Star Trek Books - Where to Start?

[Kirks_Hairpiece]

I have never read any of the literature thats out there and realise there is actually, quite a lot

Can any of you recommend what to go for, what to avoid and the best place to start really!

Thanks

 

[DangerMouse]

Funnily enough I was going to ask this question myself... I recently read 'Do Comets Dream' and although I enjoyed the basic story, was not so impressed with the level of the writing. However, with so many titles out there I'm sure the quality varies greatly and I have no doubt there are some much better books - recommendations would be great

 

[Therin of Andor]

Kirks_Hairpiece said:
Can any of you recommend what to go for, what to avoid and the best place to start really!

I always ask new folk to narrow down what they already like about ST: do you prefer tech vs relationships, one particular ST series and/or character, heavy SF, exploration vs war, alien contacts, first contacts, stories that extrapolate from minor story points, sweeping epics, comedies - give us some clues.

 

[Kirks_Hairpiece]

Therin of Andor said:

Kirks_Hairpiece said:
Can any of you recommend what to go for, what to avoid and the best place to start really!

I always ask new folk to narrow down what they already like about ST: do you prefer tech vs relationships, one particular ST series and/or character, heavy SF, exploration vs war, alien contacts, first contacts, stories that extrapolate from minor story points, sweeping epics, comedies - give us some clues.

I guess I'm more looking for a sort of 'What happens next' scenario for pretty much all of the series from TOS to Enterprise (wrong order but you know what I mean )

I am more into the first contact, exploration and war scenarios than relationships, comedy etc

 

[Lindley]

In terms of What Happens Next.....

TNG: Try the A Time To series. It leads into both the Titan series (Riker+Troi), and the post-Nemesis line. And Articles of the Federation.

DS9: Well, this is obvious. DS9 Relaunch. There's a full list in a dozen places, but it starts with Avatar 1+2. (Or you can pick up the Twist of Faith omni, it contains those two plus a few more.) Or if you prefer a standalone novel, A Stitch In Time.

VOY: Well, there's Homecoming and a few more, but these really aren't that good. Avoid unless you're a huge fan of Christie Golden.

ENT: Check out The Good That Men Do.

 

[Therin of Andor]

And for the TOS movies, the excellent "Ex Machina" is "What happens next?" for TMP.

 

[Kirks_Hairpiece]

Excellent, cheers chaps will check them out

 

[JD]

Here's some info on each of these series from Memory Beta the non-canon Star Trek wiki
A Time To... is great, although it actually takes place between Insurrection and Nemisis . Article of the Federation is a stand alone story, which follows up on several of the plot points from the A Time To.... Titan follows Riker and Troi on his first command, which was introduced at the end of Nemisis. These books are great, they are easily one of my favorite Trek series, in any form.
DS9 Relaunch, just it sounds this is a what happens next in the DS9 series. Another great series, which does an IMHO awsome job of continuing DS9's story. It also brings in some great new character, including one (the new XO Elias Vaughn) who has gone on to play a role in other series. Another great series IMO, deffinitely equal to the TV series itself.

Voyager Relauch (Memory Beat doesn't a have VR page) same idea as DS9's only with Voyager. I haven't actually read these, and judging by some of the comments I've heard here I probably won't be anytime in the near future.

All of the links are to Memory Beta, the non-canon Star Trek wiki, which several people here, indluding myself, contribute to. IMHO along with this site it is probably one of the best sources of information on the Star Trek books and comics.

 

[Smiley]

If TNG is your thing, there are some post-Nemesis books for that series as well: Death in Winter, Resistance, Q&A, and Before Dishonor.

 

[JD]

Smiley said:
If TNG is your thing, there are some post-Nemesis books for that series as well: Death in Winter, Resistance, Q&A, and Before Dishonor.

Duh, I can't beleive I didn't think to put them in my list.

 

[Geoff]

Voyager Relauch (Memory Beat doesn't a have VR page) same idea as DS9's only with Voyager. I haven't actually read these, and judging by some of the comments I've heard here I probably won't be anytime in the near future.

You can use this link for the VOY-R on Memory Beta.

 

[JD]

Oh, I didn't realize I could link to one part of the list like that.
I just realized I also forgot about the Ent-Relaunch. Which has had only one book so far, The Good That Men Do, with a second book, Kobayashi Maru coming out this year. This book is actually supposed to tell us of the origins of the KM test, and also continue the set up for the Romulan War that began in TGTMD.
And here's the page for the TNG relauch.

