Best TNG novels?

[bfollowell]

I really enjoyed the Best TOS Novel thread. I've mentioned before that I'd very quickly gotten away from the numbered novels and started reading only harcover/special edition novels. However, I know there were many great novels, numbered or otherwise. I'm trying to add to/rebuild my collection of Trek novels and I'd like to see what the community feels are some of the best TNG novels going.

I have most of the crossovers, miniseries, one-shots and fiction only series like New Frontier, Titan & Vanguard so I'll probably start other threads in the coming days for each of the other televised series. I thought TNG would be a good place to start since, aside from maybe TOS, there are probably more novels for this series than any other.

So what's everyone's opinions on some of the best that TNG novels have to offer?

- Byron

 

[PKS8304]

Imzadi, Q-Squared, #35: The Romulan Stratagem, #40: Possession. To name a few

 

[Trek Survivor]

Some of my favourites over the years:

#7: masks
#9: A Call To Darkness
#16: Contamination
#23: War Drums
#26: Romulan Prize
Dark Mirror
Vendetta
Reunion
Imzadi
Battle of Betazed
Death In Winter
Greater Than The Sum

When I have more time, I'll come back and chime in with some reasons! Michael Jan Friedman and John Vornholt are my favourite Trek authors.

 

[zarkon]

Q-Squared
Vendetta
Federation(again, TOS/TNG joint)
Dark Mirror
Imzadi(Triangle: Imzadi II is nowhere near as good, although it does have one of the few laugh out loud scenes in treklit)
Masks
Q-in-law
Blaze of glory
The Romulan Stratagem
A Rock and a Hard Place
The Last Stand
Possession
Intellivore
The Q Continuum trilogy

 

[DarkHorizon]

Most of what used to be termed the "Giant" novels qualify - Reunion, Dark Mirror, Q-Squared, Federation, Vendetta, Kahless, Crossover, The Buried Age.

Some of the numbered novels I consider to be great include The Children of Hamlin, Doomsday World, Rogue Saucer, and Diplomatic Implausibility (which is essentially a prequel to the Gorkon series). Survivors isn't too bad either.

 

[Starbreaker]

Federation
Imzadi
Q-Squared
The Devil's Heart
Immortal Coil
Behind Enemy Lines / Tunnel Through the Stars
Metamorphosis

 

[timothy]

Q in law
metamorphisis
vendetta
the vailiant
the Q trilogy by greg cox
gem world duology
slings and arrows series
articles of the federation

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Imzadi II is nowhere near as good, although it does have one of the few laugh out loud scenes in treklit

Which is?

 

[Cicero]

1. A Time To Heal
2. Dark Mirror
3. The Return
4. Q In Law
5. The Romulan Prize (based on my childhood recollections)

I haven't read Intellivore, The Devil's Heart, or Immortal Coil, which I've heard are all quite good. Federation is fantastic, but I've never liked the TNG portions of it.

 

[zarkon]

Which is?

The bit where Data and Crusher are talking, and worf interrupts with his take on data's gag at the beginning of STVII.

 

[Therin of Andor]

Definitely worth picking up from the early numbered-novel days: "Survivors" by Jean Lorrah, plus "Strike Zone", "Q-in-Law" (also get the audio adaption with Barrett and de Lancie chewing the scenery) and "A Rock and a Hard Place". Mmmm, PAD was on a roll!

If you were already collecting special novels, giants, hardcovers, etc, you probably already have "Metamorphosis" and "Vendetta"?

 

[JD]

Set during the series and movies:
Reunion
Q-Squared
Immortal Coil
Imzadi
A Time to Kill
A Time to Heal
A Time for War, A Time for Peace
Post-Nem:
Q & A
Greater than the Sum
Losing the Peace
I'm just now working my way through some of the series books, and those pretty much all I've read so far, but I've loved each and every one.

 

[Reanok]

My favorite Tng novels are Imzadi, reunion,Rock and a hard place,Vendetta.Battle of Betazed,Imortal Coil.Q-In Law .The TNG story anthology.Death in winter.All Goodthings novelization.the First Contact Movie novelization.

 

[captcalhoun]

Q Squared, Vendetta, Q&A, Before Dishonour, Greater Than the Sum, A Time to Kill, A Time to Heal, Diplomatic Implausibility

 

[SuperXPS]

For years I wondered why the Borg only sent one ship and did not invade the federation, I got my answer so I reccomend the Destiny series and the ones before it like Greater than the Sum.

Before that though the whole "A time to..."

Also:

Vendetta
Dark Mirror
The Romulan Prize
The Romulan Stratagem
Imzadi

The Dominion War books like behind enemy lines and tunnel through the stars, as well as the battle of betazed

Also crossover by micheal jan friendman (I reccomend you get the audiobook on itunes or audible also)

 

[F. King Daniel]

Vendetta
Federation (also TOS)
Dark Mirror (incompatible with DS9 MU... unless you choose to believe it's a mirror timeline splitting off the canon MU shortly after "Mirror, Mirror")
The Captian's Honor
Survivors
Metamorphosis
Q-Squared
Reunion
The Return (more about the resurrected Kirk and co than TNG)

Destiny Trilogy

 

[mindx2]

Imzadi and Vendetta are two great TNG novels which seems to be a consensus so far !

In fact, Imazadi is one of the few novels my wife has read and she really enjoyed it (she tends to like historical fiction novels).

A few others that stand out for me are:
The Destiny Trilogy (don't think an explaination is necessary)
A Rock and a Hard Place (seemed really dark for a Trek novel)
Greater Than the Sum (just because it helped fix so much that was wrong in Before Dishonor !)

 

[SuperXPS]

I read before dishonor, given its ratings I expected it to be a novel version of These Are the Voyages....I actually quite liked it...

Janeway being a stubborn bi***...well, she always was!
Also what is this taboo trek fans have, that no main character may die, and if they do there is uproar...they're in a millitary exploratory service in danger every day, its amazing more of them dont' die.

 

[Christopher]

Also what is this taboo trek fans have, that no main character may die, and if they do there is uproar...they're in a millitary exploratory service in danger every day, its amazing more of them dont' die.

There is no single thing that all Trek fans agree on. There are some fans who have had an intensely negative reaction to Janeway's death, but there are plenty of other fans who disagree with them. And if you look back on this forum a few years earlier, you'll find just as many fans objecting vehemently to the books' decision to resurrect Trip Tucker, insisting he should've stayed dead. And heck, earlier today in another thread on this forum, there were several posters expressing the belief that Data should not be resurrected.

 

[SuperXPS]

Also what is this taboo trek fans have, that no main character may die, and if they do there is uproar...they're in a millitary exploratory service in danger every day, its amazing more of them dont' die.

There is no single thing that all Trek fans agree on. There are some fans who have had an intensely negative reaction to Janeway's death, but there are plenty of other fans who disagree with them. And if you look back on this forum a few years earlier, you'll find just as many fans objecting vehemently to the books' decision to resurrect Trip Tucker, insisting he should've stayed dead. And heck, earlier today in another thread on this forum, there were several posters expressing the belief that Data should not be resurrected.

Those who object seem to be a very significant number.
When Kirk died: outrage
When Data died: outrage
When Trip died: outrage
When Janeway died: outrage

I've never understood the source of this outrage.
I can in Kirks case because the death was badly handled, buried under a pile of rocks and forgotten about.
Trips death as I said was stupid, but its less the manner and more the fact of their deaths that seem to upset a great many people.

These are characters in a highly dangerous job, the combined dangers of military service and exploration, why should they be immune to death