Rating: 
Summary: Book Two Makes the Pair Worthwhile
Review: Book #2 of, "The Maximum Warp", pair manages to pull together the weaker first book and make the pair a worthwhile Trek adventure. One of the keys to the success of a plot whose ending is not completely unfamiliar is the interaction between Mr. Spock and Data, two of my favorite characters from different incarnations of Enterprise ships. I also have always enjoyed the unique relationship bridge that was created when Captain Picard and Captain Kirk met, and the ongoing development of shared experiences with Mr. Spock and Captain Picard.Whether you agree that this 2 book tale is enjoyable will largely depend on how much familiarity you are willing to accept. The end is filled with phrases like, 10 dimensional type IV civilizations, base matter energy is inescapable, and the theory of oscillating universes. What made this jargon work for me was that it was information and theory that was primarily explored by Data and Mr. Spock, with Data exceeding Mr. Spock's ability for reasons that were interesting. It was a different spin on why Data is different, and not just for the obvious reasons. I gave book #1 3 stars, and I have given this book 4. Together they are somewhere between 3.5 and 4 stars, and again, how much of the material reminds you of another Trek episode may decide how much you like these books and how you would rate them. Many of the sub-plots of the book were hastily brought to conclusion, and many were very questionable as to why they were needed at all, but as the author introduced them in book #1 he had no choice but to either conclude them or leave them unfinished. The book closed with a great quote from Albert Einstein, People like us, who believe in physics, know that the distinction between past, present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion. This is not a set I would start out with, but if you plan to work your way through the dozens of books in the Trek anthology, you will come across these eventually, and like others I have read they do recall and refer to other adventures of crews in the past.
Rating: 
Summary: A weak premise leads to an unremarkable story
Review: book I: Dead Zone The first half of the "Maximum Warp" duology is a minor dissapointment. The story is based around an unoriginal concept about spatial disruptions that suddenly appear out of nowhere, causing ships to go wrecked as energy can't get transformed from one form into another in the disruption field to enable any kind of mechanical function. Curiously (and unexplainedly) enough, the phenomenon doesn't appear to effect any non-mechanical transformation of energy. This causes strain between the Romulans and the federation, as they both suspect the disruptions as a new and powerfull weapon. The book highly resembels Dave Galanter and Greg Brodeur's earlier Voyager novel Battle Lines in it's concentration on action instead of plot and characterization, wich ultimately leadst to rendering the book unrealistic. This can be seen especially in the field of characterization. The characters feel familiar enough, and the duo writes them talentedly, but there are times in the plot that would absolutely require heavy and deep exploration of one or more characters, but don't contain any. And speaking of characters, Spocs inclusion in the story is as unjustified as it can get, as he has absolutely nothing to do and appears to be there only to fill the pages with his presence and comments that any other characters could have expressed. This I call a true waste of potential, wich appears to be the only real theme of the story. The book succeeds in offering good science and sufficiently interesting original characters, though, and works at least somehow as a baggage of entertainment. After all this the book still feels mediocore and cheap, and it leaves the reader with a feeling of being underestimated. book II: Forever Dark After the first "Maximum Warp" book, the second half of the duology starts off really promisingly. The story holds together much better than in the forst book, there are more interesting siuations and even some sufficciently deepened character moments with both new and familiar characters. But soon starts the downhill as plot gives it all away to action as long and uneventfull space battles and other action-packed scenes take over the story, the plot gets predictable and characterization is forgotten. The ambitious but messy ending of the book ruins it all, as it stumbles on sci-fi clichés and overly melodramatic climax. Leave the "Maximum Warp" duology to the bookstore and maybe borrow it from the library. It's not worth your money.
Rating: 
Summary: A must read for those who love Star Trek:TNG!
