All I really remember from CC is that it felt like a nuTrek novel and the
Back to the Future-style flying cars (I remember being quite critical of the idea of flying cars in Trek-land. And now they're in
Into Darkness!
)
Oh, and that it was enjoyable. And that it's kind of a reboot itself, being based on Shatner's 2000-and-something pitch for an academy-based TV series. It's not in continuity with the rest of the Shatnerverse.