Rating: 
Summary: ST #94 Challenger - An extremely well told Star Trek tale!
Review: After more or less trudging my way through the first novel in the New Earth series, "Wagon Train to the Stars" where, quite uncharacteristically, Diane Carey's writing just didn't mesh and had nothing but pacing problems, "Challenger" brought about a quite welcome relief. Back in form with her usual style of writing, "Challenger" is a true joy to read as the pacing is "dead on" and the story just flows. I particularly enjoyed the fact that she carried the main plot and two sub plots in this story and brought all three of them together for a somewhat anticlimactic, but highly intriguing conclusion.The cover art for "Challenger" is perfect, as was the cover art for the entire series. The premise: Shaking off the events of the previous novel "Thin Air," Captain Kirk and crew are quite expectant as their relief is on its way in the form of the USS Peleliu, who are expected to stand as the Starfleet authority in the Occult system for the next two years. As the USS Peleliu is headed for Belle Terre though, she is suddenly attacked by the All Kauld, during gamma night, and her captain, Roger Lake starts showing signs of mentally cracking after he'd been exposed to an undetectable virus, some time before this mission began. Weakened but not destroyed, the Peleliu comes limping into the Occult system. The first officer was also killed, leaving the second officer, Lieutenant Nick Keller, to deal with the problems set before him; a nearly destroyed Starship and a mentally unstable captain. At Belle Terre, Captain Kirk and Spock are dealing with a whole new issue; mysterious, inter-dimensional probes that are impervious to phaser fire are taking the quantum olivium and stuffing it back into the Quake moon. Billy Maidenshore, originally imprisoned earlier in the series has now freed himself and he's taken over an olivium runner known as the Pandora's Box, which had also been converted into a prison ship. Along with his control of the ship and olivium mining, he's taken Uhura and McCoy captive. Diane Carey beautifully rolls all of these events into a solid, well told, fast paced novel in which Captain Kirk must find a way of stopping these mysterious probes from stealing the olivium, Lt. Commander Nick Keller has to deal with the destruction of his ship and his crazed captain and Uhura and McCoy must find a way to stop Billy Maidenshore. I highly recommend this novel to any and all fans of Star Trek fiction! Even if you find it difficult or impossible to make it through the first few books of the New Earth series, I believe "Challenger" can be read on its own. {ssintrepid}
Rating:
Summary: ST #94 Challenger - An extremely well told Star Trek tale!
Review: After more or less trudging my way through the first novel in the New Earth series, "Wagon Train to the Stars" where, quite uncharacteristically, Diane Carey's writing just didn't mesh and had nothing but pacing problems, "Challenger" brought about a quite welcome relief. Back in form with her usual style of writing, "Challenger" is a true joy to read as the pacing is "dead on" and the story just flows. I particularly enjoyed the fact that she carried the main plot and two sub plots in this story and brought all three of them together for a somewhat anticlimactic, but highly intriguing conclusion. The cover art for "Challenger" is perfect, as was the cover art for the entire series. The premise: Shaking off the events of the previous novel "Thin Air," Captain Kirk and crew are quite expectant as their relief is on its way in the form of the USS Peleliu, who are expected to stand as the Starfleet authority in the Occult system for the next two years. As the USS Peleliu is headed for Belle Terre though, she is suddenly attacked by the All Kauld, during gamma night, and her captain, Roger Lake starts showing signs of mentally cracking after he'd been exposed to an undetectable virus, some time before this mission began. Weakened but not destroyed, the Peleliu comes limping into the Occult system. The first officer was also killed, leaving the second officer, Lieutenant Nick Keller, to deal with the problems set before him; a nearly destroyed Starship and a mentally unstable captain. At Belle Terre, Captain Kirk and Spock are dealing with a whole new issue; mysterious, inter-dimensional probes that are impervious to phaser fire are taking the quantum olivium and stuffing it back into the Quake moon. Billy Maidenshore, originally imprisoned earlier in the series has now freed himself and he's taken over an olivium runner known as the Pandora's Box, which had also been converted into a prison ship. Along with his control of the ship and olivium mining, he's taken Uhura and McCoy captive. Diane Carey beautifully rolls all of these events into a solid, well told, fast paced novel in which Captain Kirk must find a way of stopping these mysterious probes from stealing the olivium, Lt. Commander Nick Keller has to deal with the destruction of his ship and his crazed captain and Uhura and McCoy must find a way to stop Billy Maidenshore. I highly recommend this novel to any and all fans of Star Trek fiction! Even if you find it difficult or impossible to make it through the first few books of the New Earth series, I believe "Challenger" can be read on its own. {ssintrepid}
Rating: 
Summary: A Rousing Finish
Review: I forced myself through the middle four novels in this series ("New Earth"), and I can't really say I'm sorry I did, though it was a struggle. Book One, which introduced us to a literal "wagon train to the stars," was a clear winner, but the books in between had me thinking "Oh, no! Not AGAIN!" Nevertheless, I fell in love with those poor, beleaguered colonists on Belle Terre, and I'm sincerely glad I made it through to this last novel. Not only does it help tie up loose ends from the previous novels, it's a rousing story in its own right, introducing us to a whole new band of misfits, not unlike Peter David's "New Frontier" bunch. Once again, I applaud Diane Carey's writing style, most especially her portrayal of non-regulation-boot wearin' OTC Nick Keller and his cobbled-together ship, the U.F.P.F. *Challenger.* She speaks well, too, of the starship *Enterprise* in one of the finest paragraphs in the whole book: "Holding her much-reduced family in the petal of her cupped hand, the starship that had protected them for years, extrinsic proof of their high-priced wins, streaked through space pretending there wasn't a strain on her bones at this (warp nine) speed. *Enterprise* gracefully turned her shoulder to the insult, proving herself once more not just a jumper but a workhorse." You just can't get any better than that. But wait, you can! *Challenger* has bled into yet another series of novels, "Gateways." You'll find the reluctant OTC (NOT captain) Keller and his intrepid crew in Book Two, "Chainmail," written by My Girl, Diane Carey.
