Heating up

Best Defense flows perfectly from Captain to Captain and feels like it could have been written by the same person, the characterisations, the pacing and the level of detail. Of course Mack and Cox are both trek heavyweights, but I can usually pick the differences. The story builds in complexity and by the end it's positively geared up for a wild finale.

The central concept, the key, the tech and the new alien races are all fresh ideas but what happens in this book is largely between well known alpha quadrant associates and plays out exactly how you'd expect it to. That's not a bad thing, everyone we know is recognisable, but it feels mighty predictable at times.

The story throws in a red herring, but not for us, it's for the Federation. We know exactly what's going on while we watch the team try to figure it out.

Now my conclusion so far is mixed. I've enjoyed all of the events in the story, but I'm most excited about the new universe stuff. We're definitely in for a big finale but it's a little disappointing to me that we're bringing old friends (or rather they invited themselves)... it's not padding, it's not useless filler, but it's a bit of a distraction.

Now let's go get Purgatory's Key.

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