Customer Reviews

Star Trek: Voyager: Unworthy

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This book is a better treatment of Voyager. The cover is similar to the flyby in the series introduction, and they are back in the delta quadrant, where the ship and crew can differentiate themselves from the Next Generation crowd. All the usual suspects are there and everyone's favourite leisure hologram even makes an appearance (I dont mean The Doctor either)

There are a few twists and turns in the second half of the book so I'll keep away from too much of the story, except to say that Voyager leads a fleet of 9 ships back into the delta quadrant to ascertain if the Borg are really gone.

Overall it's a well written book with an interesting plotline which leads itself open to future books.

The only qualm I have is the death of Kathyrn Janeway. As a previous reviewer said, it's like killing off James T Kirk, Jean Luc Picard (still think it's a silly name for the guy), or Benjamin Sisko. She was the bedrock of the crew.

Starfleet's mission to the Delta Quadrant, led by a refitted Voyager, needs to arrive on time and in exactly the right place for it to do B'Elanna Torres any good. It's been two years since B'Elanna staged her own death, and that of her little daughter Miral, to protect the child from a Klingon sect bent on murder. Their reason? They think Miral has been born in fulfillment of a prophecy that they desperately want to prevent from coming true. With Tom Paris serving as Voyager's first officer, B'Elanna takes their child ahead to the Delta Quadrant and waits there for Starfleet's arrival. The journey no longer requires either a lifetime of conventional warp travel or use of a Borg corridor; thanks to slipstream technology that finally seems ready for safe use, it's now within normal mission time limits. But the Delta Quadrant is still a long way from the Federation, and it's nowhere for a shuttle with one woman (however brilliant a warrior) and her small child aboard to encounter - of all things - a cube. Aren't the Borg supposed to be gone? Absorbed into the gestalt of the Caeliar, who created them in the first place?

That's how author Beyer "shoots the sheriff on page one" (to cite an old but useful piece of writing advice). Beyer has the familiar Voyager characters nailed, and her original characters fit into the Trek universe as if they had been there all along. For those things I give this book high praise. I do have a couple of quibbles, though, just as I did with the story's first volume, Full Circle. A certain degree of "spoilage" follows. So don't read the rest of this review unless you have either finished reading the book for yourself, or don't care about being spoiled.

First, this time the absence of Janeway really started to bother me. I'd assumed, perhaps foolishly, that one of the plot elements in Unworthy would be bringing her back from the "dead" - I'm using quotes because this is science fiction, and therefore the word need not have its usual finality. Maybe that's going to happen later, in some future book; and I do hope so, because for me it's unacceptable to have any Trek incarnation continue without its captain. TOS needs Kirk, TNG needs Picard, DS9 needs Sisko; and Voyager needs Janeway. If your mileage varies on this point, that's fine; but this is how I feel, and it definitely affected my enjoyment of an otherwise fine novel. Second, one of the plot twists happened off camera and therefore failed to work for me as well as it should have. The "reveal" scene for that plot twist felt forced, when it should have flowed naturally.

Otherwise a great read! The sort that kept me up too late, in fact. I'm glad Beyer is writing the Voyager books now. Well worth the purchase.

--Reviewed by Nina M. Osier, author of 2005 science fiction EPPIE winner REGS

Just a quick note to say that this is a very entertaining book. I just finished Unworthy and must say it is well written and the characters are very interesting. I am looking forward to the next book in this series.

Unworthy is the latest in the Star Trek Voyager series. While I am not that familiar with the Star Trek Voyager novels, I've enjoyed watching Star Trek on TV. This latest installment, Unworthy, smoothly portrays the Voyager characters and introduces the new captain of the Starship Voyager, Afsarah Eden. Kirsten Beyer includes enough background that new readers can reasonably follow the story, although I felt that I would have benefited by having read the earlier book.

The characters' internal conflicts and the tension between crew members interesting and helped move the story along. I was most interested in the women portrayed in Unworthy. Captain Afsarah Eden, Lieutenant Nancy Conlon, B'Elanna Torres as a civilian, and even Seven (Annika) were well developed and nuanced personalities whose issues and conflicts drew me in. Overall, Star Trek Voyager: Unworthy was an enjoyable read - although while reading it, you are aware that it is only part of the larger Star Trek Voyager series.

Publisher: Star Trek (September 29, 2009), 384 pages.
A review copy was provided by the publisher.

Unworthy is a very worthy successor to Full Circle and Beyer has proved herself to be one of the masters of the Voyager relaunch.

Having never actually watched a great deal of Voyager, I haven't quite been as upset by Janeway's death as other Voyager fans. However, I think the relaunch is continuing along fine without her. Beyer did a great job of fleshing out characters that were once given a much more minor role and gives them a great deal of depth and emotional baggage. It's a standard I hope to see continued in the future Voyager novels. The premise of sending Voyager back to the Delta Quadrant was an amazing hook and it's good to see these Starfleet officers facing and dealing with the challenges the mission entails. We don't often see a fleet of Federation starships working in tandem, but we do here and it's interesting.

I won't spoil the ending, but I will say that it was a happy one. Many issues are resolved, particularly among the crew, that are handled almost too easily but in an entirely plausible way. And Counseler Hugh Cambridge is quickly becoming a favorite character of mine. While I'm not sure I like the use of all the holograms about the Galen and what that may mean to the future of Starfleet, I'm open to the experience when it's handled so well by an excellent author such as Beyer.