Rating:
Summary: A Rousing Finish
Review: I forced myself through the middle four novels in this series ("New Earth"), and I can't really say I'm sorry I did, though it was a struggle. Book One, which introduced us to a literal "wagon train to the stars," was a clear winner, but the books in between had me thinking "Oh, no! Not AGAIN!" Nevertheless, I fell in love with those poor, beleaguered colonists on Belle Terre, and I'm sincerely glad I made it through to this last novel. Not only does it help tie up loose ends from the previous novels, it's a rousing story in its own right, introducing us to a whole new band of misfits, not unlike Peter David's "New Frontier" bunch. Once again, I applaud Diane Carey's writing style, most especially her portrayal of non-regulation-boot wearin' OTC Nick Keller and his cobbled-together ship, the U.F.P.F. *Challenger.* She speaks well, too, of the starship *Enterprise* in one of the finest paragraphs in the whole book: "Holding her much-reduced family in the petal of her cupped hand, the starship that had protected them for years, extrinsic proof of their high-priced wins, streaked through space pretending there wasn't a strain on her bones at this (warp nine) speed. *Enterprise* gracefully turned her shoulder to the insult, proving herself once more not just a jumper but a workhorse." You just can't get any better than that. But wait, you can! *Challenger* has bled into yet another series of novels, "Gateways." You'll find the reluctant OTC (NOT captain) Keller and his intrepid crew in Book Two, "Chainmail," written by My Girl, Diane Carey.
Rating:
Summary: A Rousing Finish
Review: I forced myself through the middle four novels in this series ("New Earth"), and I can't really say I'm sorry I did, though it was a struggle. Book One, which introduced us to a literal "wagon train to the stars," was a clear winner, but the books in between had me thinking "Oh, no! Not AGAIN!" Nevertheless, I fell in love with those poor, beleaguered colonists on Belle Terre, and I'm sincerely glad I made it through to this last novel. Not only does it help tie up loose ends from the previous novels, it's a rousing story in its own right, introducing us to a whole new band of misfits, not unlike Peter David's "New Frontier" bunch. Once again, I applaud Diane Carey's writing style, most especially her portrayal of non-regulation-boot wearin' OTC Nick Keller and his cobbled-together ship, the U.F.P.F. *Challenger.* She speaks well, too, of the starship *Enterprise* in one of the finest paragraphs in the whole book: "Holding her much-reduced family in the petal of her cupped hand, the starship that had protected them for years, extrinsic proof of their high-priced wins, streaked through space pretending there wasn't a strain on her bones at this (warp nine) speed. *Enterprise* gracefully turned her shoulder to the insult, proving herself once more not just a jumper but a workhorse." You just can't get any better than that. But wait, you can! *Challenger* has bled into yet another series of novels, "Gateways." You'll find the reluctant OTC (NOT captain) Keller and his intrepid crew in Book Two, "Chainmail," written by My Girl, Diane Carey.
Rating:
Summary: A nifty pilot for a new series
Review: I read this book with two frames of mind. On the one hand, I wanted it to satisfy as a fun Star Trek adventure, and as the wrap-up to the New Earth story. On the other, I knew that Challenger was designed to set up a potential spin-off series featuring an all-new ship and crew, along the lines of Peter David's Star Trek New Frontier series (which I have just started reading and enjoying). So, with that in mind . . . Challenger seemed to get off to a real slow start. I was about a quarter of the way through the book before I got hooked. Once that happened, however, I was very hooked indeed. Diane Carey managed to take a number of seemingly unrelated elements from across the various New Earth books and brought them together in a fairly satisfying way. I don't think this makes the book the ideal jumping-on point, but enough is explained that readers who just want to see how the Challenger adventures start shouldn't feel too lost. If I hadn't known that this was a sort of pilot for Challenger, I would probably have been disappointed at the somewhat minimal role that Kirk, Spock, and the Enterprise take. However, once the future crew of the Challenger finally started taking center stage, those thoughts vanished. Ms. Carey has put together a collection of colorful, likeable characters. With a healthy mix of Starfleet officers, civilians, and aliens, things should be diverse and interesting enough for a long while. Here's hoping we see more of these folks in the future!
