A cold front moves in this week as the planet Nordstral faces a host of problems. Medical staff aboard an orbital pharmaceutical station have gone cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs; a team of researchers has been lost in a shuttle accident; and constant polarity reversals are turning the planet into the terraforming project from hell. While Kirk and Bones go 20,000 leagues under the sea and release the kraken, Uhura and Chekov run from a village chief whose city-slicker upbringing belies a dangerous mean streak. Is Chekov’s paranoia justified? What’s the straight dope on sugar-free lemon drops? And since when is Bones afraid of water? All this and more in Ice Trap, the book that’s all in on this exciting new field of study known as phrenology.
This week, everyone gets antsy when the Jarada get a bee in their bonnet about exchanging ambassadors. But when the populace starts buggin’ out, the away team tries to flee, but Dr. Crusher isn’t allowed to clock out until she saves the world. Do insects appreciate the trombone? What kind of couple celebrates their six-month anniversary? Can we go watch the Federation Games instead? All this and more in the admirably massive Imbalance.
This week, Uhura gets hand-picked by Starfleet for an assignment that actually uses her degree. Meanwhile, the rest of the crew tracks down a band of raiders laying waste to a string of colonies, and a nervous novice named Pavel Chekov gets thrown straight in the deep end as he learns the ropes of life on a tour of duty in deep space and the do’s and don’ts of bridge protocol. Why did Uhura get into communications? Will she be swayed into staying aboard her new ship permanently? Can Lt. Baila and Chekov get their respective acts together before their next performance review? All this and more in The Disinherited, the book that proves three heads are better than four.
This week, Riker feels the cold, clammy hand of anxiety grabbing his shoulder. But there’s no time for that, because a survey of desolate worlds turns up unexpected humans. Once the dust settles from the latest revolt, they discover a cockfighting ring—but it’s the birds pitting the humans against each other. Meanwhile, a young rebel leader learns that overthrowing the oppressor is merely the first victory. Why is Star Trek so bad at dealing with trauma? What’s the minimum threshold for getting to have an opinion on the bridge? And how much would a top-of-the-line thought-blocking helmet set Deanna back? All this and more in “Chains of Command”—no, not the one with the four lights.
This week, we’re taking Probe from the top, once more, with feeling. The same peace conferences, the same song decoding, the same stories about alien whales, but now we march to the beat of a different drummer—a beat that adds a boatload of useless secondary characters and gives everyone dumber names. Is Sulu the worst spy of all time? Is there anything a single pill can’t cure in the future? And why won’t everyone just leave Scotty alone about his weight? All this and more in Music of the Spheres, the book where nothing matters but the music.