Reviews and Comments

I can't help but have enjoyed this, given that 1, it was penned by David, and 2, I read it shortly after Dillard'sResistance, which really lacked something in tone when contrasted with the unmatched PD. David's taken the bones of his 1991 Trek novel Vendetta, modernised it and squished it back into line with latter Trek, and extended the Borg storyline a notch whilst creating a good read along the way. I do appreciate how his seeming irreverence can get under the skin, but I'm really glad there was a place for him in this saga.

This almost felt like a second go round at First Contact, picard exorcising the Borg once again. Despite new crew being mentioned, I didn’t feel as connected with them as I had in the other recent books I’ve read set a few years after this. Resistance in fact very much felt like the Jean-Luc and Beverly show, which was fine as far as it went, but not what I was really expecting.

janeway’s cameo also felt quite out-of-character, which was a shame. SO all-told, this felt like just another Borg story really.

Of course, a galaxy-spanning threat. Nothing less would have served to conclude this rather exotic trilogy. yet it fit, because it truly felt like I was back on the Enterprise with Picard from TV as he had been. Yes, a new ship, and yes, new faces. But also some old ones: Data and Geordi were perfect, and even Picard and Crusher worked well on the page;a natural outgrowth of where the screen could have gone. It's a shame that so much of this will have to go in Coda, but I'm glad to have caught up on some of it. None of the post-TV Trek has made me feel like I was back on-screen in this way to date.

Of course I could never see the Android attack on mars in Short Treks and the opening of Picard, but the idea of all the Soong-type bodies working to a singular hive-mind dread purpose is just as chilling. it was also fascinating to see more of the galactic politics here, and with a nod to one of the best TNG episodes ever (Cause and Effect, anyone?) This was a fantastic follow-up.

The focus on Soong worked well here, I felt engaged from the get-go. The TV episodes are expertly referenced, the future portrayal of the cyberneticist almost actually plausible and the advancement of Worf in particular felt very natural.

I can’t quite believe I hadn’t read this before. David’s not a stranger to the universe of course, yet somehow this hadn’t come through my life.

And what a story. It’s got so much of what makes great episodic Trek novels powerful, plus a now rather hopelessly outdated yet for the time grippingly vivid extension of the Borg. The non-Enterprise characters were all painted boldly enough to be very distinct, and I particularly enjoyed the subtle Selar nod but most of all the ending, which was a clever Einsteinian twist. There’s no doubt that Jeri Ryan took and ran with the concept of what now we must call XB’s, yet without her impact on the saga this is a fascinating yarn all its own.

Wow. If I had to recommend just one book from this year, Five Minds could well be it, certainly tied up there with Andy Weir.

The execution feels flawless, and so many of the books elements – the mental incongruity of being in a different body, the reliability (or otherwise) of each flawed narrator and the thought-out structure of a postdeath society all fall so neatly into place that the worldbuilding feels effortless. The games, the bars, the kingpins and the desperation of the sad societal dregs all hit their spots. I was engaged from the offset, enjoyed every twist. One to reread someday and no mistake.

The blurb was compelling, and the story didn't disappoint. Whilst on the whole the authors themselves were pretty bland, the genre-twisting nature of things was interestingly-done and the appropriation of tropes was fun to read.

It's been a little while since I read new Frontier. I'm surprised the "part" approach hasn't been done before given David's comic book ties, although the first 4 books were of course released in omnibus early on.

There seems to be a vague sense of recycling about the whole thing - many of the characters find themselves in situations which ring familiar. Nonetheless, you very much know what you're getting and what I got I liked.

I did enjoy this, but it sadly felt a little frenetic in spots. Solutions to plot problems appeared without much forethought or planning, and whilst I recognize this as a fundament of the superhero genre, I don’t think Chen’s handling of it worked particularly neatly. A fast-paced and reasonably stereotypical set piece without much to elevate it to the standard I would have expected from his debut.

Again, Cook's on fabulous form here. Book 1 sets the scene and is amazing, but both of these novels branch things off interestingly and I enjoyed every word on every page.

These never get old. Of course, much about them is dated, but that just adds charm. I'm pretty sure much of the allure is because I enjoyed them in my youth but equally, although the fantasy stuff is now what we'd call tropes, it really works. My wife also read these and loved them in the early years of our relationship, without being overly techy (although she did ask me for a VPN yesterday: shock! horror!).

nothing quite comforts me like sitting down with an old favourite I know I'm going to enjoy, though. And this volume fitted the bill nicely and is going on my carousel of rereads, obviously.

Part of me really wanted to denigrate James for being a blind fool, but then the rest of me was quite impressed with the care and attention he showed his kids. I’d like to think I’ve done the latter myself as a parent and it’s practically inevitable I’ve been the former quite often too, so perhaps this is merely a literary inflammation of part of the Human condition to which many of us are subject.
The book did read very soap-opera, but that actually worked. It was a wholesome read promoting family values and integrity and, even if it couldn’t quite class itself as a page-turner in the traditional thrilling sense, I nonetheless found myself invested and engaged throughout.

2 back-to-back books with stay-at-home dads in the lead role? What are the odds. This was gripping too, particularly the build-up to the murder. I feverishly flipped pages, frantic to know if he'd go through with pulling the trigger or not.

after that things did get a little more ... out there, I suppose. I wasn't as blown away with the ending as I was with the beginning, but a good read all-the-same.