Star Trek Online: The Needs of the Many

by Michael A. Martin

Prior to the terror-filled times of the Long War—the seemingly endless struggle against the Undine, a paranoid, shape-shifting race once known only as Species 8472—enemy sleeper agents quietly penetrated every echelon of Federation society, as well as other starfaring civilizations throughout the Alpha and Beta quadrants. The ensuing conflict shook humanity to its very core, often placing its highest ideals against a pure survival instinct. All too frequently, the Undine War demanded the harshest of sacrifices and exacted the steepest of personal costs from the countless millions whose lives the great interdimensional clash forever altered.

Drawn from his exhaustive research and interviews, The Needs of the Many delivers a glimpse of Betar Prize–winning author Jake Sisko’s comprehensive "living history" of this tumultuous era. With collaborator Michael A. Martin, Sisko illuminates an often-poorly-understood time, an age marked indelibly by both fear and courage—not to mention the willingness of multitudes of unsung heroes who became the living embodiment of the ancient Vulcan philosopher Surak’s famous axiom, "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few."

Genres: Star Trek, Science Fiction, Fiction, Media Tie In, Science Fiction Fantasy, Star Trek Deep Space Nine, Gaming

432 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Michael A. Martin's solo short fiction has appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. He has also coauthored (with Andy Mangels) several Star Trek comics for Marvel and Wildstorm and numerous Star Trek novels and eBooks, including the USA Today bestseller Titan: Book One: Taking Wing; Titan: Book Two: The Red King; the Sy Fy Genre Award-winning Star Trek: Worlds of Deep Space 9 Book Two: Trill -- Unjoined; Star Trek: The Lost Era 2298 -- The Sundered; Star Trek: Deep Space 9 Mission: Gamma: Vol. Three: Cathedral; Star Trek: The Next Generation: Section 31 -- Rogue; Star Trek: Starfleet Corps of Engineers #30 and #31 ("Ishtar Rising" Books 1 and 2); stories in the Prophecy and Change, Tales of the Dominion War, and Tales from the Captain's Table anthologies; and three novels based on the Roswell television series. His most recent novels include Enterprise: The Romulan War and Star Trek Online: The Needs of the Many.

His work has also been published by Atlas Editions (in their Star Trek Universe subscription card series), Star Trek Monthly, Dreamwatch, Grolier Books, Visible Ink Press, The Oregonian, and Gareth Stevens, Inc., for whom he has penned several World Almanac Library of the States nonfiction books for young readers. He lives with his wife, Jenny, and their two sons in Portland, Oregon.

Reviews

[Mogsy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first thing I want to say is, I did not expect that much from this book.

That said, it’s not like I ever expect much from any book based on a video game, but I do like reading them for background information. And I’ll confess, I would not have even considered checking out The Needs of the Many if I wasn’t subscribed to Star Trek Online. Before this, STO players only had The Path to 2409 (included in the book’s appendix) to rely on for the story elements behind the game, and here’s the problem — a series of events detailed impassively through a bunch of web pages just wasn’t enough for me. This ultimately led me to pick up the book.

Unlike other works of this genre, however, the story behind The Needs of the Many is told through a string of interviews, along with a handful of letters, news articles and other documents thrown in for good measure. The overall format and tone of the book has been compared to the writing style employed in World War Z, the post-apocalyptic zombie novel. Knowing this beforehand wasn’t a problem, but it did lead me to believe I would not be as drawn to the story as I would have been if the book had been done in a more traditional style.

I could not have been more wrong. Was the book a literary masterpiece? Of course not. But that’s never the point when it comes to these kinds of books. I wanted a fun read, and I got one. “Jake Sisko” is compelling enough as a narrator, and the author has done a good job of capturing his and the other characters’ personalities through well-written dialogue. Each interview presented itself as a unique vignette, and while the main focus of the story remained on the events of the Undine War, I was not opposed to getting a look into the personal experiences and opinions of Jake and his interview subjects.

