Pathways

Star Trek: Voyager

by Jeri Taylor

In her acclaimed novel Mosaic, Jeri Taylor, co-creator and former executive producer of the Star Trek: Voyager® television series, explored the previously unrevealed past of Captain Kathryn Janeway, filling in the missing chapters of Janeway's life with a compelling story of bravery, sacrifice, and personal triumph. Now, Pathways traces the winding roads that have led Janeway's fellow officers and closest friends to what may be the greatest crisis of their long journey home.
A deadly encounter with hostile aliens has left Captain Janeway's crew separated from the Voyager and slowly starving to death in a disease-ridden alien prison camp. To keep up their determination as they plot their escape, the crew shares with each other the unlikely paths that brought them all to the U.S.S. Voyager™ and the Delta Quadrant.
These are the stories of the command crew of U.S.S. Voyager: of a fair-haired youth who seemed destined for greatness -- or disgrace; of a troubled, half-human woman who didn't seem at home anywhere in the galaxy; of a traveler and treasure-hunter who found the greatest prize of all; of a naive young man who lost his love in pursuit of his dreams; of a Vulcan who formed a surprising bond with a human woman of unusual courage and passion; of a child-woman whose boundless curiosity led to a strange new world of marvels and dangers; and of the man who is perhaps closest of all to Kathryn Janeway, the man whose unspoken love and dedication may hold the key to her survival....
They began as individuals, following very different pathways, but together, under the leadership of one remarkable woman, they have become one of the finest teams in the known universe, the crew of the U.S.S. Voyager.

Genres: Star Trek, Science Fiction, Fiction, Star Trek Voyager, Science Fiction Fantasy, Audiobook, Media Tie In

458 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 1998

About the author

Jeri Cecile Suer, known professionally as Jeri Taylor, was an American television scriptwriter and producer who wrote many episodes of the Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Voyager series.

Reviews

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. I am a little conflicted by this book. I always enjoy backstory of characters that I've grown emotionally attached too, and it's always nice to get a glimpse of both Seven of Nine and Kes in the same book, since that doesn't happen often. I was disappointed at how flimsy the outer story itself was, and it brought to mind an episode from season 3, but it had no substance. The climax was over too quickly and entirely predictable. The stories the crew told were the high point of the book.

[Helena-Clare · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a huge fan of Star Trek Voyager, I was thrilled to find this book in a second hand shop whilst on holiday. I managed to read the whole thing through at least 5 times that holiday, twice in one of the nights, and I have read it periodically since. It's a fairly light read, although it deals with some difficult themes. I did enjoy the plot, as it allowed the different stories to link nicely and you really got to know the characters and see where they came from. Thank you for this book.

[Xiaomaea · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, as a lifelong Trekkie, and a Star Wars fan, and a Browncoat (and any other number of magnificent fandoms, from Harry Pottert to Battlestar Gallactica), I'm surprised I haven't picked up a book like this yet. This one comes from a $5 grab bag from my local library, and I was thrilled to get it. First time for a few things: first time I'm starting a review mid-book, and first time reading a Trek extended universe book of any kind.

DS9 was the pivotal series for me: I was a teen when it aired, and there isn't a character I don't love from the show. Sisko is my Captain (and before that, he was my Commander.) I wanted Voyager to be more than it was when it aired, and gave up on it until my mid to late twenties, when the show grew on me, and I realized I'd missed the characters. So this is very much a nostalgic pick for me.

I'm not done with the story yet, and will update this review when I do finish it; but I wanted to record my thoughts mid-way. The writing isn't stellar, to put it bluntly. But I appreciated that Jeri Taylor loved her characters enough to want to give them more life beyond her taking leave of the show. I appreciate authors who love their characters, and that is obvious here. I also enjoy seeing the back stories to many characters I loved spending time with on the show. I don't, however, as many have mentioned here, think that anyone who isn't a fan of Trek or of Voyager in particular, will enjoy this book.

From the first two chapters, it's easy to see where this story is going. I don't expect anything gargantuan in the plot. I'm reading it simply as candy, pure enjoyment of characters and a world I love, set in the Trek Universe.

