Rating: 
Summary: LIVE LONG AND PROSPER, TASHA YAR...NOT!
Review: 'SURVIVORS' IS (AS OF THIS WRITING) THE ONLY STAR TREK BOOK TO FOCUS (BASICALLY) ON LT. NATASHA YAR. IN THIS NOVEL, YOU LEARN ALL OF THE THINGS ABOUT HER PAST THAT TNG EPISODES HINTED AT, BUT NEVER TOLD.THIS BOOK CHRONICLES TASHA YAR'S BRUTAL UPBRINGING ON THE PLANET TURKANA IV, HER RESCUE BY STARFLEET, HER ACADEMY DAYS, AND, FINALLY, HER DEATH ON VAGRA II. I HIGHLY RECOMMENED THIS BOOK TO ANY STAR TREK FAN WHO WOULD LIKE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT ONE OF THE MOST UNDERUSED CHARACTERS IN STAR TREK'S HISTORY.
Rating:
Summary: Fabulous Book
Review: Alright, this is my favorite book. I began reading and watching Trek in June and even if I wasn't a Trekker, I would love this book. I picked it up at the library b/c it had Tasha Yar on the front, my favorite character (and I'm not asking for hatred for speaking my beliefs: I get that enough!) and I had no idea what a great book this was. If I hated Tasha Yar, I would still like it. It is well written and well paced, and a fine book all-around.
Rating:
Summary: A fascinating look at an underappreciated character.
Review: I never did forgive the writers of "Star Trek: The Next Generation" for their treatment of Tasha Yar, easily the most interesting character on the show. First they radically underutilized her, then wrote her out of the show entirely. Okay, they wrote her out because the actress wanted out, but perhaps if the character hadn't been so underutilized, Denise Crosby wouldn't have wanted out. And in any case, if they were going to write her out, they could have done so without killing her, and if they absolutely HAD to kill her off, they could have done so in a way that wasn't so completely trivial and worthless. This book gives us a wonderful look into the character of Tasha Yar, as well as a bit of insight into Data and the interrelationship of the two. It is a marvellous precursor to "Metamorphosis", another Next Generation Novel by Jean Lorrah. It is easily the best "Next Generation" novel I've read to date. The ending seemed a bit rushed, as Ms. Lorrah takes us through the story of the end of Tasha's life, without being willing to go into great detail, assuming that we've seen the episode that tells that story. But that is my only complaint, and it is a minor one, because she DOES tell enough of the story to fill in someone who isn't familiar with it. It simply felt a bit rushed, as I say.
Rating: 
Summary: A touching tale
Review: I never like Tasha Yar in the Star Trek: The Next Generation TV series. I thought the character was written badly and acted worse. So it was a surprise to me that I found the character so engaging in this book.
There are essentially two stories running through Survivors, the tales of Yar's present and her past - and they gradually converge. Yar and Data are sent on an away mission to Treva to assess a request for Federation assistance from a questionable planetary leader. Prompted by his resemblance to Data, Yar finds herself recalling her past with her lover and mentor, Darryl Adin, and how the future they planned together went so horribly wrong. It is a tremendous shock to her, then, when she is kidnapped and finds that she has fallen into Adin's hands. Once a Starfleet officer, Adin was convicted of treason and murder but fled the Federation before being sent to prison. He is now a mercenary leader, the Silver Paladin, on Treva to help topple its corrupt government. From that point onwards, Yar finds herself caught between her duty to Starfleet - which means completing her mission on Treva and forcing Adin to face justice for his crimes - and her rekindled love for Adin. Knowing that this is a story that has to have an unhappy ending just makes it more poignant.
Lorrah does misrepresent her own book somewhat. Early on, we are led to believe that Yar will take steps to resolve any lingering issues between her and Data after their romantic encounter. But she never does. Once Adin is on the scene, she seems to forget about it altogether. Data is something of a problem in this book. Lorrah does not write him well (on the other hand, neither does anyone else), and his role never goes beyond that of information-gatherer and spectator - his usual roles in the TV series. There were suggestions that he, too, might come to some resolution about his feelings for Yar (Lorrah portrays him as jealous over Yar and Adin), but that was left too ambiguous for my liking. There is a hint at the end that he has realised that Yar is no more than a friend to him, but the situation seems to be ambiguous again in Metamorphosis. It is as if Lorrah wants to see Yar as the unacknowledged love of Data's life, but for continuity reasons cannot say so. This book could have done without Data altogether, though it is easy to see why he was included. Someone needed to be there to witness Yar's troubles, and to provide a point of view that carries on after her death. The flashback parts of Survivors are particularly good, and the present-day scenes start off well. But I could almost believe that Lorrah was under a strict deadline with this book, or was suddenly told she could only make it a certain length, for the ending becomes very rushed. The resolution on Treva comes with a battle around the rebel castle that is silly and hackneyed - definitely a cut below what had come previously.
I read this book hoping for a new fictional take on Data. I was very disappointed on that score, but enjoyed what I found instead. It's a pity that Survivors was let down by its ending, but it's still well worth reading for the tale of Tasha Yar - even if you aren't a Star Trek fan.