Were there moments where this made me feel like I was reading a current-day political commentary? Yes, I’ll admit it felt like the author was using Jake as a proxy to communicate his socio-political views at times, but this to me is just par for the course. It’s not like any of the Star Trek series have never been used to make strong and blunt comments on the major social issues of today.

And speaking of the TV shows, I wonder if my unfamiliarity with the Star Trek IP has affected my views on this book. I thought I would be completely lost, but I was surprised to find that I wasn’t. Maybe it was because I had little idea what was going on lorewise in the first place, so the book having no sense of chronology did not affect me as much. After all, you can’t technically be lost if you have no destination to begin with. In any case, my time with The Needs of the Many took me to memory-alpha.org more times than I care to remember in order to cross-reference events and characters.

Coincidentally, I must add that the Voyager episode that came on TV today was the first part of “Scorpion”, or the popular episode that introduced Species 8472 (the Undine) to the series. Funny how life works out that way, eh?

In the end, I think the purpose of this book was more about bringing the average STO player up to speed with the events that have unfolded over the course of the “Long War”, and less about telling an actual traditional Star Trek story. So if you’re looking for something like the latter, I would pass on this. However, it’s helped me understand more about the game and its missions.

Anyway, maybe it’s the fact I know less about Star Trek than the average fan, or my low expectations to begin with, but overall I have to say I enjoyed this book. If I have to pick some memorable moments, I would say the interviews with Quark and Geordi La Forge come immediately to mind. And there was also that one snarky line about Kathryn Janeway’s hair…

[Qukatheg · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a veritable feast for any Star Trek lover.

The Needs of the Many features an array of interviews and articles written by Jake Sisko, with many other familiar characters featured. Including some of my favourites: Worf, Seven of Nine, Garak, Dulmer and Lucsly, Naomi Wildman. Really, if you're a fan of TNG, DS9 or Voyager, you will recognise many of the characters and references. And there are a lot of references to various episodes. You can tell it was well researched and written by someone who knows their Star Trek.

The main topic covered in this book is the war with the Undine (otherwise known as species 8472). While this book doesn't exactly tell a story, it offers a lot of different perspectives on the war, and this format works really well because of the plethora of beloved characters making an appearance. It is an interesting study in the long lasting effects of war on the people (both soldiers and civilians) who get caught in the middle of it, and on society in general.

Although this is based on the MMORPG Star Trek Online, you really don't need to have played the game to enjoy this.

Quite possibly the best Star Trek novel I've ever read.

[Jeremy · Rating 4 out of 5]

What Is This Book About?
The Needs of the Many is presented as a collage of firsthand accounts chronicling the “Long War” fought between the United Federation of Planets and Species 8472, known as the Undine to the Star Trek Online community. Although Star Trek: Voyager ended with a peace treaty between Starfleet and the Undine, this novel reveals that the agreement involved only a small faction of the species; the rest continued preparing for war.

The book highlights many beloved figures from across Trek lore such as Jake Sisko (serving as interviewer and narrator), Admiral Janeway, Seven of Nine, Worf, Garak, Captain La Forge, and several memorable side characters.

My Review
This was an unexpectedly fun read that taps into the rich lore of the Star Trek Online game. Readers should know up-front that this storyline is not canon within the on-screen Star Trek universe; it’s a game-based expansion of that timeline. That said, the novel offers plenty of engaging stories and deep-cut background references to established Trek history, such as the Dominion War, that make it worthwhile for longtime fans.

The narrative is structured as an oral history, reminiscent of World War Z, with Jake Sisko setting each scene before conducting interviews. Standout moments include:

*A daring MACO boarding action against an Undine vessel.
*A baseball-driven peace deal between the Klingons and the Gorn.
*Political intrigue with Undine sleeper agents uncovered by Garak and Worf.
*The resurrection of Data with the help of La Forge and B-4.

