Get Hold Of Collision Course (Star Trek: Academy, #1) Authored By William Shatner Available As Readable Copy
was Star Trek, and I enjoyed it, However, I did have some issues with it, particularly regarding the timeline, The original timeline was established by the original series, and the new movies established a new timeline, This one seems to fall into neither of those, It's closer to the original timeline but there are still oddities, I also thought this moved a little slower than most of the Trek book Shatner is associated with, but it did hold my interest and got pretty exciting at the end.
The end was very implausible to me but it was still fun,
One a positive note, we did get to find out more about how Kirk came in contact with Kodos, the governor of Tarsus IV, who became known as the Executioner.
This is based on an episode of the original seriesthe Conscience of the King, This was good. Found this book while I was in Kauai at the western most bookstore in the US really, It was a fun read and an interesting take on how Spock and Kirk may have met in their youth.
There is detailed references to Kirk's early years, family and home life even a brother, The reader also gets a look at Spock and the beginnings of his 'humanization' of character, This being a Shatnerverse book I could not tell you if the backgrounds fit with any of the implied history of the characters but was still totally enjoyable.
Although it's been told in Enterprise The First Adventure, DC'sStar Trek Annualcomic book and thefilm and probably a few other places that escape me at the moment, this was a surprisingly fun account of a rebellious, angst ridden seventeen year old James T.
Kirk still haunted by his experience on Tarsusand his first encounter with Spock, I've read all the Shatnerverse books and in my opinion, they started strong and slowly went downhill by the ninth one.
Shatner and his writing team picked it up for this one and although predictable in places, I enjoyed my time with Kirk and Spock once again.
This is the last book in the Shattnerverse a Star Trek universe where Captain Kirk survives the events of Generation.
Oddly enough it harkens back to Kirk's Starfleet academy days and his first meeting Spock and Bones, Which is also what the reboot movie does a few months later, That in turn likely hurt sales, Big fan of how Jim's authority issues are explained and how throughout the novel Spock learns to accept his human side.
I loved the characterization, loved the sass, and I loved another look at the Tarsus IV massacre, I just wish the rest of the series would be written eventually, Yeah, it was fun reading and we'll written, but like a lot of "young character" stories it tries too hard to sell the "what if".
What if Spock and Kirk had met before they went to Starlet Accadamy How would it come about Who were they then What were they like
A little too much string pulling for me during the events taking place in the plot development.
I enjoyed it, but I cannot say I would read it over and over to get my Star Trek "fix" like I do with other stories.
A fantastic look through the early days of James T Kirk told by the very man who embodied the character.
A thrilling read and great characters make this one of Shatners finest works, I usually enjoy books by the team of ReevesStevens, but this one didn't do it for me, I found it rather ludicrous that Kirk and Spock knew each other before the Enterprise, That's straight up fanboy shite, And the book itself just wasn't that interesting, Kirk is arrested for stealing a car, manages to implicate Spock, . . and then I kept waiting for something more to happen, But it was an extremely slow, plodding read, Hardly much excitement at all, Not gunna lie. I didn't have high hopes and was impressed, I read and sometimes write fanfiction and "what if's", This was nice fresh introduction into the characters, It wasn't/but definitely a,/in terms of plot. This was my first foray into the written Star Trek works and a series that will hold a special place for being my first.
I was looking forward to reading about Kirk and Spock's Academy days, I thought this was very well written, There was some mystery and intrigue and plenty of puzzle pieces of how Kirk and Spock get together and form an initial friendship that would be the foundation for a Proficient Captain and the Best First Officer in the fleet.
My only complain is that we, apparently, won't be seeing any more from this series, I heard that William Shatner had a falling out with Pocket, This book was copyrighted in,
It is sad, I was hoping there would be more, There are several places in which the interpretations of these beloved characters are grating on the nerves, because they are so out of character.
That being said, there is so much of this book that feels like the movie reboot that it's also a pleasure to read.
Two teenagers meet when they follow separate mysteries that lead to Starfleet Academy in San Francisco, Jim Kirk is a rebellious young man with a troubled past he's trying to overcome, and Spock is a Vulcan trying to find his place.
But when these two come together, they just may be more than either one is alone,
This book isn't really considered "Star Trek Canon" in any way, but more of William Shatner's personal backstory on these iconic characters and the universe around them.
Once again, Shatner is aided by Star Trek veterans Judith and Garfield ReevesStevens, who have assisted him in all of his previous Trek novels.
