Star Trek Destiny is a trilogy by David Mack. The bulk of the book takes place 16 months after the last movie, Star Trek Nemesis, though there are large sections taking place in the past. The three books are Gods of Night, Mere Mortals, and Lost Souls.
In Gods of Night, there are two main plots. In one, Ezri Dax, captain, of the Aventine, is on a recovery mission for an Earth starship, the Columbia, which was lost in the Gamma quadrant two centuries earlier. Her job is largely investigatory, trying to discover how a Warp 5 ship was able to travel to the Gamma quadrant.
The second plot has Jean-Luc Picard, captain of the Enterprise, and William Riker, captain of the Titan, fighting a war against the Borg. In this story, the Borg is not trying to assimilate, but wants to exterminate, the Federation and its allies. And they seem to be winning.
This first book is a little confusing, simply because so much is going on. You have to keep track of the two plots already mentioned (really three, because Picard and Riker are on different missions), plus there is the story of the Columbia playing out in the past. You also have to keep track of all four crews. Happily, the crews are listed in the appendices, but it’s still difficult. In addition, Voyager is in the story, playing a small part, and there is a group of leaders and diplomats back on Earth planning strategy.
That said, there are some interesting stories being told here, especially the story of the Columbia and their encounter with a new species called the Caeliar. It’s also good to have so many characters from three different series, even if it does create confusion. As you near the end of Gods of Night, you realize this is not a stand-alone book and it is best, if possible, to read all three books as closely together as possible. Otherwise, you’ll never keep track of all the plot lines.
I consider this book a good start to a trilogy. I’ll review the next two books in my next post.