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Star Trek: The Next Generation #39
Rogue Saucer
While its own saucer section receives needed repairs, the U.S.S. Enterprise tests a new experimental saucer. In theory, the new saucer can survive a planetary crash landing, but will it come through intact under genuine test conditions? Riker, Data, Worf, and La Forge risk their lives to find out, and so does Admiral Nechayev of Starfleet.
But a dangerous test turns even more deadly when hostile forces seize control of the new saucer---and turn it against the Enterprise.
But a dangerous test turns even more deadly when hostile forces seize control of the new saucer---and turn it against the Enterprise.
288 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published March 1, 1996
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 48 reviews
December 20, 2023
Perfectly adequate yet uninspired and lackluster story involving a (thankfully) rare saucer separation and some Maquis shenanigans, proving that "a ship divided against itself cannot stand".
January 6, 2016
This is a quick read. I remember that it didn't took me much time to read it completely. It helps that it's very entertaining. I won't say that the book has a level of sophistication as the best stories ever written in Star Trek novel, however it's fast-paced and full of action, so if you are looking for something quick to read with those elements, this is your book. One of the things that attracted me to this novel was the fact of that you will have some saucer separation scenes. Since they did it for the first time on the pilot of TNG Encounter at Farpoint, the imagination of many fans was on hype thinking of how cool was that the USS Enterprise-D was able to separate the saucer section from the stardrive section (or engineering section, depends of how you are familiar to name that part of the vessel). Sadly, in the running of the TV series it was made only in very key moments due the expensive of producing that special effect, and of course on the film Generations. Even on the times of The Original Series, Gene Roddenberry was playing with the idea of separating the saucer section but if on TNG was very expensive, on TOS was simply impossible to make it. So, only on some novels and the manga book was possible to watch the original Enterprise, on its original configuration and the refitted version, separating the saucer section. Getting back to this particular novel. I enjoyed a lot reading it. You have along with the main cast crew, great recurring characters (and from my very favorites) like Ro Laren and Alynna Nechayev. Also, you have some mentioning of DS9 stuff, along with Cardassian presence and Maquis' threat. Maybe the book won't expand your knowledge about some revolutionary scientific idea or dealing with some controvertial social affair, but you if you decide to read the novel, I can assure that you will have an entertaining thrill. Recommended.
February 24, 2024
This was a fun read. There was a brief torture scene that I thought was unnecessary. But I would recommend this one if you like Trek Action!
I found this in Vulcan, Alberta--the Star Trek Capital of Canada. It has a great, little museum.
I found this in Vulcan, Alberta--the Star Trek Capital of Canada. It has a great, little museum.
May 25, 2025
I tend to find myself more and more interested in plots involving the Maquis. I think they are such an interesting and important faction in Trek and are not always used in the best possible way. here however I think they are well placed in this entry. A hot start and an electric finish, at this point I've certainly read more good Trek than bad and the vast majority of Next Gen stuff I've read has been solid.
August 26, 2022
Great story, had all the good stuff you want, even a crash landing on a prime directive protected planet, and the crew are given a few days of extra shore leave after all. What more could you, or they, ask for? 🖖
January 10, 2025
A really fun idea hampered by less than stellar execution.
June 26, 2022
A rather fun entry in the Next Generation numbered series of novels, putting some flesh on the bones of TNG and DS9's Maquis saga.
While testing a prototype Galaxy-class saucer module, Picard, Riker and the crew are thrown into a dangerous mission involving the Maquis which threatens to destabilise the tenuous peace with Cardassia.
John Vornholt does a nice job of integrating his novel into the TNG Season 7 / DS9 Season 2 era to lay out a fast-paced action-packed story which would have made a convincing episode on the small screen. Vornholt is quick to play on the fractious relationship between Admiral Nechayev and Captain Picard, capturing the Admiral's caustic personality rather well. This is quickly sidelined for the novel's principle plot: Rogue Saucer on the Loose! While somewhat hokey in its initial execution, Rogue Saucer quickly finds its feet, and I thoroughly enjoyed the scenes of Riker, Geordi and Nechayev struggling to retake the saucer from the Maquis. The idea of a mostly unfinished prototype Galaxy-class saucer is fascinating, and I could easily imagine Riker and Geordi wandering around the familiar structure and being disconcerted about the lack of amenities they were used to from the Enterprise.
