Here There Be Dragons

Star Trek: The Next Generation #28

by John Peel

When captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise receive news of a human planet hidden in the center of an immense stellar cloud, they immediately investigate. Penetrating the cloud, the Starship crew is shocked to discover a world of knights and serfs lifted right out of Earth's Middle Ages. Ruthlessly exploiting the planet is a ring of interstellar trophy hunters preying on the immense, native dragon-lizards twenty-feet tall and armored like tanks.

Beaming down, an away team soon becomes embroiled in a web of intrigue and murder. Taken prisoner, Picard, Riker, Data and Ro must somehow escape and stop the hunters or face destruction from the hunters' weapon, based on an advanced technology capable of utterly annihilating the "Starship Enterprise(TM) .

Genres: Star Trek, Science Fiction, Fiction, Star Trek The Next Generation, Fantasy, Media Tie In, Science Fiction Fantasy

275 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published December 1, 1993

About the author

John Peel is the author of Doctor Who books and comic strips. Notably, he wrote the first original Doctor Who novel, Timewyrm: Genesys, to launch the Virgin New Adventures line. In the early 1990s he was commissioned by Target Books to write novelisations of several key Terry Nation Dalek stories of the 1960s after the rights were finally worked out. He later wrote several more original Daleks novels.

He has the distinction of being one of only three authors credited on a Target novelisation who had not either written a story for the TV series or been a part of the production team (the others were Nigel Robinson and Alison Bingeman).

Outside of Doctor Who, Peel has also written novels for the Star Trek franchise. Under the pseudonym "John Vincent", he wrote novelisations based upon episodes of the 1990s TV series James Bond Jr..

Reviews

[Jerry (Rebel With a Massive Media Library) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one was just okay.

EDIT: I enjoyed it more this time; maybe I didn't read it carefully enough previously.

[Camille · Rating 3 out of 5]

I agree with other reviewers, there is some OOC going on but it didn't distract me too much from the story which I enjoyed. The title over estimates how much dragons are really involved in this story. Maybe a better title is, "The One When they Go Back to the Middle Ages."

[Conan Tigard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here There Be Dragons is one of the better Star Trek book I have read. The action is great and all of the characters are well-written. Plus, there are dragons in the book. Yes, dragons in a Star Trek book. How cool is that?

So many Star Trek: The Next Generation books are just kind of ho hum. Yawn...another story about Picard and Data saving a planet or something. I'm not sure how the author, John Peel, did it, but he finally came up with a next generation story that is very exciting. He added dragons and knights. As a lover of fantasy, I enjoyed the mix of old and new.

Not too many of these book feature Ro. She wasn't on the television show all that long, and I never warmed up to her while the show was on TV. I actually found it nice to have her here, as was a bit of breath of fresh air.

So, we have a planet that is hidden away that big game hunters are running a business on. They are hunting twenty-foot tall dragons. They have found their honey pot and will stop at nothing to keep their investment safe. After arriving on the planet, Captain Jean-Luc Picard, Commander William Riker, Lieutenant Commander Data and Ensign Ro Laren are taken prisoner. While they fight for their lives on the surface, the U.S.S. Enterprise finds itself in a losing battle in space. Will this truly be the end of the the U.S.S. Enterprise?

I enjoyed the speed of the story and the way the author told this science fiction tale. I wish that more Star Trek books could be as inventive as this one. It was quite enjoyable to have mix two different genres together and come out with something totally entertaining.

Overall, Here There Be Dragons is a excellent Star Trek: The Next Generation story that should not be missed by any lover of the series. So, if you are looking for a Star Trek book to read, this one should be pretty high on your list.

I rated this book a 9 out of 10.

[Octavia Cade · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two and a half stars, rounding up to three. A likeable enough read, if uneven in places. Picard and most of the bridge crew end up on an alien planet where a human colony is basically living in the Dark Ages, complete with dragons. When I read books like this I kind of wonder why the author's writing science fiction when clearly they're rather be writing fantasy but then I thought what the hell, may as well go along. It's entertaining even if I can't take it very seriously.

