. Time travel to the time of the dinosaurs ensues.

Dr. James Kirkland is a dinosaur paleontologist, now the most famous one in the world. His ideas were used in the book and then movie series "Jurassic Park," and have revolutionized the way we think about dinosaurs. Kirkland has demonstrated that birds are descended from dinosaurs, changed how we look at various specious called "raptors," and in general caused a great upheaval and new interest in the giant reptiles. I had the pleasure of hearing Dr. Kirkland a few years ago, and then the privilege of shaking his hand after his incredible lecture. This is a guy who knows his dinos.

Kirkland provided most of the plot flow, of how dinosaurs could develop in a world where there was no asteroid hit in the Yucatan to wipe out the species. Much of what is good in this novel is a direct result of Kirkland's input. This novel is thick in plot and rich in dinosaur elements.

The weaknesses come from the writing of Diane Carey. The book carries the usual Carey faults, like overreliance on writing of the inside of someone's head. Thankfully, she sticks with one point of view, in this case Captain Kirk. And the preponderence of plot helps to keep the usual bellybutton-gazing down. Whining and whiny characters plus contrivences of plot are still here, but easier to ignore.

To give the story a more immediate feel, Kirk is ill and Dr McCoy does not have enough medication to keep him going for more than a week. Kirk is awfully active for someone so close to death, but it is all a plot device to make the timeline more crucial. Of course, the meteor strike is all the deadline one really needs, but when the crew first arrives they have no idea when that will actually take place. So an artificial deadline is provided. It's unnecessary and distracting, so like a Carey novel.

Spock is used frequently and fairly well, and Dr. McCoy is important to the story. Scotty gets a little time, but Sulu, Chekov and Uhura are used a bit but not much. It is really a Kirk with Spock story. In that way it plays a lot like many TV episodes. Also, this is a long book at 383 pages. It moves along at a much better clip than most Carey books, so it doesn't feel any longer than most of her 300 page works.

I recommend it, if only for the pairing of Star Trek and dinosaurs, and the strong contribution of Dr. Kirkland (good name to be part of Star Trek) to the story which makes it paleontologically correct. I could have done without the improvised orbital vehicle though. That felt like plot padding.

The Fearful Summons by Denny Martin Flinn (Star Trek #74, June 1995).

Captain Sulu and the Excelsior are cruising the frontier when a distress call comes. It is from a ship of Beta Prometheans, a trading race that controls most of the dilithium in the quadrant. The aliens say their ship is disabled, but when Sulu transports aboard with a repair crew, they are taken hostage. Ransom is demanded, but StarFleet and the Federation do not negotiate for hostages. While relations are at a standstill, Captain Kirk emerges from retirement to gather the old Enterprise crew to set off after their former shipmate.

Writer Flinn is one of the screenwriters of the movie Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (co-credited as writer with director Nicholas Meyer). Meyer spent twenty years on Broadway as a dancer and choreographer, then retired from the stage and became a writer. He wrote a couple of contemporary Sherlock Holmes novels, using Holmes' grandson as the protagonist. After the movie, he took this shot at writing a sequel of sorts.

The story never gets going, just plods along. The first third of the book is Sulu on the Excelsior with his crew, which should be new and fascinating to us. Instead, Flinn fails to develop anyone's character, instead introducing a Vulcan science officer/first officer and trying to develop and beginning Kirk/Spock relationship between them. It is as if the Excelsior is to be a copy of the Enterprise. Then, Sulu makes a rookie mistake and blunders into captivity. It was a hard plot twist to accept, given Sulu's experience in deep space.

We then spend an interminable amount of time on how old the former Enterprise crew is, especially James T. Kirk, who is the focus. There is a chapter that could be titled "Kirk Gets Lucky" for his rendezvous with a young Lieutennant. This just-graduated cadet ends up going along with the old dogs, whom Kirk gathers from various places. The process is quite tedious, and so is the sallying forth to Starbase 499 to find Sulu and crew. Kirk also makes a rookie mistake to prolong the story.