The background story of the Maquis resistance cell on New Hope is woven nicely into the principle plot, and the return of Ro Laren -- complete with copious amounts of regret from the events of "Preemptive Strike" -- almost had me rooting for the Maquis to succeed. That's the beauty of this era of Star Trek - these guys are fighting for their homes, a victim of political circumstance. Sure, their methods are at odds with the peaceful co-existence of Cardassia and the Federation, but their motivation is about and true and faultless as is possible.
While the inclusion of Nechayev and "The Architect" (aka an unnamed Ro Laren) in Rogue Saucer provides the welcome addition of two strong secondary female characters to offset the Picard/Riker/Geordi heavy plot, the author doesn't seem to fare quite as well with his handling of the principal female characters of Crusher, Troi and Guinan. Vornholt tries to make Crusher appear uncomfortable in the big chair of the Enterprise saucer module, but unfortunately veers too far from uncomfortable to incompetent and rash in his characterisation. She's unwilling to wait two literal minutes for the Bynars to complete repairs of the bridge module at Starbase 211 (jeopardising the mission later on in the novel); then she's threatening Riker with court martial if he so much as speaks -- at the very moment he's trying to help her locate Geordi. Meanwhile, Troi is relegated to her usual empath lie-detector role on the bridge, and Guinan floats around doing a whole lot of nothing (which was she even included in this novel?)
Despite those missteps, I'd definitely recommend Rogue Saucer as a fast, fun read - especially if you're a fan of the Maquis era of 90's Trek. Four stars.
While testing a prototype Galaxy-class saucer module, Picard, Riker and the crew are thrown into a dangerous mission involving the Maquis which threatens to destabilise the tenuous peace with Cardassia.
John Vornholt does a nice job of integrating his novel into the TNG Season 7 / DS9 Season 2 era to lay out a fast-paced action-packed story which would have made a convincing episode on the small screen. Vornholt is quick to play on the fractious relationship between Admiral Nechayev and Captain Picard, capturing the Admiral's caustic personality rather well. This is quickly sidelined for the novel's principle plot: Rogue Saucer on the Loose! While somewhat hokey in its initial execution, Rogue Saucer quickly finds its feet, and I thoroughly enjoyed the scenes of Riker, Geordi and Nechayev struggling to retake the saucer from the Maquis. The idea of a mostly unfinished prototype Galaxy-class saucer is fascinating, and I could easily imagine Riker and Geordi wandering around the familiar structure and being disconcerted about the lack of amenities they were used to from the Enterprise.
The background story of the Maquis resistance cell on New Hope is woven nicely into the principle plot, and the return of Ro Laren -- complete with copious amounts of regret from the events of "Preemptive Strike" -- almost had me rooting for the Maquis to succeed. That's the beauty of this era of Star Trek - these guys are fighting for their homes, a victim of political circumstance. Sure, their methods are at odds with the peaceful co-existence of Cardassia and the Federation, but their motivation is about and true and faultless as is possible.
While the inclusion of Nechayev and "The Architect" (aka an unnamed Ro Laren) in Rogue Saucer provides the welcome addition of two strong secondary female characters to offset the Picard/Riker/Geordi heavy plot, the author doesn't seem to fare quite as well with his handling of the principal female characters of Crusher, Troi and Guinan. Vornholt tries to make Crusher appear uncomfortable in the big chair of the Enterprise saucer module, but unfortunately veers too far from uncomfortable to incompetent and rash in his characterisation. She's unwilling to wait two literal minutes for the Bynars to complete repairs of the bridge module at Starbase 211 (jeopardising the mission later on in the novel); then she's threatening Riker with court martial if he so much as speaks -- at the very moment he's trying to help her locate Geordi. Meanwhile, Troi is relegated to her usual empath lie-detector role on the bridge, and Guinan floats around doing a whole lot of nothing (which was she even included in this novel?)