But. It started something. I've found the external world of Trek fiction beyond the shows, and added a bunch of books to my reading list, including some that I'm super excited about from the DS9 perspective. So I'll also credit this book with introducing that to me.

More when I finish the book.
* * * * *





So, finished today.

Voyager is a pretty good show that just got better as the seasons progressed. A lot more attention was paid to particular characters in the show early on than was paid to them later in seasons 4-7. Chakotay was probably the most obvious of these, and it's easy to see that he's one of Jeri Taylor's favorites to write. While I loved the characters the show chose to focus on, it was good to see the backgrounds of a few more neglected ones tended to here, in this book.

The premise:
Key components of Voyager's crew are stranded on an alien planet, captured and placed into a prison camp where treatment is fairly harsh. Plans to escape immediately follow. To keep morale up, characters volunteer stories of their personal backgrounds around the campfire in the evenings and how they ended up being on Janeway's crew. They eventually escape from the camp.

The good:
Tuvok's story is undoubtedly my favorite of the bunch. Vulcan history is explored in addition to Tuvok's personal journey, and it was the most profound and interesting to me of all of the stories told around the fire. Tuvok isn't Spock, and the story doesn't try to be like Spock's journey. He is stubborn, arrogant, easily irritated by humans - at least in the beginning of his life, completely devoted to Vulcan teachings and determined to become a more enlightened and logical being as he grows older. The way he decides to re-join Starfleet stems from his spiritual journey across the Vulcan desert, after having a family, and it's treated as one of life-changing significance, rather than upbraided or demeaned. I always enjoy how spiritual beliefs and journeys in Star Trek, when written well, tell a lot about the human (and non-human, in the Trek verse) experience. Trek is at its best when it delves into the way beings grow and change and explore the universe around them, whether it's through science, technology, religion, family or clashing cultures. Tuvok's story has all of these.

B'Elanna, who has always been a favorite character of mine (Barclay is my favorite character in Voyager - I know, I know, he was technically TNG first, but he was so key to Voyager's plot for the final seasons, I felt like he got some of his best episodes there. Needless to say, he isn't in this book.) next to Captain Janeway, Seven of Nine, and the Doctor, also has an enjoyable story.

The sitting around the fire and telling of stories evoked a comaraderie for the characters and a nostalgia for me that made it an easy read. It worked well. Even though I knew what would happen, plotwise, the ending felt a lot like a Voyager episode, and not unsatisfying in the least.

The bad:
The writing. It just. Isn't.

Well. I kept trying to sort out why the writing isn't as good, instead of just saying "it isn't very good", because the story and plot are fine. They're just overly simple, and fun, the way fanfiction is fun. The writing is very draft-like, in that there's a lot of changing of PoVs, causing confusion as to whose perspective we're in while in the prison camp chapters between fireside stories, and also in that it does a lot of telling about how the characters feel in the same sort of way a narrator does in a second or third grade chapter book. Which isn't to say that the narrating is at a third-grade level. It isn't. Jeri Taylor delights me with her extensive vocabulary, perfect for Trek. The type of book that uses words like "hirsute" or "osteogenic" in the narrative while making it sound natural gets my nerd vote. It's probably why I love sci-fi so much.

Or maybe it's because the book is very episodic, much like the show, which, while that works for a screenplay or a 45-minute episode, doesn't work as well in a 438-page novel. When you're in the middle or the end of a typical episode of Trek, you can sense the writers pushing things that are unbelievable into the story, like last-minute countdowns, perfectly-timed unexpected encounters, and convenient getaways or hiding when a character doesn't want to be discovered by dangerous foes. All of those things were present here, which draws attention to the author rather than to the story.

That isn't to say I didn't enjoy it. Did I mention I'm a Trekkie? I love this stuff, and for completely different reasons than I love the Vorkosigan series by Lois McMaster Bujold or the Stormlight Archives by Brandon Sanderson. I'm a sucker for the episodic.

Something had to keep me reading it like it was Christmas candy, and I think that's exactly it: the writing isn't the sort that we hold up as literary or spellbinding. It's candy. It's not chocolate cheesecake or a confectioner's masterfully created truffle.

