Rating: 
Summary: Best Captain's Table book so far!
Review: Diane Carey is a brilliant writer and in every series she wrote the best. In this book, I think that putting a Captain's Table in the Delta Quadrant with aliens from the alpha, was a great idea. The story had a lot of heart, and it shows Janeways continual struggle to be the best, whatever ship she is on. Overall, a great book.
Rating:
Summary: Very Memorable
Review: For those of you who are mad that this ook doesn't feature Voyager or anyone besides Janeway: If you skim through the book, you can easily tell that this book is Janeway and nothing but Janeway.That being said: Yes, Janeway is out of character. But guess what? It's a story that Janeway's telling. Maybe it happened, and maybe it didn't. That's what we're left to guess at. Here's another way to think about it: Chakotay making up Indian stories to prove a point to someone. Jesus coming up with a parable. Did it happen? Probably not. Or maybe not that exact way. It's a story and you just 'go with it' and enjoy the ride. Anyway, back to the book... Basically, Janeway is exploring and comes upon this little bar where all these captains sit around telling 'war stories'. She's asked to tell a story and begins. The whole novel is her story, basically. What did I think of the book? I loved it. It was an interesting story and I really couldn't put it down when I first read it. And get this: I've read it several times after. Now that's a good book! So do yourself a favour and read 'outside the box...er, ship' this time. Well, unless you hate Janeway - then don't read the novel.
Rating:
Summary: 'Mosaic' 2! Captain Janeway returns!
Review: Forget all the standard-fare Voyager-in-trouble cliche books (i.e., Voyagers #1-18), if you only get one Voyager book, this has to be the one you get. Right off the bat, this has NOTHING to do with Voyager (the ship) itself. Bottom line is, if you like Janeway and feel that she's been sorely underused, and needs some fleshing out both in the written form and on TV, then please pick this one up. I expected it to be a run-of-the-mill story, but Carey gives this such an edge that it actually was very emotional for me to read the last two or three chapters. Well, read it for yourself, I don't want to give away the story. Quite possibly, this is also the best of the Captain's Table series, and deserves a place on my list of favorite books. Pick this one up; I guarantee you it's worth it. In the one-liner above, I mentioned this as being 'Mosaic 2' only because this is also something which focuses almost as intensely on Janeway as did Jeri Taylor's novel 'Mosaic'. That one was also extremely good, I recommend both of them. Consider this more of an action Janeway and the other one simply a biography of her life, although still extremely interesting.
Rating: 
Summary: Good read - But that just isn't Janeway!
Review: I actually enjoyed this book as long as I blocked out the fact that it was supposed to be Janeway this all happened to. It seemed very much out of character for her and just didn't mesh well with what we know of her. I was constantly overcome with the feeling that this book was written for someone else or with someone else as the main character initially. I like the unique approach to the alien's technology and the immediacy of the hazards they faced in space. So often we forget, in the Star Trek universe, that SPACE is lurking just outside those graceful hulls. The lady in this story is tough, smart and capable and eventually proves it to her new crew, the author just didn't make me feel like it was Janeway. All her innate dignity seemed to be ignored. Good read, just not really Janeway.
Rating:
Summary: Great read!
Review: I adore Diane Carey. She does what every good writer should do, she "writes what she knows." She's a sailor, and it shines through every novel. Living in Baltimore as I do, where everything's nautical, I enjoy her stories very, very much. I know I'll never become a sailor myself, but it sure is fun reading about sailing in her books! Who said you can't learn anything from fiction? HA! The "Captain's Table" bar is a good backdrop for this swell Janeway romp through space unknown, in a ship unknown, with Janeway serving as little more than deckhand (Ms. Carey told me the exact job title, but I forget what she said!). Written from Janeway's point of view, this book allows the reader to fall right into her head - and heart. Delicious. Fun. Good Stuff.
Rating:
Summary: GREAT BOOK! Must Read!