Despite those missteps, I'd definitely recommend Rogue Saucer as a fast, fun read - especially if you're a fan of the Maquis era of 90's Trek. Four stars.
February 16, 2012
A lightning-paced, ballsy, unapologetic action-adventure epic that powers along..something "Star Trek-The Next Generation" rarely produced. It uses giant dollops of fan-pleasing continuity to place this story at the tail-end of the seventh season in perfect fashion...a far cry from the time-line confusion present in many of the DS9 novels. I can effortlessly picture this as an epic two-part TV story, and the imagery at play in this novel is first rate. Even the title is fantastic.
February 21, 2018
Rogue Saucer has an OK plot marred by bad technobabble even for Star Trek ("baryon contamination"?) and inattention to detail (forgetting about the battle bridge when the entire point of the book was saucer separation).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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March 20, 2024A pretty good one, mostly because of the Maquis-related subplots and dialogue.
January 31, 2024
A massive prospect sadly skewed into what feels like a mid-episode of TNG despite the high stakes.
This was my first TNG novel, and I went into it with very high hopes. Unfortunately, from the very beginning, there were issues for me. Despite this being the 8th Star Trek novel by the author, it felt like it had been written by someone who had either never watched the show, or didn't understand where in the development of the characters Season 7 was. This story was meant to be set after one of the final episodes of Season 7, Preemptive Strike, and therefore lent the storyline to the Maquis.
Several issues for me were apparent very early on.
By the end of the seventh season, Picard had loosened up a lot and regarded the crew much more as friends than colleagues. Therefore it felt very off to me that he would be referring to his first officer as Riker. In the show by this point he was always referring to him as Will, or Number One. And when talking to others he would refer to him as Commander Riker. Using his surname just felt off to me, given when this should be set.
I also feel like the author watched a YouTube video of the most cliched or funny things of note in TNGs run and tried to shoe horn them in. By the second chapter, Will was trying to get it on with a purple alien female for one thing. Worf, as usual, made suggestions that were sensible and yet ignored. There was even a joke somewhere about Riker not having a chair to sit in, referring to the now infamous Riker manoeuvre.
One of the more infuriating things was how the author kept referring to the stardrive section as the hull section. The hull covers the whole ship! The section you're referring to is the stardrive section. Basic TNG knowledge there. Also, Riker is from Alaska. There is no way he would say 'shut that bloody thing off.' Unless he is secretly British, which I doubt.
Also, given the timing of when this book was written (after the events of Generations), to have 4 pages dedicated to the cringy foreshadowing of the saucer section crash landing was just a little too cringy for me. A simple 'imagine if that happened' would have sufficed. We did not need a detailed conversation to make sure the reader got just what they were referring to.
The story itself kept me interested long enough, although I suspect because this was a fairly short read at around 230 pages. However, given the stakes and the cinematic nature of the climax for the story, it just fell flat for me. Additionally, the annoying choice of the author to constantly refer to the Architect's past and how she spent time with the Enterprise crew and she missed them all, and yet even at the end, NOT acknowledge that this was Ro Laren, was infuriating.
Overall, this was a decent story with intrigue and interest, but it was a bad TNG story, giving the vibe that the author had no idea of who the characters were by this point in the timeline. If you see it on offer then grab yourself a copy, but otherwise, I'd advise skipping it.
This was my first TNG novel, and I went into it with very high hopes. Unfortunately, from the very beginning, there were issues for me. Despite this being the 8th Star Trek novel by the author, it felt like it had been written by someone who had either never watched the show, or didn't understand where in the development of the characters Season 7 was. This story was meant to be set after one of the final episodes of Season 7, Preemptive Strike, and therefore lent the storyline to the Maquis.
Several issues for me were apparent very early on.
By the end of the seventh season, Picard had loosened up a lot and regarded the crew much more as friends than colleagues. Therefore it felt very off to me that he would be referring to his first officer as Riker. In the show by this point he was always referring to him as Will, or Number One. And when talking to others he would refer to him as Commander Riker. Using his surname just felt off to me, given when this should be set.