Other problems with the book: inconsistencies.

Granted, this was written before the show ended, but the name of B'Elanna's mother, or the fact that she actually had seen her father after the age of 6, and before being stranded in the Delta Quadrant are easy to pick out, and I suppose you have to accept that with any sort of fanfiction. Right?

But putting those inconsistencies aside (and there are more), I actually found the motivations and actions of the characters to be inconsistent as well. I've already said that I liked the format of "telling stories around the fire" - it's appealing. But you will never convince me that B'Elanna would have told her story in the way she did, telling things that were private to people she'd never share them with. It isn't in her personality. Nor is it in Tuvok's personality, no matter how much the story tried to convince us it was as a "gift" toward Vorik, the other Vulcan member present in the prison camp. Maybe Tuvok would have told Vorik alone, maybe. Parts of it. But not the whole company present. Some things you keep to yourself.

Or you put into an anthology of separate chapters of the characters' lives. Which has already been suggested by more than one reviewer besides me.

After a while, you get used to the way things just suddenly resolve themselves or the most outlandish solutions appear to be the right ones - such as Seven of Nine whacking Chakotay on his Borg implant (yes, Chakotay's Borg implant, read the book, it's bizarre), smack in the face, to get it working. When something doesn't work, apply more force, as my husband would say. Humor ensues.

Hey, it's Trek. If you're not a fan of Star Trek, this one isn't for you.

I can't wait for the next one.

[Peter Heisler · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked up this book mostly for its nostalgia value. But the backstories of the Voyager crew members were too similar (sudden, violent deaths of family members, romance at the academy, etc.), the premise a little contrived, and the later stories a bit lengthy and tiresome. The writing was occasionally striking, but for the most part it was overwrought. Overall the book reminded me a lot of the first season of the show--which is maybe unsurprising, given that Jeri Taylor wrote some of those episodes--and made me appreciate the way the cast members brought these characters to life with their own personalities. I'm not sure I could recommend the book, except to the most die-hard fan. I'll forever be indebted to Jeri Taylor for her role in creating the show, and giving the world Captain Janeway (that at least really shines in the few scenes with the captain in this book). I also appreciate her including a few gay characters in this book, even if they're only marginal.

[Denny Ready · Rating 2 out of 5]

Alight now .. I appreciate what this book was trying to do. It was a well written story which provided the framework to give the back story to many of our favorite characters. At first, I loved these flashbacks as I always wanted to know about the life of some of my favorite Voyager characters before they came to be on Voyager. However, once I was about three or four backstories in, I found them to be incredibly distruptive as I was becoming more interested in the new story and less in these flashbacks which in no way advanced the new story. These flashbacks became as annoying as plot is in porn. I found myself skipping that last four flashbacks just so I can get through this tragedy and mark it as read. I'm sure someone really loved what this book had to offer ... I am not one of them. Moving on.

[Emily]

Sometimes I roll my eyes at myself.

[Jeff Gudzune, M.A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Character development is essential to a good story. Even characters whose deeds are shrouded in mystery need some exposition. This is the essence of a compelling narrative. Random archetypes appearing on the page are a cheat—a disservice to the audience. With an episodic serial limited by running time, this is understandable. Literature, however, allows the reader to dive beneath the surface. In Star Trek: Voyager: Pathways, Jeri Taylor clears up some of the ambiguous backstories of several of the main characters and the divergent paths that led them to the Delta Quadrant.

Captured:

Marooned on a prison world, the crew of the U.S.S. Voyager must come up with an escape plan. While they secretly work to undermine the nefarious actions of their captors, they pass the time by recounting the many paths that led them to become one dysfunctional family lost in space. Author Jeri Taylor constructs several intricate backstories that flesh out these interesting characters. The central theme of the narrative is choices. Each of the characters make a choice that puts them on the path to their inevitable fate. Some of these choices are the result of exigent circumstances, while others seem to be the direct result of the randomness of the universe. C’est la vie.

