Pre-Destiny Reading Order question.....

Discussion in 'Trek Literature' started by MAVEMVP, Jun 25, 2013.

  1. MAVEMVP

    MAVEMVP Ensign Newbie

    Joined:
    May 8, 2009
    I am currently reading most of the ongoing-story books leading into destiny. According to the reading chart done by Thrawn and 8of5, The end of the DS9 part of the Mirror Universe stories. The Soul Key, leads (Partially and Tangentially) into Destiny proper. My question is, will reading Soul Key BEFORE Destiny spoil ANY parts of Destiny? (and i do mean ANY, I want to read Destiny completely spoiler-free).

    I know Soul Key's was published Summer '09, but I think it was pushed back because Fearful Symmetry was moved from August '07 to June '08, so I'm thinking that, at worst, Soul Key was being written parallel to Destiny.....input is appreciated
     
  2. Christopher

    Christopher Writer Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 15, 2001
    Destiny has little to do with DS9 in general, because it wasn't clear where the DS9 series would be going when the trilogy was written. And The Soul Key is set several years before Destiny. So there's no spoilage.
     
  3. Thrawn

    Thrawn Rear Admiral Premium Member

    Joined:
    Jun 15, 2008
    Location:
    Washington, DC
    The Soul Key was intended to be published before Destiny; it was delayed because it wasn't done yet. It actually works better if you read Soul Key earlier, in one very minor way.

    (Also, I'm glad our flowchart was helpful!)
     
  4. Paris

    Paris Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Dec 29, 2008
    Location:
    In the future's past
    If you're saying that you have NO idea what happens in Destiny, then i envy you. It was amazing! I hope you love it as much as all of us seem to :techman:
     
  5. MAVEMVP

    MAVEMVP Ensign Newbie

    Joined:
    May 8, 2009
    Thanks to all for the input. I am aware of the Storyline of Destiny in only the broadest of strokes. I have spent the last 20 months or so catching up on my 15-year backlog of Trek Novels that have just been there all this time, waiting to be read. I've been through most of the DS9 re-launch books and the A Time to series, as well as the TNG Borg and Q run up books. I am now stepping back a bit, taking in Book 3 of the Terok Nor trilogy, as I gleaned that it would be more enjoyable to finish that story off before Fearful Symmetry, then to finish Symmetry and Soul Key, ENT's Good That Men Do and Kobayashi Maru, A quick side trip to the 3rd Mirror Universe anthology, then on the Destiny!
     
  6. Christopher

    Christopher Writer Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 15, 2001
    Indeed, it wasn't meant to be a separate book at all; originally the story told by Fearful Symmetry and The Soul Key was meant to be just one book. But the story expanded and took longer to complete than expected, so rather than making readers wait another year, editor Marco Palmieri decided to split it into two books.
     
  7. MAVEMVP

    MAVEMVP Ensign Newbie

    Joined:
    May 8, 2009
    was that a major factor in Fearful Symmetry being delayed?....I seem to recall reading that the manuscript need to be severely overhauled re-written just on its own merits
     
  8. tomswift2002

    tomswift2002 Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Dec 19, 2011
    There was also the tiny factor of the original author for "Fearful Symmetry" being dropped before the book was published.
     
  9. Christopher

    Christopher Writer Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 15, 2001
    ^Not sure "dropped" is the word. From what I was told, at least, it was a mutual decision between the author and editor that the project wasn't working out. So they had to start over with a new author and a new approach.
     
  10. chrinFinity

    chrinFinity Captain Captain

    Joined:
    Mar 24, 2005
    Location:
    Schmocation
    After reading Kobayashi Maru, I advise you to read the Romulan War duology before you read Destiny.
     
  11. MAVEMVP

    MAVEMVP Ensign Newbie

    Joined:
    May 8, 2009
    Well, it's taken me a LOT longer to get through the books I noted prior in the post, as I ended up reading quite a bit more non-fiction over the past year than I had planned, but I am almost at the halfway point of Book 2 of the ENT Romulan Duology, and I just want to thank the person who suggested I append those 2 books to my pre-Destiny reading, as the foreshadowing of Columbia's fate (again, only knowing that that ship plays a role very early on in destiny in the broadest of strokes) adds a bit of mystery.......

    P.S The Romulan War books are way more enjoyable than I had anticipated....
     
  12. Enterpriserules

    Enterpriserules Commodore Commodore

    A Time to Be Born
    A Time to Die
    A Time to Sow
    A Time to Harvest
    A Time to Love
    A Time to Hate
    A Time to Kill
    A Time to Heal
    A Time For War, A Time For Peace
    Nemesis movie
    The Next Generation: Death in Winter
    Titan: Taking Wing
    Titan: The Red King
    Articles of the Federation
    Titan: Orion's Hounds
    The Next Generation: Resistance
    The Next Generation: Q&A
    The Next Generation: Before Dishonor
    The Next Generation: Q Are Cordially Uninvited...
    Titan: Sword of Damocles
    The Next Generation: Greater Than the Sum
    I'd add ENT: The Good That Men Do and Kobayashi Maru before jumping into Destiny next
     
  13. Enterprise1701

    Enterprise1701 Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Mar 24, 2014
    Location:
    Sol III, Sector 001, 2063 C.E.
    You could also add Homecoming, The Farther Shore, Old Wounds, Enemy of My Enemy, and Full Circle (most of the first portion, anyway) in before A Time to be Born.
     
  14. dansigal

    dansigal Captain Captain

    Joined:
    Feb 12, 2013
    Whoa, do NOT include Full Circle considering the entire point of this thread is what the OP can read without being spoiled on Destiny.
     
  15. Enterprise1701

    Enterprise1701 Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Mar 24, 2014
    Location:
    Sol III, Sector 001, 2063 C.E.
    That's why I said the first part. It takes place entirely prior to Destiny.
     
  16. apollo1984

    apollo1984 Commander Red Shirt

    Joined:
    Feb 28, 2010
    I started my pre destiny read from nemeses movie but before them I suppose you could read a time to series but then I have done/doing:
    A death in winter
    Taking wing
    Red king
    Resistance
    Q&A
    Orion's hounds
    Before dishonour
    Sword of damocles
    Greater than the sum
    The good that men do
    Kobayshi maru
    Articles of the federation (I know in most timelines this could come sooner but it does covers a long period of time)
    Destiny.
     
    Last edited: Sep 27, 2014
  17. Sci

    Sci Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 2, 2002
    Location:
    Montgomery County, State of Maryland
    No, Full Circle really needs to be read after Destiny.
     
  18. dansigal

    dansigal Captain Captain

    Joined:
    Feb 12, 2013
    Yeah, we're talking about a reading list, it doesn't make any sense to put parts of a book on a reading list
     
  19. tomswift2002

    tomswift2002 Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Dec 19, 2011
    I would also agree with that, since the first part wraps up a storyline that was started in the Christine Golden Voyager novels, and brings that era of Voyager to a close before getting into the Destiny and Post-Destiny era.

    I wouldn't really include those books on a list of "Must read" Pre-Destiny stories. They're Enterprise books (unless with Kobayashi Maru you are talking about the Julia Ecklar novel from the 80's, which doesn't belong on the list either), and, as I remember, most of what happens with the Columbia crew in those books is mentioned in Destiny to bring people up to date with what Columbia was doing in the Romulan War in case they had only been reading the TNG books.
     
  20. Enterprise1701

    Enterprise1701 Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Mar 24, 2014
    Location:
    Sol III, Sector 001, 2063 C.E.
    I've read it, and I find no problem in reading Part 1, then Destiny, then Part 2.