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Michael A. Martin
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Kobayashi Maru: Enterprise: Kobayashi Maru (Star Trek: Enterprise) Paperback – October 21, 2012

by Michael A. Martin (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 447 ratings
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To protect the cargo ships essential to the continuing existence of the fledgling Coalition of Planets, the captains of the United Earth's Starfleet are ordered to interstellar picket duty, with little more to do than ask "Who goes there?" into the darkness of space.

Captain Jonathan Archer of the Enterprise™ seethes with frustration, wondering if anyone else can see what he sees. A secret, closed, militaristic society, convinced that their survival hangs by a thread, who view their neighbors as a threat to their very existence -- the Spartans of ancient Greece, the Russians of the old Soviet Union, the Koreans under Kim Il-sung -- with only one goal: attain ultimate power, no matter the cost. The little-known, never-seen Romulans seem to live by these same principles.

The captain realizes that the bond between the signers of the Coalition charter is fragile and likely to snap if pushed. But he knows that the Romulans are hostile, and he believes they are the force behind the cargo ship attacks. If asked, Archer can offer no proof without endangering his friend's life.

To whom does he owe his loyalty: his friend, his world, the Coalition? And by choosing one, does he not risk losing all of them? What is the solution to a no-win scenario?
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  1. Book 12 of 20
    Star Trek: Enterprise
  2. Print length
    496 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publication date
    October 21, 2012
  5. Dimensions
    5 x 1.24 x 8 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    147672699X
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1476726991
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Michael A. Martin’s solo short fiction has appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. He has also coauthored (with Andy Mangels) several Star Trek comics for Marvel and Wildstorm and numerous Star Trek novels and eBooks, including the USA Today bestseller Titan: Book One: Taking Wing; Titan: Book Two: The Red King; the Sy Fy Genre Award-winning Star Trek: Worlds of Deep Space 9 Book Two: Trill -- Unjoined; Star Trek: The Lost Era 2298—The Sundered; Star Trek: Deep Space 9 Mission: Gamma: Vol. Three: Cathedral; Star Trek: The Next Generation: Section 31—Rogue; Star Trek: Starfleet Corps of Engineers #30 and #31 ("Ishtar Rising" Books 1 and 2); stories in the Prophecy and Change, Tales of the Dominion War, and Tales from the Captain's Table anthologies; and three novels based on the Roswell television series. His most recent novels include Enterprise: The Romulan War and Star Trek Online: The Needs of the Many. His work has also been published by Atlas Editions (in their Star Trek Universe subscription card series), Star Trek Monthly, Dreamwatch, Grolier Books, Visible Ink Press, The Oregonian, and Gareth Stevens, Inc., for whom he has penned several World Almanac Library of the States nonfiction books for young readers. He lives with his wife, Jenny, and their two sons in Portland, Oregon.

Andy Mangels is the USA TODAY bestselling author and coauthor of over a dozen novels—including Star Trek and Roswell books—all cowritten with Michael A. Martin. Flying solo, he is the bestselling author of several nonfiction books, including Star Wars: The Essential Guide to Characters and Animation on DVD: The Ultimate Guide, as well as a significant number of entries for The Superhero Book: The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Comic-Book Icons and Hollywood Heroes as well as for its companion volume, The Supervillain Book. Andy is a national award-winning activist in the Gay community, and has raised thousands of dollars for charities over the years. He lives in Portland, Oregon, with his long-term partner, Don Hood, their dog, Bela, and their chosen son, Paul Smalley. Visit his website at AndyMangels.com.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Gallery Books (October 21, 2012)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 496 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 147672699X
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1476726991
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 14.4 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5 x 1.24 x 8 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 447 ratings

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Michael A. Martin

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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
447 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find the book entertaining, pleasant, and a great start to a good series. They also appreciate the believable characters and writing style. Opinions are mixed on the storyline, with some finding it good and interesting, while others say it's uninteresting and doesn't ring true.

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ReadabilityCharacter developmentWriting styleStoryline
20 customers mention "Readability"19 positive1 negative

Customers find the book entertaining, climactic, and pleasant. They also say it's a great start to a good series.

"...very clever twists and turns in the story, making it an extremely entertaining read...." Read more

"...Originally, I stated that this book was a good read. I stand by that. I thoroughly enjoyed it...." Read more

"Wow! A page turning suspenseful story. Great reading, but personally disappointed in not knowing the rest of the story...." Read more

"...Overall this is a good book that continues the coming Romulan War. Also I loved how the Kobayashi Maru vessel was handled in this novel." Read more

8 customers mention "Character development"8 positive0 negative

Customers find the characters believable and well-developed. They say the stories are well-paced and take them back to their favorite characters.

"It's a well written book with believable characters that did not feel different from the representations on TV...." Read more

"...The stories are well paced, took me back to my favourite characters and I really enjoyed the lead up to and exploration of the Romulan War...." Read more

"...Our hero, is uber heroic, our captain is amazing. The villains are very villainous. And of course, the politicians are ...as they always are!!..." Read more

"They do a nice job of capturing the character's personalities...." Read more

6 customers mention "Writing style"6 positive0 negative

Customers find the writing style of the book very well-written.