Where the book fell short for me was in capturing the scope of the Long War itself. For a conflict involving an enemy capable of fielding planet-killing ships, we get surprisingly few large-scale battles. The Undine remain mostly a covert threat, masquerading as officials, undermining from within, but the lack of a clear beginning-to-end military campaign leaves the war feeling oddly abstract. I found myself wanting more connective tissue between the war’s covert skirmishes and its larger strategic outcomes.

Still, it’s a rare treat to see so many Trek characters woven into a shared oral-history narrative. If you enjoy mockumentary-style storytelling or are a fan of Trek’s extended lore, you’ll likely appreciate this entry.

Three Words That Describe This Book
Fun – Lore-Rich – Mockumentary

Give This a Try If You Like…
World War Z, Articles of the Federation, Robopocalypse

Check out more reviews at Intergalactic Librarian

[Peter Rydén · Rating 5 out of 5]

En annorlunda upplagd bok, om man jämför med andra Star Trek-böcker. Med ofta mycket korta nedslag i perioden 2380-talet till år 2409 får man snart en överblick över det allt mer stigande hotet från undinerna. Samtidigt är det självklart ur författarens synvinkel ett smart sätt - han behöver ju inte bygga upp en större berättelse kring en enstaka del av historien, utan kan genom genom dessa korta nedslag ändå hålla sig fast i ramberättelsen, en ramberättelse som leder fram till händelserna i Star Trek Online. En mycket välskriven bok som gör att läsaren håller andan, samtidigt som man kan släppa boken när man läst ett av "nedslagen". Du kan läsa den som ett slags uppslagsverk men du kan också läsa den som en helhet.

Boken rekommenderas, särskilt för er som spelar spelet och vill veta mer om bakgrunden.

[Tony Laplume · Rating 4 out of 5]

Better than the last Star Trek book I've read (Watching the Clock) though incredibly similar in a lot of ways.

I used to read Star Trek books all the time, back when I was in middle and high school. In fact, I was reading this stuff just before going to college. It was one of the things I quit in that transition, and something I almost never got back into.

But as with all addictions, relapse sits waiting, and you're able to convince yourself that your old vices weren't as bad as they once seemed. I came across a few books over the last few years that seemed like they would be okay to read, and started collecting them, and then lumped them together in my reading list.

This being the second one, it's no surprise that the material is similar to the first. I was tired of reading the routine Star Trek book. Pocket Books, the publisher of these things for some three or four decades now, has quietly been transforming them into a whole pocket reality. When these first came out, heck when Star Trek books first came out from any publisher, the franchise was itself either nonexistent or present only in sporadic movies. These books were a way for fans to connect with familiar characters in new stories even when the official ones were few and far between.

This is a lot like the Star Wars books, actually. Two decades ago there was a whole renaissance of those things, and because at that point it seemed like there would never again be new Star Wars films, these books became increasingly bold about shaping the further adventures of that saga. And more often than not, they just weren't as good as the real thing. They lacked basic authenticity, although the legions of fans who just wanted more Star Wars would never admit that.

The same thing happened with the Star Trek books. The scary thing is, the ubiquity of this franchise that occurred during the '90s included the books, and Pocket Books never really backed down, even when the TV shows and movies disappeared for a while. The publishing schedule shrank, but if anything the books grew more bold, assumed that the legacy was now in their hands.

The biggest beneficiary of this new trend was the relaunched Deep Space Nine line, an extension of the Peter David New Frontier series that saw the publisher inventing from whole cloth entirely new adventures that weren't beholden to the strictly familiar characters previous books had adhered to.

I mention all this because the effects at least linger in The Needs of the Many, which is ostensibly the novelized background of the Star Trek Online game. But Michael Martin spends most of his energies waxing nostalgic for the good old DS9 days. Most of the characters in this World War Z-style oral history are from the third live action series. And the funny thing is, the basis for all the action is derived from that series, too, even though the creators of the game apparently twisted themselves into knots trying very hard to deny it.