Flinn learned a bit of Trek lore in writing the movie script, but it seems just a bit. Ship captains are referred to as "commanders," a serious faux pas. The skipper of a ship is always a captain. Other terminology, both Star Trek and general naval, is botched. A bit more research, or better editing, was in order.

Of course, all turns out right in the end. But getting there is supposed to be half the fun, and if you make it all the way to the end of this book, you will be simply glad it's over. Nothing to see here, move along. Perhaps the strangest thing is, I have no idea what the title is saying. What summons? What is fearful about it? Does this mean the original faked distress call that lured the Excelsior to the fateful rendezvous? What was fearful about that? It makes no sense. Much like the greatest part of the book.

Recovery by J.M. Dillard (Star Trek #73, March 1995).

Admiral Kirk is sent to supervise the testing of the rescue ship U.S.S. Recovery, a completely automated vessel meant to evacuate planets and preserve life on stranded vessels. Kirk's recommendations have led to a number of changes in the vessel, and since he has been the project's biggest critic, he is assigned to assess it's performance.

Recovery is set for a simulation, to evacuate personnel, and to deal with an attack from drones, as well as respond to a situation where one shuttlecraft fires on another. The ship is huge, meant to be large enough to evacuate whole planets, and not to require a single human on the crew. Klingon, Romulan, and Tholian observers are invited to see this test run.

Then, something goes wrong (of course). Kirk changes the preprogrammed simulatin plans, then Recovery fires on the attacking shuttle and destroys it, then moves to attack the observing ships and heads for Tholian territory. Dr. Myron Shulman, the main planner of the ship, appears to have become unbalanced and accuses Kirk of attempting to sabotage the test. On the ship, Shulman begins to hunt the people on board and kill them, while Recovery refuses attempts to call in or out. It's up to Kirk to save the day, and friend Dr. McCoy on board the Recovery.

This is the fourth book in the "Lost Years" trilogy. Yes, that sentence calls for an explanation. "Lost Years" was a planned three-book series to look at the time period between the end of the original TV show and the first movie. J.M. Dillard was to write the first book, Brad Ferguson the second, and Irene Kress the third. Dillard's book, simply titled "The Lost Years," was published as a hardcover without apparent incident. Ferguson's book, "A Flag Full of Stars," was delayed, then published as a paperback rather than a hardcover. It was also extensively rewritten by an uncredited Dillard, with an in-between draft by Gene DeWeese. Ferguson estimates that 7% of his book is in the published version. Kress' book was rejected and never seen. The next "Lost Years" book turned out to be a story by L.A. Graf (pseudonym for Julia Ecklar and Karen Rose Cercone) titled "Traitor Winds," followed by this volume by Dillard.

The book itself is all right, but suffers the problems common to a J.M. Dillard novel. At 277 pages, it is incredibly padded and tedious. A good editor could go through and judiciously remove the passages that are filled with "She looked at Kirk and thought about how..." and "He was transfixed with the image of...." and so on that do not add anything to the plot, the story, or the characters. A good editor could take this and pull out a tight, thrilling 200 page tale. But that's not this book.

This book concentrates on Dillard' versions of Admiral Kirk and Kevin Riley, StarFleet officer and his aide. This sets up Kirk's push for the Enterprise that occurs just before the beginning of Star Trek: The Motion Picture, Riley's diplomatic career in the novels, and Dr. McCoy's "drafting" back into StarFleet, as well as some scenes showing Spock back on Vulcan. Other than a quick bit with Scotty, that is all the Enterprise crew we see, except for a few broad references. Mostly, we see a few characters Dillard has previously introduced in the series, plus a few more dreamed up for this book. There is nothing wrong with those characters, other than being rather two-dimesionally portrayed. But one wonders if Uhura, Sulu and Chekov couldn't have been brought along for the ride somehow.

The problem with this book is just Dillard. She is so slow to develop a story, and so clumsy at revealing a motivation, that the book often slows to a crawl. In a Dillard book, everything that can go wrong for the characters usually will, and then some, so there is always some suspense. Getting there can be very slow.

The Better Man by Howard Weinstein (Star Trek #72, December 1994).

