Extraordinary!!! READER'S LOGThis is one of the best Star Trek novels that I ever read and easily the best one using only the crew of The Original Series, without counting crossovers novels. I know that I need to read more books centering on the original crew, however, this novel Prime Directive will keep a place in the highest levels on my own personal Trek ranking ever. A masterpiece written by the couple, Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens.They crafted an intriguing mystery since the story began with the careers of the entire crew ruined but you don't know what happened, and along the narrative, you not only get to know what they are doing in the "present" of the story but also you will starting to get the whole picture of the disaster that happened in the "past" of the story and why the crew fell from grace.I like a lot not only the scope of the story but also that instead of the usual formula in many of the TV episodes of The Original Series where only Kirk, Spock and McCoy get to do the important stuff, here, the rest of the main crew, Scotty, Uhura, Sulu, Chekov and even Chapel, have pivotal roles in the developing of the story.The whole crew has an interesting part in the story, not only on the "present", but also in the "past" and of course, in the "third act" where they going to work together to resolve the mystery behind on the disastrous way that their Starfleet careers ended. READER'S LOG - SUPPLEMENTALThe story is set in the chronology of The Original Series between the end of the first 5-year mission and before the adventures pictured on The Animated Series, so you will get references about key situations and characters along the original run of the series but don't get intimidated if you don't much about it, if you do, you will enjoy it a lot, but if you don't, there aren't references that you need to understand for the current story.A cool real scientific fact is that in the narrative is told about the discovery of fossilized lifeforms on Mars, and five years later of the original printing of this book, some scientists founded evidence of precisely that in an asteroid believed to be from there.Another cool fact but about inside of the franchise is that Robert Orci, one of the writers of the film Star Trek of 2009, used scenes of this book for the process of casting actors, due that it's one of his favorite Star Trek novels. One thing that I liked a lot about the form of writing this book is that the authors established that "starship" wasn't a term that it could apply to any space vessel but a specific term referring only to space cruisers from Starfleet. It's something silly and not important but I liked it.So, if you want to read a novel from The Original Series with great character developing of the whole crew in an epic mission, definitely this is your book.
I have been a Trek fan since the late 80's when i was kid watching reruns of TOS & the new episodes of TNG. I have also loved every incarnation of Trek & was horribly disappointed when Enterprise was cancelled. However i never got into the books until 2010! I just didn't know what i was missing! Since i have read about 30 or so Trek novels, mostly the ones published from 2010 on up. As much as i was enjoying them i decided i wanted to start reading the older Trek novels,...particularly the ones with good/great reviews. Clearly this is one that met that criteria & i now that i've read it i can see why. This was good solid read that i enjoyed from start to finish. The characters were all true to form & i never once thought to myself "Spock would never say that" or "Kirk would never do that" no i thought every character was spot on. The only problem i had with the book was who/what the culprits of the whole thing ended up being. Yeah that was definitely a strange curveball for me. But it didnt bother me to much 3.75 stars
Do You like book Prime Directive (1991)?
Great start. Wonderful characters, slow but steady pace.In fact, the whole thing was great until nearly the end.SPOILERSWTH?!? Instinct-driven vacuum-dwelling aliens that push nuclear civilizations to nuclear war as a way of feeding their symbiotic partner. That, oh BTW, is from an earlier universe and also BTW, is also purely instinct-driven?This is a joke, right?
—rivka
I've read only one Judith and Garfiled Reeves-Stevens book prior(Federation) to this book and given I was overwhelmed by that experience I was a little apprehensive about reading another. Their books do tend to be heavy both in print form and in chapter length and some readers will be challenged to read their literature. But this book was absolutely brilliant. From the first chapter this book grabbed a hold of me and didn't let go. The story telling was by far one of the best I have read in the Star Trek genre so far. With an easy flowing timeline the story unfolds in a suspenseful and fun way that will have you wanting more.
—Shane Amazon
This is hands down one of the best Star Trek novels I have ever read and I think even non Star Trek fans would maybe even like it. It's a tight science fiction read that deals with catastrophic consequences but also is a mystery of sorts.Talin IV is in ruins. A nuclear wasteland and the crew of the Enterprise is at fault. Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Uhura, Chekov, and Sulu (a.k.a. The Enterprise Five) have all resigned over the disgrace of the events and Mr. Scott continues to work to repair the critically damaged Enterprise because his resignation requests are being ignored. Each crew member knows something isn't right about what happened on Talin IV and all feel they owe the planet something for what events did occur.The Prime Directive is something that we get more exploration in later series but you don't get too much richness of it with the TOS crew. Here we get a study of the Prime Directive and how it works in Federation policy and politics (something this book is really rich in, you get a real feel for the Federation and what 'normal' life can look like) and what happens when the Prime Directive is broken. It is terrifying and fascinating and even though you know better of course you wonder if Kirk and company can pull themselves out of this mess. Kirk and company are on their own but are working together even if they don't know it too. Each crewmember gets their moment and their own story. You have Kirk hopping from job to job dealing with his own guilt over the events but also his desire to do right, Spock's insanity and dramatics I won't even get into here but they are fabulous, Chekov and Sulu are together as always doing their own work as pirates, Uhura's saga being imprisoned just shows a lot more of Uhura then we usually get from her and McCoy's first appearance in the book in conversation with a kid is really, really eye opening. You actually learn a lot more about everyone in many ways.It's a tight story, really really tight, and you will tear through this thing if you're left alone with it. I would have gotten through it faster if I hadn't left it at home by accident when I went on vacation. It is a fabulous Star Trek novel. Mystery, politics, friendship/teamwork, humour (it is perfectly placed to in a book that is so severe in subject matter), adventure. Everything to love about Star Trek is here.
—Kate