Personal Histories:

Drawing from a previously established series cannon, the author expands the backgrounds of the crew to provide compelling insight into their personalities. Chakotay was a dedicated Starfleet officer until the Cardassians destroyed his colony world and killed his family. Harry Kim seemed destined for greatness but was often conflicted in his outlook. Tom Paris made a selfish decision that very nearly destroyed his life. B’Elanna Tores was caught between two worlds, barely fitting into either. Neelix has the most tragic story—a happy family life ended as the result of an interplanetary war. Tuvok’s narrative seems uncharacteristic of the stoic Vulcan but is nonetheless compelling.

Analysis:

Jeri Taylor constructs a captivating narrative in the style of the episodic serial. The primary plot revolves less around the effort to extricate the crew from the prison world and more on the character vignettes. The author uses an omniscient voice to provide a more detailed context. This allows the reader to go deeper into the personalities of the characters and understand their motivations. The overriding plot is purposely less interesting than the individual stories. Rather than having an A Plot and B Plot, the reader is given a solid A Plot. The book is also one of a handful of stories to feature any detailed look at the Maquis. There are even some interesting parallels made to the appeasement of hostile powers in the name of peace—headless of the minorities who may suffer as a result.

This book comes from my personal collection, but I am leaving a professional review

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was written by Jeri Taylor who was one of the creators of Star Trek Voyager. Since she in effect created these characters it could be argued that this book is 'canon' but even if it is not it does reveal the back stories of the characters as originally envisioned by the creators.

The framing story leaves quite a bit to be desired. The bridge crew with the exception of Janeway is captured and placed in a prison camp. As they plot their escape they pass the long nights telling each other the stories of their lives before they met Janeway and become a part of her crew.

The stories themselves are for the most part familiar from the bits and pieces we can gather from the TV show but it is nice to have them all in one place in this anthology. There are better written books in this franchise but if nothing else this is good for a reference.

There are some departures from the TV show. Paris's accident takes place at the Academy and it is insinuated that his reputation of being a 'ladies man' is actually sex addiction as he struggles with the guilt of the accident. He and B'Elanna met briefly while they both served with the Maquis but this isn't touched upon in the TV series. Even though Kes is gone Neelix manages to shoe horn her story in.

If you must read all things Voyager this is a good starting place.

[Kathleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a Star Trek tie in novel, this is a fun one, giving back story for various members of the Voyager crew. B'Elanna's visit to the Klingon homeworld as a child. The story of how a teenager from a Native American isolationist tribe elects to join Starfleet. Tom Paris' real crime.

And Tuvok. Tuvok is a Vulcan Starfleet officer. Tuvok is not Spock. He does not want to be Spock. He's a quiet, religious, homebody, because not all Vulcans are alike even if they share a philosophy. There's a reason he's a security officer, not a scientist. I love him so much.

Even if you only skip to the end and read the story of how Tuvok wound up on Voyager, this book is well worth your time. I highly recommend it to Star Trek fans, though I think general science fiction fans would not get nearly as much out of it.

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful look at the characters who made Voyager what it was and how they came to be both on Voyager and who they are. I loved it. I don't think the plot of the story was necessary though. I would have enjoyed it if it were just straight biographies too.

[Wolf · Rating 1 out of 5]

Everything you may have hated about 'Voyager' is within these pages. I seem to recall it was written after Jeri Taylor left the show. She will not have a career as an author.

[Chris · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book was good in parts, but was overly dull in some places as well.

[Byron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book #5 of 7 in my BOOKTUBE-A-THON reading challenge.

I loved each of the short stories/novellas that comprised most of this book, although the bookend story that serves as the framing device to tie them together was predictably thin and forgettable. I think I’d have appreciated this work more if it had simply been presented as a straight-up anthology.

Favorite stories: Neelix, Tuvok, Kes.

I found it hilarious that Seven didn’t have anything to share about her past, but Jeri Taylor, as producer of the TV series, was famously irked by the character’s existence and it is believed that’s why she left the show, so I suppose her choice to largely ignore her in this novel shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.