Rating:
Summary: A nifty pilot for a new series
Review: I read this book with two frames of mind. On the one hand, I wanted it to satisfy as a fun Star Trek adventure, and as the wrap-up to the New Earth story. On the other, I knew that Challenger was designed to set up a potential spin-off series featuring an all-new ship and crew, along the lines of Peter David's Star Trek New Frontier series (which I have just started reading and enjoying). So, with that in mind . . . Challenger seemed to get off to a real slow start. I was about a quarter of the way through the book before I got hooked. Once that happened, however, I was very hooked indeed. Diane Carey managed to take a number of seemingly unrelated elements from across the various New Earth books and brought them together in a fairly satisfying way. I don't think this makes the book the ideal jumping-on point, but enough is explained that readers who just want to see how the Challenger adventures start shouldn't feel too lost. If I hadn't known that this was a sort of pilot for Challenger, I would probably have been disappointed at the somewhat minimal role that Kirk, Spock, and the Enterprise take. However, once the future crew of the Challenger finally started taking center stage, those thoughts vanished. Ms. Carey has put together a collection of colorful, likeable characters. With a healthy mix of Starfleet officers, civilians, and aliens, things should be diverse and interesting enough for a long while. Here's hoping we see more of these folks in the future!
Rating:
Summary: Challenger...the Best of the New Earths
Review: I thought Thin Air was pretty good as far as this horrible series goes, but Star Trek, New Earth Book Six - Challenger - might actually be the best. We do get a little Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and Scotty, but the main action centers around Nick Keller and his mutiny aboard the doomed Peleliu. Now I didn't give a flying damn about the Peleiu and her crew until Keller brained his captain with a monkey wrench and took over command - then things just got downright fun! The book is an enjoyable, fast-paced read. A lot of the New Earth series plot lines that were left dangling in the other five books get cleaned up very nicely in this final chapter, and the Enterprise finally gets to leave this lucklorn colony. Some of the BEST parts of the book were: UHURA - Bad, nasty Billy Maidenform is BACK and Uhura kicks his butt, quite nicely. You go girl! SHUCORION - He was a nice addition in this book as his character and beliefs are fleshed out a bit. He had a GREAT line about leadership late in the book, "You must lead them, not herd them." There are a few ex-bosses I'd like to say that to. KIRK - I hate Kirk...always have. But his relationship with Keller in this book is interesting as he acts like an all-knowing mentor. Plus Kirk doesn't get "any" in this book. SPOCK - Author Diane Carey finally explains the relationship between Spock & McCoy; they are Yin & Yang, each needing one other to be whole. Nice touch! ZOA - A new alien, and this one has a BAAAAAADDDDD attitude that's too much fun.
Anyway, if you've read all six books, you deserve a reward! Thin Air is your first reward and Challenger is your second.
Rating:
Summary: Challenger...the Best of the New Earths
Review: I thought Thin Air was pretty good as far as this horrible series goes, but Star Trek, New Earth Book Six - Challenger - might actually be the best. We do get a little Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and Scotty, but the main action centers around Nick Keller and his mutiny aboard the doomed Peleliu. Now I didn't give a flying damn about the Peleiu and her crew until Keller brained his captain with a monkey wrench and took over command - then things just got downright fun! The book is an enjoyable, fast-paced read. A lot of the New Earth series plot lines that were left dangling in the other five books get cleaned up very nicely in this final chapter, and the Enterprise finally gets to leave this lucklorn colony. Some of the BEST parts of the book were: UHURA - Bad, nasty Billy Maidenform is BACK and Uhura kicks his butt, quite nicely. You go girl! SHUCORION - He was a nice addition in this book as his character and beliefs are fleshed out a bit. He had a GREAT line about leadership late in the book, "You must lead them, not herd them." There are a few ex-bosses I'd like to say that to. KIRK - I hate Kirk...always have. But his relationship with Keller in this book is interesting as he acts like an all-knowing mentor. Plus Kirk doesn't get "any" in this book. SPOCK - Author Diane Carey finally explains the relationship between Spock & McCoy; they are Yin & Yang, each needing one other to be whole. Nice touch! ZOA - A new alien, and this one has a BAAAAAADDDDD attitude that's too much fun.
Anyway, if you've read all six books, you deserve a reward! Thin Air is your first reward and Challenger is your second.
Rating:
Summary: Nice finale, Great beginning.
Review: I was getting a little down on the New Earth series. After a great beginning with "Wagon Trail to the Stars", the series became repetitive with "Oh NO, trouble, prepare to evacuate the planet, yet again". This book had none of that foolishness. Taking center stage was a new group of Not-Ready-For-Primetime heroes that gel and form the next great adventures. This is a diverse group that doesn't fit the typical Star Trek mold yet, a group that I soon began to care about and hopefully, will have further opportunities to learn more about. It is my hope that with the demise of Star Trek television that this new jumping on point would lend itself nicely to television. A new crew of fresh faces wouldcut production (salary) cost and make for great stories. I enjoyed this book, look forward to further adventures, and hope that enough of that famous Star Trek support get behind these characters and let Paramount know we need are Star Trek fix.
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