The Enterprise is called to the planet Empyrea, to take up the cause of a treaty. The Federation maintains an observatory on Empyrea, due to its proximity to a stellar phenomenon. But Empyrea is a colony of genetically engineered people, who are striving for perfection and do not want the "pollution" of imperfect people. There is great general feeling on the planet to let the treaty expire and have the Federation haul the astronomers and equipment away, and withdraw from all contact. Captain Kirk is sent to secure a renewal of the treaty.

Federation Ambassador Mark Rousseau, a former starship captain and childhood friend of Dr. McCoy, is sent to negotiate. The Captain notices hard feelings between the Doctor and the Ambassador and probes to find out why. When they arrive at Empyrea, the governmental President turns out to be an old friend of McCoy from his earlier time there, and she names him the father of her child. Trouble is, this is a crime on Empyrea, to birth a child with "impure" genealogy. If the people find out, young Anna could even be sentenced to death.

As tensions mount, the planet is politically split, McCoy tries a risky procedure on Anna, the power source for the observatory is sabotagued, and then the Doctor is kidnapped. Everything seems to be falling apart as events reach their climax.

Weinstein writes very personal stories with a science fiction background. While there may be technobabble present, his stories are always about the people in them. This one is mostly about Dr. Leonard McCoy, the Enterprise's chief medical officer. McCoy is popular with several of Star Trek's authors, perhaps because of his irascible nature coupled with the caring of a physician. He is a remarkably deep and rich character, handled correctly. It is through and around him that the story plays out.

McCoy gets the most play, though Spock and Scotty are also important to the plot. The story is set during the "second five-year mission" that lies between the first and second movies, and Spock's willingness to unbend a bit is given play here, as is Scotty as curmudgeon. It works for both. Chekov gets a few good moments, but Uhura is used little and Sulu not at all. They fare a bit better than Captain Kirk, who is out of character for much of the book. William Shatner would not have liked this script at all, and would very likely have been unable to play it, being virtually incapable of not being the center of attention.

This is Weinstein's sixth Star Trek novel, and to date his last. He seems to have almost disappeared from book writing at all, producing virtually nothing for some 10 years. That's a shame, because he is a very capable writer. His name used to be all over Star Trek, from novels to comic books. Perhaps we shall see him on the shelves once again.

Crossroad by Barbara Hambly (Star Trek #71, September 1994).

In a rarely-explored region of space called the Crossroad, near the Crossroad nebula, the Enterprise is monitoring the developing civilization on Tau Lyra, the Enterprise encounters a ship where none should be. The starship is very similar to the Enterprise, apparently of Federation design, but with no insignia or external lights, and heavily shielded with a technology beyond any known. The crew is in serious trouble, and though they warn the Enterprise off they are beamed aboard when their lives are in the balance.

The crew of the ship numbers but six, including a Klingon and an Orion. The captain of this crew is a humanoid of unknown race. A Vulcan adolescent and a human are in great need of medical help and are taken directly to sickbay. The others, who decline to explain the circumstances of their condition except to offer reasons obviously not true, are confined to the brig. They escape, and use the computer system to take over the ship. These strange people warn of a greater danger, from someone who can control minds. When another ship appears, Captain Kirk must separate the truth from the lies, and decide whom to trust.

Hambly, penning her third (and so far final) Star Trek novel, writes odd little stories based on what could be called "mind games," which is often a dangerous area for Star Trek. Many of the very worst episodes of the TV series concerned the mental arena, as this is often static by nature. "Next Generation" most often broke down when entering this territory, and "Star Trek: Voyager" spent so much time with existentialist storytelling that many fans, such as me, finally gave it up as unwatchable. Yet Hambly, here as before, makes it work with interesting storytelling.

Hambly's previous Star Trek books are "Ishmael" (ST #22), an odd marrying of Star Trek with the show "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers," and "Ghost-Walker," about another alien with mind powers. Both were odd, but with such good writing that the story held together. This is also the case here. It becomes obvious early on that the strange visitors must be from the future, yet Hambly maintains suspense anyway. Then, when the pursuers from a ruthless future StarFleet show up, Hambly keeps the destruction that such a 250-year advance in technology at bay by raising the specter of changing history that usually faces our heroes. Here, the invaders must be careful not to change anything that could affect their own future existence.