Surprisingly, it was Neelix’s story that stood out for me as the strongest of the bunch, followed hard upon by Tuvok’s. Neelix’s story captures the innocence of youth, make-believe, the hopes and dreams of childhood, and then the heartbreaking process of turning away from childhood in adulthood. His ordeal after the Metreon Cascade was covered a bit on the television series, but was well-rendered here nonetheless and had more impact with the rest of his story as a foundation.

I also was pleasantly surprised and happy to see the inclusion of several LGBTQ characters in this book, a first for me in reading Trek novels. For all I know it could be a first in 1998 when this was published. The characters are presented well and their sexuality is largely glossed over as though a normal part of life, which is exactly as it should be for a show set in the 24th century. Yes, Jeri Taylor!

I’d recommend this to any Voyager fan, but with the advice that you pick up Mosaic first.

[Tony Loyer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good fun, it took me a while to warm to this book which explores the back stories of the Voyager crew (the first two stories are about Chakotay and Kim, so I feel like the initial coolness is more than understandable). However, I did end up enjoying this read and liked most of the delving into these characters that Jeri Taylor did. I understand why there was no story for Seven or The Doctor (who doesn't even show up in this book) but I still would have enjoyed something. I liked the method of having them share their experiences while being interred in a prison camp more than I initially thought I would as that story fleshed itself out. The stories connected in neat ways, mostly in how many of the character's lives crossed with another before the events of the series, but also as the book explored themes like self-reliance and the importance of Captain Janeway on their lives, even little things like dust motes. I would recommend this books to fans of Voyager, but really, I can't imagine anyone who isn't a fan reading this book.

[Liz · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read this book as a kid. I read a lot of books I review here as a kid. Ideally I'd re-read them before reviewing them, but there are a few I have no intention of rereading and this is one of them. Even as a twelve year old, the blatant continuity errors made me rage, especially in Chakotay's case.

But let's start with Torres' story, where Taylor states that Seska and B'Elanna were the only females in Chalotay's Maquis crew (Henley anyone?). I could be forgiving for the other errors in B'Elanna's story, as much of her past was delved into in the show's last two seasons, and this was written in Season 4 I believe (but why do such a book at all, before the series had concluded?) Getting the name of B'Elanna's mother wrong was the major annoyance, but the fact that B'Elanna's backstory was explored in detail on the show years later also rendered her chapter of this book pretty irrelevant.

Then there's Seven of Nine, whose backstory is skipped completely. Understandable, as she was a new character when this was written. But again; why friggin' write this book at all, until the series is finished?

And then there's Chakotay, one of Taylor's "favorite" characters. That is, favorite characters to butcher. Early in the show--first few episodes--we learned Chakotay's father died fighting Cardassians, and Chakotay joined the Maquis to defend his homeland. We learned this VERY early on the show, and were reminded of it plenty of times. But Taylor has other ideas. According to her, Chakotay's father didn't do any fighting; instead, both of Chakotay's parents, along with his entire extended family and village, were vaporized by the Cardassians in a blink, and Chakotay joined the Maquis for revenge. Okay, that would be a nice set up for Mirror Universe Chakotay maybe; but if Chak's entire f8cking EVERYBODY was murdered in cold blood at once, I think we'd know about it. This was just ridiculous.

Kes's story is randomly shoe-horned into this as well, even though it makes no sense in the context of the frame story. Again, I'd forgive it if this were written at the end of the series, included Seven's backstory, and got everyone else's right; but here it's just weird.

To be fair, one of the best fanfiction writers I know, one who deals in Tom Paris and his backstory, draws from Tom's chapter in this book. So I guess Taylor at least got Tom's story right.

Otherwise, I'm afraid this book just serves as another reminder of how Jeri Taylor couldn't play nice with the other writers, and forced her own version of the characters into her story with blatant contradictions to everything else we've seen onscreen.

