Set a course far away from this book—maximum warp.
Goodman (The Autobiography of James T. Kirk, 2015, etc.) continues his series of in-universe memoirs by Star Trek captains.
Perhaps the second-most provocative question one could ask a Star Trek fan is “Who was the best captain?” (The first question being “Which is better: Star Wars or Star Trek?”) Every fan has a captain who holds a special place in his or her fandom heart, and fans of Star Trek: The Next Generation now get their turn to pore over the faux memoir of their favorite, Jean-Luc Picard, written in the same in-universe style as Kirk’s (with Goodman as its “editor”). Picard recounts his entire life, from his earliest childhood on his family’s French vineyards in the 24th century through his years on the USS Stargazer and Enterprise to his retirement back on Earth. Many details of his early life, touched upon briefly during Next Generation, are expanded upon here; readers discover, in detail, how he gained his love of archaeology and how he felt when he first met Beverly Howard (later Crusher). However, Picard’s voyages on the Enterprise—which spanned 178 episodes and four movies and which are arguably what readers are most interested in—merit less than a fifth of the entire book. Aside from Crusher, none of Picard’s romantic relationships are addressed, and many fan-favorite moments are completely omitted. (Darmok and Jalad, their episode unmentioned.) In Kirk’s autobiography, Goodman thoughtfully and lovingly wove together details to create a real sense of Kirk as a fully fleshed-out human being—which makes it infuriating that Picard’s story seems utterly lifeless in comparison. Goodman never really grasps who Picard is or displays any sense of his voice. Picard often comes across as uncharacteristically pedantic and emotionally revealing, while canonical personality details are twisted to suit Goodman’s lazy writing: for instance, Picard’s unease around children becomes a churlish loathing. Worse still, Goodman occasionally injects unheard-of events (such as the origin of the Borg Queen) into the story—a surprising carelessness from someone who penned an entire Futurama episode about Star Trek fans’ affection for minutiae. If this book series is to continue, fans should hope that Goodman relinquishes command to writers who truly love and understand the captains they write about.
Set a course far away from this book—maximum warp.Pub Date: Oct. 17, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-78565-465-7
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Titan Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 8, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
A breezy and fun contemporary fantasy.
A tightly wound caseworker is pushed out of his comfort zone when he’s sent to observe a remote orphanage for magical children.
Linus Baker loves rules, which makes him perfectly suited for his job as a midlevel bureaucrat working for the Department in Charge of Magical Youth, where he investigates orphanages for children who can do things like make objects float, who have tails or feathers, and even those who are young witches. Linus clings to the notion that his job is about saving children from cruel or dangerous homes, but really he’s a cog in a government machine that treats magical children as second-class citizens. When Extremely Upper Management sends for Linus, he learns that his next assignment is a mission to an island orphanage for especially dangerous kids. He is to stay on the island for a month and write reports for Extremely Upper Management, which warns him to be especially meticulous in his observations. When he reaches the island, he meets extraordinary kids like Talia the gnome, Theodore the wyvern, and Chauncey, an amorphous blob whose parentage is unknown. The proprietor of the orphanage is a strange but charming man named Arthur, who makes it clear to Linus that he will do anything in his power to give his charges a loving home on the island. As Linus spends more time with Arthur and the kids, he starts to question a world that would shun them for being different, and he even develops romantic feelings for Arthur. Lambda Literary Award–winning author Klune (The Art of Breathing, 2019, etc.) has a knack for creating endearing characters, and readers will grow to love Arthur and the orphans alongside Linus. Linus himself is a lovable protagonist despite his prickliness, and Klune aptly handles his evolving feelings and morals. The prose is a touch wooden in places, but fans of quirky fantasy will eat it up.
A breezy and fun contemporary fantasy.Pub Date: March 17, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-250-21728-8
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Tor
Review Posted Online: Nov. 10, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2019
PERSPECTIVES
A celebration of fantasy that melds modern ideology with classic tropes. More of these dragons, please.
After 1,000 years of peace, whispers that “the Nameless One will return” ignite the spark that sets the world order aflame.
No, the Nameless One is not a new nickname for Voldemort. Here, evil takes the shape of fire-breathing dragons—beasts that feed off chaos and imbalance—set on destroying humankind. The leader of these creatures, the Nameless One, has been trapped in the Abyss for ages after having been severely wounded by the sword Ascalon wielded by Galian Berethnet. These events brought about the current order: Virtudom, the kingdom set up by Berethnet, is a pious society that considers all dragons evil. In the East, dragons are worshiped as gods—but not the fire-breathing type. These dragons channel the power of water and are said to be born of stars. They forge a connection with humans by taking riders. In the South, an entirely different way of thinking exists. There, a society of female mages called the Priory worships the Mother. They don’t believe that the Berethnet line, continued by generations of queens, is the sacred key to keeping the Nameless One at bay. This means he could return—and soon. “Do you not see? It is a cycle.” The one thing uniting all corners of the world is fear. Representatives of each belief system—Queen Sabran the Ninth of Virtudom, hopeful dragon rider Tané of the East, and Ead Duryan, mage of the Priory from the South—are linked by the common goal of keeping the Nameless One trapped at any cost. This world of female warriors and leaders feels natural, and while there is a “chosen one” aspect to the tale, it’s far from the main point. Shannon’s depth of imagination and worldbuilding are impressive, as this 800-pager is filled not only with legend, but also with satisfying twists that turn legend on its head. Shannon isn’t new to this game of complex storytelling. Her Bone Season novels (The Song Rising, 2017, etc.) navigate a multilayered society of clairvoyants. Here, Shannon chooses a more traditional view of magic, where light fights against dark, earth against sky, and fire against water. Through these classic pairings, an entirely fresh and addicting tale is born. Shannon may favor detailed explication over keeping a steady pace, but the epic converging of plotlines at the end is enough to forgive.
A celebration of fantasy that melds modern ideology with classic tropes. More of these dragons, please.Pub Date: Feb. 26, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-63557-029-8
Page Count: 848
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: Dec. 22, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2019
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