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katie33003's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.5
rachelmcg2004's review against another edition
2.0
UPDATE:
"So Rachel, why was this book that you so adored banished into the realm of disgrace known as the 2 star review?"
Well, I'm glad you asked.
The reason this book was bumped down to 2 stars is because of several issues with the key elements of the story.
And this is currently February…and I started this review in like idk I think it was maybe summer of last year????
So why, you may ask, have I spent this long dredging over a book I gave 2 stars?
(Irrelevant, I know, but I just saw it and I had to include it)
(back to the review)
Let me tell you:
BECAUSE I EXPECTED HEAVEN AND GOT HELL.
I don’t remember much… but what I do is this:
WHAT I LOVED:
I LOVED: THE PROLOGUE!
,
I LOVED: Seven’s aunt!!! (Not just because her name was Irene but that definitely had something to do with it.)
Ahem! Moving on…
I LOVED…nothing else. Seriously. The rest of the book went to pot.
On a more scholarly note, in my current writing course, we are learning how to become creative writers, and as part of the process we learned the 5 key elements that make up a story:
1. Plot
2. Character
3. Setting
4. POV
5. Dialogue.
In order to share my extreme disappointment in this book (and the reasons why I will not be reading the subsequent books) in a way that can truly convey it in a meaningful light (instead of me just ranting garbled nonsense about how unfairly this book treated me), I will attempt to point out all of the things about this book that broke my heart by listing the problems as they correspond to the above categories.
*puts on glasses*
Number One:
Plot
What I did not understand about this book before I read it (which was partially my fault, since this book is actually advertised as the sequel to the "Star Trek: Destiny" series which spans 3 books the size of dictionaries) is that it simply one part of a continuing series that includes books based off of plotlines from The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine as well as Voyager. I didn’t really do much research about whether this book series would be a part of the vast Extended Star Trek Universe, (upon the release of "Star Trek: Picard" this series became apocrypha since plotlines from the show contradicted facts established in the books,) but then again, I wasn’t really looking to do a ton of researching up on this book.
Because, if you can believe it, this was supposed to be a comfort read
The key word is SUPPOSED.
Now, as a book that is part of a SIGNIFICANTLY LARGER universe can tend to do, this book referenced important events that had occurred in separate books, and even tied CRUCIAL plot points to said events, without going into much detail about those events.
And all I’ve got to say is…what the heck?
Sure, I know those books are out there, but I’m here for Voyager. I mean, I love TNG and DS9…but when I pick up a Voyager book, I’m expecting Voyager. But that’s not even the worst part.
To say it louder for the people in the back: I was not here for extensive tie-ins to other books, I was here for the characters from my favorite TV show; Star Trek: Voyager.
Number 2: Character
The character plotlines in this book relied heavily on previous adventures (which I already discussed), yet the adventures themselves left much to be desired. For the most part, the characters themselves stayed true to themselves, and I especially enjoyed the revelation of Libby Webber’s part in the story, and Chakotay’s devastation and grief after he learns that died.
HOWEVER, THIS CHARACTER’S DEATH WAS NOT EVEN INCLUDED IN THE BOOK; IT WAS MERELY REFERENCED FROM A SEPARATE ADVENTURE!
If such a brilliant and sensational character like the one who died perishes, the LEAST the writer can do is devote a few pages of their tome to exploring the way their character went out, but apparently that is not possible since And when I discovered this, it immediately soured the soul-searching walk I had walked with Chakotay on as he struggled to adapt to life without someone he dearly cared for.
(As you can see, this review is rife with spoilers. What can I say, it’s a fandom book! There’s gonna be spoilers.)
Number 3: Setting
The setting for this book is garbled and disjointed. Jumping from one year to another, it makes for a bit of heavy reading, and there were many times when I had to pause, rewind to the part of the book where it told what time this was all in, and then keep going. Very annoying since I had to do this many, many times.
However…the POV and dialogue was actually executed brilliantly. I felt that Chakotay’s character arc – while heartbreaking – was moving and very well done. And as for character interactions…some were written smoothly, and others felt cheesy, but they all felt like Voyager.
EXCEPT FOR TOM AND B’ELANNA
I adore them.
But oh, in this book, what a waste of two incredibly marvelous characters.
Final Thoughts:
(Don’t worry, I’m almost done)
Narrator: she was not, in fact, almost done.
It was a good idea, but poorly executed due to the fact that you would have had to read several other series before coming to this one for most of the content to make sense. Even I, who’ve watched ST TNG, DSY, VOY, Picard, and parts of Discovery had a pretty hard time parsing out the storyline.
