Description

Star Trek: The Return                                                  Hardcover w/ Dust Jacket
A Novel by William Shatner w/ Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens.
This is not a text-only book, not a graphic novel.
Front Cover Jacket Design and Illustration by: 5555 Communications
Back Cover: Photo of William Shatner

A true epic, The Return is a powerful and exciting new Star Trek adventure – and a personal tale of tragedy and triumph that could only have been written by William Shatner.

For close to three decades, on television and on film, actor William Shatner has portrayed one of the most enduring heroes of science fiction: James Tiberius Kirk, captain of the Starship Enterprise. After innumerable triumphs, Kirk’s long life of adventure appeared to end after the cataclysmic events of Star Trek: Generations… or did it?

Now William Shatner himself, bestselling author and creator of the acclaimed TekWar novels and television series, brings his unique blend of talents as actor, writer, director, and producer to create a coda to Star Trek: Generations – and reveal the awesome secret of the return of James T. Kirk…

Veridian III: A world has been saved, the U.S.S. Enterprise 1701-D lies in ruins, and one of the galaxy’s greatest heroes rests beneath a simple cairn of rocks on a lonely hillside. But as a legendary Vulcan ambassador comes at last to the grave of his best and dearest friend, the adventure is only beginning.

For the Borg and the Romulan Empire have joined forces in an unholy alliance against the United Federation of Planets, and their ultimate weapon is none other than James T. Kirk, resurrected by mysterious alien science to destroy the Borg’s most formidable enemy: Jean-Luc Picard.

From Deep Space Nine to the Borg Homeworld itself, the battle is joined in the ultimate confrontation between the old generation and the new. Old friends are reunited and ancient secrets revealed, as Riker Spock, Data, McCoy and all of the Federation’s best and brightest find themselves enmeshed in a cosmic saga that will test their strengths and loyalties to the very limit.

Story/Spoilers
The novel begins on the planet Veridian III and takes place shortly after the events seen in the motion picture Star Trek Generations. The body of James T. Kirk is stolen by the Romulans after his burial by fellow Starfleet captain Jean-Luc Picard. The Borg have formed an alliance with the Romulan Star Empire in order to destroy the Federation. Using alien technology, the Borg bring Kirk back to life and his katra is restored, but false memories are implanted to turn him against the Federation. The goal of this secret alliance is to destroy Picard and therefore Starfleet’s only defense against the Borg but, despite his conditioning, Kirk is able to resist commands to kill Worf, Data, and Geordi La Forge, all of whom are attacked by him during his search for Picard.

Simultaneously, Picard and Dr. Beverly Crusher are participating in a strike team in a Federation expedition to an assimilated colony, where they are forced to sneak on board the fleeing Borg vessel. While on board, they are able to move freely around the vessel and they learn of the Borg/Romulan Alliance. Spock also learns of this alliance when he is captured dealing with Romulans, but the Borg do not assimilate him as, for some reason, they believe Spock is already Borg.

Kirk is eventually captured on Deep Space Nine attempting to kill Commander William Riker, and the implant that was responsible for his false memories is removed by the joint efforts of Dr. Julian Bashir and Admiral Leonard McCoy; McCoy acts as an advisor during the surgery while Bashir’s younger, fitter hands perform the operation. Although Kirk retains the drives implanted in him by the device, leading him to a confrontation with Picard in a holodeck re-creation of the original USS Enterprise, Spock is able to remove the commands thanks to a mind meld. In the process, they learn that V’ger, the former Voyager 6, was actually upgraded by a division of the Borg Collective, which explains why the Borg did not assimilate Spock; they assumed the trace of V’ger in his mind from their meld (in Star Trek: The Motion Picture) was an actual link to the Collective. This also gives Starfleet another advantage; thanks to the meld, Spock knows the location of the Borg homeworld.

Taking a Defiant-class starship (renamed Enterprise for the mission), the Enterprise-D senior staff, accompanied by Kirk, Spock and McCoy, travel directly to the Borg homeworld thanks to a stolen transwarp drive. Once there, the Enterprise neutralizes the Borg/Romulan fleet around the planet with a wave, dampening the Borg’s communication and making them unable to maintain their link to the Collective, effectively neutralizing them. Taking this as a distraction, Kirk and Picard beam down to the planet in search of the Borg central node. Using Picard’s memories as Locutus, they track down the Borg central node which, when deactivated, will sever the Borg Collective; every Borg ship will be separate from every other ship, and what can defeat one will always work a second time. However, the result will cause a cataclysmic explosion that will kill whoever operates the node.

Picard and Kirk debate on who will go, each attempting to be the hero and sacrifice himself. Kirk appears to give in and let Picard pull the lever, but he takes the sudden calm to knock Picard out and beam his unconscious body back up to the Enterprise. Kirk then pulls the lever and triggers the explosion. However, even as the crew watches, Spock, who has always been able to sense Kirk ever since they first mind-melded, still does not believe that his friend is dead.

Hardcover w/ Dust Jacket is bagged and will be carefully / securely packaged then shipped via USPS Priority Mail to ensure that it arrives to you perfectly and quickly. 

First Printing
Publisher: Pocket Books / Simon & Schuster Inc.
Publication Date: April 1996
Format: 384 pages, HC/DJ, 8.75″ x 5.75″
ISBN-10: 0671526103
ISBN-13: 9780671526108

Collectible Entertainment note: Hardcover w/ Dust Jacket is in Fine condition.  Nice!  Please See Scans!!  A must have for any serious Star Trek collector and/or enthusiast.  A fun & entertaining read.  Very Highly Recommended. 

Please read return policy.

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