"It's a well written book with believable characters that did not feel different from the representations on TV...." Read more

"I was happy that this book was much better written than the first book but there is still quite a bit of room for improvement...." Read more

"...And it's nice to have them back, pretty good story, writing is ok, they use too many big words unnecessarily. But overall, well worth reading." Read more

"I enjoyed this star trek enterprise novel. I liked the writing style and the characters are portrayed well." Read more

23 customers mention "Storyline"15 positive8 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the storyline. Some mention it's good, interesting, and suspenseful. However, others say the story doesn't ring true and the references don't help the story progress.

"...IMO that is a long time coming, and important to the overall story. T'Pol's past also comes into play, successfully woven into the story...." Read more

"Wow! A page turning suspenseful story. Great reading, but personally disappointed in not knowing the rest of the story...." Read more

"...It was not central to the story. It wasn't even a large part of the story. As a result, this book's title is misleading...." Read more

"...The stories are well paced, took me back to my favourite characters and I really enjoyed the lead up to and exploration of the Romulan War...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

Scott
5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining spy story, political intrigue, angst for Archer, Romulans, Vulcans, and a bit of Trip/T'Pol
Reviewed in the United States on August 8, 2017
Verified Purchase
I've been reading the Enterprise relaunch novels beginning with Last Full Measure, and this book continues to deliver! In this installment, we continue toward the Romulan War, and we get the backstory on what became the infamous Kobayashi Maru academy training scenario. (Note that there are several plotlines being advanced, not just that one.) We get continued growth of characters, including Travis and Malcolm, and Columbia and her crew enter the story. It's not only great to see Captain Hernadez again, but we get a whole set of interesting characters making up the Columbia crew. There are more hard decisions and ethical dilemmas for Captain Archer, which does seem to be his fate in the greater story of the beginning of the Federation. Trip continues his work undercover, and has some degree of success, as he seems to be a better engineer than spy, although he's got the right motivations. However, there are many very clever twists and turns in the story, making it an extremely entertaining read. There is a lot of great detail on Romulan society and language to get a good feel for this culture and how it compares and contrasts with their Vulcan cousins. If you ship Trip and T'Pol, we get that too. :) No, don't expect what you get in fanfic, but this novel isn't the place for it. What we do get is T'Pol coming to some significant realizations about how her actions and yes, her emotions, impact others. IMO that is a long time coming, and important to the overall story. T'Pol's past also comes into play, successfully woven into the story. I found this book to be the best of the series that I've read yet, and highly recommend it.
6 people found this helpful
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Glenn E. Smith
4.0 out of 5 stars A Very Good Read, but Flawed in its Time Line, or is it?
Reviewed in the United States on June 30, 2014
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This is a REVISED review. I previously rated this book 3 stars, but now, having nearly finished "The Romulan War: Beneath the Raptors Wing," I have reconsidered my original review.

Originally, I stated that this book was a good read. I stand by that. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I also stated that were it not for the flaws that I discuss below I would have rated it 4 or perhaps even 5 stars. Well, those flaws can be easily retconned to make sense, and since this book is SO MUCH BETTER than that terrible series finale, I have chosen to do so.

The minor flaw still remains -- the title. While I found the subplot of the Kobayashi Maru to be enjoyable, I also found it to be little more than an afterthought. It was not central to the story. It wasn't even a large part of the story. As a result, this book's title is misleading. Were it not for that, I would rate this 5 stars.

Now for the major flaw, now considered the "real" canon in my own head.

* SPOILER ALERT *

In the final episode of the TV series, six years have passed since the next to last episode. Actually, more than 200 years have passed, since the whole NX-01 portion of the episode was nothing more than Commander William Riker running a holodeck simulation aboard the Enterprise-D. Nonetheless, in the simulation it is 2161 and the NX-01 has been in service for 10 years. Trip is killed and the Coalition Charter is signed and Archer gives a big speech.

In this book, which takes place in 2155, soon after that NEXT to last episode, the authors mention the signing of the Coalition Charter as having happened recently and spend part of the story following Trip Tucker on a covert mission for Section-31 into Romulan space after he FAKED his death. I enjoyed the scenes with the Coalition Council and I enjoyed Trip's story very much, but in the TV finale neither Trip's "death" nor the signing of the charter happened until six years later in 2161. The authors completely BLEW IT where continuity with the TV series is concerned, which PREVIOUSLY led me to dismiss this entire novel as I develop an Enterprise-era project of my own. However, as I alluded to above, I have changed my mind.

