Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: Force and Motion by Jeffrey Lang

Star Trek:  Deep Space Nine:

Force and Motion

by Jeffrey Lang

***Some Reviews may Contain Spoilers***

Pocket Books June 2016

ISBN:  9781501110733

This is a stand alone Deep Space Nine Novel focusing on O'Brien and Nog as they go on a 'vacation' to a research station where they meet up with the former Captain Ben Maxwell.  To be honest, Ben Maxwell is not one of those minor Star Trek characters that many people seem to be interested in.  Having appeared in only one episode of Star Trek:  The Next Generation, there is not a lot about this character other than he was doing something wrong by prematurely attacking the Cardassians.  The end of the episode implied he was going to jail 'forever' and we saw nothing of him again.  It was a nice and creative touch to add him into this book.  Ben takes on more dimensions as a result and we get to see some possible scenarios from Ben and O'Brien's past.

The story is fast paced and a fun read.  (I read this while on vacation at the beach with my family.)  Being a stand alone, it's a good book to pick up anytime and enjoy and potentially re-read.

A recommended read for all Star Trek Novel fans and a good one for anyone not a regular reader of the novels.

4 out of 5 stars

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Doctor Who: Human Nature by Paul Cornell

Doctor Who:

Human Nature

by Paul Cornell

***Some Reviews may Contain Spoilers***

BBC Books 2015 Edition

ISBN:  9781849909099

This is a story that a decade or so later went from a seventh doctor novel to a tenth doctor two part episode of the revival series starting with 'Family of Blood.'  The story went through some reworks and the author's introduction in this edition of the novel highlights some of those.

The story is a bit mature, with some references that are not always found in Doctor Who.  I had read a while back that the latter seventh doctor novels got a bit edgier.  This one qualifies.  It was surprisingly violent with the main villains being willing to eat various people and at one point having eaten a part of the Doctor's thumb.

This novel contains the novel only companion 'Bernice Summerfield' who eventually spins off to her own series of novels.  Having only read this one novel with her in it, I am not sure yet how I feel although she reminds me a lot of Martha, the tenth Doctor's second companion, although without the love interest piece.

A fast read as the novel does keep moving despite there being some love scenes.  Also some humor injected as well, but overall a pretty dark tale.  The ending was a bit rough, with a woman the Doctor is in love with finding out that the Doctor, who was human and hiding from the family of blood, having to terminate an engagement.  We are left questioning the Doctor and can he love? Interesting read for Doctor Who fans, especially those who enjoy exploring aspects of the Doctor's character we normally do not see.

Four out of Five Stars

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Doctor Who: Amorality Tale by David Bishop

Doctor Who:

Amorality Tale

by David Bishop

***Some Reviews may Contain Spoilers***

BBC Books 2015 Edition

ISBN:  9781849909044

This novel, starring the 3rd Doctor, is a great outing for Doctor Who.  The story is focused on the final time of the 3rd Doctor as he is soon to regenerate.  The story is a time travel based story but not the kind that you have to work hard at.  It starts with the the Doctor already in the past, as a photograph he came across in the future of him in the past lead him there.  The characters are well written and the 3rd Doctor is portrayed very true to the actor's portrayal in the series.  The secondary and guest starring characters are multi-dimensional and contain various twists as well.  I was glad to see the story also be tied into the original historical events of the time, and based upon the author's note at the end, also based in actual historical locations.  Well done and well researched.  If you are a fan of the classic Doctor Who series, particularly the 3rd Doctor and / or Sarah Jane Smith, you will enjoy this story.

Four out of Five Stars

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Star Trek: The Original Series: Elusive Salvation by Dayton Ward

Star Trek The Original Series:

Elusive Salvation

by Dayton Ward

***Some Reviews may Contain Spoilers***

Pocket Books May 2016

ISBN:  9781501111297

This novel takes place during one of my preferences of the Star Trek mythology:  prior to Star Trek II:  The Wrath of Kahn but after the time of the original series.  The refit Enterprise is by far the best Enterprise in my opinion and that time period is very unexplored time in both the characters development and the Star Trek mythology as a whole.

The story portrays an Admiral Kirk, who despite what we see in the first and second movies, is quite well adjusted and enjoying his time as an Admiral.  His crew and friends are close and he is still able to take command of the Enterprise when he wants to go out on missions.  While this is not quite fitting into the character as we know him, seeing Admiral Kirk this way was fantastic and refreshing.

