There is something comforting about being able to dip into a world and have it be familiar.
This book takes place just after the last of the Next Generation movies. Picard is trying to assemble a new crew and is assigned the task of negotiating peace between two races. One of which has joined the Federation. (How many times has that situation been used?)
The mission is interrupted when Picard hears the thoughts of the Borg for the first time in years. He tries to convince Starfleet to let him investigate this new threat. You know how it goes; Picard disobeys his orders to wait for an expert to join the Enterprise and heads off, on his own, to confront the Borg.
I found the book a bit dry and slow, to tell the truth. Although I was happy to read about the crew that remains; Picard, Dr. Crusher, LaForge and Worf; the story was bogged down by the author continually trying to tell three stories at once and by repeating scenes from the different points of view.
Even in the climactic battle Dillard kept taking us back in time to tell every angle of it. I found it distracting and frustrating. I don't want to find out what happens next by first having to hear about what happened to somebody in the next room, especially if it has no bearing on the main plot.
This type of story telling is used a lot in thrillers but, in most cases, the differing story lines merge for the "thrilling conclusion" so there is only one plot line to tell in the final chapters.
This book was only okay.
At least I got my Star Trek fix from it.
More on the author can be found HERE. (Dillard is a pen name for Ms. Kalogridis)
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