The game is like any other game. A shoot-em-up, with starships. Whatever you know about Star Trek, you ought to know that at its heart Star Trek is not a shoot-em-up kind of landscape. The biggest shoot-em-up adventure in Star Trek was the Dominion War from DS9. For whatever reason, the creators of the game chose not to use this as their setting.

They instead opted for Species 8472 from Voyager, who achieved a brief moment of notoriety when they stood toe-to-toe with the Borg midway through the series. And then they pretty much disappeared. They resurface by way of the same logic that saw the Borg brought back to their own glory after similar developments towards the end of The Next Generation. Janeway had negotiated a truce with Species 8472, just as Picard had seemingly neutered the Borg.

Except as with the "small, unrepresentative pocket" approach with the Borg, the game decided that Species 8472 was still very much the menace it first seemed. And they get a lousy name. And war ensues. And it's pretty much exactly like the Dominion War, "only worse."

Anyway, the whole approach of the novel is the fictional Jake Sisko conducting interviews with key players, and even when the voices of individuals are almost universally lost in info-dumps of information, it's still pretty good. Watching the Clock was all about celebrating the combined canon and Pocket realities. This one actually gets it working better.

Owing to the unique format, Martin has less wiggle room. Though the concept as I'd determined it is contrived, and try as he might the author never quite redeems it, he still clearly does as best he can, and the best he can do is revisit a series his publisher has had a vested interest in for years now. (For some fans, DS9 remains the highwater mark of the whole franchise, so this is not such a bad thing.)

Some of the interview subjects work exceptionally well. Garak, for instance, is as always a clear winner, though the format provides exactly the wrong kind of ambiguity for a character who has always been known for that trait. There are stumbling blocks. The conception behind the resurrection of Data, for instance, or the glossing over of The Doctor from Voyager, even though he has a key role in the very same arc Data represents. These are points that make it clear writers for books (or games) just aren't to par with those of the screen, no matter how much fans can sometimes hate (or love) that brood.

On the whole enjoyable, more for nostalgia's sake than for what the aims of the book actually are.

[Apostolos · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting read, and it definitely adds some more context to STO's Undine arc (which made the Undine Infiltration in the game make much more sense. The book is told from the lens of Jake Sisko who is interviewing many well-known (and not so well-known) characters in the Star Trek universe about the first war with the Undine. About the only "continuity glitch" is that they refer to Riker as a Captain; which was the case when this book was written in the Titan Series of books, but since this takes place in the future, Riker has been promoted to Admiral. Oh well. Overall quite enjoyabe.

[Ann Feutz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love this. The idea of Jake Sisko going around and interviewing characters we know (and others I didn’t) sounded so promising. I enjoyed hearing from Garak, Seven of Nine, etc. The problem is, I have never played Star Trek online. I was unfamiliar with some of the themes, especially the Undine threat. I also felt that the book went on for way too long. So not bad, just not for me.

[Rowan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I originally reviewed this book on my own blog in May, 2010:

So I have finally finished The Needs of the Many by Michael A. Martin (and Jake Sisko), the first "novel" set in the Star Trek Online era of the Star Trek Universe. I put "novel" in quotes because the book does not follow the typical story/plot format of most novels. It is a series of "interviews" with various prominent and obscure characters from the three TNG era television series and novels, interspersed with documents and publications from the same fictional era. As such, it is more like an analysis of events than a retelling of them, like reading a book about the causes and effects of World War II, rather than a narrative about what happened during the War. Also, like many science fiction works including TOS and all the series, the author took the opportunity to comment on current (early 21st century) political and social issues. I found the book enjoyable and it answered questions about the STO era I didn't know I had. Mr. Martin did bring out the personalities of the different characters Jake interviewed. I especially liked the Quark and Garak interviews. Of course, the enigmatic tailor was always my favorite character on Deep Space Nine.

