Star Trek: New Frontier
Star Trek: New Frontier is a series of interlinked novels written by Peter David, published by Simon & Schuster imprints, Pocket Books, Pocket Star, and Gallery Books, from 1997 to 2015. "New Frontier" was the first "Star Trek" tie-in fiction property not to be based on a television series. The series was created by John J. Ordover. The novels explore life aboard the , commanded by Capt. Mackenzie Calhoun. "New Frontier" is concurrent with , , and television series and their tie-in book lines. Production. John J. Ordover said in "Voyages of Imagination" (2009), "One of the major  problems with the novels at the time [the mid-nineties] … was you couldn't put any inherent continuity into them and you couldn’t make any significant changes, so characters couldn’t die, they couldn't change, they couldn't leave. The core characters always had to remain the same. After a few years, that gets frustrating for an editor." Ordover devised "New Frontier" to accomplish what he couldn't with the other "Star Trek" book lines—to create a serialized, internally consistent, series of novels set in the "Star Trek" universe. According to Peter David, "Paramount's belief was  that there would be little to no interest from the fans in a ["Star Trek"] series that did not stem directly from the [television] shows." He was given "their blessing", with the caveat a number of characters from the "Next Generation" were to be included. “Peter David made up MacKenzie Calhoun on his own," said Ordover. Likewise, David said, "I’m pretty sure John came up with the . He told me the characters he wanted to use and I was allowed to run with it." David then "fleshed out the concept and created the original characters." Four novels were published  in paperback novella format in 1997, similar to the release of "The Green Mile" by Stephen King. An omnibus was published in 1998. The novels that followed were published in mass-market paperback format. "No Limits" (2003), an anthology of short stories edited by David, was published in trade paperback format. WildStorm published a graphic novel in 2000, written by David, with artists Mike Collins and David Roach. A five-issue comic book miniseries was published by IDW Publishing in 2008, also by David, with artist Stephen Thompson. In total, twenty four novels, a short story anthology, and two graphic  novels, have been published , in addition to several short stories, and related works, by other writers. Characters and settings from "New Frontier" have appeared appear in other "Star Trek" novels, most of which were written by David. Novels have been included in crossovers with other "Star Trek" book lines, such as: "The Captain's Table" (1998), "Double Helix" (1999) "Gateways" (2000), "The Lost Era" (2003), and the "Mirror Universe" (2007–2009) anthologies. A short story by David was anthologized in the "Tales of the Dominion War" (2004), edited by Keith DeCandido. "The Returned" (2015), the most recent installment of the series , was published as a three-part ebook exclusive by Pocket Star. Premise. The once-powerful Thallonian Empire has collapsed following a popular uprising, destabilizing a vast region of space known as Sector 221-G. Starfleet has dispatched the , under the command of Captain Mackenzie Calhoun, to fly the flag, and offer aid to those affected by the political and economic instability of the region. Characters. The characters in "New Frontier" are an amalgam of characters from the "", , David's trilogy of young adult "Starfleet Academy" novels, and new characters created for the series. The series is written in an ensemble -cast style, similar to a television series. However, the primary characters are Calhoun, Commander Elizabeth Shelby, and Vulcan medical officer Dr. Selar. Ships. "New Frontier" follows the crews of several Starfleet ships: Reception. Katherine Trendacosta of io9 said "New Frontier" filled in "a gap in the ["Star Trek"] universe that you didn’t even realize was there. And it did it all while being fun and smartly written." She said the character Calhoun is "so perfect he feels like a stealth parody of a Mary Sue." Dan Gunther, in his review of "Cold Wars" (2001), said "David has a solid  handle on his characters." Alison Baumgartner of ScienceFiction.com described "New Frontier" as having "all the space adventuring" of the "Next Generation" and "Original Series", "mixed with all the political intrigue of "Deep Space Nine", making it the best of all possible "Star Trek" worlds." Novels. All novels published as paperback editions, except where indicated. Numbered novels. Novels are inconsistently numbered among primary sources. Original novels. Original and crossover novels written by Peter David. Omnibus editions. Published by Simon & Schuster. Short fiction. Collections that include "New Frontier" short fiction. All written by Peter, except those collected in "No Limits" (2003). Section::::"No  Limits" (2003). "Star Trek: New FrontierNo Limits" (2003) collected stories written by popular "Star Trek" tie-in fiction writers and friends of Peter David. Each story is presented from the perspective of members of the "Excalibur" crew. "Making a Difference", by Mary Scott-Wiecek, is a retelling of the Battle of Wolf 359. Section::::"Mirror Universe" (2007–2009). Two collected works, written by David, set in the Mirror Universe. Graphic novels. Section::::"Double Time" (2000). "Star Trek: New FrontierDouble Time" (2000) is a single-issue, square bound, graphic novel published by WildStorm. Written by Peter David, with artists Michael Collins and David Roach . The title does not appear on the cover or spine, only the "Star Trek: New Frontier" word mark. Section::::"Turnaround" (2008). Star Trek: New Frontier'Turnaround""' is a five-issue miniseries written by Peter David, with artist Stephen Thompson. Published by IDW Publishing. Related novels. Characters and settings from "New Frontier" appear in other "Star Trek" book lines: Section::::"The Next Generation" (1991–2007). Star Trek: The Next Generation novels which include characters from "New Frontier": Section::::"Starfleet Academy" (1993). Star Trek: The Next Generation'Starfleet Academy""' young adult series explores the lives of the crew as Starfleet Academy cadets. Three novellas written by Peter David  tie into "New Frontier" Science Fiction Book Club. Omnibus editions published exclusively for the Science Fiction Book Club. "New Frontier" (1998) is very similar to the edition published by Pocket Books the following month. "Prometheans" (1998) is a book club exclusive.