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So, I recently received the Starfleet Captains board game and AMT models of the Enterprises C and E. I want to stay motivated to paint up my ship models and keep playing the board game, which means I need some good Trek. Especially good Trek starship porn.

Generally, I am reluctant to read stories that center around the TV show crews, but please let me know if there are any must-reads for TNG or TOS. I could probably enjoy a decent Captain Riker or Captain Sulu book, but I would like to know what I am getting into. I loved most of the New Frontier stuff, so anything similar would be great.

I am especially curious about:

IKS Gorkon. How is the series? The Amazon reviews are all very high, but that doesn't mean much.

Vanguard. Would this be a good series to read when the next reboot movie makes me nostalgiac for the TOS era?

Starfleet Corps of Engineers. Are there any good books in the series?

Titan/post-Borgpocalypse books. What's out there in the Post TNG/DS9/VOY universe?

Are there any great starship-centric novels? I'm willing to suffer through some mediocre plots and characters if it means I get a lot of motivation to convert my Sovereign models into a Luna or Aventine Class or something. If the ships put in a good show, I'll be happy.

Thanks everyone!

I recommend Star Trek: Articles of the Federation and the Star Trek: Mirror Universe series. Neither are really starship heavy, but they're both rather good Trek novel series.

Bob the Gunslinger wrote:IKS Gorkon. How is the series? The Amazon reviews are all very high, but that doesn't mean much.

It's very good. It gives a Klingon-centric viewpoint and the fun is in seeing normal Trek scenarios handled with a Klingon touch. I think the synopsis sums it up:

These are the voyages of the Klingon Defense Force Vessel I.K.S Gorkon, part of the mighty new Chancellor class. Its mission: to explore strange new worlds ... to seek out new life and new civilizations ... and to conquer them for the greater glory of the Klingon Empire!

The cast is a combination of original characters and familiar TNG/DS9 characters (Klag, Leskit, Toq, etc.) KRAD's strength is that he divides the focus between the senior officers and one of the infantry squads. They're all Klingons, but they have their own views and interpretations of values like honor.

I recommend starting with KRAD's Diplomatic Implausibility and The Brave and the Bold duology as they set up the Gorkon's crew. There hasn't been a new novel since 2008, though A Burning House brought most of the ongoing subplots to a head, so it kinda works as a finale.

As to the others, I haven't followed Vanguard or S.C.E. and the post-Destiny relaunches are dealing with their own thing.

How Much for Just the Planet?
Dreadnought
Final Frontier (Prequel novel w George kirk)
Federation

What, nobody's mentioned The Final Reflectionyet? Same author as How Much for Just the Planet, John M. Ford, actually reprinted recently, except this is the one where he's playing it complex and not doing a musical comedy. Again Klingon centric, but this time doing them as they should have been, an actual people with strengths, weaknesses and intricacies. And disruptors, of course.

Here are a couple of more recommendations from my library.

* I, Q: The universe is coming to an end, forcing Q to team with Picard and Data in a desperate attempt to save it. Peter David is the writer, but he's assisted by Q's actor John de Lancie and it's told in the first person. The result is a funny (were you expecting anything less from PAD?), yet poignant look at how Q sees the universe.

* The Lost Era: Serpent Among the Ruins: Part of a series fleshing out the 70-year gap between the TOS and TNG eras. Finally explores the Tomed Incident which led to 50 years of Romulan isolation. But we also get to see Captain Harriman and the Enterprise-B. Harriman is much more seasoned and confident here compared to when we met him in GEN; he's essentially become to the Romulans what Kirk was to the Klingons.

* The Lost Era: The Art of the Impossible: Probably my favorite Trek novel. Like Serpent Among the Ruins, Keith R.A. DeCandido explores the Be'treka Nebula Incident mention in DS9's "The Way of the Warrior:. What's great about this is that he takes a 30 second conversation and weaves a tale that ties together all these disparate threads from the 23rd and 24th centuries into a great political thriller. It effectively provides the geo-political backstory for the TNG-era.

* Tales of the Dominion War: Overall a decent collection of short stories taking place during the two year war. Some are original stories, some focus on the literary crews (ex. New Frontier, I.K.S. Gorkon), and some even chronichle events we never saw on screen (the Breen attack on Earth, the invasion of Betazed, Shinzon's engagements in the War, etc.)