It's a can't miss novel in the Voyager saga and one I'm happy I picked up. It not only leaves me eager for more but also looking for Voyager DVDs so that I can enjoy the television series.

Voyager returns to the Delta Quadrant!

Set several years after Voyager's return home and immediately after the events of the Star Trek: Destiny trilogy, Unworthy takes the Voyager crew back to the inadequately explored sector of space where Voyager spent seven years onscreen.

Kirsten Beyer, the author of a couple other Voyager novels, including Unworthy's immediate predecessor, Full Circle, writes with clarity and elegance. Her characters truly come to life through her words, making this book both an enjoyable and enriching read. Beyer excellently deals with character emotions, and especially with Seven of Nine's transformation as the former drone finds the common ground between her Human, Borg, and Caeliar nature.

My only concern is that in the middle of the story, the plot takes twist that seems kind of ad hoc and random as one of the characters reveals that he or she is not who they truly are. Although it didn't destroy the book, I thought this was a little weird and could have been supported by more lead-up that might have made the climax a little more formulated.

In any case, I thought that Unworthy was a good read. While I would recommend reading Full Circle first, I do not think that reading the Destiny trilogy is necessary to understand and appreciate this book.

Voyager and her crew are back where they belong in the Delta Quadrant, and whether it's the interpersonal relationships or the larger issues of the mission this should hold the interests of any Voyager fan. As the story plays out issues from the crew's time in Alpha Quadrant are addressed and some are reconciled and new conflicts arise, she brings the old characters to life, creates new complicated personalities for the reader to meet and measure. The author tells an interesting and involving story, the fleets' mission will leave you with question after question as the mystery develops and you try to figure out how it all comes together at the end. The addition of other ships and new crew members gives this a sense of change for better, promising exciting possibilities in Delta Quadrant, where anything can happen.

Good luck on this very worthwhile read!

This is one of the best Star Trek book I've read in a long time. I haven't been too happy with how the various book series have carried on beyond the TV/Movie storylines- killing off characters, transferring them to different ships, etc... I'm not adverse to change but this ultimately leads to dozens of new characters that I as a fan will never care about as much and who take up more and more of the story. And, let's face it, the Science Fiction aspect is great but I read these books for the characters I love. This book does an excellent job of keeping the focus on the familiar crew you know from the series. There are several new characters introduced in "Unworthy", but Ms. Beyer does a great job of crafting them so that they are uniquely placed to shine the spotlight on the Series crew and their stories.


A bit like the recent Star Trek Movie (2009), one gets the feeling with this book that even though time inevitabely moves on and things have to change, it's really fun to think "what if we could go back to the way things were". The 3 part Caelier storyline that led up to the previous books and ultimately "Unworthy" dragged for quite a bit but really was resolved nicely, and poor Seven of Nine's position in "unworthy" is a very unique one to explore. While it's tragic that they killed Janeway, Star Trek has certainly never gotten to explore the tragic death of a Captain and it's aftermath before. I'm looking forward to the next Voyager book more than any of the other series and hope Ms. Beyer is asked to further contributing to the Trek Universe.

Beyer did an amazing with Unworthy! It may be the best Voyager book since Janeway was captain. Eden is a great addition to the crew, as well as the other new faces on board. I love than everyone is back on the same ship, even tho Harry is not acting like himself. Best Voyager book in a long time!!! Cant wait for the next book!!!!!!

Summary: Voyager and a fleet of support craft zip on out from the Alpha Quadrant to the Delta Quadrant using the new way-wonkin'-fast slipstream drive. They are soon joined by Chakotay and Seven of Nine, who are seeking a cure to Seven's post-Borg depression, and B'Elanna Torres and her daughter Mirral, who are fleeing Klingon assassins. At their first destination, the transwarp nexus that Voyager destroyed in the final episode of the TV show, they encounter odd aliens who revere the Borg. At the same time, evidence of sabotage begins to surface, and the evidence points to Chakotay. Is he guilty, or is somebody or something framing him? Before the novel ends, we learn who and why, and we also witness the birth of a new, evil enemy.

What's good: Beyer captures the familiar television characters well. She writes competently, takes her characters seriously, doesn't get bogged down in nonsense, and writes about interpersonal relationships in an adult fashion (by Trek standards). She also explains the irrational behavior that Admiral Batiste showed in FULL CIRCLE. (Thankfully, he wasn't just trying to match his peers.)

What's bad: The rationale for this trip disappeared when the Borg were absorbed by the Caeliar. It's not credible that Starfleet would launch this mission with so many pressing problems remaining in the aftermath of the devastating Borg attack. We don't get enough of a sense of how the Indign (the aliens mentioned above) came to be what they are. The new characters, aside from the unconventional Counselor Cambridge, have little personality. I fear this means that Beyer is good at using others' characterizations but less adept creating her own original characters. Finally, as usual the title fits poorly and explains nothing.

Bottom line: Like FULL CIRCLE, this is a transitional book. It allows the crew to regroup sans Janeway and introduces characters who will be important in Voyager's further adventures. It resolves a couple of plotlines from FULL CIRCLE, but doesn't have much of a plot of its own. It does give us three hints about what is to come, however: First, we are eventually going to learn where in the Delta Quadrant Captain Eden hails from. Second, we are going to encounter the nasty aliens that attacked Enterprise and the Aventine when they went looking for the Borg prior to the invasion. Third, there is a devious, evil, and hard-to-kill alien out that Voyager needs to track down. In any event, even if you're a Janeway fan who can't conceive of Voyager without her, um, regal presence, you should consider picking up a copy of UNWORTHY.