The Book Report #94

Episode #93

Enterprise – The First Adventure By Vonda N McIntyre

The Book

First published in the USA by Pocket Books. My copy was published by Grafton Books, a division of Collins Publishing Group, in 1987.

My paperback copy has 376 pages, which include an advertisement and an order form for purchasing and ordering books by post. I also read an ebook version of the book when I was away from home.

What Did I Think?

This one book has so many stories compacted into it. You have Captain Pike being promoted to Commodore. He is moving on and handing over the reins of the USS Enterprise to the newly promoted Captain Kirk.

Captain Kirk is recovering from a major disaster in which he and a friend were hospitalised for an extended period. When James had recovered enough, he left the hospital and set up a residence nearby to keep an eye on his friend, who is still healing and in a coma.

However, he must leave his friend behind to recover, as he needs to take control of the Enterprise.

The present crew are a bit dubious about someone new taking command of the wheel. Meanwhile, Hikaru Sulu has been sent a change of orders and is now the helmsman of the Enterprise. He is not happy about his orders being changed and wants off as soon as possible.

While dealing with his trauma from the accident, Kirk finds out that his first mission is to escort a travelling circus to a space station near the Klingon border. Instead of the five-year mission of exploration, he dreams of getting. And also his request for his friend to be the first officer has been given to Spock instead.

Meanwhile, in Klingon territory, Koroin has stolen command of a prototype ship and is heading to Federation space to destroy as much of the Federation as possible.

Doctor Leonard McCoy hasn’t shown up for his post. He is busy down at the coast surfing and teaching the tourists before realising the time and teleporting with ten minutes to spare. McCoy makes a brief appearance on the bridge in a wetsuit and full beard.

Sticking to the Original

This is just the beginning of the book. This all happens before the actual mission begins and the first adventure commences, and there are still bits I have left out.

This is a very packed book, and I was very impressed with this story. Comparing today’s books to those from forty years ago, which this book nearly is. The care and attention are not quite the same.

The conviction of the late Mrs McIntyre showed she cared about the characters and understood their roles in Roddenberry’s vision of Star Trek and made me see things I had missed about the show.

The story takes a turn as Kirk’s flirtation doesn’t work for a change, and we get a vulnerable side from Kirk, which is a rarity. Both physically and mentally. It was nice to read. It is not only Kirk that we get a personal journey with, as many of the characters received a journeyed backstory, and we get to learn a little more about them.

I found Yeoman Janice Rands’ story stood out more than the others.

Whether that’s all canon is a different story.

Would I Recommend?

Yes, I would recommend it. Anyone who loves a bit of Star Trek should consider picking up this book. And also, for anyone who loves a bit of sci-fi. But you should remember this book is dense and packed with a lot of information and detail, which is why I enjoyed reading this story. Also, the nostalgia helped.

Please give this book a go.

Would you like to purchase your very own copy?

You could try these online stores: Amazon UK/USA. Waterstones. AbeBooks UK/USA, Barnes & Noble, or eBay UK/USA.

Alternatively, you could try your local bookshop or even your local library.