Thanks for the recommendations, everyone. I have picked up Articles of Federation, the Dominion War anthology and the first IKS Gorkon book, although I might get the set-up novels on Amazon. JME, I am really intrigued by your list. I should probably mention that I have almost everything Peter David has written for Trek, already.

Fax Modem, do you mean Dark Mirror, or is there a whole series out about the Mirror universe now? Will I need to have seen DS9 in order to enjoy them? (I have only seen bits and pieces of DS9, but I will receive my cousin's copy when he is done with it. I'm not sure how long it will take us to watch since my wife wants to watch it, too.)

Andras, I think I read some of those books in Middle School, and I'm not young! Does dreadnought go into any kind of detail on the ship or why the Federation built them?

11th, I have read the Final Reflection, but I must be one of the few people who did not enjoy it. In fact, I had bought it with the Diane Duane Rihannsu books all based on the fervent praise so many trekkers give them, and I was so disappointed I shelved the Romulan books never to be read just in case.

Bob the Gunslinger wrote:Fax Modem, do you mean Dark Mirror, or is there a whole series out about the Mirror universe now? Will I need to have seen DS9 in order to enjoy them? (I have only seen bits and pieces of DS9, but I will receive my cousin's copy when he is done with it. I'm not sure how long it will take us to watch since my wife wants to watch it, too.)

No, there's currently a whole series centered around the Mirror Universe. First up are three anthologies (Glass Empires, Obsidian Alliances, and Shards and Shadows).They contain short stories dealing with both the parallel literary characters (ex. New Frontier, Stargazer, IKS Gorkon), but also the television series.

For example, "Age of the Empress" picks up where ENT's Mirror Universe duology left off and starts to transition the ENT-era Terran Empire into what Kirk will encounter a century later. "The Sorrows of Empire" focuses on Mirror Spock's takeover of the Terran Empire and its eventual fall at the hands of the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance; this novella was later expanded into a novel of the same name.

It doesn't hurt to have seen the DS9 episodes, especially as there's a arc running through these books that link it all together, continuing the Terran Rebellion's story and bringing it to a conclusion in Rise Like Lions -- which I haven't read yet, but it has been recommended to me.

The DS9 relaunch novels Fearful Symmetry and The Soul Key also weave in and out of the series. They're not absolutely essential, but they do tie up a few loose ends.

Bob the Gunslinger wrote:Thanks for the recommendations, everyone. I have picked up Articles of Federation, the Dominion War anthology and the first IKS Gorkon book, although I might get the set-up novels on Amazon. JME, I am really intrigued by your list. I should probably mention that I have almost everything Peter David has written for Trek, already.

Fax Modem, do you mean Dark Mirror, or is there a whole series out about the Mirror universe now? Will I need to have seen DS9 in order to enjoy them? (I have only seen bits and pieces of DS9, but I will receive my cousin's copy when he is done with it. I'm not sure how long it will take us to watch since my wife wants to watch it, too.)

Andras, I think I read some of those books in Middle School, and I'm not young! Does dreadnought go into any kind of detail on the ship or why the Federation built them?

11th, I have read the Final Reflection, but I must be one of the few people who did not enjoy it. In fact, I had bought it with the Diane Duane Rihannsu books all based on the fervent praise so many trekkers give them, and I was so disappointed I shelved the Romulan books never to be read just in case.

I recommend doing a rewatch of all the Mirror episodes, but you don't have to in order to enjoy the Mirror Universe series. Sorrows of Empire is the only one that I consider a MUST READ, as it is both the lynchpin of the entire Mirror Universe novels, and is my favorite of the series. Worst of Both Worlds requires no Mirror Universe episodes, but it helps if you're familiar with the TNG episodes Chain of Command and Best of Both Worlds.

TOS Home is the Hunter. A hacked-off godlike alien sends 3 crew members back in time, Scotty meets Bonny Prince Charlie, Sulu winds up in feudal Japan and Chekov in WWII. Priceless just for the part where Kirk tries to pull a pat moral or lesson from what happened and the alien says "No. This was an elaborate death-trap and nothing more."

