TNG Numbered Books?

[Patrick O'Brien]

I purchased two used TNG numbered books at a book store near my house yesterday. "Chains of Command"(#21) by Bill McCay and Eloise Flood and "Balance of Power"(33) by Dafydd Ab Hugh. Started reading #21, so far so good. I plan on slowly reading older TNG novels when i get a chance and I have a few questions. Are there any essential books or standouts I should look for regarding the TNG numbered books? Maybe an old thread on BBS that could be consulted? Any general info on the numberd books (ones to read or those I should skip) would be helpful.

 

[zarkon]

The ones I have a decentish memory of:

2 The Peacekeepers ***
3 The Children of Hamlin ****
4 Survivors ***
5 Strike Zone *****
6 Power Hungry
7 Masks *****
8 The Captains' Honor **
9 A Call to Darkness ***
10 A Rock and a Hard Place *****
Metamorphosis **
11 Gulliver's Fugitives **
12 Doomsday World **
15 Fortune's Light ***
16 Contamination ***
Vendetta ****
18 Q-in-Law ****
Reunion *
19 Perchance to Dream ***
20 Spartacus ***
21 Chains of Command **
22 Imbalance ***
Imzadi *****
24 Nightshade ***
26 The Romulan Prize **
28 Here There Be Dragons ****
Dark Mirror *****
30 Debtors' Planet ***
Q-Squared *****
34 Blaze of Glory ****
35 The Romulan Stratagem ***
36 Into the Nebula ***
37 The Last Stand ****
Crossover **
38 Dragon's Honor ****
39 Rogue Saucer ***
40 Possession ****
41 Invasion #2: The Soldiers of Fear *
Kahless ***
43 A Fury Scorned ***
45 Intellivore *****
Ship of the Line **
Planet X *
47 The Q Continuum Book One Q-Space ****
48 The Q Continuum Book Two Q-Zone ****
49 The Q Continuum Book Three Q-Strike ****
Triangle: Imzadi II ****
50 Dyson Sphere *
53 Double Helix, Book Three Red Sector *
55 Double Helix, Book Five Double or Nothing ****
56 Double Helix, Book Six The First Virtue ***
I, Q ***
58 Gemworld #1 ****
59 Gemworld #2 ****
The Valiant **
60 Tooth and Claw ***
61 Diplomatic Implausibility ****
62 Maximum Warp, Book One Dead Zone **
63 Maximum Warp, Book Two Forever Dark **
Klingon ****

 

[Patrick O'Brien]

^Awesome! Thanks for the list with stars Zarkon

 

[tomswift2002]

#7 Masks, #17 Boogeymen and #18 Q-In-Law are good ones. #4 Survivors is another good one if you're looking for a good Tasha Yar-Data story.

 

[kirk55555]

The Eyes of the Beholders (#13) was also one I enjoyed, and (in my head) its actually what happened with Dr. selar, not what apparently happened in the New frontier books (I haven't been able to read many of the NF books unfortunately, but as much as I really like Peter David, I think this book told a story with Selar, a background character in only one or two episodes, with a nice ending then the weird stuff PD did with her in that series).

I personally like the old numbered books, most of my ST book collection is the older books. The Q-Continnum trilogy by Greg Cox are some of the best ST books ever made (atleast if you're a Q fan like me). All the Q books from that period (Q-Squared, I, Q, etc) that I've read are good. Rogue Saucer is also a favorite of mine. If you like Klingons, Kahless is an unnumbered book from that period (it was published in 1996) that I thought was very good.

 

[JD]

The Eyes of the Beholders (#13) was also one I enjoyed, and (in my head) its actually what happened with Dr. selar, not what apparently happened in the New frontier books (I haven't been able to read many of the NF books unfortunately, but as much as I really like Peter David, I think this book told a story with Selar, a background character in only one or two episodes, with a nice ending then the weird stuff PD did with her in that series).

Wow, we actually agree one something. The Selar story was probably one of my least favorite parts of NF.

 

[tomswift2002]

"Rogue Saucer"(#39) was a pretty good romp that, if I recall is set in TNG's 8th season, just prior to Star Trek Generations. "Foreign Foes"(#31) was also another good book from the 30's, and it deals with Klingon's. #44 "The Death Of Princes" was also a good read.

But you might also want to check out some of the TNG Starfleet Academy series, specifically #4 "Capture The Flag", #8 "Starfall" (this book describes what happened to Picard that caused him to try twice for his entrance exam), #11 Crossfire & #13 "The Haunted Starship".