And…for those haters out there…yes, I do plan on watching TOS.
Thanks for asking.
And as for plot and dialogue…well…you’d think with all the multiverse of madness going on around here (I know I know, it’s not actually a multiverse, wELL IT FEELS LIKE ONE), you’d expect there to be a plot, right?
rIGHT?
RIGHT?
Weeeeeell
But that’s pretty much it.
TL;DR: Kathryn and Chakotay? Stan to high heaven. B’Elanna and Tom? What the heck happened to their characters?! And finally…can we please not jump through time so much? It was giving me a headache, and headaches are SO the 23rd century.
2 out of 5 stars since Kathryn and Chakotay’s relationship saved the book. Kind of. Sort of.
Not really.
fin
------
After reading the book:
As all books can tend to do, this book had some parts that weren't as great, but the ending wrapped everything up nicely and made me yearn for more, so what can I say? ;)
After reading the Prologue:
Which, I gotta say, was amazing. If the entire book was just as well structured and written as that prologue, BAM, at least 4 stars
Ohhhhhh my goodness! This book is AMAZING.
- Characters staying true to the show? Check! heh heh oh you sweet innocent soul
- Plotlines I rooted for? Check! Oh honey…no
- Awesome Klingon Culture? Check!
spoiler alert: This time...it really wasn't. I'm sorry!
In all seriousness, the Klingon plotline is something I really could have done without, (shocking, I know!) as it added unnecessary complications to an already confused and messed up book.
This is coming from the girl who’s reading all the “Day of Honor” books, knows literally all of Worf’s backstory, who’s favorite Voyager character is the B’Elanna Torres – who this book butchered like crap – and cries during Worf and Jadzia’s wedding.
Also…if you didn’t know they were married…they are. DS9 came out in the 90s. It’s not a big secret. Also, I love them. :D
What more could my Trekkie soul ask for? ;) Lemme just clarify: back then, my Trekkie soul was just glad that there were Star Trek books. At all. I know better now.
Aaaaand this review is way too long.
"So Rachel, why was this book that you so adored banished into the realm of disgrace known as the 2 star review?"
Well, I'm glad you asked.
The reason this book was bumped down to 2 stars is because of several issues with the key elements of the story.
And this is currently February…and I started this review in like idk I think it was maybe summer of last year????
So why, you may ask, have I spent this long dredging over a book I gave 2 stars?
(Irrelevant, I know, but I just saw it and I had to include it)
(back to the review)
Let me tell you:
BECAUSE I EXPECTED HEAVEN AND GOT HELL.
I don’t remember much… but what I do is this:
WHAT I LOVED:
I LOVED: THE PROLOGUE!
Spoiler
cuz I will go down with this ship I LOVED: Seven’s aunt!!! (Not just because her name was Irene but that definitely had something to do with it.)
Ahem! Moving on…
I LOVED…nothing else. Seriously. The rest of the book went to pot.
On a more scholarly note, in my current writing course, we are learning how to become creative writers, and as part of the process we learned the 5 key elements that make up a story:
1. Plot
2. Character
3. Setting
4. POV
5. Dialogue.
In order to share my extreme disappointment in this book (and the reasons why I will not be reading the subsequent books) in a way that can truly convey it in a meaningful light (instead of me just ranting garbled nonsense about how unfairly this book treated me), I will attempt to point out all of the things about this book that broke my heart by listing the problems as they correspond to the above categories.
*puts on glasses*
Number One:
Plot
What I did not understand about this book before I read it (which was partially my fault, since this book is actually advertised as the sequel to the "Star Trek: Destiny" series which spans 3 books the size of dictionaries) is that it simply one part of a continuing series that includes books based off of plotlines from The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine as well as Voyager. I didn’t really do much research about whether this book series would be a part of the vast Extended Star Trek Universe, (upon the release of "Star Trek: Picard" this series became apocrypha since plotlines from the show contradicted facts established in the books,) but then again, I wasn’t really looking to do a ton of researching up on this book.
Because, if you can believe it, this was supposed to be a comfort read
The key word is SUPPOSED.
Spoiler
In fact, my only reason for checking out this series was because I am in love with the show Star Trek Voyager. If you haven’t seen it, you really shouldn’t have opened this spoiler tag. If you have seen it, you know that one of the highlights of the show is its fiery will-they won’t-they couple: Tom Paris and B'Elanna Torres, and in all honesty I was here for them. You will see later how all my hopes and dreams for their characters were crushed.Now, as a book that is part of a SIGNIFICANTLY LARGER universe can tend to do, this book referenced important events that had occurred in separate books, and even tied CRUCIAL plot points to said events, without going into much detail about those events.