They bring a credibility and experience that helps shape and define the story beyond Shatner's original ideas,
I didn't love the idea that Jim Kirk was some sort of technical genius in engineering and capable of whipping up high tech gadgets in his garage, so this book started off on the wrong foot with me.
I decided to roll with it and put that aside, but it kept coming back even after other facets of Kirk's personality were more worth focusing on.
While Kirk has a girlfriend in the book whom he is actively trying to get out of hot water with Starfleet he still has time to flirt and even pull something of a Mrs.
Robinson moment late in the book,
The most compelling thing about Kirk in this book is his constant animosity towards Starfleet in fact, you almost feel like there's no way he'll ever want to join up.
But connecting his feelings to the classic Trek episode The Conscience of the King was clever and really brought things together.
Kirk's issues resulting from that backstory provided an interesting plot complication for him to overcome throughout the novel,
I felt Spock actually faired better than Kirk in this book, He felt much more in character with dialogue and actions, And while it presents another version of how he enlisted in Starfleet, it still showed his intelligence, desire to explore his human side, and a small degree of rebelliousness that is always nice to see in a young Spock.
His investigations of thefts at the Vulcan consulate made sense to me as it was all part of his boredom and desire to grow beyond the expectations of his father.
Nicely done and presented throughout the book,
While the main "bad guys" are from Kirk's past on Tarsus IV for the most part, their overall plot didn't really make sense to me.
It was fairly convoluted and didn't really have a big purpose making this all seem like a really long novel for younger readers.
I understand that it's hard to come up with something believable and workable for teenage characters, but I found myself losing interest several times throughout the book.
I'd put it down for a little while and come back to it when I was in the right mind frame.
Honestly, the first three quarters of the book were a bit of a slog, but the final hundred pages were fun if a little over the top.
Again, it all felt like a young readers book,
For deep fans, there are several references to Enterprise throughout the book, and a few obscure characters who will appear later in Star Trek canon, but not too many Easter Eggs or amazing cameos here.
I did find it interesting that we see thehip Enterprise at a point between her first fiveyear mission under Robert April, and her second with Christopher Pike.
Its kind of an interesting little niche that kind of explains some differences between the original pilot and the ultimate Star Trek original series.
Overall, this isn't a home run of a novel, but it's a solid single that most fans will find something to like while reading.
To me this wasn't Trek,
Both Kirk and Spock were way out of character Kirk mostly in a way that reminded of the reboot, behaving like a jerk.
Starfleet, though not really a military organization, looked like the worst army in the world, with methods that are frowned upon even now and a no fraternization rule that is clearly noncanon as both Chekov and Kirk had romances with other cadets according to the Original Series.
And the plot was more a political thriller with dashes of espionage novel and crime, not really a SciFi.
But putting all that aside and ignoring that it has NOTHING to do with the Star Trek one loves, it's actually not a bad read.
Never boring and nicely written, Just not Trek. Ok, I have to admit that this book wasn't bad which should have been expected, I mean c'mon the author is William Shatner for crying out loud.
The story was entertaining, the characters were a lot of fun, and it made me excited to read the next one.
Without giving too much away, I will say that the plot is surprisingly complex for a book based off the Star Trek series.
If you're a fan of Star Trek then you know the typical formula that was commonly used in the show.
You know, something terrible happens that endangers Starfleet and the USS Enterprise is the only ship in the area that can help them.
Here Nope. That doesn't apply here because first, Kirk and Spock are young teenagers who are not currently in Starfleet Academy and second, the plot deals with politics, dangerous criminals, and boys with daddy issues.
The books deals with Kirk and Spock getting stuck in the middle of several crimes that are all tied together while Starfleet is trying to locate a former dictator who they think is behind all these underground crimes.
Since William Shatner played Kirk, it's pretty obvious that he knows the characters pretty well, Kirk is pretty awesome and is the Kirk we all know and love, He's confident, bold, flirtatious, and has a laid back attitude, Spock is also as lovable as ever, He tries to contain his human emotions and his logical thinking from his Vulcan heritage is pretty astounding,
The other characters are also a lot of fun, You got Sam Kirk who gets involved with the wrong people but also tries to protect Jim, Spock's parents, Sarek and Amanda, are just wonderful, Their dialogue is very sweet and simple it also makes me wonder if that's how a typical Vulcan couple communicate with each other about their child, except Amanda's human behavior and their chemistry is just wonderful without it being intimate.
Which makes it a thousand better than YA couples that have so much intimacy,
Sam and Jim's father is your typical stern father who wants some things for his sons that they don't want.