The book bounces back in time and back again.  (Extra spoiler alert) A couple of things stood out, one being the very ending where Roberta Lincoln detects Kirk and crew arriving in San Francisco of 1986.  After reading this short segment, I am just not sure why we didn't see Gary Seven in Star Trek IV.  I'm also confused as to why Gary and Roberta didn't try to prevent the whales from dying off and endangering the future of Earth when that was their mission from the Aegis.  So yes, I'm kind of shooting a small but important plot hole in the fourth movie.  Thanks to the author for this.  The second was that we have an aliens and alien tech on Earth, and like the echos of the the Eugenics War novels, current events were utilized to play into the Star Trek universe.

Very creative and a fun fast past story set in the timeline of the mythology many fans want to see more of.  A good read for pre-summer.

Rating 4 out of 5 Stars

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Star Trek Enterprise: Live by the Code by Christopher L. Bennett

Star Trek Enterprise:

Live by the Code

by Christopher L. Bennett

***Some Reviews may Contain Spoilers***

Pocket Books April 2016

ISBN:  9781476779133

This is the fourth installment of the 'Rise of the Federation' series.  It takes place very much past the tv show of Star Trek Enterprise in the time where the Federation is just a new idea.  The story continues to grow on the reader a bit; however, in this installment the book itself is a tough read.  The story seems a bit more loose, with several threads being loosely tied together in the end.  At the conclusion of the book, it seems that there may be a setup for the Ware to come back yet it is unclear if that could actually happen.

At this point in the fourth book of this series, it is troublesome to be reading a book about the show in which the 'first' starship Enterprise helps found the Federation.  The troublesome part is that there is no actual Starship Enterprise.

The second most troublesome point is that the character of Trip is, off the record, not dead and everyone knows about it and so it is a nice big comfortable thing.  Yet, no one actually knows.  It feels alot like the Superman / Clark Kent moment where Lois and Jimmy know but nobody else that Clark is actually Superman.  This is getting annoying and now with the ending suggesting that Trip is going to take on Section 31, it appears that the next book may focus on this annoying plot point.

A final troublesome point is the Kirk ancestor character.  Sigh.  Another sigh.  Another big sigh.  Not a good idea as we find ourselves pining for the original Star Trek every time the name Kirk floats across the page.

A strength of the novel is that it is fast paced and a bit more full of action.  If you are a die hard Star Trek fan, particularly in the Enterprise realm, this is a good read for you.  This could be a pass if you are not so much into Star Trek Enterprise.

2 out of 5 stars.

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Doctor Who: Heroes and Monsters Collection

Doctor Who:

Heroes and Monsters Collection

by Various

***Some Reviews may Contain Spoilers***

BBC Books September 2015

ISBN:  9781405922685

This book is a collection of short stories that were originally printed in such venues as the "Doctor Who Magazine" over the past ten years.  It features all of the doctors, except the 9th, from the past 10 years of the series.  It also features the companions and villains as well.  Each story is a very short read and the entire book, despite seemingly being over 300 pages, can be read very quickly as a result.  Many of the stories are really very good, and focus in on some quick adventure that a doctor, a companion and the occasional monster might have in the Doctor Who universe.  The stories themselves do not contain much character development, nor do they contain any sort of earth shattering reveal of any character, which is to be expected in this format.  They are all very well written and it is easy to enjoy them as despite their short length and quick plot, they are easy to get into.  A book that can be reread easily for sure.

A definite read for the Doctor Who fan, casual sci fi fan or short story fan.

4 out of 5 stars.

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"Doctor Who: Legends of Ashildr"

Doctor Who:

The Legends of Ashildr

by Justin Richards, James Goss, Jenny T. Colgan & David Llewellyn

***Some Reviews may Contain Spoilers***

BBC Books December 2015

ISBN:  9781785940576

Four short stories make up this book about the newly introduced character of Ashildr.  In reading this book, it is clear that all four authors seem to have a good grasp of Ashildr as a character.  The stories have a tragic and dark twist to them and almost always end up having a sci-fi twist.  It was good to see that not all characters in the Doctor Who mythology are as brave, honest and willing to defend earth like our favorite (current 13) character of the Doctor does.  Ashildr may be immortal because of what the Doctor did to save her; however, she is lacking the resources and wisdom that our Doctor has.  If these stories are cannon, it does describe the seemingly dark descent that Ashildr takes in the latter half of season 9 of Doctor Who.  She had some bad things repeatedly happen to her, and unlike the Doctor, she wasn't really prepped in anyway nor has the resources to equip herself.  The third story in the book is very dark and sad, so read it knowing some very bad things come from that.

The introduction to this book indicates that this is four stories from the beginning of Ashildr's life so it is possible we may see a second volume, and perhaps, more.  If the stories are of quality as these seem to be then this would be a great addition to the Doctor Who literary library.

4 out of 5 stars

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