TNG Contamination. A fun little murder mystery centered around the Enterprise's microbiology labs.

TNG Metamorphosis. A new group of godlike aliens make Data human. Hilarity ensues.

I like the Shatnerverse novels for the way they weave together disparate elements of TOS into a complex universe, but the Kirk fanboyism can get more than slightly grating.

Bob the Gunslinger wrote:

Andras, I think I read some of those books in Middle School, and I'm not young! Does dreadnought go into any kind of detail on the ship or why the Federation built them?

Umm, I don't remember. I'd have to reread it. It does have photon torpedos set to 'blue' though!

There was a TNG Mirror Universe novel the I remember being pretty good, Dark Mirror.

Other books, Kobayashi Maru finally tells the story of how Kirk beat the computer, Scotty kicked it ass also. Strangers from the Sky is a time travel novel involving Vulcans coming to Earth.


ETA- pg 15 of Dreadnought says it was built during a period of upheaval and purges in the Klingon hierarchy. It has 30% greater mass then a 'starship', has 5 dual phaser banks, 4 banks of torpedos, and triple shielding. It is also 3 full warp factors faster then Enterprise.

Andras wrote:Other books, Kobayashi Maru finally tells the story of how Kirk beat the computer, Scotty kicked it ass also.

Just for clairication, he's talking about the TOS novel. There's an ENT novel from the ENT Relaunch with the same title (and which finally reveals the basis for Starfleet's simulation).

Bob the Gunslinger wrote:JME, I am really intrigued by your list.

Thanks.

I tend to be a fan of the novels that fill in the gaps or tie together disparate elements of the Trek tapestry. This is one reason I loved the Lost Era series when it was being published.

If you're interested, here are my thoughts on the other novels in the series:

* The Sundered: Focuses on Sulu and the Excelsior 5 years after GEN as they get dragged into a conflict between the Tholians and a new alien foe. Nice to see Sulu in his element (plus his fencing returns in a cool sequence; I won' say anymore). We also get to see the circumstances leading to Tuvok resigning his Starfleet commission. This works alone, but it's mandatory reading for Titan: The Red King, which is a direct sequel.

* Well of Souls: Focuses on Captain Garrett and the Enterprise-C several years before the Battle of Narendra III. They get drawn into a power struggle between the Orion Syndicate and one of their rivals, a struggle rooted in a pre-Cardassian archaeological find. The book overlaps with The Art of the Impossible and the events are mentioned in passing in KRAD's book. It's not bad and nice to get to see the 1701-C fleshed out more, but it's honestly a little weak.

* Deny Thy Father: Focuses on Kyle and Will Riker during the 2350's. The first subplot focuses on the aftermath of the Tholian attack that almost killed Riker Sr. as someone in Starfleet is trying to succeed where the Tholians failed. The second subplot focuses on Will's final Academy years and his first days aboard the Pegasus.

* Catalyst of Sorrows: Focuses on the immediate years leading up to TNG as Uhura (now commanding Starfleet Intelligence) assembles a team (familiar faces include Tuvok, Selar, and Ben Sisko) to investigate a deadly pathogen that's ravaging the worlds along both sides of the Romulan Neutral Zone. Also delves deeper into DS9's Senator Cretak.

* The Buried Age: Absolutely mandatory for fans of TNG and Picard. Begins with the Battle of Maxima (finally answering why DaiMon Bok's son attacked the Stargazer) and chronicles both the resulting court martial and the years/events leading up to Picard taking command of the 1701-D.

* The Terok Nor Trilogy: Also mandatory for DS9 fans. Begins in 2318 with the first contact between Bajor and Cardassia and shows the events leading to the annexation, the Occupation itself, and the eventual withdrawal. The first book, "Night of the Vipers" is my personal favorite and maintains DS9's complex mix of politics and religion. Seeing both a young Dukat and the beginnings of his obsession with Bajor is an added bonus.

Best one I've read was Federation by the Reeves-Stevenses. Multithreaded story taking place in three time periods (2060s antebellum, TOS, TNG) that get tied together at the end by negative space wedgie. (Don't usually like time travel but it's good enough for me not to care.) Some good starship slugfests, a crazy admiral in the TOS storyline (though by Star Trek standards she's actually not that bad).

