By Alan Dean Foster

Gallery Books, out now

Shortly after defeating Nero, Captain James T. Kirk and his new crew encounter an alien ship under attack…

It’s a decade since we were supposed to be reading this book, one of a number that were written in the wake of the 2009 Star Trek movie and set in the new timeline established therein. For various reasons these books were pulled, and while some of them have been reworked by their authors (Greg Cox and Christopher L. Bennett), others have remained unseen – and now that it seems that the Kelvin timeline has been brought to an end, they have been dusted off and are being published.

It’s important to recognise that these are based on the characterisation from that film, and Foster’s book plays this up, notably with the very different dynamic between Spock and Uhura. It’s also worth remembering that these were done long before Star Trek Into Darkness was drafted so, just as some of the earlier Pocket Book novels in a range were superseded by events in the TV series they were based on, things aren’t quite as you’d expect.

It also has to be said that this is a comparatively lightweight novel, compared with what else was being released at the time it was intended for (notably the Typhon Pact novels). It doesn’t feel as if it’s “about” anything thematically, and the resolution is telegraphed quite early on. It’s reminiscent of the original series episode This Side of Paradise and the TAS instalment The Lorelei Signal, and while the deeply nostalgic side of me – who grew up reading and re-reading the Star Trek Logs that Foster wrote, because we simply didn’t get Star Trek reruns in the UK at that point – loves reading new Star Trek by Foster, this feels a bit of a wasted opportunity. (And the characterisation of Scotty? Best forgotten!)

Verdict: While it’s great the book has finally seen print, it feels very much one for completists only. 6/10

Paul Simpson

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