[Josiah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Plot: C
Writing: D
Vocabulary: B
Level: Easy
Worldview: Agnosticism
Rating: R (murder, torture, treason, child abuse, imprisonment, slavery, sexual abuse, cowardice, etc)

From the opening page this book is ridiculous and pathetic - a great disappointment! Half the crew of Voyager beam down to spend some R&R on an unscouted planet while the ship goes off on a trading mission in another system. The crew left on the planet is captured an enslaved in a camp where no one does anything except try to look busy when the heinous, alien guards come around. So the crew take turns telling their personal stories each night to pass the time and inspire one another on to courage. Eventually they come up with a scheme and escape.

This doesn't sound so bad except that the writing has numerous contradictions, lapses of logic, and bouts of uncharacteristic characters. But what's worse is that - though the specific details are unique to each one - the crew's stories are exactly the same: bipolar, rebellious person burning with rage at the perceived injustices done to them takes it out on their simpering father and stern mother, endures the rigors of a desert crossing, fantasizes in excruciating detail how to murder someone, and drowns their woes in kinky sex that feels like a thousand tiny burning needles. The author copied & pasted the same text half a dozen times, changed a few nouns, and sent this to the printer's!

[Mel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this probably more than I should have but it was nice to get such emotional backstories for the Voyager crew. There was definitely WAY too much emphasis on Starfleet academy, I mean most of the crew (besides Harry) are middle aged adults, surely they've done more interesting things since college! I think B'Elanna's story was probably the most disappointing, it would have been better to have had more emphasis on the Marquis, likewise with Chakotay. But I did like how dreadful Neelix's life was and how much Tuvok had done. (I also like that Jeri was a shipper!) It was also a shame the gender balance was poor. But there were two gay minor characters, which was really nice! 20 years before any appeared on the show! And extra bonus points NONE OF THEM DIED! Which still hasn't happened in television star trek... The framing story seemed incredibly bleak, much more so than the tv series which I liked a lot. I'm glad I read this one.

[Emily Luebke · Rating 2 out of 5]

As expected, this impulse read was very silly and entirely just sanction fanfic. In fact I have read better fanfic on AO3. But was it still fun? Yeah.

I'm a fan of Voyager, flawed as it is, I find it comforting and fun. It was interesting to hear this author's ideas of these characters' backstories, even when those backstories were weirdly horny. Like, we gotta be informed who who each character wanted to bang in their youth, even if it doesn't matter to the story. Also we all know that Jeri Taylor is a Janeway stan, and our holy mother Janeway is well represented here. Janeway is just the best. Get over it.

Honestly though, the 2nd star is for Robert Picardo who voiced the audiobook and is honestly too good for this shit. His voice acting is on point and I love him so much!

I plan to do a review on my channel eventually.

[Gabrielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a good read but it could have been better. I felt the strength of the various stories really varied. I really like Chakotay, Neelix, Kes and Tuvok's stories, but B'lanna's and Toms were pretty bad. I actually skipped chunks of Tom's story because it was boring. And I found it completely implausible that B'lanna was going on at length about what it is was like to go through puberty and having a crush on Chakotay, in front of Chakotay and a bunch of her male co-workers. Hearing about their times in the Maquis was cool, but overall I was little disappointed with this one. I felt the Janeway book, Mosaics was better.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

The crew get captured and put in a prison camp. To keep themselves amused they take turns telling their back stories. This is basically a collection of short stories with a linking narration. It fills out all the characters a lot, and answers some questions. I particularly liked Kes, Paris and Neelix stories as they were not that predictable. A good read.

[Allisson Reed · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a decent read but not 100% factual. Other books contracdict this one so a detail oriented reader may have trouble reading this book.

[Story Of Cory · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't consider myself a Trekkie/Trekker, and as a result, really couldn't care less about "Star Trek canon". This book was good for what *I* think it was meant for... an interesting read that was fairly independent of the Voyager series as a whole. To me, this was a "what if" book... what if the crew was marooned somehow on some hostile planet? What would they do? What would they talk about? This book does a pretty good job of supposing just a scenario, and playing said scenario out in prose. I think, in order to get the maximum amount of enjoyment out of a book like this, you have to "flush" canon from your mind entirely and not get wrapped up in what's "supposed" to happen, according to canon, or what someone is "supposed" to do, according to canon, and just go with the flow and enjoy the ride the story takes you on.

