Comments on: Library Computer: Review Star Trek Destiny Book 3 ‘Lost Souls’

By: Sci

Sci — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 23:11:48 +0000

#21: “Gateways,” “Maximum Warp,” “Double Helix,” and “The Genesis Wave” are all OLD. I mean, really old. As in, Bill Clinton was still in office during some of them old.

Why would you take a storytelling trend from almost a decade ago and imply that that trend has been continuous since then?

By: EnsignRedShirt

EnsignRedShirt — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 09:28:16 +0000

David Mack: Woohoo, new VANGUARD books! I really like the three out now, they sit on the top of my bookshelves. Don’t like the year long wait between them, but that allows me to savor them all the more. Thanks for some of my favorite science fiction, not just Star Trek, in my collection.

By: Dayton Ward

Dayton Ward — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 16:53:25 +0000

#24 – Pike books: There’s D.C. Fontana’s VULCAN’S GLORY, which is one of the older “numbered” TOS novels. More recently, there’s Margaret Wander Bonanno’s BURNING DREAMS, which came out in 2006, and is regarded by some as the “definitive” Pike novel.

By: David Mack

David Mack — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 15:16:36 +0000

^ For those who are looking forward to new Vanguard stories, there will be a Mirror Universe Vanguard short story, “The Black Flag” by James Swallow, in January 2009’s trade-paperback anthology, “Shards and Shadows.”

May 2009 will see the publication of the fourth book of the Vanguard saga, “Open Secrets” by Dayton Ward & Kevin Dilmore.

The fifth book in the series, “Precipice,” by yours truly, will be coming a year from now, in December 2009.

By: noirgwio

noirgwio — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 11:54:11 +0000

I am curios about the Vanguard ones… They’re the TOS era ones right? I cannot recall just now. Any good books set during Capt. Pike’s command of Big E?

By: Petey

Petey — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 10:33:49 +0000

Wow… now I’m so curious I don’t think I’ll wait for Destiny to end up in a trilogy collection. I think I might just head out now and see if any of the bookstores I frequent carry all three.

Thanks for the excellent review, Father Robert!

Mr. Mack, now that Destiny has run its course, I’m eagerly awaiting more Vanguard stories.

By: noirgwio

noirgwio — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 10:26:21 +0000

I’ve just finished book 2 of Destiny and WOAH!! I swear, I don’t know if I have ever been so emersed and caught up in any story in any book I’ve ever read – as much as with this series. I’m picky with books and outside Martin & Mangels’ “The Good That Men Do” and “Kobyashi Maru” – and now “Destiny” – I’ve never broken into ST books. But I am hooked!! I am so looking forward to part 3, and share in the fondness for a DVD movie version, you listening Paramount?!! Also, I too have suspected what the big reveal will be – I had a plot point in mind, and now that I know there IS a reveal, I am wondering if my surmise is correct… I can’t wait to see!!

By: Weerd1

Weerd1 — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 05:40:24 +0000

20- Hi Mr. Mack!

Maybe it’s just me. I’m not knocking the quality of the stories, they are quite good, and I love the fact Pocket Books is managing continuity within the various series. It just seems each large tie in for the last four years or so have the greatest threat our heroes have faced… until the next story. Then each successive series has the characters or the Federation still reeling from the last event. I find myself hoping everyone gets a break, and the Federation can stabilize for a while and boldly go out in the big black a little more. It’s really a trend which started with the Borg on TNG I think, then the Dominion, the SECOND Borg invasion, the Genesis Wave, Double Helix, the Iconian Gateways, etc.

Again, good adventurous stories with high stakes, very exciting. But I think maybe Picard sums it up in the movie Insurrection: “Can anyone remember when we used to be explorers?” There was even a proposal as I understand for an animated series which would be set in the 26th Century and show a fallen Federation trying to rise again.

Again, the quality is there, I don’t want to knock that. Purely a matter of personal preference. Thank you very some very enjoyable books, and I hope the continuity keeps up despite the new film. Hmmm. Any plans for TNG era stories set in the reboot timeline?

By: David Mack

David Mack — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 22:54:48 +0000

#18 wrote: “As for the 25th century, once we get over the idea the Federation is going to fall (which seems a trend on the novels as of late)”

Since when? I don’t recall any of the recent novels being based on that concept, except perhaps some of the Myriad Universe stories, which are all parallel-universe, “what-if” tales.

By: CaptainRickover

CaptainRickover — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 21:23:48 +0000

# 18
Good thoughts indeed. But for me that’s sounds like something for the 29th century and the crew of the USS Relativity. If there should be a new show, the people should actually have something to DO. If they just can figure out everything without visible devices, they would appear like superheros (even if that might be quiet possible for our human future). If the future is too strange and to different from our days, the mainstream audience might switch off the tv.

Most important thing for a new show: Holodecks haven’t malfunctions anymore. That should be a rule for all writers. No more Holodeck-adventures!!

A real good TOS novel: THE WEB OF THE ROMULANS. It’s a very old one, but the very best that was ever written. Epic feeling, much suspense, a TUC-like political thriller-plot, a very good catch of the TOS-characters and the TOS-typical malfunctions of the Enterprise’s computer. That book is very old by now and maybe hard to find but it’s worth a read.