TNG books I’ve read & what should I next

[Arpy]

I’ve read more TNG than I thought over the years. Here’s a list…I’ll try to give them ratings from what I can remember, but they might have completely different ratings if I’d read them now vs then vs what was going on in my life that week…or an undigested bit of beef?

What else should I consider looking at — from Ghost Ship onward? Looking for really good ones, or ones that might fit whatever pattern you can make out from below… (Honestly I can’t say that I’ve ever warmed up to the E-E/gray uniform era, but suggest away.)

Invasion!: The Soldiers of Fear*
Dark Mirror****
Imzadi***
Q-Squared***
Captains’ Table: Dujonian’s Hoard*
Diplomatic Implausibility**
Section 31: Rogue**
Immortal Coil**
I, Q***
Unification***
Battle of Betazed**
Intellivore*
The Buried Age****

Waiting for: Relics
Going to read: Shadows Have Offended
Also read: PIC Last Best Hope*** and Dark Veil*

 

[David cgc]

Q&A might be a good choice, since you liked a couple of the earlier "big" Q novels, and The Buried Age, which had a similar "find the epic under the surface of what we've seen" premise. Q-In-Law is also good, while we're on the subject, and is series-era.

 

[Paul K]

I will always recommend Debtor's Planet by W.R. Thompson. Perhaps not as consequential or well known as anything by Peter David, Michael Jan Friedman, John Vornholt etc. but it's one of the best TNG books I've read. It's set somewhere in TNG season 5 or 6 and has to do with political wrangling by the Federation with both the Cardassians and the Ferengi through the Enterprise-D being assigned to assist one Ralph Offenhouse (that hedge fund banker guy who was cryogenically frozen in TNG: "The Neutral Zone"), federation ambassador to the Ferengi Commerce Alliance.

 

[Paul K]

Other TNG (or TNG-adjacent) books I would recommend are:

• The Romulan Stratagem by Robert Greenberger
• SCE: Many Splendors by Keith R.A. DeCandido
• Vendetta by Peter David

I also recall enjoying Crossover by Michael Jan Friedman, but I was 14 when I read it so who knows what I would think of it now.

 

[Arpy]

It would be helpful to include why you suggest a book too. What your subjective experience of it was or what you remember about it. Thank you!

 

[Paul K]

The Romulan Stratagem is, as the title would suggest, focused on political intrigue with the Romulans. It brings back Sela as antagonist, which I've always thought was one of TNG's better recurring villians. It also has a subplot with Ro Laren, who is one of my favorite characters.

Many Splendors is a Corps of Engineers book focused on Sonya Gomez (she who spilled hot chocolate on Picard). It runs throughout the background of season 2 through 5 of TNG. I thought it was a really great depiction of something we don't get to see very much in the shows which is daily life on a starship for the crew, especially the non-senior staff.

Vendetta is a Borg focused "big event" type story that I thought was really entertaining. It also does have some flashbacks to young Picard as a cadet which I always find interesting.

My recollection of Crossover is that it's a fun caper pairing up the TNG crew with the TOS characters who have been established to still be around during the TNG era, namely Spock, Bones, and Scotty. Like I said, I read this a very long time ago when I was much younger so the details are hazy and I have no idea what I might think of it now. About the only things I do remember are Scotty stealing the original Enterprise from a museum, Bones and Picard arguing a lot, and that I really enjoyed the book at the time.

 

[Smiley]

You may also like Greater Than the Sum. It has the same author as The Buried Age, and the science focus is strong. It bothered me at the time that something from "Q Who" was getting retconned, but I am more easygoing about that sort of thing now.

Before Dishonor is one that I love. The Borg feel threatening, and our characters pretty much all get their moments to shine.

 

[Trek Survivor]

Some of my TNG favourites:
Reunion
#7 - Masks
#9 - A Call to Darkness
#16 - Contamination
#23 - War Drums
These are not necessarily "world changing"/galaxy-in-the-balance type stories, but I've always found them to be interesting TNG stories.