by Dayton Ward

Gallery Books, out now

After a rescue mission goes wrong, Captain Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise have to try to resolve the situation…

You’ll sometimes see comments online from people asking why the same names are often attached to tie-in fiction to a particular franchise (and I’m by no means just talking about Star Trek here). The reason is a pretty obvious one – the people chosen have proved they can deliver good product, on time, and know the franchise they’re writing about. In the case of Star Trek, it’s also why I used many of the writers in my tenure on the official magazine – people who have lived inside these characters’ heads know them better than most.

This is Dayton Ward’s 22nd Trek novel, solo or co-written, and each time there’s an element of the book that sets it apart from its peers. In this case, there’s large amounts of the storyline set on an asteroid, with Jim Kirk working mostly in two rather than the three dimensions he’s used to (think Arena from the original series, but with a lot more enemies and the problems of lack of atmosphere added). It also picks up some of the plot threads from the Seekers series (and if you don’t know what that is, check it out!) and presents an interesting view of how the cold war between the Klingons and the Federation continued after the events we saw in the first season of Discovery.

It’s not a Starfleet-centric novel – we spend time on the Klingon homeworld, as well as with various groups of Klingons and Orions – and Ward provides a strong contrast between the different species’ attitudes to honour and shame, as well as intriguing suggestions regarding the way in which certain parts of Klingon society are regarded.

Verdict: A well-told tale for the original crew. 8/10

Paul Simpson