Book Report #106 - The Edge by Rudy Josephs, a Starfleet Academy novel

Book 30 of 52

Page count - 249

At last a story with a believable plot.

According to Wikipedia and Memory Alpha this is the second book in the series.  However, it reads like the first one. I guess that publishing has the same kinds of pressures as broadcast TV can have, where they feel compelled to release stories out of order.

In any case, this was the only book in the series that treated the characters like cadets and did not allow them to venture out of believable circumstances.  In this novel we find some students are prepared to take dangerous chances in order to compete and excel in the grueling environment of the academy.

In the 2009 movie, we see Kirk meet McCoy for the first time on the shuttle that takes them to the academy.  The film then cuts to "three years later," ignoring their time there completely.  In this book we get to see what happened the moment they stepped off the shuttle. We are also treated to see the major characters' first personal encounters with each other.

Leonard McCoy is central to this book, which makes me very happy since he's my favorite character from the movies.

This is the book that makes me wonder why the whole series could not have been structured this way.

NOTE - Unfortunately there is no web presence for this author. 

Book Report #105 - The Delta Anomaly by Rick Barba a Starfleet Academy novel.

Book 29 of 52

Page count - 223

The first installment in the Starfleet Academy series of YA books set in the newly rebooted Star Trek universe.  It follows Kirk (played my Chris Pine in the movies) during his time at the academy.

This is the third book in the series that I've read and the second by Barba.  Luckily these stories are all quite self contained so reading them out of order is not a big deal, although watching the first movie before reading the books is highly recommended.

As I keep finding while reading YA books; I am NOT the target audience and so I keep noticing just how thin the plots are.  I find things are not pursued to my satisfaction and that the characters can move on from certain events like they have ADD.  The ability for characters to switch from being in peril to hitting on an attractive girl in the span of one paragraph is a bit concerning. Although this is played for humor it tended to take me out of the story.

In this book Kirk is in the middle of some practical away mission tests.  At the same time there is a serial killer roaming the streets of San Fransisco striking on foggy nights.

There is no story unless Kirk and the gang are involved in the attacks; how they are initially drawn in worked extremely well.  As a matter of fact the first encounter with the killer, known as the Doctor, happened during my favorite scene in the book where kirk is fending off the advances of Gaila in a local bar.

The story switches from classes to the investigation quite frequently.  Obviously the SFPD are involved in the murders and they quickly realize starfleet can help, I was continually being thrown out of the story thinking, "that would never happen" as the police handed more and more responsibility to starfleet cadets.  Cadets!

Even the final confrontation with the Doctor, which called for so much suspension of disbelief that I nearly started laughing out loud.  Everything about the investigation worked, it was only in the author's choice of who was tasked with trying to apprehend the bad guy that struck me as improbable.

Would I recommend the book?  To be honest, no.  But the author gets his legs in The Gemini Agent which had better plotting with an interesting twist ending, and he also got the voices of the characters better in his second book.

I believe the flaw in the books speaks more to the flaw in the series and that seems to point to the editors at Simon Spotlight. Lets face it; kids in school are kids in school, I would much rather read about something plausible, like how they cope with difficult classmates and instructors.  Instead the reader is constantly being asked to believe that Kirk has been saving the world since day one.  It's a bit much.

There is only one more book in the series to read ...

Rick Barba

Book Report #101 - The Gemini Agent by Rick Barba a Starfleet Academy novel.

Book 25 of 52

Page count 195

Another installment in the Starfleet Academy series of Young Adult novels set in the JJ Abrams version of Star Trek. 

I actually like these books since they show Kirk as a goofball twenty-something with all the glimmers of the adult he will become. 

Strangely I've been reading the series backwards, this is book 3 and my earlier review was book 4.  This is because I've been reading the books as I've received them from the library.  The books can be read in any order but I usually like to start with the first. 

This book was quite good with quick pacing and a nice twist ending.  The Romulans are the Big Bad in this one and the author captured their methods very well. Romulans are known for their deceptions, spying and covert missions.  The stretch in the plot was how this involved Kirk or, more precisely, why it involved him. If you're going to influence an enemy would you target a student or would you go after are person in power?

The conclusion explained the reasoning employed but I was still left thinking the plausibility was a bit suspect.  That being the only fault in the story I can say that it was a fun read and I'm glad I opened the covers.  The author's ability to capture the Chris Pine version of Kirk and McCoy's voice is to be celebrated.  I just love McCoy in this new version of Star Trek.

There was one exchange between Kirk and McCoy that I just loved; it occurs very early in the book.

McCoy just glared at Kirk.

"You're over that aviophobia thing, Right?" Asked Kirk distractedly. 

"You mean the fear of dying in something that flies?" said McCoy.  "No."

"Ah, so that explains your surly demeanor."

"I'm always like this."

Dialogue always made Star Trek special and this book kept that tradition alive.

This was definitely a likable story even if the plot was a bit weak.

Book Report #100 - The Assassination Game by Alan Gratz

Book 24 of 52
Page count 320

This is the first book I found that is based on the new series of movies made by J.J. Abrams.  It fits nicely in the time line of the first movie where we were not shown Kirk's experiences at the Academy.

I don't ordinarily turn to teen fiction simply because - I'm not a teen.  But I thought I'd give this one a go, and you know what?  It was a blast.

There is a lot going on in this book; there are aliens on campus who get tangled up in some political intrigue when a couple terrorist attacks take place.  There is the threat of war and throughout the story there is a cool game of tag being played. 

It took me a few chapters to get into this book and, to be honest, there were no surprises here.  You could guess the villain quite quickly but that was okay too.  What I got was the paper equivalent of a popcorn movie.  It was just plain fun.

The author should be commended; I think he got the voices of each of the characters spot on.  I was particularly taken by Leonard "Bones" McCoy.  I am a massive fan of Karl Urban; I just love his version of the character and the author got him just right.

He also portrayed Kirk very, very well.  The whole cast is well represented here and I certainly recommend it for anybody who likes the new version movies.

Alan Gratz blog is HERE.

Alan Gratz