Kirk and Spock are the main characters here, with Uhura and Chekov little used. Hambly uses a lot of her own characters, and gives quite a bit of time to Nurse Chapel, specifically on deciding her future as the five-year mission draws to a close. Part of the transition of Chapel to a doctor in time for the first movie has a foundation laid here. McCoy, Scotty and Sulu are used mostly to advance the plot, but do get something to do.

Hambly is gifted at creating and showing us vivid characters that we can almost instantly care about. She fleshes out Captain Arios and young Sharnas quickly, invents a decidedly non-Utopian Federation future, and provides us with a lot to digest. She goes too far at times, inventing so much that it is hard to drink up at one gulp. But it's a lot of fun.

Fans will find well-drawn characters, plenty of action, suspense, and a twist at the end that keeps surprises coming. This book is good for Star Trek fans, and those who are not fans will also find plenty of interest here. This is not a book for Trekkies only.

Traitor Winds by L.A. Graf (Star Trek #70, June 1994).

In the time period after the original TV show but before the first movie, Admiral Kirk is in charge of a diplomatic negotiation with the Romulans. Waiting and hoping for reassignment to a refitted Enterprise, Sulu is a test pilot, and Uhura a StarFleet Academy lecturer in communications. Chekov has gone to the Security Academy, trying to build up his resume' for command. Scott is overseeing the Enterprise refit, while McCoy is in semiretirement.

Things seem to be going well for everyone, even if Chekov is under a lot of pressure in school again, trying something new. Then an old Enterprise physician, Dr. Mark Piper, gives Chekov an offer to work on disruptor research with a captured Klingon weapon. Soon, Piper confides to Chekov that he suspects one of his lab techs is an industrail spy. The confrontation turns deadly, and when both the disruptor and the plans for the cloaking device that is on the shuttle Sulu is test-flying disappear, the old Enterprise crew becomes hunted.

This is the third outing of the "Lost Years" series, following the original "Lost Years" book written by J.M. Dillard that appeared in hardcover, then "A Flag Full of Stars" cover-credited to Brad Ferguson but extensively rewritten by Dillard and very similar to the first in tone. This book changes the tone of the series in a way that is refreshing, but at the same time has some annoying problems.

Graf, actually the writing team of Julia Ecklar and Karen Rose Cercone, (L.A. Graf is reportedly an acronym for "let's all get rich and famous) writes a novel much the same as the others under this pseudonym. The focus is on Chekov, Sulu, and Uhura, the younger members of the bridge crew. Most of the action focuses on these three, with Kirk, McCoy and Scott as supporting characters. Spock, by this time deep into the study of logic on Vulcan and the Kolinahr, does not appear. The time frame appears to be getting very near to the time of the first movie, perhaps a year before that event. The primary hull, or saucer section, is on Earth for repairs while the secondary hull, or engineering section, is in orbit in drydock and figures greatly as a setting for the action.

This is a good book for getting all the characters into the act, as all six of our heroes who appear have plenty to do, even if the three youngest get most of the attention. There is also the appearance of other crew members, like Chapel, M'Benga, Rand, and more. The use of Piper is a nice touch, even if the writers are quite nasty to him.

There's a lot to gripe about here, though. The flow of the book is typical Graf work, a suspense novel that depends a lot on what is going on inside the characters' heads without a great deal of dialogue. The plots of these books vary, but the general flow is much the same. Chekov, Sulu, and Uhura, especially Chekov, get into mortal peril and must escape. Chekov takes a frightful beating and is badly hurt, and must struggle to complete the mission while in tremendous pain. Sulu does some daredevil stuff, and Uhura worries about everyone when not acting like a Pollyanna. After you read a couple of Graf novels, they become very predictable. This would be the last original series novel for a while, however. Graf would next novelize the "Voyager" series premiere, then write a couple of Deep Space Nine novels before returning to the original.