THAT SAID... I did read a few reviews before writing this, and those reviews that said the book is heavy on "purple prose" DO have a very valid point. If the flowery, filler language was pared down, and a couple of the characters' stories were shorter, this book would probably top out at around 350 pages (for what it's worth, each character's backstory is about 50 pages in length, give or take, followed by a 10-20 page chapter wrapping up the story and transitioning to the Pathwaysnext character's story). Don't get me wrong, the majority of the stories WERE interesting, but at the same time, a couple of them WERE overly long.

This IS a Star Trek book worth reading, in my opinion, even if you are a die-hard Trekker/Trekkie who lives and dies by ST canon. You just have to put your knowledge of ST canon aside for a while as you read it.

[Vi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an abridgement and I didn't know!! I would never recommend an abridged version of anything. It takes away so much of the 'jus' of any book.

Ok so, our trusty crew gets stuck on this planet that is basically a prison camp, and while they are forced to work under the worst of circumstances, they see some people being incinerated for causing a disturbance. Place is grim guys, so one by one they tell their life story before they got aboard Voyager..

I hate to not 5 Star this. I have such a deep love for anything Voyager. It kept me afloat during my teens, I like to think it brought me and my best friend closer. The first - bad - fanfiction I ever wrote was for Voyager. My friend and I would write Voyager stories together, I can't even... really!

But, while it was nice to hear about everyone's childhood and some of the big moments in their lives, I just wanted so much more from it. The whole escape was so convenient, and if that all didn't matter to the story, don't set your story there! They could have easily set this in the Year of Hell as a moral boosting exercise or something.

And I also didn't like the 'all roads lead to Janeway- thing', and I really love her, but the reverent way some people spoke about her, just didn't fit the way the characters are.

It is written by a producer of the show, so she caught their voices very well, except for what I mentioned above. Also, it was read by Robert Picardo, who plays the EMH/ the Doctor on Voyager, and he did most of their inflections very well. That suprised me because he has such a distinctive voice.

There were background sounds playing almost the entire time, like people running, or screaming, or phasers firing and I thought it was so annoying

[Lars · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I bought my hardcover edition of Pathways way back in the nineties, it became one of the centerpieces of my book collection. Although I'm still a fan of Star Trek, in the nineties I was obsessed with the show and especially Star Trek Voyager. Having a book in my posession written by the creator of the show was special to me. More than any other Trek book, every page in this book felt like canon because Jeri Taylor had committed it to paper. I remember loving the book as much as I loved the show.

Rereading it now after 20 years was fun. But this book is certainly not without its flaws. In Pathways, the crew of Voyager has been taken captive and send to a prison camp. To spend the time, the characters tells each other their life stories. The book has 15 chapters. Each even numbered chapter is essentially the backstory of one of the 7 major characters of the show (excluding Seven of Nine). The odd numbered chapters are about the crew's attempts to escape from the prison camp. The prison plot is flimsy at best and serves only as a framework for the backstories. But as a fan of the show, I loved learning more about the crew. One of the main complaints fans have about STV is that it sometimes prioritized high concept stories instead of character development. This book puts the characters front and center and in some instances we learn more about them in one chapter than we did in 7 seasons of the show. I for one really enjoyed it, but fans looking for excitement or fascinating scifi concepts should look elsewhere.

[Debi Knight · Rating 2 out of 5]

The idea of telling stories around a camp fire is a tried and tested one. The actual back stories of the characters I find mildly interesting though the sub plot as to why they are in the situation to be around camp fires I find lacking in thought, substance, or reason. Jerri Taylor knows these characters inside and out, she had a hand in creating them all for the show yet this book just feels like the sub plot is just thrown together as a way just to get them around campfires. For example would Tom really have got out of the shuttle seeing his friends in danger or would he have beamed them away from danger? The reason for the warring factions is not adequately explained, neither is the reasoning behind the incarceration of aliens, except paranoia. I don’t feel these characters are in any real danger at any point as the tension doesn’t reach me through the writing style. Maybe if this was a script premise the actual visuals would make me feel the characters were in danger, for me the book doesn’t really work on too many levels. Good to fill in the character back stories just feel the sub plot let’s it down badly.