I also feel like the author watched a YouTube video of the most cliched or funny things of note in TNGs run and tried to shoe horn them in. By the second chapter, Will was trying to get it on with a purple alien female for one thing. Worf, as usual, made suggestions that were sensible and yet ignored. There was even a joke somewhere about Riker not having a chair to sit in, referring to the now infamous Riker manoeuvre.
One of the more infuriating things was how the author kept referring to the stardrive section as the hull section. The hull covers the whole ship! The section you're referring to is the stardrive section. Basic TNG knowledge there. Also, Riker is from Alaska. There is no way he would say 'shut that bloody thing off.' Unless he is secretly British, which I doubt.
Also, given the timing of when this book was written (after the events of Generations), to have 4 pages dedicated to the cringy foreshadowing of the saucer section crash landing was just a little too cringy for me. A simple 'imagine if that happened' would have sufficed. We did not need a detailed conversation to make sure the reader got just what they were referring to.
The story itself kept me interested long enough, although I suspect because this was a fairly short read at around 230 pages. However, given the stakes and the cinematic nature of the climax for the story, it just fell flat for me. Additionally, the annoying choice of the author to constantly refer to the Architect's past and how she spent time with the Enterprise crew and she missed them all, and yet even at the end, NOT acknowledge that this was Ro Laren, was infuriating.
Overall, this was a decent story with intrigue and interest, but it was a bad TNG story, giving the vibe that the author had no idea of who the characters were by this point in the timeline. If you see it on offer then grab yourself a copy, but otherwise, I'd advise skipping it.
February 13, 2021
I was not looking forward to rereading this book--I hadn't read it since it first came out in 1995. Though I remembered nothing of it, the title was very off putting to me because of the premise it implied--the saucer section of a Galaxy class ship, most likely that of the Enterprise, is taken/stolen by others and it's up to the remaining crew members to get it back. That sounded absolutely hoaky. It was the cheesiest thing for a Star Trek novel to employ. I'm happy to say that I'm gleefully eating my words because this was an outstanding Star Trek tale.
Without spoiling things, yes a saucer section is taken, but in a way that is believable. The characters involved with stealing it get better service from Vornholt than they did in the majority of their television episodes. The inclusion of a commanding reoccurring character from the Next Generation also does much to increase her personality and I found myself wishing that she had been in more of the book, though when she appears it is always memorable.
The crew is split, with some on the Enterprise and some in the saucer section. Riker gets a lot of physical action, as one would expect, but I was extremely pleased to have Geordi in the thick of things as well. I was also very impressed with Crusher and Trio who are outside of their comfort zones in this adventure, but come across wonderfully prepared and confident in their actions.
Just as I thought the novel was beginning to wind down, a new set of antagonists appear increasing the danger of the situation. I hadn't considering them arriving in this novel, but their appearances were outstanding and I loved every page and paragraph they appeared.
I know this is a rather coy review, but because I went into this novel making assumptions about what it could be about, and they weren't positive ones, I was able to fall in love with this book and enjoy the hell out of this ride. I hope you do, too.
Without spoiling things, yes a saucer section is taken, but in a way that is believable. The characters involved with stealing it get better service from Vornholt than they did in the majority of their television episodes. The inclusion of a commanding reoccurring character from the Next Generation also does much to increase her personality and I found myself wishing that she had been in more of the book, though when she appears it is always memorable.
The crew is split, with some on the Enterprise and some in the saucer section. Riker gets a lot of physical action, as one would expect, but I was extremely pleased to have Geordi in the thick of things as well. I was also very impressed with Crusher and Trio who are outside of their comfort zones in this adventure, but come across wonderfully prepared and confident in their actions.
Just as I thought the novel was beginning to wind down, a new set of antagonists appear increasing the danger of the situation. I hadn't considering them arriving in this novel, but their appearances were outstanding and I loved every page and paragraph they appeared.
I know this is a rather coy review, but because I went into this novel making assumptions about what it could be about, and they weren't positive ones, I was able to fall in love with this book and enjoy the hell out of this ride. I hope you do, too.
