By Una McCormack

Gallery Books, out now

Sylvia Tilly knows there is far more she could do… if only given the chance…

The Star Trek Discovery tie-in policy of focusing on the past lives of the characters continues with this clever telling of Tilly’s late teenage years, a time of rebellion for most youngsters, pushing against what’s expected of them. When that involves going into the diplomatic core in the footsteps of a famous – and extremely busy – mother, the pressures are exacerbated, and self-doubt can become excruciating.

Tilly has been one of the Marmite characters of Star Trek Discovery – for some, her attitudes and behaviour haven’t felt “right” and they’ve wondered how she’s even been allowed on board a ship like the Discovery, let alone get onto the command track. But for others – myself included – she’s been a breath of fresh air in the franchise, the sort of character that has populated the book range for decades now and shown the best and worst of humanity. That’s been helped by a great performance by Mary Wiseman, and you can hear her in every Tilly line of McCormack’s novel.

Any parents of teenagers will recognise some of the situations in the novel – it doesn’t matter that it’s set 200 or so years in the future – and I’m sure many will come away with a better understanding of the “freaking amazing” Tilly.

Verdict: Another strong fleshing out of the Discovery back story. 9/10

Paul Simpson