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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good, but not great., April 15, 2000
I liked this book, even though it tended to be a little over dramatic, and many of the crew's actions did not seem to fit their characters, although to be fair to the author, this book was written at the very start of TNG's run, and the characters have developed a lot since then. The passage at the very start of the book was well written, and there was some good scenes between the characters, but I found the book just a little too slow. I have read some of Diane Carey's other ST books, and while she's not my favourite Trek author, I do enjoy most of her books, especially 'Ship of the Line'. I think the book would be better if more time was spent on developing a more complicated storyline, and less time on the characters feelings on the 'Ghost Ship'. Maybe it's just me, but the plot seemed too basic, and centred completely on what to do about the life draining entity. As it was, the book was more a question of ethics than a Star Trek novel. A good, thought-provoking Star Trek novel, but not one of the best.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
A decent first effort, but..., June 26, 2002
To be fair to the author, it is hard to write a completely objective review of this book. The novel was written when the concept was new, the series just beginning and the characters not yet fully fleshed out. I read it, on the other hand, after the series had concluded and the transition to motion pictures successfully completed. Still, the weakness of the book lies not with the inconsistent interaction among the main characters but with the plot itself. We start by meeting the captain and crew of the Sergei G. Gorshkov. In fact, the entire first chapter is dedicated to this introduction. The author makes us curious about these characters, and then does nothing with them. They exist in spirit form throughout the rest of the novel, but do nothing and are never revisited as anything more than a collective group of beings that want to die. The officers of the Enterprise undergo a great amount of soul-searching as they try to decide whether to grant this request or not, but the crew of the Gorshkov are neglected by the alien that absorbed them and by the author as well throughout the bulk of the novel. Ultimately, the reader does not care what decision Captain Picard comes to, because the author never makes us care about the "ghosts" whose fates lie in the balance. While the plot is disappointing, the interaction among the main characters is worthwhile if for no other reason than to contrast the original concept with their eventual, more developed, incarnations. The highlights are the budding relationship between Giordi and Data and the contradictory early relationship between Deanna and Riker. But at the same time, Giordi is painted as an arrogant and insubordinant brat and Riker an incompetent buffoon when the two are on the bridge. Bottom line: This isn't a horrible novel, but there are many superior Star Trek books out there (some of them written by Diane Carey herself). If you are going to invest the time it takes to read a book, invest it in one you'll get more out of.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
The epitome of everything bad in the Next Generation, June 23, 2005
The Next Generation was such an excellent series that it's hard to believe that one book could focus almost entirely on the goofy parts of the series. The book turns all of the crew into naval gazers, but my "favorite" part was the fake prime directive debate that consumed an entire chapter. What if we hurt the enemy's feelings? I still can't believe I read the whole book. This book was like a movie that I wish I'd walked out of. Thankfully, the series quickly abandoned the "Romulan warbird de-cloaking off the port bow; shields down to 5% -- OK, everyone to the conference room to figure out what to do" problem. But this book is the epitome of everything that could have gone wrong with the series. Thankfully, there's never been a book this bad again!
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