And all I’ve got to say is…what the heck?
Sure, I know those books are out there, but I’m here for Voyager. I mean, I love TNG and DS9…but when I pick up a Voyager book, I’m expecting Voyager. But that’s not even the worst part.
To say it louder for the people in the back: I was not here for extensive tie-ins to other books, I was here for the characters from my favorite TV show; Star Trek: Voyager.
Spoiler
Well, that was my favorite back when I wrote that section of my review. If you know anything about me you’ll know my first love is mystery…followed up with, you guessed it, Sherlock Holmes.Number 2: Character
The character plotlines in this book relied heavily on previous adventures (which I already discussed), yet the adventures themselves left much to be desired.
Spoiler
The Paris family arc, for one, was an extreme disappointment. I felt that both Tom and B’Elanna acted out of character when it came to their daughter and the ways they chose to deal with the kuva’magh plotline briefly explored on Voyager.Spoiler
Paris family excluded.Spoiler
Kathryn JanewayHOWEVER, THIS CHARACTER’S DEATH WAS NOT EVEN INCLUDED IN THE BOOK; IT WAS MERELY REFERENCED FROM A SEPARATE ADVENTURE!
If such a brilliant and sensational character like the one who died perishes, the LEAST the writer can do is devote a few pages of their tome to exploring the way their character went out, but apparently that is not possible since
Spoiler
IT IS REVEALED IN BOOK FOUR THAT SHE IS ALIVE!!(As you can see, this review is rife with spoilers. What can I say, it’s a fandom book! There’s gonna be spoilers.)
Number 3: Setting
The setting for this book is garbled and disjointed. Jumping from one year to another, it makes for a bit of heavy reading, and there were many times when I had to pause, rewind to the part of the book where it told what time this was all in, and then keep going. Very annoying since I had to do this many, many times.
However…the POV and dialogue was actually executed brilliantly. I felt that Chakotay’s character arc – while heartbreaking – was moving and very well done. And as for character interactions…some were written smoothly, and others felt cheesy, but they all felt like Voyager.
EXCEPT FOR TOM AND B’ELANNA
I adore them.
But oh, in this book, what a waste of two incredibly marvelous characters.
Final Thoughts:
(Don’t worry, I’m almost done)
It was a good idea, but poorly executed due to the fact that you would have had to read several other series before coming to this one for most of the content to make sense. Even I, who’ve watched ST TNG, DSY, VOY, Picard, and parts of Discovery had a pretty hard time parsing out the storyline.
And…for those haters out there…yes, I do plan on watching TOS.
Thanks for asking.
And as for plot and dialogue…well…you’d think with all the multiverse of madness going on around here (I know I know, it’s not actually a multiverse, wELL IT FEELS LIKE ONE), you’d expect there to be a plot, right?
rIGHT?
RIGHT?
Weeeeeell
Spoiler
But that’s pretty much it.
TL;DR: Kathryn and Chakotay? Stan to high heaven. B’Elanna and Tom? What the heck happened to their characters?! And finally…can we please not jump through time so much? It was giving me a headache, and headaches are SO the 23rd century.
2 out of 5 stars since Kathryn and Chakotay’s
Not really.
fin
------
After reading the book:
As all books can tend to do, this book had some parts that weren't as great, but the ending wrapped everything up nicely and made me yearn for more, so what can I say? ;)
After reading the Prologue:
Which, I gotta say, was amazing. If the entire book was just as well structured and written as that prologue, BAM, at least 4 stars
Ohhhhhh my goodness! This book is AMAZING.
- Characters staying true to the show? Check! heh heh oh you sweet innocent soul
- Plotlines I rooted for? Check! Oh honey…no
- Awesome Klingon Culture? Check!
spoiler alert: This time...it really wasn't. I'm sorry!
In all seriousness, the Klingon plotline is something I really could have done without, (shocking, I know!) as it added unnecessary complications to an already confused and messed up book.
This is coming from the girl who’s reading all the “Day of Honor” books, knows literally all of Worf’s backstory, who’s favorite Voyager character is the B’Elanna Torres – who this book butchered like crap – and cries during Worf and Jadzia’s wedding.
Also…if you didn’t know they were married…they are. DS9 came out in the 90s. It’s not a big secret. Also, I love them. :D
What more could my Trekkie soul ask for? ;) Lemme just clarify: back then, my Trekkie soul was just glad that there were Star Trek books. At all. I know better now.
Aaaaand this review is way too long.
spiffytools's review
adventurous
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
cpritchett's review against another edition
3.0
I went back and forth several times over the course of this one whether I liked it or I hated it, so I finally settled somewhere in the middle.