One of the problems with this novel, as well as others published under this name, is the number of improbable things that happen within it. The events do not seem to flow naturally, but instead unfold as they must to bring about the writers' plot. This is a common problem with fiction, as writers have difficulty bringing about the events they wish to present. It brings to mind the mention by Lewis Carroll of "believing six impossible things before breakfast." People act in strange ways, do strange things, all in the name of a plot. If the book is good enough, disbelief can be suspended. That's a problem here.

Ecklar and Cercone are simply not good enough writers to bring this off. This, like other books written as Graf, is not bad but not really good. The action and suspense may be enough to keep your interest, and if you like other books written by the same writers there is a good chance you will like this one. But I can't recommend it to anyone not already part of Star Trek fandom.

The Patrian Transgression by Simon Hawke (Star Trek #69, April 1994).

The Enterprise is sent on a mission to Patria as that world is considering Federation membership. In a pleasant surprise, the diplomat the Enterprise carries is an old friend of Captain Kirk's from Starfleet Academy, who has gone into the diplomatic service. The planet of Patria is peaceful, and the mission appears to be simple and straightforward.

When the ship arrives, soon it is discovered that things are anything but peaceful. A rebel faction has been protesting against the government, and now they have gotten energy weapons, beyond the Patrian technology. A capture of some weapons shows there must be a Klingon supplier. Obviously, the Klingons are trying to destabilize the government for their own ends. Now the Captain and his crew join forces with the Patrian police to track down the rebels.

However, once again it happens that things are not as they seem. Kirk is passed word that it is not the rebels who are using Klingon weapons and Spock surmises that the Patrian police have officers who are telepathic....and are authorized to shoot first and ask no questions at all, when they find someone contemplating a serious crime. I can think of some people now who would be interested in that.

Kirk, Spock and the crew of the Enterprise must uncover the truth, and find out just what the true threat is to Patrian society and to themselves. As the situation gets more and more dire, inventiveness and quick action will be required to make this mission a success.

Hawke here writes the best Star Trek novel in some time. It has a clever plot with plenty of twists and turns to hold reader interest, and reveals characters by dialogue rather than the lazy man's (or woman's) method of sitting inside a character's head for pages on end. The language level is that of a young adult novel, not terribly challenging, but the crisp dialogue and solid plot will keep the pages turning. This is a good book.

Kirk and Dr. McCoy are the featured characters, and by a clever twist it is McCoy who gets the love interest this time. Kirk, Spock and McCoy are solidly in character. Scotty is well-done as well, although the author makes the mistake of thinking Mr. Scott is happy filling the command chair, when all Trekkers know Scotty is always dying to get back to the engine room.

Sulu and Uhura get little to do here, and there isn't much play for Chekov although he gets to go on the landing party. Chekov is also referred to as the "helmsman," although he is the navigator at the TV-era time. This is an example of the few minor mistakes. A bit of better editing would have helped.

The writing is solid from Page 1 to the end. Hawke manages to turn some Star Trek conventions on their ear, and keep some going in a wink at the reader. The diplomat is a friend, but still ends up at odds with Kirk. The diplomat has a beautiful assistant...who falls for McCoy. At the end, it is Kirk's ingenuity that saves the day. It all would have made for a solid TV episode, or a decent movie. As it is, it's a good book.

This tome will be a good book for any Star Trek fan, and would also be a good read for those who are not conversant with the show. It's a good, solid story.

Firestorm by L.A. Graf (Star Trek #68, January 1994).

The Enterprise is called to the planet Rakatan, where a Federation geological team is investigating a world rife with volcanic activity. One member of the team thinks she has found evidence of a life form in the volcanoes themselves. That is the ostensible reason the Enterprise was called, but the real reason is a mining operation by a group from the planet Elas that is interfering with the volcanic research.

Kirk and crew have dealt with Elasians before, in a manner not always satisfactory. The arrogant Elasians stress their claim to the planet, and say they are mining dilithium, although the geologists doubt the existence of large dilithium deposits. While their technology is not impressive, the Elasian men are physically imposing, and the women are strong-willed and haughty. Hand-to-hand combat is inadvisable.