But, just to warn you, avoid #45 "Intellivore".

 

[Use of Time]

Q-in-Law was a good read from what I can remember. Survivors is also good and the characters resurface in Metamorphosis.

I also liked War Drums mainly due to the focus on Ro Laren. There are some weird scenes in that book though that make others cringe.

 

[timothy]

Q- i n law was hilarious

 

[Sakrysta]

Q-in-Law is worth tracking down the audio book for. It's narrated by Majel Barrett and John de Lancie, and their performances make the book just that much funnier.

 

[Patrick O'Brien]

^That sounds like it would be very funny/cool. I'll look for the audio book for that one. Thanks again for all your suggestions. I plan on picking up a few more used books for the summer, this list is awesome.

 

[F. King Daniel]

53 Double Helix, Book Three Red Sector *

Nooooooooo. I loved Red Sector. Deserves four or five stars, IMO.

And, luckily, works perfectly as a standalone book despite it's Double Helix branding.

 

[zarkon]

53 Double Helix, Book Three Red Sector *

Nooooooooo. I loved Red Sector. Deserves four or five stars, IMO.

And, luckily, works perfectly as a standalone book despite it's Double Helix branding.

Well

Spoiler: red sector

The only thing I really liked about it was the special ship the main character captained when he got out of prison. The federation leaving him there, his spock-worship, the constrictor....eh. Diane Carey ST can be a bit of an acquired taste I guess, the only ones where I felt she really got it spot on were First Frontier & The Great Starship Race.

And, luckily, works perfectly as a standalone book despite it's Double Helix branding.

Yeah, they pretty much all do.

For anyone who hasn't read them, 1-4 vaguely (very vaguely) build up to 5, with six being a prequel. But the links are so tenuous they don't really need to be read. 5 -> 6 is the only really strong link from memory.

 

[Christopher]

And, luckily, works perfectly as a standalone book despite it's Double Helix branding.

Yeah, they pretty much all do.

That was always the policy with the crossover events prior to Destiny. The idea was that each book would be pretty much a standalone with only a fairly loose common element connecting them, like all dealing with different aspects of the same threat at different times or places, or doing multiple stories taking place on the Klingon Day of Honor holiday, or whatever. That way, people who only followed certain series would still get a complete experience, but those who collected the whole crossover would get more. (Although the Gateways crossover didn't quite live up to that goal, because each book had a cliffhanger ending and the resolutions were all combined in a final hardcover volume.)

And Double Helix sort of confused the issue by publishing the whole thing under the TNG brand, but it really was a multi-series crossover like the others.

 

[Patrick O'Brien]

Finished "Chains of Command"(#21) by Bill McCay and Eloise Flood. Slow read, though it did pick up at the end. I agree with Zarkon on the 2 stars rating.

 

[Therin of Andor]

I loved Red Sector. Deserves four or five stars, IMO.

I hung on every word, then discovered the old Psi Phi BBS and everyone was hating on it! Really took me by surprise that people were so negative to it. The previous "Double Helix" books had been really same-y and this one was fresh and interesting and I loved the original characters.

"Double or Nothing", the New Frontier book, is also great.

And Double Helix sort of confused the issue by publishing the whole thing under the TNG brand, but it really was a multi-series crossover like the others.

A last-minute decision, because it was originally announced as TNG, DS9, TOS (well, TNG Spock & McCoy, and links back to "Balance of Terror"), VOY and NF titles. I think I even saw a few as cover art in promos? TNG was selling really big numbers at the time, and DS9 and VOY weren't.

 

[Trek Survivor]

The numbered TNG books are my fave ST literature, ever (well, I drifted away from them at about book #40).

Particular favourites:
#4 Survivors
#7 Masks (love this one!)
#9 A Call To Darkness
#16 Contamination
#18 Q In Law
#23 War Drums
#28 Here There Be Dragons

Just a whole lot of fun in these few years of books...

 

[tomswift2002]

Masks seems to be a particular favorite amongst people of the early TNG numbered novels.

 

[Patrick O'Brien]

I think I will track down "Strike Zone" (#5), next. I have read good reviews online.

 

[bullethead]

I think I will track down "Strike Zone" (#5), next. I have read good reviews online.

It's definitely worth a read, just for Peter David's great mix of humor and seriousness. The only bad part is a subplot with a dying kid who can exert telepathic influence on people and attempts to get in bed with Troi.