I think my favorite part was the interview with the Temporal Investigators Lucsly and Dulmer, first introduced in the DS9 episode "Trials and Tribble-ations." Dulmer's references to events from Star Trek (2009) and various novels as alternate timelines was priceless, a reminder to the purity nerds that stories can be enjoyable and not destroy their precious sense of the Way Things Should Be.

One issue I had problems with throughout the book was when exactly Jake was supposedly conducting each interview. My assumption before reading was that the interviews would be about the era of STO, called The Long War. (A bit of wishful thinking on the part of Cryptic, as I have said before.) But then, as I started reading, it seemed he was interviewing people right before 2409 (when STO takes place) about events that occurred between the time of ST: Nemesis and STO itself. Then toward the end, I decided again that my initial assumption is probably right, and the Long War is meant to refer to 2409 (STO) and beyond. Unfortunately, I can't be sure either way, as there is no reference to Jake in the timeline given at the end of the book, nor in the online version, which is more detailed. I like when Star Trek novels pin themselves to a certain spot on the time line, like Final Frontier by Diane Carey, which places at least the framing story directly after the events of "The City on the Edge of Forever."

The book did give me insight into the game, which I think is its main purpose. I often read similar analytical non-fiction, like Guns, Germs, and Steel and Collapse both by Jared Diamond, so the format was no trouble. Is this a must read for Star Trek fans? No. Is it even a must read for STO players? Probably not. Was it enjoyable? Thoroughly. Especially in the small chunks I was reading on this trip. If I had read it straight through, it might have a little harder to swallow. Having not experienced all the content of STO, it will interesting for me to see how in-game missions relate to events described in the book.

[Paul · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m really not sure what I expected of this book. It’s a book “based on” the game “Star Trek Online “but, then it’s not.

I originally believed this would be a novelization based on a story line in the online game itself. As I read it, I discovered it was more of a history book containing interviews with various characters set several years after the “Long War” with the Undine (Species 8472).

I’m not sure how this book relates to the online game itself, since most of the information I’ve seen doesn’t point to any such scenario. The game itself puts you in command of your own ship and you play your way through “episode” games.

Anyway, the book is written and narrated by Jake Sisko. It’s set some twenty years or so after the end of the “Long War”. There is some basic “historical” references as related by Jake, but most of the book is interviews with various characters involved: Bruce Maddox, Seven of Nine, Kassidy Yates Sisko, Garak, Vic Fontaine, Geordi La Forge, Worf and even Dulmer and Lucsly (Department of Temporal Investigations).

The history seems to be a bit off if you’ve been reading the Star Trek novel series since the end of each of the respective shows. In it, the Borg are still a threat, Seven of Nine still has her Borg implants, Voyager never returned to the Delta Quadrant, and Admiral Kathryn Janeway is still alive (although Dulmer remembers differently).

Romulus and Remus were destroyed just as related in the events leading up to the latest Star Trek movie (2010), but it’s hinted that Nero still apparently exists in this timeline.

Some might find the book a little confusing with the historical differences as well as the lack of history over the “Long War” with the Undine. It might have been a better idea to write a story or two about that occurrence first (based in the Star Trek Online universe) before publishing this one. I would have much rather read a story about the actual war.