Review: I am very loathe to give any Star Trek book more than three stars. Star Trek books are almost by definition entertainment light, and mere entertainment should not, generally, receive more than three stars. But then along came Diane Carey and Fire Ship, and try as I might I cannot bring myself to give it only three stars. Like Sulu, Picard, and Sisko before her (Kirk had been there before), Janeway stumbles into the incredibly dopey "Captain's Table", a bar exclusively for captains of ships from all times and places. Like her predecessors, Janeway must tell a story. But there the comparisons with previous Captain's Table debacles ends. Carey boldly ignores the Captain's Table conventions and lets Janeway tell her story without the constant interruptions that plagued the previous books. And what a story it is. Janeway finds herself alone with an alien crew, forced to adapt to no longer being in charge and literally swabbing decks. Carey has found her stride as an author (see the atrocious TNG novel Ghost Ship for an earlier effort), weaving a narrative that is compelling, interesting, and evocative. There are, inevitably, some bits that do not entirely "work," but this was the first Trek novel in a long, long time that I a) didn't want to put down and b) looked forward to picking up again. It is also the first Trek book in recent memory that I actually *want* to read again. An observation about the negative reviews. I have never been a big Voyager fan. I am familiar with the characters, of course, but, except for the Doctor, am not attached to any of them. So, the lack of other Voyager crew did not bother me in the slightest. Similarly, I am by no means a Janeway afficionado. Is "Fire Ship"'s Janeway a realistic portrayal of the original? I have no idea; it was to my inexpert eye. However, "Fire Ship" is so enjoyable that the Star Trek aspects of it are really beside the point. Read "Fire Ship" and enjoy it for the wonderful tale it is.
Rating: 
Summary: Wow.
Review: I am very loathe to give any Star Trek book more than three stars. Star Trek books are almost by definition entertainment light, and mere entertainment should not, generally, receive more than three stars. But then along came Diane Carey and Fire Ship, and try as I might I cannot bring myself to give it only three stars. Like Sulu, Picard, and Sisko before her (Kirk had been there before), Janeway stumbles into the incredibly dopey "Captain's Table", a bar exclusively for captains of ships from all times and places. Like her predecessors, Janeway must tell a story. But there the comparisons with previous Captain's Table debacles ends. Carey boldly ignores the Captain's Table conventions and lets Janeway tell her story without the constant interruptions that plagued the previous books. And what a story it is. Janeway finds herself alone with an alien crew, forced to adapt to no longer being in charge and literally swabbing decks. Carey has found her stride as an author (see the atrocious TNG novel Ghost Ship for an earlier effort), weaving a narrative that is compelling, interesting, and evocative. There are, inevitably, some bits that do not entirely "work," but this was the first Trek novel in a long, long time that I a) didn't want to put down and b) looked forward to picking up again. It is also the first Trek book in recent memory that I actually *want* to read again. An observation about the negative reviews. I have never been a big Voyager fan. I am familiar with the characters, of course, but, except for the Doctor, am not attached to any of them. So, the lack of other Voyager crew did not bother me in the slightest. Similarly, I am by no means a Janeway afficionado. Is "Fire Ship"'s Janeway a realistic portrayal of the original? I have no idea; it was to my inexpert eye. However, "Fire Ship" is so enjoyable that the Star Trek aspects of it are really beside the point. Read "Fire Ship" and enjoy it for the wonderful tale it is.
Rating:
Summary: Mixed review for Fireship
Review: I basically enjoyed this book, but I sometimes found that Carey's characterization of Janeway did not match my own impressions of the character. I'm inclined to think the author based her more on the early, fairly inflexible Janeway than the one we've seen lately. Carey's writing was fine and the story was interesting. Still, I often found myself asking: "would Janeway really act this way?"
Rating:
Summary: Better than expected
Review: I don't really expect a lot from Voyager novels. Fact is, I rarely buy them unless they're part of a series like this one. So, I found myself pleasantly surprised by this one. Carey doesn't rely as much on the bar to jar the reader in and out of the story and it's stronger for that. She gives Janeway her own unique voice and makes reading the book a pure pleasure. My only gripe is that Carey's love of sailing shows through far too many times and is getting a bit tedious since it's been the focus of her past several Trek yarns. But otherwise, an enjoyably pleasant book.
Rating:
Summary: Nice to see Janeway for once not in command
Review: I generally don't like Captain Janeway and it was hard at first to get hang of her being the only one present, but this story was well written. Diane Carey is one of my favorite authors and I think she's done well again.
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