He's not very open and does give his sons a lecture even though he really cares about them, Heck, that's why he does it,
Eugene Mallory is awesome, I just love this guy's attitude and the way he talks to Kirk, He's so calm and he is even sometimes amused by Kirk's actions, However, that does not mean that he is a pushover, He can be a hard ass when he needs to be, I like him.
Elissa, Zee, and the other characters They were okay but they didn't stand out to me too much.
They weren't bad. They were pretty likable and had their own unique characters so they were okay,
The only problem I had is the ending where I don't know. I felt like it was too easy, Their actions didn't have much consequences except their punishments when they landed but I won't go there and it ended on a slightly sad way.
It wasn't too bad. I liked it.
The book took me on a Star Trek adventure and I enjoyed it, Despite the cheesy ending. Found this book in unread condition in a second hand box, Bestp I have spent in a long while,
I really wasn't expecting much and was pleasantly surprised,
So long as you can accept the concept that Spock and Kirk met as teens this is a fun book, which entertains and informs, and stays within the star trek universe without getting bogged down in star trek lore.
I felt the story did a great job of capturing the essence of the relationship between the two main characters and I appreciated the clear structure.
I always knew where I was in the story and what was happening,
I particularly appreciated the humour in this book, and really did laugh out loud at times, This contrasted well with the dramatic scenes, and the balance felt similar in feel to the original star trek series, where much of the entertainment derived from the characters.
It is always with a certain amount of trepidation that I watch or read something "historical" that is set within the Star Trek universe that I love.
I am not the kind of geek who lives and dies by the canon, but still I don't quite like it when writers muck about too much with things that might not quite jive with it.
This is one of the many reasons for my concern and hesitation regarding the forthcoming Star Trek movie "prequel," and it has ended up coloring, to a certain extent, my enjoyment of this very serviceable Trek novel.
As usual, Mr, Shatner is assisted by a couple of wellknown in Trek circles, anyway cowriters, the ReevesStevenses, and it is unknown just what the extent of their involvement is.
I was something of a fan of Shatner's "TekWar" series of novels, and though they were, I'm fairly certain, ghostwritten, they were understood to be largely Mr.
Shatner's work. My feeling is that he is the "idea man," and that he and his cowriters work together to build the plot and storyline, while they do most of the heavylifting.
Ultimately, it's not really all that important, as this is still a Star Trek novel, whether it's written by William Shatner or Joe Bob Davis.
What Shatner does bring to this novel, presumably, is a unique perspective into the mind and motivations of the main protagonistJames T.
Kirk, rebellious youth.
Overall, this is a nice little book, There's some good character interaction, a bit of peril that's not too overthetop, and a somewhat interesting main plot that ties into a part of Kirk's past and allows for a large helping of surprisingly good exploration of that part.
I particularly enjoyed some of the interactions between Spock and his parents, I felt like they captured these characters possibly the best out of all of them, We see Spock struggling with his human side, Sarek living in denial, and Amanda trying to be understanding to both and hold the family together.
It's a good dynamic and well realized, The same cannot be said for the Kirk family characterization,
But where this book falters, for me, is in those parts that become a bit uncertain when held up to the light of canon Trek.
Not that anything in the book so far as I noticed, anyway directly conflicts with anything that was explicitly covered by the original series episodes.
The trouble is more in that, had these events happened, they most certainly would have been discussed in any of several of the original episodes where they might have been relevant.
That Kirk and Spock might have been friends before the vulcan served with Captain Pike on the Enterprise was never explicitly denied, but you would think that Kirk would have been more familiar with Spock's history with that captain, had they been friends all along.
My impression was always that Kirk and Spock were both assigned to the Enterprise, and that they became friends while serving together in that capacitya notion that this novel doesn't support.
Finally, the manner in which Kirk and Spock and their small team manage to solve the puzzle and save the day is a bit too contrived in the details for my taste.
Not to give it away, but certain things happen in those closing chapters that would have been impossible for Kirk to never talk about.
I will say that the authors or their editorial team did a great job researching various canon and noncanon ideas.
There were lots of
touches not only from established classic canon, but also from Enterpriseseries canon and noncanon sources as well.
Despite my misgivings, this was an enjoyable book, and well worth the read if you're a fan of the Kirk.
If you have trouble looking past some of the liberties that authors take with gaps in the canon, you might want to avoid this 'til you get over yourself a bit.
If you're new to classic Trek, this might be an interesting introduction to the two major characters, and to the universe as a whole.
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