Fun read though it was, however, I can't get over two of the logical problems at the centre of the narrative, and that's what's keeping it from getting the full three stars from me. Firstly, and I realise that Peel is somewhat constrained by canon events from TOS here, the total stagnation of the culture in question... it's just not plausible. Sorry. It wasn't plausible in the canon inspiration for this novel, and it's not plausible here, though Peel does give it a good try what with the effects of outside interference with the dragons. The plot hole that's entirely down to him, however, is that of the gravity bombs, which through handwavium are exerting the gravity of suns and nearly tearing apart the Enterprise... which is all well and good except the Enterprise is orbiting a planet, and these sun-sized gravity effects have absolutely no effect on the planet or the solar system that it's in.

So basically, the whole thing is implausibility on top of implausibility, and while one of the characters references Clarke's law (you know, indistinguishable from magic and so forth), the only magic here is what caused the entire editing staff of Pocket not to notice that gravity affects planets as well as starships.

[Patrick Hayes · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Next Generation adventure that is much better than its cover text suggests.

A small ship emerges from a nebulae, which is impossible, an escape pod is launched and then the ship explodes. The Enterprise rescues the sole survivor who reveals that it's possible to enter the Nebulae because it was created by the Preservers. This is something Captain Picard has to investigate and he and his crew enter the tunnel. Within lies several worlds, among which is one that has a civilization straight out of Medieval times, complete with dragons.

I expected the Enterprise crew to be involved in Renaissance Faire antics, and there were some, however author Peel has done an exceptional job with introducing some 24th century tech into the novel as well as doing a really strong job in balancing out the cast getting their own moments. This is no small feat since this includes the seven regular cast members but Ro and Barclay as well. Everyone is either fighting for their life or trying to save someone else. I also liked how everyone is practically split up from the other once on the planet and how smoothly they're all reunited in the end. I'm also a sucker for Perservers stories and how they are used in this story is different from other Trek novels, that I can remember, and what occurs at the end with them is wonderful. The humor is a strained at times, especially in regards to a Klingon crewman, but is in line with some of the television episodes.

Yes, this has some elements one would expect, but there are enough surprises and strong character moments to make this a solid read.

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to admit that even though I do read the occasional Star Trek novel, this one in particular I chose specifically because of the author. John Peel has done consistently good work in the past with Doctor Who novels and novelizations (usually the ones dealing with Daleks) so I was surprised and intrigued to find his name attached to another science fiction franchise. Peel doesn't disappoint. This is the most fun I've ever had reading a Star Trek novel. Typically they're somber, serious, cerebral and slow moving (which is okay if that's what you're up for) and this entry completely destroyed that mold. Here There Be Dragons was fast paced, plot focused and interesting. Just enough time is spent on the villains and side characters to give them depth, but not so much that you get bored. There's plenty of different perspectives so you get a sense of everything relevant that's happening in the story.
There's quite a bit of fantasy-esque elements here as well, and that might bother some folks. Usually people like to keep their sci-fi and fantasy separate, and here they get a bit muddled. There's a distinct medieval-vanilla-fantasy type feel to the planet, and Picard and Data end up fighting and killing an actual dragon. The cast does have some out-of-character moments, but it's not enough to ruin the story or the reader's enjoyment.
On the whole, this is a fast, enjoyable, fun ST:TNG read.

[Abbey Stellingwerff · Rating 2 out of 5]

In this Star Trek novel, Captain Picard and the crew investigate a Preserver planet (TOS: The Paradise Syndrome) where the Middle Ages have been preserved. Evil dukes! Sword-fighting noblemen! And real dragon-like creatures indigenous to the planet!
What a great set-up for a Star Trek story. Unfortunately, I thought that it fell short of expectations.
Oh, the plot was all right. I enjoyed that aspect of the novel (though I'm pretty sure it isn't historically accurate...).
The characters, however... Every single character was a shadowy replica of Captain Kirk. I had a hard time reading this story because the characters just weren't themselves! Another problem that I had was that the author included nearly every single secondary character in the series. We got to see Ensign Ro, we got to see Mr. O'Brien and Keiko, we got to see Lt. Barclay, we got to see Alexander, and we got to see Guinan. One or two others may have popped up, but I lost track.
Hopefully, I will enjoy the next Star Trek book I pick up better than this one.