Rating:
Summary: A Classic!
Review: I read this one twice. Something I rarely do. I wont tell you the ending (that you dont already know) but at the end we relive the gut-wrenching memorial of Tasha Yar with another perspective. This book should be a Star Trek Classic.
Rating: 
Summary: STNG #4 - Survivors - A superb early STNG novel!
Review: Of all of the early Star Trek The Next Generation novels, this one definitely stands out among the rest as being one of the better ones. Granted, there are a few back story or canon errors within this one but that is to be expected as this one was written very early in the series run on television and the author had no idea where the series was going to go with respect to certain aspects. The sad thing is that this fine author has only published four novels in the Star Trek arena, two Original Series novels and two STNG novels. Considering how well she wrote these novels, it would be very nice to see her make a foray back into Gene Roddenberry's universe. For fans of Lieutenant Tasha Yar, this quick but excellent novel is a real treat. The premise: As this was written very early in the television series, the author picked up well on the dynamic interpersonal relationship between Commander Data and Lieutenant Tasha Yar. In doing so, she put these two characters in the midst of away mission on their own, dropping them off on a human colony known as Treva. They quickly become embroiled in the situation to include running into a Starfleet fugitive that just so happens to have been Tasha's former fiancé. While this human colony "was" intent on becoming a Federation member (which is a bit of an irony considering that it is a "human" colony), they find themselves having to deal with a violent revolution. Now Data and Yar find themselves in the middle of a bloody revolution and having to find a way to end the bloodshed and stay alive at the same time. What follows is as I stated above, an excellent early STNG novel that captures the dynamic of the relationship between Data and Yar extremely well. The last chapter of this outstanding novel is also quite intriguing as well. I highly recommend this novel to any and all fans; die hard or casual, of the Star Trek genre as it well exceeds the Star Trek novels of its time. {ssintrepid}
Rating:
Summary: STNG #4 - Survivors - A superb early STNG novel!
Review: Of all of the early Star Trek The Next Generation novels, this one definitely stands out among the rest as being one of the better ones. Granted, there are a few back story or canon errors within this one but that is to be expected as this one was written very early in the series run on television and the author had no idea where the series was going to go with respect to certain aspects. The sad thing is that this fine author has only published four novels in the Star Trek arena, two Original Series novels and two STNG novels. Considering how well she wrote these novels, it would be very nice to see her make a foray back into Gene Roddenberry's universe. For fans of Lieutenant Tasha Yar, this quick but excellent novel is a real treat. The premise: As this was written very early in the television series, the author picked up well on the dynamic interpersonal relationship between Commander Data and Lieutenant Tasha Yar. In doing so, she put these two characters in the midst of away mission on their own, dropping them off on a human colony known as Treva. They quickly become embroiled in the situation to include running into a Starfleet fugitive that just so happens to have been Tasha's former fiancé. While this human colony "was" intent on becoming a Federation member (which is a bit of an irony considering that it is a "human" colony), they find themselves having to deal with a violent revolution. Now Data and Yar find themselves in the middle of a bloody revolution and having to find a way to end the bloodshed and stay alive at the same time. What follows is as I stated above, an excellent early STNG novel that captures the dynamic of the relationship between Data and Yar extremely well. The last chapter of this outstanding novel is also quite intriguing as well. I highly recommend this novel to any and all fans; die hard or casual, of the Star Trek genre as it well exceeds the Star Trek novels of its time. {ssintrepid}
Rating:
Summary: Essential For TASHA YAR Fans
Review: Out of every ST book I've read, this is still my favourite. It provides you with much-needed information about the late security chief, Tasha Yar. It's filled with emotion and passion about her past and her character. It also adds depth to the relationship she had with Data. After reading this, be sure to check out METAMORPHOSIS, also by Jean Lorrah.
Rating:
Summary: Captivating
Review: Survivors centers around my two favorite ST:TNG characters, namely Lt. Tasha Yar and Lt Cmrd. Data. It reveals intimate details of Tasha's past that were never allowed into the series due to her untimely demise at the hands of the creature Armus (she was killed because he was BORED?! How dumb is that?!). Her relationship with Dare, a man from her past, as well as her friend Data, the android, create an air of tension you normally wouldn't find in a story invovling Data pre-emotion chip. His constant thoughts about the event that 'never happened' and his jealousy (if it can be called such) directed at Dare and Tasha's rekindling relationship create a very 'humanizing' face for the seemingly emotionless android. This is a touching, emotional must-read for any Data or Tasha fans. Tasha/Data shippers unite!
Rating:
Summary: As fine a story of people, feeling beings, as you will ever
Review: Trust me, this is one fine novel. I'm a 57 year old, very practical, lawyer. I'm not a particular Trekkie, though I have watched and read a fair amount of it. And of all I've ever seen, this is absolutely the finest. But it would be excellent if it weren't Star Trek. This is a story of God's greatest effort, human beings, sentient, feeling, caring, helping-one-another beings, as you will ever find. In my experience developing characters is the hardest of all things for writers to do well. This is as fine a job as I recall seeing. Star Trek or not, READ THIS BOOK!!
| 