Jerri Taylor is a fantastic asset to the Star Trek family, this book makes it clear she is not a novelist though.

[Amy Tudor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this - a great story about the lives of each of the Voyager crew before they were taken to the Delta Quadrant. The main storyline in which all this is set is fine, if a bit predictable and at times outlandish - it would have been interesting to see that characters backstories link into this story a little more. The backstories are the main point to this book, with the storyline running through being a setting in which the characters talk about their lives. I agree with some other reviewers that it's not in some of the characters natures to share the intimate details of their past to a group of their colleagues so maybe setting them more privately would've been a little more believable.

However, I found every story gripping and engaging, even if a lot didn't align with later cannon from the show. It's interesting to get into each of their heads and hear about the lessons they've learned from the past and explain the way they are. I found a few sentences which spoke to my own worries and having all the characters deal with insecurity, regrets, and indecision helped them feel more relatable. Definitely worth a read if you are a Voyager fan.

[Matthew · Rating 3 out of 5]

A midly entertaining story that involves the main characters regaling each other with tales of their pasts. That would be an enticing reason to read if Voyager actually had interesting characters. As it turns out, the stories are mostly decent, although some fare better than others.

Chakotay's story is easily the weakest and most boring (just like him), whereas Tom Paris, Neelix and Kes get the most engaging backstories. Each tale seems to follow a similar theme about being unable to fit in and needing to prove yourself, but some go into pretty dark and emotional territory.

The framing story of the crew trapped in an alien prison is the real low point. Their attempt to escape is quite laughable in its mediocrity, and the writing quality is particularly poor through these sections.

Given that Jeri Taylor wrote the book, there's an element of semi-canon about it all and some of the back story details did get referred to in the show, so it's probably a fun read for anyone who particularly loves Voyager. That's definitely not me.

[Peter Rydén · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ett perfekt tillfälle att lära känna personerna bakom rollkaraktärerna. Författaren Jeri Taylor var en av medproducenterna till Star Trek: Voyager och man kan anta att dessa livsberättelser var en del i förarbetena till serien, för att ge djup åt karaktärstolkningar. Ramberättelsen är enkel och vanlig. Ett antal besättningsmän är fast hos fiender och tron att de alla skulle fastna där för evig tid känns väl inte särskilt stark. Ramberättelsen är dock här bara ett sätt att få en miljö kring historieberättandet som är själva syftet med boken. Bra berättelser som ger mer kunskap om vad som hänt personerna tidigare. Man skulle kunna se boken som en antologi av kortare berättelser som de flesta är mycket bra. För er som inte gillar Voyagers ”vi tycker alla om varandra”-inställning bör nog hoppa över denna bok.

Slutet var väntat, även om det som ledde fram till slutet var överraskande och teknologiskt intressant.

[Octavia Cade · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my favourite Star Trek novels, primarily I think because of the sustained focus on character. The frame story's a little thin, but that's forgivable here because it's not really the point - it's merely an excuse to give the backstory of all the supporting characters of Voyager. They're all decently well-written, but naturally some are more interesting than others and the real stand-out here is Tuvok. I may be biased because he's one of my favourite characters on the series anyway, but Taylor's building of his background is both immensely believable and immensely interesting. It can't have been easy trying to form a regular Vulcan character after the enormity that is Spock, but Tuvok is completely unlike him and yet still as fascinating, and his desert sojourn especially is outstanding. Worth reading for that alone.

[Stephanie R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book tells the backstory for all of the main characters of Voyager except for Captain Janeway (she has a whole book to herself). You get answers to a lot of things that they didn't have time to address in the show, like why exactly Chakotay joined the Maquis, why Tom Paris was in jail, the full story of how Neelix and Kes met, and more. It's really well written and it's by Jeri Taylor who is one of the producers so it's practically canon. There's a neat little side story about the crew being taken prisoner on an alien planet which is the reason why everyone is sharing their life stories. I'm not sure I totally believe it but the way they escape is pretty neat, and if you want you can ignore it and just focus on the backstories.