Review: Frankly this book knocked my socks off! There was a great story line that was true to the characters of the series while not basically copying a tv episode and changing it to make it seem like an original story. It was easily readable and although some of the subspace lingo was a bit of a challenge, anyone who even just occaisonally followed the series should have been able to figure it out with little or no difficulty. The first book left you hanging in that deviously traditional yet escruciatingly effective "Next time on Star Trek: The Next Generation..." format and I had to read its sequel right away! This is a definite must have for any Trek fan.
Rating: 
Summary: Terrible
Review: I believe that 'Maximum Warp' was one of the worst Star Trek series ever written.
Firstly, the plot seemed implausible and amatuerish. The idea of dead zones just didn't work for me. And Starfleet was portrayed as a =n organisation that employed loony PR spin doctors to calm the public. Such a concept is totally contrary to the Starfleet that we all know.
Secondly, the characterisations seemed off. Picard didn't seem like the man we all know from TNG and the movies.
I read half the book, but was so disgusted with it that I stopped reading and threw it out.
That being said, I enjoyed previous Dave Galanter works. 'Battle Lines' was a fantastic Voyager book. Dave also provided an email address int hat book, and was very gracious in replying to my email. I believe that he is a talented Star Trek author, but he has missed the mark with this book. Better luck next time.
Don't waste your time on this book, but don't disregard Galanter's other works.
Rating: 
Summary: An OK ST-TNG
Review: I just finished Maximum Warp One and Two and felt there was just enough plot for one book, but not two. Whatever plot there was was too skimpy and not fleshed out enough. The authors did lip service to the characters and jumped from one scene to another without a regard to "readibility." Additionally, the ending was quite confusing, long winded and ended with a wimper vs bang as I was hoping for. I was left re-reading the ending just to keep track of the theories (Unified Theory and Type 1, 2,3, and 4 Civilizations, sub-Black Holes etc) and still was pretty lost. I did not even understand the how Picard(s) saved the Universe! Overall, if you are a die hard Trekker, then buy it. If you are not, then don't waste your money.
Rating:
Summary: Very Disappointed
Review: I thought this series of two books was much better than some other reviewers seem to have. The authors brought in elements from more than just the Next Generation, like Voyager, which made an appearance. What was particularly impressive was the pseudo-science the writers intertwined throughout the two novels to build the main storyline, namely "dead zones" that had suddenly appeared throughout the universe. Any ship or planet that happened to be where one of these zones was would lose all main power. This would have meant the end of the universe as we know it, so naturally it is up to Picard and his crew, with help from a shady Romulan named T'sart and also a heroic Romulan named Folan whom we never really know until the end where her loyalties lie. The addition of suspicious Klingons adds yet another possible area of conflict. The multiple story lines were really engaging. They were so involving, in fact, that I read both novels in a day, one right after another. While there may be a few loose ends that were never tied up, they really do not take away from the resolution of the story. The resolution involves a highly advanced alien device and some real scientific theories about how after our universe has expanded as far as it will go, it will contract back together into its original mass of energy and matter, the universe will end, another Big Bang will occur, and the uviverse will begin anew. All this science mixed in with the Star Trek pseudo-science is very believable. I truly advise against being swayed by anyone away from these books. They are worth your valuable time.
Rating:
Summary: A surprisingly good storyline with many different plots.
Review: I thought this series of two books was much better than some other reviewers seem to have. The authors brought in elements from more than just the Next Generation, like Voyager, which made an appearance. What was particularly impressive was the pseudo-science the writers intertwined throughout the two novels to build the main storyline, namely "dead zones" that had suddenly appeared throughout the universe. Any ship or planet that happened to be where one of these zones was would lose all main power. This would have meant the end of the universe as we know it, so naturally it is up to Picard and his crew, with help from a shady Romulan named T'sart and also a heroic Romulan named Folan whom we never really know until the end where her loyalties lie. The addition of suspicious Klingons adds yet another possible area of conflict. The multiple story lines were really engaging. They were so involving, in fact, that I read both novels in a day, one right after another. While there may be a few loose ends that were never tied up, they really do not take away from the resolution of the story. The resolution involves a highly advanced alien device and some real scientific theories about how after our universe has expanded as far as it will go, it will contract back together into its original mass of energy and matter, the universe will end, another Big Bang will occur, and the uviverse will begin anew. All this science mixed in with the Star Trek pseudo-science is very believable. I truly advise against being swayed by anyone away from these books. They are worth your valuable time.
