Oh, sweet! It was a guess, but a logical one. It's been years since I've read those books, so I wasn't even sure which one to guess. "Riker remembered a time when he had gone mountain climbing at the age of fourteen, explicityly against his father's orders...or pehraps, if truth be known, precisely because his father had forbidden it. He'd been halfway up a particularly hazardous peak when his pitons had ripped loose from where they'd been wedged into the rock surface. Riker had swung outward, dangling, one thin rope preventing him from plunging to his death. The moments until his climbing partner had been able to reel Riker in and help him get re-anchored had been fraught with tension."
Fortune's Light? I recall that one had flashbacks to a younger Riker. Fictitiously yours, Trent Roman
Again, no on both counts. And now that we've hit the books I figured people would guess, hopefully someone will get on the right track.
Something about this quote sounds familiar... I'm going to guess Double Helix Book Five: Double or Nothing
So it's New Frontier, I guess. Let's see which books had the Enterprise crew? Since it was their first appearance: House of Cards
We have a winner! Yes, Riker reflected on that memory to compare to the tension he felt when he entered the briefing room to discuss the collapse of the Thallonian Empire. Your turn.
Nice. Here's a new one: Starring out of the viewports into the void surrounding his vessel, he knew his anger would soon fade. Eventually he would refocus his energies on whatever challenge or obstacle presented itself. But even as the Enterprise surged forward through the vast expanse of space, James Kirk felt the seeds of pain, shame, and hate planted within the center of his own heart, dragging him backward into the chaos of rage and despair. He could only hope that, one day, the dream of peace between his people and the Klingons could be accomplished before the dark emotions he harbored finally engulfed him.