Since the Elasians are a strongly matriarchial culture, Uhura is chosen to be the one to head up the landing party. It is difficult for the Elasians to conceive of a man in charge. Uhura, Chekov and Sulu beam down to the planet to negotiate with the Elasians and settle the disputes between them and the geologists. That doesn't go well, but the importance of that dispute soon begins to pale beside the rumbling volcano. And when an Elasian armada shows up, to interfere with the pullout of Enterprise personnel from the planet, the exercise becomes a test of survival skills and grit.

This book is a sequel of sorts to the third-season episode "Elaan of Troyius," in which the female leader of Elas, named Elaan, was to be married to the male ruler of neighboring planet Troyius to cement a treaty between the two peoples. This became difficult because the Elasian ruler was a "barbarian" with poor manners, a trait important to the people of Troyius. When the murderous Dohlman Elas nearly killed the Troyian ambassador, Kirk stepped in for the etiquette lessons. He soon found the true power of the Elasian women was that when their tears fell on a man, he became completely subject to her will and forced to follow her orders completely.

L.A Graf is the pseudonym of the writing team of Julia Ecklar and Karen Rose Cercone. This book, like the previous two produced by this team, features Uhura and Chekov, and like the previous one features Sulu. Chekov is an obvious favorite of this writing pair, especially in his incarnation as security chief in the time period after the first movie. The setting for the novel is the often-proposed "second five-year mission" to have taken place between the first and second movies. We are five years after the first encounter with the Elasians, and the Dohlman who had enslaved Kirk with her tears has died.

While Elaan is dead, her heir is her younger sister, not yet old enough to cry the tears that will bind men to her unquestioningly. The official rule is by her aunt, the Crown Regent. Yet, Israi (the young Dohlman) has a retinue of men who swear loyalty to her, in spite of the lack of biochemical coercion. The book, like the episode, never explains if the tears are a trait common to all Elasian women, or just the royal family.

The Enterprise can easily outgun anything the Elasians have, so plot contrivances must be made to make the crew vulnerable. The magnetic currents on the planet itself, plus a late ploy involving an electromagnetic net by the Crown Regent serve to put the humans at the mercy of the much larger and stronger Elasians. Chekov plays tough guy, as "Graf" always has him do. Much of the focus of the narrative is on Chekov, with a secondary focus on Uhura. This has become the typical modus operandi for the Graf writing team. Kirk and Spock come in at the end to save the day.

Uhura gets to stand on her own here and lead, but this clever idea is not used to best effect. We find out little more about Uhura's character. The novel is mostly built around suspense, also a hallmark of Graf books. The problem is, the constant ratcheting up of the circumstances seems false. The volcano is huge, larger than Olympus Mons on Mars, and looms over all the action.

It feels a lot like we've been here before, because this book is similar in tone and theme to the other books by L.A. Graf. If you read along in the series chronologically, this book seems repetitive and derivative as it takes on the same shape as "Deathcount" and "Ice Trap." It was as though the authors said, "OK, now let's do Ice Trap but with fire instead!" The throw-in of a race previously on Star Trek is just to make the book slightly different. It doesn't work for me.

I also get the feeling the authors dislike geologists. The scientists observing the planet are obtuse, wrapped up only in what they are doing and distrustful of others, even in their own group, and are used in much the same way as "red shirts" in most Trek adventures. It is difficult to get a feeling for any of the characters as people, and they seem one-dimensional, rarely even rising to the level of two-dimensional. The characters exist simply to further the plot.

There is some suspense here, and the focus on Sulu, Uhura and Chekov instead of Kirk and Spock is often refreshing. It's just that no new ground is covered.

The Great Starship Race by Diane Carey (Star Trek #67, October 1993).

The starship Hood discovers an as-yet undiscovered alien race at the far reaches of the galaxy, the Rey. The people are very friendly, and excited to become part of the grouping of races that make up the Federation. To get into the swing of things, they decide to have a party: or, more specifically, a race, a sort of rally with spaceships and a difficult to follow course.

