After having read and greatly enjoyed Diane Carey's Red Sector, an excellent novel in the midst of a just-okay miniseries, I was excited to read this book, the first in the New Earth miniseries. Carey developed the New Earth concept with editor John Ordover, and wrote the first and last books in the sequence. She also co-wrote the second book with Dean Wesley Smith.
In Wagon Train to the Stars (a phrase Gene Roddenberry famously used to pitch the original Star Trek TV series), Captain Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise have been tasked with escorting a fleet of ships carrying a determined group of colonists to a newly discovered, earth-like planet where they hope to make a new home for themselves. The planet, which the colonists have named Belle Terre, is in a previously uncharted area of space, far from the Federation. The story takes place shortly after the events of Star Trek: The Motion Picture, and presents an entirely new kind of challenge for Kirk.
On their long journey to Belle Terre, the expedition is plagued by a number of problems, including illness, malfunctioning equipment, and conflict amongst the civilian passengers and Starfleet officers. What at first appear to be a random series of misfortunes are eventually revealed to be the machinations of one man, Billy Maidenshore, a thief who Kirk has had dealings with in the past and who secretly plans to sell a portion of the expedition ships and the colonists they are carrying to the Orions. Eventually, Maidenshore's plot is uncovered and thwarted by Kirk, but Maidenshore escapes to forge another alliance, this time with an alien race called the Blood. The Blood have been locked in a generations long conflict with another race called the Kauld. Shucorion, the leader of the Blood, has himself formed a tentative alliance with the Kauld in the hopes of pitting Kauld and the Federation against one another so that they will destroy themselves. Neither Blood nor Kauld want the Federation intruding on their space, which is near Belle Terre.
If this all sounds somewhat complicated, it is. But not overwhelmingly so. Diane Carey has carefully crafted an intricate novel filled with complex characters whose motivations and loyalties are constantly shifting. I appreciated the detail that went into this novel. Many of the colonists are fully developed, interesting characters with distinct personalities. Great care has been taken to develop the Blood and the Kauld as distinct and complex cultures. There is also a lot of detail in regards to Kirk and the Enterprise crew's duties in shepherding the Belle Terre colonists to their new home. In short, this is an exquisitely crafted novel that stands well on its own, even as it sets the stage for things to come. I greatly enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more about the Belle Terre colonists.
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