October 4, 2023
TNG #39: Rogue Saucer by John Vornholt
I enjoyed this book somewhat. It featured the Enterprise testing out a new Saucer that crash and survive on a planet and be lifted up again. But the experimental saucer is taken over by the Maquis! It was interesting to see the Maquis as the villains as I never felt like they were developed enough in the various TV shows they were on.
Overall, this was a very fun book with the usual hallmarks of a good TNG book. Great action, great characters but I wish the book had more humour. This book felt very Peter David with how it is, but it lacked humour. There was still some funny bits here and there, but I felt like the story would have benefited from having some comedy in it. Anyway, the planet where the saucer ends up crashing is interesting as it’s a pre industrial society and a unique sounding world. Also, some nice nods and mentions of DS9 characters was great. It truly made Star Trek feel like a shared universe.
Also, Ro showing up briefly was nice.
7.5/10
I enjoyed this book somewhat. It featured the Enterprise testing out a new Saucer that crash and survive on a planet and be lifted up again. But the experimental saucer is taken over by the Maquis! It was interesting to see the Maquis as the villains as I never felt like they were developed enough in the various TV shows they were on.
Overall, this was a very fun book with the usual hallmarks of a good TNG book. Great action, great characters but I wish the book had more humour. This book felt very Peter David with how it is, but it lacked humour. There was still some funny bits here and there, but I felt like the story would have benefited from having some comedy in it. Anyway, the planet where the saucer ends up crashing is interesting as it’s a pre industrial society and a unique sounding world. Also, some nice nods and mentions of DS9 characters was great. It truly made Star Trek feel like a shared universe.
Also, Ro showing up briefly was nice.
7.5/10
September 24, 2025
This book was written after watching Star Trek Generations. Talking about landing the saucer on a planet and saying things like ‘I am sure that would never happen’.
Same examples with quotes, sorry no page numbers.
“Helm, full reverse,” said Beverly, gripping her chair. “Mason, can we fire back without risking our shields?”
You can fire weapons from the ship through the shields, I don’t any technical reasons, probably some frequency thing
“CAPTAIN PICARD CONTINUED TO STUDY the two identical saucers in his viewscreen, wondering if there were an easier way to find out which saucer contained the Maquis.”
Use your optical devices. Use the view screen or a window. The actual saucer section would have USS enterprise 1701-D on top
“They’ve gone into warp drive,”
This just doesn’t sound right
Same examples with quotes, sorry no page numbers.
“Helm, full reverse,” said Beverly, gripping her chair. “Mason, can we fire back without risking our shields?”
You can fire weapons from the ship through the shields, I don’t any technical reasons, probably some frequency thing
“CAPTAIN PICARD CONTINUED TO STUDY the two identical saucers in his viewscreen, wondering if there were an easier way to find out which saucer contained the Maquis.”
Use your optical devices. Use the view screen or a window. The actual saucer section would have USS enterprise 1701-D on top
“They’ve gone into warp drive,”
This just doesn’t sound right
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 19, 2021
Rogue Saucer features a fun premise, straight out of the pages of the TNG Technical Manual.
However, this concept of a rogue Galaxy-class saucer section isn't well explored and mostly serves as a device in service of a haphazard and inconsistent plot. It misses some opportunities to flesh out some secondary characters like Admiral Nechayev we don't know much about, with most characters lacking depth or texture.
It's always fun to see the crew on shore leave and imagine what exotic starbases are like, and the same-but-different setting of the Enterprise is also an interesting backdrop. However, nothing much happens with either. By far the most interesting aspect of the book is a view of the realities of the Maquis, but this is ground already adequately covered by DS9.
However, this concept of a rogue Galaxy-class saucer section isn't well explored and mostly serves as a device in service of a haphazard and inconsistent plot. It misses some opportunities to flesh out some secondary characters like Admiral Nechayev we don't know much about, with most characters lacking depth or texture.
It's always fun to see the crew on shore leave and imagine what exotic starbases are like, and the same-but-different setting of the Enterprise is also an interesting backdrop. However, nothing much happens with either. By far the most interesting aspect of the book is a view of the realities of the Maquis, but this is ground already adequately covered by DS9.