Things are going well, although the four StarFleet ships entered in the race must agree to be powered down to make things fair. Then, a Romulan ship shows up requesting entry into the race. To Captain Kirk's chagrin, the Romulans are allowed into the party. Now, Kirk knows the race won't be fun anymore. At first, the Romulan motives are unclear. As the race unfolds, and their sinister plan becomes apparent, Kirk must race against time and the limitations of his own ship to save a planet from destruction.

Yet another novel from Diane Carey, and by now regular readers know what they are going to get. Carey, as someone who sails for leisure, tends to emphasize the naval aspects of the Enterprise. She is very knowledgeable about the sea and always works that into the books. The idea of a race, at sea, is probably one she has been a participant in many times. The checkpoints that are hard to find are an interesting plot point, and make the race more difficult and more about sailing prowess than sheer speed.

We also get the weak points of Carey the writer here, as the plot doesn't hold up well to scrutiny, and there are great stretches where nothing happens except inside the character's heads. Think of it as a "chick book" in science fiction form. There's an awful lot of pondering, and straining, and just plain-old emotion. For the reader, there's a lot of tedium, waiting for the writer to get back to the story. The characters do not gently reveal themselves by their actions, as happens in books by good writers, but instead the prose beats us over the head with their feelings inside of their minds. Over, and over, and over again.

The idea of a friendly new race is a good one, although their "secret" is one that you will guess a page or two after they first appear. It takes everyone else a while, though. As Dr. McCoy says, "They're antelope," creatures that were first-order consumers rather than predators. Carey, no biologist, doesn't cast this exactly right either, emphasizing the skittishness of deer and other plant-eaters, and not the nobility and courage.

I am not sure why the StarFleet ships have to be physically powered down. Why can't they just agree not to go above Warp 5, and use alternate sensors for the race? Why physically alter the ships? I know, it's important to the plot. When you have to start asking questions like that, it's a bad sign. It is a problem a book can overcome, but not if there are too many other problems.

All told, the book is interesting, and has enough good points to be worth a read. But be warned ahead of time that the book is about 20% too long. What took Carey a little over 300 pages to write, would have taken another writer, say Gene DeWeese, about 225 pages. It feels padded. For a summer beach book, that may not be a bad thing.

From the Depths by Victor Milan (Star Trek #66, August 1993).

The Enterprise must cut short its shore leave on Starbase 23 to take Federation Commissioner Wayne to Okeanos, a planet with a hot climate and little land surface, to settle a dispute between two species of inhabitants. The species are engaging in rather open warfare, and one side is being egged on by the Klingons. The situation quickly gets even more complicated when a floating city is obliterated, and Captain Kirk is blamed.

Victor Milan wrote only this one Star Trek book, but he is a very prolific author under his own name, in collaboration with others particular fellow Star Trek author Robert Vardeman, and under a number of pseudonyms including Richard Austin, Robert Baron, and James Axler. His 1985 novel "The Cybernetic Samurai" won a Prometheus Award. So, this was no newcomer to the science fiction field.

Milan uses Captain Kirk as his focus character, paying some but not a lot of attention to the other Star Trek regulars as well as using Lt. Kyle. He uses a great many characters of his own creation, including the genetically modified humans of Okeanos, refugees from Earth in the era of Khan Noonian Singh, who encountered the Enterprise crew both in the original series and the second movie. Milan also ties the Klingon Kain, the main antagonist of the book, to Kirk's past. The idea of genetically engineered humans to do the bidding of Khan and his ilk is not much of a stretch, nor is their leaving Earth in search of sanctuary. A bit convenient for the plot, perhaps, but not a big stretch. Kain is more of an implant, but acceptable.

It is in the human refugees, or "vairs" (for genetic variants) as they call themselves, that Milan inserts his politics. Every writer has his or her own point of view, and Milan is a staunch libertarian, distrustful of government. So are his creations here, and of course they are right, at least in the context of the book. The transplanted humans have no central government, and each takes care of his own and works together as they wish. It makes for a society that Ayn Rand would have liked.