[Stefan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is this Star Trek?,

One is for sure it's a heck hell of a different universe than trekkies have known for years. This book only follows the continuity as seen on-screen, so don't wonder if you read a lot of stuff you remember differently. This isn't the authors fault but rather a deliberate decision to ignore that piece of star trek history the explanation therefore is within this book. But the author does an amazing to write a story which sheer broadness seems amazing and is unique for a single star trek novel so far. The stylistic way of choice is to tell these stories from various people during the Undine-war through interviews led by Jake Sisko makes the feeling of reading this grant tale of unseen star trek history, very interesting but also deeply emotional. It explains in fearsome but plausible ways the repercussions of this so-called Undine war and why such a noble and tolerate society as the citizens of the federation could descent into paranoia and in denunciation but which also never lost the last glimmer of hope. The range in interviewees is rich such as; simple toopers, civilians, refugees, agents on the seen- and unseen front, politicians, civil- military- cultural and religious decision-makers and more tell there one unique perspective of a greater story which is only a small part in the tapestry which forms the history of this unseen as ominous war with the likewise camouflaged and in under stealth operating species which is only known by its Borg-designation Species 8472. It's a very dark and different way from the Star Trek stuff around for over 40 years now, so you should only consider this as alternate Trek but in this context its great literary and amazing story-arc superbly written.

[Jimyanni · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was told in the style of a history as told to an interviewer; in this case, the "interviewer" was the character Jake Sisko, which is why he's given "co-author" credit on the cover (a concept which I found to be a silly affectation). The idea is that in the year 2409 CE, he is interviewing various individuals about the war with what Trek fans will recognize as "Species 8472", their Borg designation as related by Seven of Nine in the Voyager series.

The interviews are reasonably well-crafted, with Jake's comments and thoughts added before, after, and parenthetically during various interviews. The "history" seems to be relatively coherent, so far as I could tell; there were numerous points at which I had difficulty knowing whether a reference was actually an established bit of "Trek history" from a story that I either remembered imperfectly or never read or an episode that I either remembered imperfectly or never saw, or whether it was actually plot created for this book. I am not in the top tier of Trek fans; my knowledge of Trek trivia is hardly encyclopedic but I can quote serious chunks of "history" from various series, especially the original series, and from many books. So the fact that I found myself more than a touch lost as I tried to navigate through this book suggests either that it is best treated on its own merits without any attempt to make it fit with the rest of the ouvre, or that it needs a truly dedicated Trek fanatic to make hash of it. Personally, I would only recommend it for the latter.

[Ross Vincent · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an amazing great book. I was a bit concern about a Trek book being based on a video game- the dynamic, ever changing nature of video games make having a book based on it a bit disconcerting. (Biggest Example I can think of is the first King’s Quest book…). But this one- well, it more than lived up to the hope that it would be great.
The novel is written as a series news reports, letters, and interviews by Jake Sisko with other people around the quadrants, all concerning the Long War (a time when the Galaxy was threatened with invasion and extermination by the Undine/Species 8472). Fans of the recent changes in the Trek Fiction Universe will notice the ….absence of certain important events, but in what is sure to be one of the best examples of clearing things up, the author uses the passing comments of one interviewee to explain why things in the future don’t always mess with the current events of the ongoing series. At the same time, there are plenty of shocking and surprising things to come about- the return of characters who were lost, passing references to previous Trek events, and even a glimpse into what could be call the The Next Generation of The Next Generation…. (Talk about a heritage to live up to… LOL). And at the same time, I loved the little- inside jokes/ Easter eggs that are sprinkled throughout the book…

[Luca Mauri · Rating 3 out of 5]

The time-line represented in Star Trek Online is currently the most far point in the franchise story and the idea of a novel bridging post-TNG and post Countdown to this new instance is surely interesting.
However, the novel almost exclusively concentrate on the Undine (aka Species 8472) war, only scratching the surface of the various political changes that took place before.
Most notably the dissolution of the second Khitomer accord and the subsequent Klingon war are just a background during the novel and it is not really treated in an organic manner.

The fact that the book is just a collection of interview also made it difficult to read and not enough fluid to be really enjoyed.
STO website contained a condensed history titled Path to 2409: this particular piece of writing exist in the book as a short appendix, but, on the contrary, we would have seen it as an expanded text told in more detailed way.
It is an interesting first step, but it would be better to have a full set of book telling stories about this period of time, this one, for sure, is too little.

