This is the first Star Trek book I have ever read. After being a fan of the show for as long as I can remember, and missing it since Enterprise was cancelled, I decided to start checking out some of the numerous books.That said, I have no idea why I picked this one first, but I am glad I did, because Greg Cox is a great writer. I have never seen a complete episode of the original series (I know, geek blasphemy! Sorry.). I know of Khan from Star Trek II, and that's it. So, it was odd that I picked it up a few years ago.
Anyway, the book is actually all about Gary Seven and Roberta Lincoln. After a prologue featuring Kirk and the gang, the book is set in the late twentieth century, spanning almost 20 years. Gary Seven and Roberta Lincoln had the use of a supercomputer, transporters, and a "servo" (basically fancy phasers). I didn't understand why they had these things in the 1970s, so I did some research. I found out that these are canon characters from an episode of TOS, Assignment Earth, where the crew heads back to 1968.
I guess Gary Seven had been sent to Earth to keep humans from destroying themselves. In the show he prevented a nuclear missile from launching. In the book, he, along with Roberta and his alien cat Isis, is a super agent in the vein of Bond. Well...the old Bond, you know, with gadgets. And teleporters. Anyway, many adventures are alluded to, and we get to see all those that involve the young Khan.
The book uses real world events, such as nuclear testing under the Indian desert, the chemical plant explosion at Bhopal, and the Reykjavík Summit to frame Khan's development from a sweet super-powerful genetically enhanced kid, to an angry super-powerful genetically enhanced teen. It is neat how Cox was able to tie in real events into Star Trek mythos. The book ended in a cliff-hanger, and after I finish the book I am reading now, I will pick up the sequel. Even if you aren't a Star Trek fan, check this one out, it's a lot of fun!
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