July 5, 2023
Even for a genre novel this just wasn't very good. No characterizations. Everyone exhausted to start with, then pushed to their limits, and then some of them pushed beyond, but of course not really. I normally don't like the Cardassian & Maquis stuff, but there was some interesting-ish ideas about that here. Very quick read but still not quite worth my time.
And mind the homophones. It's a hull breach, not breech. And another plane of existence, not plain.
I'm pretty glad I'm almost to the end of the set that I inherited from my brother, actually.
And mind the homophones. It's a hull breach, not breech. And another plane of existence, not plain.
I'm pretty glad I'm almost to the end of the set that I inherited from my brother, actually.
April 21, 2024
Quick read with lots of thrilling action that you can imagine having been an episode of tng, and not much else. Before I read this book I heard that Beverly and Guinan have some great scenes together, and they have a couple but they don't really do much. The scene of Troi enjoying her shore leave felt strange and out of character. I've heard good things about this writer and his use of characters, but I'd argue I didn't really see it here, at least not from the main tng cast. Overall I did enjoy it, I just expected more.
November 14, 2024
A quick read. Takes place between the penultimate TNG episode and the two-part finale. Interestingly, there's a mention of Troi having learned a bit about poker in the past. An admiral fans are familiar with returns in this. There are hints still of Crusher and Picard's feelings. During shore leave, I thought it was kind of gross how bathing in the milk is compared to being covered in egg whites. I did wonder if the mention of coffee not being allowed on a bridge was a little wink to Voyager.
February 2, 2018
One that I was looking forward to reading once I got to it and was happy it was not disappointing. A fun story that utilized an under-utilized part about the Enterprise-D. It found an odd balance of being original in a lot of its ideas and then being a knock-off of a few Star Trek episodes. Overall, though I did like the story despite the villains being kind of idiots.
January 4, 2024
A well written book that seems more like an episode
I think John Vornholt did an outstanding job of crafting a great story that seemed like one was reading an actual TNG episode. There was very little use of overused TNG character clichés, like “Make it so.” I highly recommend this book.
I think John Vornholt did an outstanding job of crafting a great story that seemed like one was reading an actual TNG episode. There was very little use of overused TNG character clichés, like “Make it so.” I highly recommend this book.
January 26, 2024
Great concept for a story, but the last third dragged. It seemed unnecessary to have two saucer sections (that's not a spoiler), and the way the 2nd was handled was to stick all the women characters together in one, which is an odd choice, especially since they treat Guinan like a waitress at the end. '
September 20, 2025
Good story, the parallel storylines are very entertaining. Admiral Nechayev interrupts shore leave for the USS Enterprise, to carry out an experiment on saucer separation. Of course something goes horribly wrong and both skeleton crews (Enterprise and Saucer) are against a traitor, the Maquis and the Cardassians. The main focus is upon Riker and LaForge and their efforts to simply survive.
August 11, 2018
At first I thought this was going to be like the way my mom told Star Trek, only about shore leave and not very exciting, but this book soon changed course. It sometimes seemed a little heavy on the whole everything is going wrong tactic, but it is still a good Next Generation book.
October 3, 2020
I love it! One of my favorite TNG Episodes!
The narrative is so good that i felt i was actually watching an episode of TNG on TV. We have one authoritative figure to hate and the senior members of TNG fighting to save the Enterprise. What more can a TNG fan ask for?
The narrative is so good that i felt i was actually watching an episode of TNG on TV. We have one authoritative figure to hate and the senior members of TNG fighting to save the Enterprise. What more can a TNG fan ask for?
November 9, 2021
I liked this book It was good that the two saucer sections fought each other the author once again got the main characters spot on the supporting characters were good as well and I got a feeling that the architect was ro laren but I could be wrong
February 14, 2018
Fast paced exciting story line written with wit and resists the temptation to be too preachy.
September 15, 2019
Just fun reading.
April 11, 2021
Great old pocketbook, bringing back the old good Trek. No empty spaces, believable characters, interesting story.
February 11, 2024
Good read! Felt like I was watching an episode of TNG on screen!
May 1, 2025
4.25 Would’ve cost way too much to produce for the television series, but wow would this have made for a great episode.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 48 reviews