The Reeves-Stevenses' stuff is usually pretty good, the Kirk Stu in the Shatnerverse novels aside (though they did give a clever explanation in the Mirror Universe trilogy as to its origin and why crossovers have been possible between it and the Prime Reality).

Thanks, Starsword. I'll check it out.

So, i finished A Good Day to Die and restarted Articles of the Federation. I enjoyed Good Day, although I would have liked a bit more exposition on Klingon society and a bit less 'honorable warriors', but I'll pick up the next one for sure. Articles is just a bit too West Wing for me, but it's starting to pick up, so I'll keep going this time.

Sorry about my comments regarding The Final Reflection. I tend to be more negative towards decent books that are overrated than towards genuinely terrible books.

Bob the Gunslinger wrote: enjoyed Good Day, although I would have liked a bit more exposition on Klingon society and a bit less 'honorable warriors', but I'll pick up the next one for sure.

That'll be the focus of A Burning House when the crew goes on shore leave. We get to see everything from a Klingon farming community to an opera company.

Strangely, my favorite take on Klingons came in a book called Sarek taking place in the post-Undiscovered Country. That book also had some kick-ass fights, good Romulan stuff, character conflict and reconciliation (particularly between Spock and Sarek) and a novel answer to the Kobayashi Maru simulation. Challenge the enemy commander to an honor duel, and tell your XO to beam up the Kobayashi Maru crew and run while you fight.

Ahriman238 wrote:Strangely, my favorite take on Klingons came in a book called Sarek taking place in the post-Undiscovered Country. That book also had some kick-ass fights, good Romulan stuff, character conflict and reconciliation (particularly between Spock and Sarek) and a novel answer to the Kobayashi Maru simulation. Challenge the enemy commander to an honor duel, and tell your XO to beam up the Kobayashi Maru crew and run while you fight.

I bought that book years ago, as I am a big AC Crispin fan...but then I misplaced it before I could read it. Maybe I'd better get around to buying a replacement so I can finally read it.

Yeah, Sarek is one of my favorite TOS novels too.

I've been reading the Vanguard series. It started off strong in the first three books, book 3 in particular is really the pinnacle of the series for me. The next two were ok but not quite as good, then there was an anthology book that had 4 novellas in it set in different times during the narrative. So I used that as an excuse to reread the whole series now that it's over and the last two books are out. The second last book had some good plots but there was a ridiculous climax and a subplot that is sorely unrelated to the main plot and also is just balls-out uninteresting, and I'm now about 50 pages into the last book and I'm feeling burnt out.

The only reason why I haven't stopped reading is because the final book is written by David Mack, who is a proficient writer - he wrote the first book, the third book (the best of the bunch IMO), the fifth book and this one, plus the best novella in the anthology. While the guys who wrote the weaker parts of the series wrote the second last book, so I guess I'm just suffering from long series fatigue.

I rather enjoyed a TNG novel called 'The Romulan Prize'. I won't go into specifics, but basically, the Romulans build a new class of Warbird, basically a much bigger D'Deridex, and use it as bait to capture the Enterprise. Cue the crew trying to free themselves, and Riker goading Romulans into fist-fights.

'Q in Law', which features Q meeting Lwaxana Troi- much hilarity ensues!

darth_timon wrote:'Q in Law', which features Q meeting Lwaxana Troi- much hilarity ensues!

Speaking of Q novels, I'll throw in another one:

* Q&A: Part of the TNG Relaunch, but it also builds on seeds planted by Christopher L. Bennett in The Buried Age. Ties together all of the Q episodes (or most of them), explaining why the Continuum took an interest in humanity and why 'our' Q singled out Picard as humanity's representative.

Loved Q in Law. Also enjoyed I, Q and Q Squared. Must try Q and A.

Bob the Gunslinger wrote:Must try Q and A.

The way KRAD structured it is that it can read it without reading The Buried Age (it's really only the ending which sets up Q&A given both books were published as part of TNG's 20th anniversery).

Again, it's part of the TNG Relaunch, so threads from the preceding novels continue (similar to Abyss, DS9's contribution to the Section 31 mini-series and which took place post-series).

But it's mostly stand alone and doesn't contribute much to the pre-Destiny Borg arc.