[Markus Korpela]

Really dissapointing. Star Trek with the style of World War Z sounded really awesome at first, BUT where World War Z was able to tell whole story of "war" with different angles, beginning, middle, and end (not to mention aftermath), with reader able to fill in the blanks between, The Needs of the Many kept bouncing around from person to another, from time to another. There was no comprehensive story here. Whole time it is was said, that The Undine War was "terror filled" etc, but I didn't get that at all! All i had was book full of short stories, most of them boring. But i'll give it this; the one story with Data's "resurrection" is one of the best pices of Trek literature I have ever read.



Aaaand.... I didn't like how they played out Destiny-timeline as just some mistake caused by The Undine. Beacause for me, that is THE post-Nemesis Trek timeline.



I won't mind reading more Online books, but they have to do better than this.

[Norb from NorbReviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book follows the Star Trek tradition of taking that worked in another incarnation and retrofitting it for their very clean universe. In this case, the book is written by "Jake Sisko" (son of Deep Space 9's Captain Sisko; DS9 was itself a copy of Babylon 5) in an "Oral History" format, a la "World War Z". (I'm writing a book in this format, so year, I recognize a thing or two.) It also goes into a portion of their history that seems to borrow from the Yuuzahan Vong War in Star Wars. Still, if you like Star Trek and novels that read like interviews, and want a pretty easy (weekend) read, this may be right up your alley.

[Jeff]

A new Star Trek "thread" to follow! The cover lists Jake Sisko as co-author and the premise of Jake interviewing participants, survivors, and soldiers of the Undine War, gives the novel an immediate and intimate quality that is tight and a pleasure to get lost in. Also, pretty cool that the author chose this format to pay tribute to the late Studs Terkel.

Haven't played the MMPOG the novel is based on.

[Ren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Admittedly, you're not going to like this book all that much unless you already have a character in the MMORPG that it's based on fairly engrossed in the story. Otherwise, it works really well, and ties in neatly enough with the game AND the recent J.J. Abrams movie. The text implies that just about every single player in-game is now officially part of this canon...which is, admittedly, awesome. Nothing like saving the universe on the USS I'm On A Boat.

[Chris Simms · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a total waste of time, effort and electrons. This is the best someone could come up with to tell the story of 2409? There's been better writing in this game since launch, this book gives Michael Martin and Trek books in general a very bad name. This book smells of tasteless marketing rather than the genuine creative sparks of heart and adventure that the book series has been known for. Avoid this book, even free you'll want a refund for the life you'll have wasted reading it.

[Anni · Rating 1 out of 5]

I think this is the first Star Trek book that I didn't finish. I didn't like anything about it: the format, the presentation of the story, the story itself (lengthy description of a baseball game - a game I don't know anything about and am not interested in - was the worst of it). Only the timeline at the end was interesting, and my guess is that it's because I play the game, so I have the context for it.

[Wesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book. Written in a very unique style. I don't know Star Trek at all and the whole timeline appendix was very helpful.

The interview with LaForge made the whole book worthwhile....even made up for the stupid Gorn diplomatic baseball game, which made no sense...

[Bernard Doddema Jr · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a different format than what I'm used to with a Star Trek book but honestly, it didn't take away from it. The book was basically one big interview by Jake Sisko.

The story that intrigued me the most was the "resurrection" of Data.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

Set in the future, as in the Star Trek Online game. Jake Sisko decides to interview people who have been involved with the Undine War. This involves: Worf, Janeway, Seven, LeForge, Maddox, Quark and many more. It is a clever way of telling stories, and is easy to read in short bits. A good read.

[Butch Rosenbalm]

Enjoyed this future history about thru Trek path to the online game.

[Allisson Reed · Rating 1 out of 5]

very confusing - I'm not sure I'm going to finnish this one.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good.

The format of "interviewer/interviewee" is new, especially in the realm of Star Trek books.
But having Jake Sisko as the "author" was wonderfully enjoyable.

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not quite what I was expecting, but overall I enjoyed it.