 

[JoeZhang]

I've found the Voy-R stuff to be pretty boring.

 

[LightningStorm]

Christ! More Voyager-R hate.

To add some diversity to the mix, I enjoyed the four Voyager relaunch books. And I am not a "Christie Golden fan" such that I'd read anything she has written, but just that I happen to like those books and she just happens to be the author of them.

And to the OR (Original Replier, as opposed to original poster), by no means is Do Comets Dream the standard by which I think Trek lit should be held. It's, like you said not a "bad" book per se, but it's not a good one either.

For anyone who likes TNG I'd recommend (along with many here) the A Time To books and Articles of the Federation. To see how Riker's doing on his new ship, The Titan, those books are a good read too. DS9, as mentioned the many books of the DS9-Relaunch are good. Enterprise also has a relaunch so far just one book The Good That Men Do and another coming later this year. Not a fan of TOS myself, but I hear rave reviews about Ex Machina, so much so that I'm tempted to read it even with my distaste for TOS, and the fact that the same author wrote the extremely well written Titan: Orion's Hounds.

 

[Smiley]

Another reference for you is the phenomenal Voyages of Imagination from 2006. It talks about every ST book published to that point and includes a handy timeline with novels, short stories, and episodes/movies.

 

[Kirks_Hairpiece]

Excellent thanks guys

:thumbsup:

 

[Lindley]

Don't be afraid to check out some of the novel-only series as well:

New Frontier
The first novel-only series. While many of the books in this are numbered, not all of them are, and at least one (Double Helix: Double or Nothing) may appear at first glance to be a TNG entry.

Starfleet Corps of Engineers (formerly S.C.E.)
Originally ebooks, a fair number of these are now available in paperback collections. Several tie into other series; for instance, Cold Fusion bridges a minor story point between two DS9-Relaunch books.

Klingon Empire (formerly I.K.S. Gorkon)
This began with TNG: "Diplomatic Implausibility" (an Ambassador Worf novel), but has since spawned several books under the IKS Gorkon banner. For some reason it's now being changed to Klingon Empire. Although not directly related, the events of The Left Hand of Destiny duology (technically part of the DS9 Relaunch) tie in to the storyline.

 

[bennyrex]

Don't forget the series Vanguard! I just finished the first book in the series - Harbringer- and it's excellent. It takes place during the original series, and is focused around a new space station that has been built in the back end of the galaxy for mysterious reasons... I didn't read it till now, because I didn't think it would interest me that much, (I grew up with Next Generation, and never really got into the older stuff) but this book was brilliant, and is making me want to watch the Original Series. I really haven't seen that many episodes. Anyway, I can't wait to read Summon the Thunder and continue learning more about this region of space, and the fantastic characters that populate it.

But if space battles and wars are more your thing, it was written by David Mack, who does VERY good action, and what action there is in this book is top notch.

 

[Christopher]

Lindley said:
Klingon Empire (formerly I.K.S. Gorkon)
This began with TNG: "Diplomatic Implausibility" (an Ambassador Worf novel), but has since spawned several books under the IKS Gorkon banner. For some reason it's now being changed to Klingon Empire.

Because "IKS Gorkon" was a confusing title to the uninitiated, while "Klingon Empire" is much clearer. Also because the focus of the series is broadening out beyond the one ship.

 

[Shieldsdown]

bennyrex said:
Don't forget the series Vanguard! I just finished the first book in the series - Harbringer- and it's excellent. It takes place during the original series, and is focused around a new space station that has been built in the back end of the galaxy for mysterious reasons... I didn't read it till now, because I didn't think it would interest me that much, (I grew up with Next Generation, and never really got into the older stuff) but this book was brilliant, and is making me want to watch the Original Series. I really haven't seen that many episodes. Anyway, I can't wait to read Summon the Thunder and continue learning more about this region of space, and the fantastic characters that populate it.

But if space battles and wars are more your thing, it was written by David Mack, who does VERY good action, and what action there is in this book is top notch.

I have been reading random Trek novels, as long as they are TOS related. I also thoroughly enjoyed Harbinger, which I picked up by chance, but will now be looking for the other books in the Vanguard series.

Regards