Launching an ambitious new nine-volume series of Star Trek books, "A Time to Be Born" by John Vornholt is set after the Dominion War and before the events of "Star Trek Nemesis." From the onset of the novel, on a planet rendered useless for habitation by the war, there's a dark tone to the proceedings, which intensifies as the book progresses. Right off the bat, we're thrown into mysterious events as we follow an older, wiser Wes Crusher and his comrade The Traveler, who become aware of dark and dangerous things to come. Although opening a nine-volume epic, events are propelled into motion quickly, with ominous portents of things to come.

Without giving too much away, the novel traverses not only the usual dangerous and death-defying events fans have come to expect from Star Trek, but a very careful look at the Next Generation characters and what leads up to what happens in "Nemesis." If the events of the film are indeed the last mission of the TNG crew, then the events of this series of novels will show what put each of these familiar characters onto their own separate paths.

Vornholt is a fine writer whose prose keeps the pages turning and he has a genuine feel for these familiar characters. Much like our world of today, the Post-Dominion War universe is not nearly as safe and secure as one would think, and situations that were once easily viewed as black-or-white are now enshrouded in shades of gray. For Star Trek fans aching for a return to TNG, this series of novels promises much, and if this first volume is any indication, it will more than deliver.

"A Time to Die" continues the story, and seven more will follow.

[Paul]