[Cary Spratt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I give this one 2.5 stars. I would give it 3, but it loses half a point because most of the conflicts they encounter on the planet are caused by their own stupidity in niavely trusting people they REALLY should have been more wary of. Annoying. Also, some of the Worf scenes felt a bit forced, like the author didn't really understand him as a character or know what to do with him.

The 'Preserved society hidden in a nebula' plot and brief glimpse into Preserver motives were nice, and dragons are always a bonus, although we sadly only encounter a single one in this tale (and briefly, at that).

P.S. I liked the original character of Michael Kirsch, too.

[Lindsay · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel was gorier than I expected, and gorier than any STNG episode or movie I've ever seen. It was interesting to see someone try to write convincingly of the Star Trek world and the medieval world. I think the author was decent at writing about both, but the connections between the two worlds were a little far-fetched. Each of the STNG characters did and said things that, to me, seemed out of character for them. So it was ok but not my favorite STNG novel.

[Cheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not nearly enough pseudo-dragons, and way too much torture & gore & threatened rape. How boring to go to some sort of medieval setting, as if in yet a another fantasy novel. And how stupid our 'heroes' were to get into this mess in the first place. I see Picard is not on the cover, which is good, as he doesn't deserve to be. It should be Ro and Data, though... and Data should not be painted to resemble Lore.

Forward!

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did expect more dragons in the book and frankly I had low expectations with this one but Picard fighting a dragon, Data learning how to use a whip by watching Indiana Jones movies, Barclay being brave! It had a lot of great moments in it and the lead up of Worf in the holodeck thinking that he might use his skills down on the planet only to go down dressed as a Genie. This book was kind of ridiculous but just enough that it didn't go over the top but still remained grounded enough to not make you roll your eyes. It was fun.

[Ann Feutz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This little novel was absolutely delightful.

It has all the highlights of a good fantasy novel- adventure, knights, the code of chivalry, despicable villains, and, of course, a dragon or two! Plus, it features the crew of TNG. Picard, Worf, Ro, Michael Kirsch, and Smolinske were definite stand-outs for me in terms of their roles and characterizations.

I also liked how the author tied the planet to the Preserver mythos that's featured in TOS: The Paradise Syndrome.

May not be the best written Trek novel ever, but it was a fun and easy read. :)

[D. E. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Star Trek a series started in the early 60's that made careers for many people. And the beat guess on. In this novel you have to use the imagination of the author, John Peel, so when Data says, "Here there be Dragons" I do not pick favorites when it comes to SyFY because you do yourself an injustice. Read the book and do not compare the novel whose author used his imagination to entertain with the written word. Here There Be Dragons is a SYFy novel beyond comparison because it is our authors imagination.....DEHS

[Paul Spencer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Star Trek novels are generally good choices for me when I feel like an unchallenging, breezy read (the oft mentioned comfortable pair of slippers). This TNG novel fits that bill, it's slight, business-as-usual stuff for the most part, most of the story taking place in an Earth medieval-like culture which the author has clearly done some research on. There's adventure, danger and menace. Nothing very satisfying, or deep, and sometimes the characters feel a bit off (Picard in particular). Quite enjoyed.

[Jay Wright · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought with the title there would be more dragons. An ancient race traveled about the galaxy and preserved certain cultures. In the original Star Trek the race known as the Preservers had saved the Nort American Native American culture. Here it is a medieval German culture. They have not progressed beyond the original culture and the Enterprise accidentally discovered the planet because they captured a smuggler. The main characters are Picard, Riker, Deanna and Data but minor characters play major roles. Not bad, just rises no higher.