Rating:
Summary: An average to below average Trek novel
Review: I wanted to like this two book set, but ended up disappointed. There was such potential, but it was wasted. Picard and Spock working together. The Cold War between the Romulans and the Federation getting renewed after the Dominion War. Even a mention of a post-Sisko Deep Space Nine. Alas, the authors' reached exceeded their grasp. The action jumped from scene to scene with many loose ends left untied. What exactly was the point of the Lotre character? What did T'sart want with the device and why was he even in the book? Folan's actions had no consequences. And all the secondary characters and subplots: Tobin and Nien, the aforementioned DS9, the Klingons. All these elements were thrown together in one big stew without much organization. That said, I did like the Picard, Spock, Data interaction and the dialogue between Data, Riker, and Troi. In fact, I think Galanter and Brodeur have a real knack for writing for Data. Some of his scenes were downright amusing. But even that could not make up for the incomprehensible ending. All those theories and mysterious tools and omnipotent aliens were just to much to keep track of and I still don't understand what happened. I think some Trek authors have fallen in the same trap that many Star Wars writers fell into, that is the superweapon-of-the-week. It was just too big; I mean if the entire galaxy is threatened (or more), then wouldn't the Q or another of the omnipotent aliens have shown up to save themselves? And what was with the brief mention of the Guardian of Forever? One last nitpick for the publisher, not the authors: Do a better job of editing. I was continually jarred out of the story by bad spelling, bad grammar, and bad punctuation. Perhaps the Trek publication schedule is too full of mediocre books to do a good job of copy editing; cut some of the books or hire some more editors.
Rating:
Summary: Some of the best numbered novels...
Review: In the aftermath of the Dominion War a fragile peace exists between the Romulans and the Federation and now that could all be about to change. Throughout the galaxy, subspace disturbances are causing havoc as ships are stranded and Starbases are losing the power they need to function. Worse, these "dead zones" are multiplying at a terrific rate and soon the populations of the alpha quadrant and beyond may be completely wiped out. Together with the legendary Ambassador Spock, Captain Picard enlists the help of a notorious Romulan war criminal who knows far more than he will reveal about the "dead zones". With both Klingons and Romulans along for the ride, the Starship Enterprise sets off into enemy territory on a dangerous mission to save the universe. Maximum Warp is the latest in a recent group of excellent two-part Star Trek book series (Avatar, Gemworld, Genesis Wave, etc...) and are without doubt some of the best numbered Star Trek novels I have read so far. The action does not let up for a second - the pace of the book is incredible - and I read it straight through in a couple of hours. Characterization is also pretty good and the action leaps between different settings and story lines - ultimately producing a novel that is so absorbing that you will find it impossible to put down. The quality is maintained throughout part two and although both books could probably have been merged into one larger volume, ultimately Maximum Warp is an enjoyable, exciting and entertaining read. Definitely recommended to all Star Trek fans! ~Jenna~
Rating:
Summary: Just Couldn't Put It Down...
Review: Maximum Warp Book 1 is by far one of the best TNG novels I have read , that is just my opinion. I really loved the story line. It was great to see Ambassador Spock turned back to Captain Spock working with Picard in this story. While you are reading it gets you thinking about who or what is behind what is happening the galaxy. My opinion of T'sart is he is a pain in the backside, but what do you expect from a Romulan. After finishing read book 1 recently I had to to start book 2 [not finished yet with book 2] to see how it ends up. I highly recommend both books 1 and 2 to any die hard Star Trek fan or if someone is looking for a good story to sink their teeth into.
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