Politics aside, Milan creates a very interesting alien culture. The interlocking floating residences that can form a city on the surface, or submerge if attacked, are quite imaginative. The people in that society are interesting as well, and become quite involved with the Enterprise crew. It is they who are the true heart of the book.

The other main character is a government official, Commissioner Moriah Wayne. Since she is with the government, she must be bad, but this character is a bit hard to believe. That she could have achieved such a high position with so many psychological problems, just beginning with a seemingly bipolar personality disorder, is hard to believe for someone in the 23rd century. She rapidly swings back and forth from verbally abusive to desperately seeking the approval of authority figures. While many may have this problem, few rise to such power, and hopefully fewer will in a future as Utopian as the world of the Federation.

While there are some nice science fiction touches, there are also some glaring errors. There is a nicely realistic (for the most part) treatment of the differing gravities of different worlds, although it is inconsistent, at one point the planet is reported as having an atmosphere of "20% oxygen" and Dr. McCoy questions that as low. Well, it's the same as on Earth, Bones. There are other errors as well, but that is the most glaring.

So, it is a flawed book, with science errors and rampant politicking. All that can be excused, however, because this is also a rip-roaring adventure. A lot happens here, and the excitement starts in the prologue. You, the reader, may or may not be able to put aside any beliefs of the author you may not share, or suspend disbelief long enough to look past the errors in the volume. If you can, you will read an enjoyable adventure yarn. Recommended for thrill-seekers and libertarians especially.

Shadows on the Sun by Michael Jan Friedman. (Star Trek hardcover, 1993)

Following the events of the movie Star Trek VI, the Enterprise is heading home for ship and crew to be retired. A message comes in, sending the fabled group on one last mission. On the planet Ssani, hostilities have broken out. The cult of assassins, long official but now illegal, has decided to fight back, and is killing off the leaders of society. The Enterprise is sent to negotiate a settlement, because Dr. McCoy served there briefly during his residency, during the first war, and is familiar with the situation.

To help, a pair of Federation negotiators are added to the crew. It just happens that they are Dr. McCoy's ex-wife Jocelyn and her husband. When a beamdown meeting goes badly and Jocelyn along with Captain Kirk are captured by the assassins, McCoy risks everything to save them, because he may be the only one who can.

The book is divided into three parts: "McCoy," which provides the setup to the saga and background information, "Ssan," which tells the story of McCoy's previous time on Ssan, and "Jocelyn," which gives the story's resolution. It manages to weave the "present" and the past, to give the whole tale and shed light on the life of one Dr. Leonard McCoy.

On the TV show, we were given some hints to McCoy's past, but not many. One episode was supposed to have been titled "Joanna" and featured McCoy's long-lost daughter from whom he had been separated by the divorce, but the script was changed. Still, fans have taken that bit of information and made it part of the tapestry of the series. It has helped to add depth to the doctor's character. He often seems to hate space, but we understand that it was the pain of his divorce that drove him to the stars. It has happened many times before.

Friedman is a competent writer, and he writes to his strengths here. He is best at writing conversation, character interaction. Much of the book is told in that way, as people chat among themselves. There is plot, but the focus is on the characters. Many things happen in the course of this book, but we are given a chance to care about the people to whom they happen.

One of Friedman's weaknesses, however, is giving true depth to his characters. He is able to create recognizable people, but not to make them truly three-dimensional. McCoy never emerges as a whole person, only one consumed by his work. Perhaps that is all there is to him, but when Kirk says, "he doesn't really have any hobbies," it seems very sad and odd. Certainly none were really revealed during the TV show, but couldn't "research" have been part of it? We are often told that McCoy was a force in StarFleet Medical, and he spent a lot of time on the show researching this virus or that disease.

There's really not a lot about anyone else. We learn the story behind McCoy's failed marriage, and it is a sad and all-too-common one, but there's not that much there. Everyone pretty much reacts to McCoy here. That's fine, as the book is supposed to focus on the doctor, but he doesn't come off as well as he should.

It's a good book, for a character study of Dr. McCoy, but I prefer Diane Duane's "Doctor's Orders" for the same purpose. Not bad, could have been better.