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had a lot of promise, some surprises like the guy who claimed to be a federation agent getting killed early. However the climax with Picard having data open his chest panel to prove he wasn't human seemed very un-Picard like. He would have had data lift something really heavy to prove he was magic.

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

A brisk and fun read, it reminds me of a good TNG two-part episode. A bit of Prime Directive conversation, some costumed shenanigans on a faraway planet, and some vintage "space friends solving friends in space" vibes that involve the entire cast.

[Sarah Escobar · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm so disappointed! It spent so much time on fake tension and corrupt politics and very little on dragons and sword fighting. I was expecting so much more, Worf had a better adventure in the holo deck than the crew had on the planet 😞

[Titan90 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this as a teenager, and I enjoyed it thoroughly. It was a fun read and enjoyable.

[Dana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love these TNG novels.

[Ciaran · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tng in a fantasy setting. Enjoyable would recommend to fans of TNG and fantasy

[Nikki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shaky start, but came good halfway through when it got more Star Trek, less medieval 👍

[Guy Dresher · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was nice

[Doreen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I find this to be an enjoyable read. Although it would be better if there was more focus on the dragons... and even better if the dragons could talk...

[Lari · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dragons, science dressed up as magic, Worf in medieval times...what's not to love?

[Tanya · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fun, but simplistic. Meant to be humorous, but just generates a smile. It seemed to take half a book before the story got rolling. Outside of fans, don't waste your time here.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an entertaining novel. It felt just like a TNG episode in book form, which was super cosy. I'm so glad I read it.

[Louie the Mustache Matos · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this novel, the crew of the starship Enterprise get an opportunity to visit a world with displaced provinces from the Middle Ages of Earth that have not grown in knowledge or technologically since that time period. The planet is effectively stuck in the past, and experiencing the problem of dragons. There also happen to be a group of trophy hunters exploiting the ignorant population and the fact that the planet has been relatively hidden from Federation trade routes and maintained in obscure and dangerous spatial anomalies. When Captain Picard and his crew learn of the illicit happenings, they decide to investigate, and of course the fun begins the minute the landing party beams down.

Here There Be Dragons is ST: TNG novel #28 written by John Peel of Dr. Who novelization fame. This is a carefully crafted story that respectfully incorporates the contributions of all the major characters and even the lesser used ones. The writing is well-plotted, with just enough exposition. The dialogue is taut and nuanced with easily recognizable character affectations. The story beats are designed around exactly how the characters typically behave. The only thing that kept the book from a five star is a spoiler-type issue that I will not reveal, because it involves a spoiler and it is a minor pet peeve of mine.

Let this be counted as my #6 of 12 Star Trek novels for my 2023 reading goal.

[Reesha · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wasn't a fan of this. The crew's dialogue is so out of character so often, it read like a slapdash fan fiction. At one point, Worf was so disgustingly disrespectful to Guinan, my jaw literally dropped, but the story just went on like nothing untoward had happened.

The alien world never really came alive. The "dragons" were very underwhelming and felt completely wedged in just to be able to put the word on the cover.

The plot wasn't terrible. It might have made for a semi-okay episode in a different writer's hands. But this novel is not recommended. 2 stars.

[Jagdev · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the 90's, Star Trek the Next Generation was that one hour dose of comfort and warmth I used to look forward to at the end of a day. Weeknights at 11pm I would watch an episode with a cup of tea just before I went to sleep. In my heart it will always be the show that put me to bed thinking of philosophical ideas and dreaming about the possibilities of existence. I love Star Trek, I always will, but especially during the 90's, I consumed all things related to Star Trek.

Back then I came across this series in a bookshop, and this particular one was the first I read. All I can say really is that given the above backstory, I found reading it gave me that same warm feeling I got when watching the show. The story is less philosophy and more adventure, but it's good fun all the same. Nothing too heavy. I suspect the idea was to just fill that yearning for more adventures with our favourite characters playing their parts, but it does this quite well. I still have my copy, and I would feel my bookshelf missing something if I didn't.