January's new Star Trek books




Artificial Life Possibilities: A Star Trek Perspective by Penny Baillie-de Byl

Originally announced for last year under a different title, it's finally available. It's a serious look at artificial intelligence and artificial intelligence, looking at the core issues in terms of the current state of the art, the limitations of real-world computer science, and how Star Trek has dealt with the subject.

A decade ago, books on the science of Star Trek were so popular that there were two books subtitled The Biology of Star Trek. There's been a dearth of any kind of Star Trek-related nonfiction in recent years, though, so I'm glad to see this book.



Rosetta by Dave Stern

The sixth original Enterprise novel, and Stern's fourth, is finally out. It was reportedly delayed by a line of dialogue from an Enterprise episode that required some rewriting of the novel. The schedule cutback can't have helped, either.

For the benefit of anyone who's stumbled across this item who doesn't follow the Trek book discussion sites, this is set during the TV series. There are plans for books set after the series' end but those books are some time away. Editor Margaret Clark has said that there are hints as to the direction the books will follow in the next Enterprise novel, Last Full Measure.



The Cleanup by Robert T. Jeschonek

Jeschonek, three-time Strange New Worlds winner and contributor to the New Frontier and Voyager anthologies, has his first longer work published this month in the form of an ebook novella.