One simply needs to look at that lousy final episode for what it was -- a holodeck simulation -- and choose to believe that it was not an accurate one. It got the year wrong. If you can accept that Trip ACTUALLY "died" in 2155 and that the creation of the Coalition of Planets through the signing of the Coalition Charter was NOT the founding of the Federation (which all us Trek geeks know occured in 2161) but rather a precurser to it that took place six years earlier, then this book as well as the next one, which continues the story, fits perfectly.
4 people found this helpful
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Phil
5.0 out of 5 stars Kobayashi Maru
Reviewed in the United States on April 24, 2024
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Wow! A page turning suspenseful story. Great reading, but personally disappointed in not knowing the rest of the story. Damn, gotta find out what happened!
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Jeremy
3.0 out of 5 stars Good but not great
Reviewed in the United States on September 2, 2023
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I’ll start by saying the authors did a good job of capturing the voices of the cast of the show. It felt like an episode of the show and I think that’s important with tie in fiction. I struggled with a couple of things. One: the authors try to make political and societal points in their books that come off as jarring and take you out of the story. Second: Trip’s covert storyline is kind of ridiculous and he continues to just barely escape through good luck or happenstance and it’s not believable. Plus his reaction to being saved is childish and is an eye roll under the pretense of him not being in control of his actions when it’s clear he never is when he’s on his own.
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Dwayne McClellan
5.0 out of 5 stars Truly, the No-win scenario Begins
Reviewed in the United States on May 31, 2024
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The Colitition of Planets is beginning to figure out the Romulans are pulling all the proverbial strings. This definitely needs an audible.com companion!!!! I recommend this entire collection for any true fan of the Star Trek Franchise!!!!!!
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Jeffrey R Stilwell
4.0 out of 5 stars A fun read for Trek fans with only a few distracting disappointing things forced in.
Reviewed in the United States on April 20, 2018
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It's a well written book with believable characters that did not feel different from the representations on TV. My only real complaint, and what keeps it from being a 5 star book, are the several references to homosexual characters. The references did not help the story progress at all, did not help develop the main characters, and only came off feeling forced.
5 people found this helpful
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Andrew
5.0 out of 5 stars A great Star Trek read
Reviewed in the United States on January 11, 2014
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I enjoyed the Enterprise television series and had high hopes that novels would fill the gap left by its too early cancellation. And Michael A. Martin's books the Last Full, The Good That Men Do, Kobayashi Maru, The Romulan War: Beneath the Raptor's & To Brave the Storm don't disappoint. The stories are well paced, took me back to my favourite characters and I really enjoyed the lead up to and exploration of the Romulan War. I will definitely be reading other books by this author within the Star Trek universe and he has set the bar high for future Enterprise novels.
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Top reviews from other countries

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Nieves Gálvez
4.0 out of 5 stars Pleasant follow up of Enterprise TV show, and a nice cameo of the classic Kobayashi Maru dilemma
Reviewed in Spain on November 9, 2017
Verified Purchase
When I found this story about the origin of the Kobayashi Maru dilemma, I couldn't resist.

I actually enjoyed this book more than I expected, because I had been warned in advance about its weak points: the Maru isn't the center of the plot, and the other stories leave open endings. But that's understandable: a novel needs more stuff (not just the single emergency situation of the ship), and this book will lead us to the "Romulan War" books

The Maru dilemma is well portrayed, and despite being well-known, the writers manage to surprise us with an interesting twist: yes, there were birds of prey and a no-win scenario, but not exactly the old story we've always believed, and that makes it more interesting.
Plus, more spy stories of Trip Tucker, a good subplot involving T'Pol and Reed (finally some good use of Malcom's character!), and a funny love scene we've been expecting for ages!

If Enterprise is about the origin of Star Trek, it's just fitting to link the Kobayashi Maru to the hardest decision of Jonathan Archer, famous for thinking out-of-the-box. The Horizon's crew (Mayweather family), Columbia's capt. Erika Hernandez and even Trip "Cunaehr" Tucker will face their own no-win scenarios as well. Which ones will survive this time? At which price?

The moments "some days you can't win" and "it's been an honor serving with you all" gave me the creeps. Impressive!
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Richard Farrugia
5.0 out of 5 stars Good read.
Reviewed in Australia on January 12, 2019
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Gives a great backdrop to everyone's favourite Starfleet Academy exam... and a brilliant story set in the Enterprise era.
give yourself a treat, read it today!
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marcos
5.0 out of 5 stars == Recomendo ==
Reviewed in Brazil on March 15, 2015
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Excelente livro.
Mas devo avisar que se trata do 2ª livro de uma série de três livros. Não se foi falha minha por não perceber, ou não está especificado que se trata de uma trilogia, na qual para você entender terá que ler os três livros, que são eles:

- Star trek; Enterprise; The good that men do
- Star trek; Enterprise; Kobayashi Maru
- Star trek; Enterprise; The Romulan War

Os três livros são excelentes podem ler que pra aqueles que são fã das séries star trek (Jornada nas Estrelas) não irão se decepcionar.
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Der Bibliothekar
5.0 out of 5 stars great novel
Reviewed in Germany on April 25, 2014
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I recommand this book very warmly to every lover of the Star Trek universe and its stories. Read it now immediatly.
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deafdrew1971
5.0 out of 5 stars great book to read!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 10, 2013
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From cover to cover and enjoyable to read! Recommend to all Star Trek fans! Brilliant plot line! Thanks to the author for write a great story of Enterprise!
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