I found this book pretty uneven. I really liked the way that galactic politics and local star system politics played out. I was also really interested in the Onctiilian and its relationship to Nurse Chapel - so often I feel like Star Trek novels don't really try to delve into alien ways of life, and the Onctiiilians certainly were an attempt at that. But then, the idea that the Expansionist villain really secretly wanted to be Kirk, the way that captaincy was held up as a higher calling or unique burden - that part felt very old fashioned, and the Klingons and Romulans weren't well drawn, in my opinion. So while I enjoyed the book, it's not gonna be on my list of faves.

One of the less memorable Star Trek novels, about an errand to bring peace to a war-torn planet, while contending with Klingons and Romulans. Even the cover is probably the most banal of any of the ST novels. Not terrible, just somewhat less then average science fiction adventure. ( )