Judith Reeves-Stevens

The Reeves-Stevenses have done it again—an entertaining romp in which the TOS and TNG crews (with some assists from Julian Bashir) reunite to destroy the Borg. Obviously super non-canonical, but who cares? Kirk is resurrected by Borg + Romulan technology and brainwashed into thinking that Picard killed his family, kicking off a revenge quest. Picard goes on a mission to Borg space where he has to pretend to be Locutus. And Spock discovers that V'ger was indeed an early Borg contact, which show more has left Borg tendrils in his mind. The whole thing winds up with a three-way mind-meld that made me giggle with delight. show less

I was so pleasantly surprised by this book. I will admit, that when I saw it was written by William Shatner, I was concerned. But he's either a much better writer than I gave him credit for, or his cowriters, Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens, did a lot of the heavy lifting. I was also happy that this book wasn't just a Kirk showcase. Certainly Capt. Kirk gets to be a hero, but it's never egregious and there are lots of other characters, all of them treated well and very much in character. show more My only complaint is my constant complaint about this era of Star Trek novels....the stakes are so high! I miss the smaller stories where the characters just get to explore a planet or meet a new life form without the fact of billions of lives riding on the outcome of the story. show less

What an interesting take on the Trek universe! It begins with a bang, where you find out that the Enterprise Six have been booted out of Starfleet because they broke the Prime Directive and destroyed a world.

What happens to each of them as they try to find the truth of what happened on Talin, the unfolding of the story of Talin's destruction, and all the intriguing players who were on board the Enterprise (including Lt. Carolyn Palamas, from one of my favorite episodes) are all here. Sulu show more and Chekhov have to live with Orion pirates on their high-gravity ship, Spock has to make his case to the Federation while living in student quarters with students who have their own agenda, and Kirk is vilified no matter where he goes or in what disguise he wears. McCoy questions space and Uhura stands up to everyone, and as those stories are woven the memories of the planet Talin are explored.

Definitely a good pick in the exploration of Star Trek writing. I won't use the term fan fic because it's not that, and I'm happy I picked it up and took the time to read it. show less

Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens' Star Trek: Prime Directive reads like an episode of The Original Series. Set during the Enterprise's five year mission, the authors perfectly portray the characters, challenge the reader with new ideas, and use the story as a metaphor to discuss the continued possibility of nuclear conflict on Earth. The Reeves-Stevenses structure the story in a disjointed manner, beginning with the immediate consequences of a disaster that heavily damaged the Enterprise, show more caused ecological destruction on a planet, and ended the careers of most of the senior staff. From there, they flashback to the event itself, before concluding with the resolution. The authors successfully create a sense of longing for space travel, using aliens' experiences to mirror the feelings of humanity in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. In addition, their story further bridges the time between the end of The Original Series and The Motion Picture. Fans of Star Trek will find this a must-read. show less