Full Circle is really two connected stories that start out with the continuing adventures of B'Elanna Torres and Miral Paris. I'm in the minority in that I don't care for most Klingon stories so this was a bit of a chore for me. The second connected story sets up the continuing adventures of the USS Voyager.
2 things bug me about this book:
1) I'm sure B'Elanna is a fantastic engineer, but given what we've seen on the show I think the she was doing some work beyond the Federation's abilities.
2) The layout of the story bothers me too. Several "scenes" are told in flashbacks within a larger frame, but the perspective doesn't make sense in the context of who is telling them. Character A might be recalling something that happened a year ago, but the book will go on for quite a while telling what happened to Character B, even though it has little to do with Character A and he wasn't even there.
Full Circle is really two connected stories that start out with the continuing adventures of B'Elanna Torres and Miral Paris. I'm in the minority in that I don't care for most Klingon stories so this was a bit of a chore for me. The second connected story sets up the continuing adventures of the USS Voyager.
2 things bug me about this book:
1) I'm sure B'Elanna is a fantastic engineer, but given what we've seen on the show I think the she was doing some work beyond the Federation's abilities.
2) The layout of the story bothers me too. Several "scenes" are told in flashbacks within a larger frame, but the perspective doesn't make sense in the context of who is telling them. Character A might be recalling something that happened a year ago, but the book will go on for quite a while telling what happened to Character B, even though it has little to do with Character A and he wasn't even there.
jimmybrewster's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
3.75
grimorie's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I really enjoyed this book, it started out slow but when it starts to get cooking, it went a long way. Beyer had a lot of things to cover in this novel and IMO, did it really well.
Especially since she had a lot to do to pull the Voyager characters done (IMO) done dirty by other Trek novels. I love the way Beyer handedly dealt with the fallout of Janeway’s unexpected death and how this grief actually brought out more character in Chakotay— who was unfortunately left behind in the show.
All the characters also had a lot to do and I love that Beyer tackled what was done to Seven (which again, was against her will). Then there’s the whole thing with Miral and how B’Elanna and Tom dealt with it.
I really recommend this book!
Especially since she had a lot to do to pull the Voyager characters done (IMO) done dirty by other Trek novels. I love the way Beyer handedly dealt with the fallout of Janeway’s unexpected death and how this grief actually brought out more character in Chakotay— who was unfortunately left behind in the show.
All the characters also had a lot to do and I love that Beyer tackled what was done to Seven (which again, was against her will). Then there’s the whole thing with Miral and how B’Elanna and Tom dealt with it.
I really recommend this book!
crashhard's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Review:
I enjoyed this book. Only thing is that this is a follow-up to several other books that I didn't read yet. This book does the Voyager crew justice and is better than the Christie Golden novels that precede it.
Here is my rating system. Of course this is all subjective
5 star exceptional. Must read book
4 star excellent book. I enjoyed it
3 star. Average. Take it or leave it. Just ok
2 star. Bad. I finished it but didn’t enjoy it
1 star. Did not finish or so bad I wouldn’t recommend it
I enjoyed this book. Only thing is that this is a follow-up to several other books that I didn't read yet. This book does the Voyager crew justice and is better than the Christie Golden novels that precede it.
Here is my rating system. Of course this is all subjective
5 star exceptional. Must read book
4 star excellent book. I enjoyed it
3 star. Average. Take it or leave it. Just ok
2 star. Bad. I finished it but didn’t enjoy it
1 star. Did not finish or so bad I wouldn’t recommend it
knerys's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Dementia, Death, and Alcoholism
zaelle's review against another edition
2.0
The overall storyline was good but I wasn't a fan of the pacing. Even though I was interested in the plot I had to force myself to keep reading at some points, especially the beginning part with saving Miral. Even though B'lanna is my favorite Voyager character, I found myself feeling bogged down by her plot in this book, and unconvinced that these drastic measures would have been the only option she and Tom could pursue. I suppose there's a plot reason to separate her from everyone (she would have punched Chakotay sooner?) but that entire arc seemed like a reach for me.
I really appreciated a brief look at who the Voyager crew could be without Janeway, but ultimately, I feel like the way the novel was structured and where the storylines cut and started didn't quite mesh with me.
I really appreciated a brief look at who the Voyager crew could be without Janeway, but ultimately, I feel like the way the novel was structured and where the storylines cut and started didn't quite mesh with me.
ddb883's review against another edition
3.0
This book is good, but depressing. And the beginning of a series. Which I didn't know. So I was finishing it at 2am, crying and then freaking out that it wasn't really over.