Review: A Great Star Trek Adventure
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 02 25, 2014
Star Trek: Titan – Absent Enemies is the perfect way to spend an evening lost in the realm of sci-fi. Author John Jackson Miller weaves a fun little tale involving Admiral William T. Riker and the crew of the starship Titan as they deal with a situation on Garadius IV. There’s action, mystery, science, flashbacks and humor, providing readers with a little bit of everything. Even if you’re not familiar with The Next Generation or Titan eras, this is a story you can still dive into and enjoy.Set in the year 2385 after the recall of Titan and the election of the new Federation president, Admiral Riker is sent to put out fires in the Beta Quadrant. Using Titan as his flagship, he’s tasked with a peace mission on Garadius IV. It’s a planet that’s been waging an eternal war between its two species for decades. On one side there’s the diminutive Ekorr with their outrageous demands. On the other, there’s the Baladonians who refuse to even acknowledge the existence of their enemies. It’s a deadlock all previous delegations have failed to resolve. And now it’s Riker’s job to end it.Along the way, Riker gets a lot of help from his fellow crew mates. There’s his wife, Deanna Troi, Commander Tuvak, Captain Christine Vale, and even cryptolinguist Y’lira Modan. All of them pitch in with the crisis and have moments to shine. As someone who’s not familiar with the characters, I didn’t have any trouble following along. The relationships between the crew all felt natural and fell into place easily. It also helped that the story had a flashback toward the beginning that set the stage for what was to come.Without spoiling anything, the story has plenty of twists and turns. From one mess to another, the Titan crew stays busy, and transitions keep the adventure fresh. There are moments of action on both the ground and in space. At several points, the storytelling dives into avenues of science, and ties back into existing Star Trek material. But most appreciative of all is the solid through-line of humor that is weaved into the story. It keeps things enjoyable and provides a few good laughs. Altogether, the story has all the elements you would expect to find in a great Star Trek episode.For readers who aren’t well versed in Star Trek: The Next Generation, be it books, films or television, have no fear, this story stands on its own. I’ve only seen a couple Next Generation films and television shows. On top of that, I’ve never read a Star Trek novel. This being my first Star Trek story I’ve ever dived into, I really liked it, and never felt overwhelmed by the subject matter. John nailed the familiar themes of show and delivered an entertaining story that anyone can pick up and enjoy. I highly recommend it and give Star Trek: Titan – Absent Enemies a five out of five.