Prepare to step into Stebbins County, a town no larger than eight thousand people on a good day and follow in the footsteps of the local peace officers, Officer Desdemona Fox, Dez for short and Sergeant J.T. Hammonds, J.T. for short. The coupling of these two could not have worked out better; neither have any family left and no attachments to speak of, except for the community. J.T. looks out for Dez as a father figure, since he is a couple years longer in the tooth than she and is more than willing to do anything to make sure she does not get hurt at all.  Dez, an Afghanistan veteran is just trying to keep her head above water, but out of the site line of the public eye as she practices loose morals when it comes to her personal life.

The day starts off pretty normal, Dez and J.T. stop off to get coffee when they receive a call for what appears to be a by the numbers case of breaking and entering. When they arrive at Dr. Hartnup’s Mortuary to investigate, there is nothing standard about what they encounter. The good Doctor is on the floor, his throat has been pulled out and the same thing has happened to his cleaning woman. The two call in for backup to get a proper handle on the scene, but during this time the cleaning woman wakes up and attacks Dez. Taking several shots from Dez’s M21 Glock, the woman finally stops her pursuit and lies down dead once again on the floor, but Dr. Hartnup’s body...goes missing.

That is the start of Jonathan Maberry’s Dead of Night. A small town is ravaged by the undead, but these are not your standard zombies, instead they are a man made strain that was supposed to be used in war time efforts. Lucifer 113 was developed by a Dr. Volker who defected to the United States back in World War II. As a doctor of corrections now in a local prison, his motives have changed when it comes to the use of this chemical. His new goal is to punish the evil, by keeping them alive and conscious after they have been put six feet under after being executed. The plan was sound, but one inmate, Homer Gibbon changed everything by waking up after his death, passing on the gift he had received in the form of a bite.

Homer’s return to Stebbins County was a memorable one for the entire population, for one bite, turns into two, two turns into four and so on. Within hours, hundreds of people have been turned into the Hollow Men, roaming the streets with nothing but finding human flesh on their minds. J.T. and Dez stay on the scene, but are pursued not only by the zombies, but by the government as well. Returning to his home town, Billy Trout, Dez’s ex lover, tries to come save the day with his knowledge of media outlets, but it may be too little too late once the National Guard is called in and told to eradicate the town.

If you're having problems finding a good zombie novel without the name Walking Dead attached to it, pick up Dead of Night. It includes the same principles as any other end of the world story, try to survive as long as you can. Plus there is also a hurricane that makes the survival efforts that much worse, or better, depending on how you look at it, and you'll find great characters filled with worry about losing their own humanity when having to kill their own neighbors to survive. This is how the world ends. Not with a bang…..but a bite.

It is hard for all of us to remember sometimes that every villain in a story has a beginning. Despite their power, or their anger, there is a reason for who or what they are. 

At times in literature this can be good or bad. Sometimes knowing what the monster is removes its power, or sometimes learning that they were merely misunderstood makes us sympathize or empathize with the villain rather than fear them as we once did. Either way, it is a risky gamble, and David Mack was more than happy to be up to the challenge, by revealing the origin of The Borg in the final entry in his Star Trek: Destiny series, Lost Souls.

There is disaster brewing in the Azure Nebula as the Borg send their extermination force at last. These seven thousand cubes lay waste to Captain Picard's task force before moving on toward the Alpha and Beta Quadrants, their numbers enough to obliterate every life on every world. Hope has disappeared, the Borg have adapted to every weapon the Federation has to offer. It seems that the end is near. But Captain Erika Hernandez, once the captain of the U.S.S. Columbia has made an incredible discovery, one that may hold the key to defeating the Borg once and for all. 

Truly, Gods of Night and Mere Mortals were nothing more than a pair of appetizers compared to the amazing main course that is Lost Souls simply due to the fact that the origin of the Borg, isn’t silly. We are presented with a logical and plausible backstory to Star Trek’s greatest villain and it completely works. In fact it manages to make the Borg a little more evil than they already are. 

David Mack also does a masterful job of bringing everyone’s story full circle in this book. Every character has a purpose, a rarity for a story of this scope. It also continues the excellent character development that began with the first book, and being a big time Picard fan I was glad to see where the story took his character overall. Equally as impressive is Mack’s ability to take the tension in this story to a new level. There is a terrible sense of dread as the Borg begin their massive assault on every star system in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants and one is left thinking, how will the Federation get themselves out of this one? 

All in all, the Star Trek: Destiny series is a great read. It takes everything that is great about Trek and packs it into three books that come across as if you were watching an incredible cross over event on television. It is available now in a trade paperback so that you can enjoy all three books in one sitting for the traditional book reader and for the digital readers, it is also available in the e-book format. Either way, check it out. You won’t be disappointed, and most likely, you will long for the days of Star Trek on television once more, making the wait for Star Trek: Discovery all the more difficult. 

I am, and always will be a huge fan of Star Trek. While its message of hope and tolerance continues to captivate me, this storied franchise can at times be a little goody-goody. 

It is understandable why, we have yet to see such peace in our lifetime and conflict is something we most certainly understand.  Which is why it is refreshing from time to time to see the good people of the Federation go through hard times so we can see how this utopian society will deal with the bad that is out there. But when it comes to the second book in the Star Trek: Destiny trilogy by David Mack, he does the unthinkable and puts the people of the Federation on the brink of extermination. 

Mere Mortals picks up immediately after Gods of Night with the Enterprise stumbling across a great discovery in the Azure Nebula. It turns out that this nebula is where the Borg have been launching attacks upon the Alpha and Beta Quadrants, by making use of the Nebulas's dense clouds to mask the subspace conduit they travel through, and it is here where Captain Jean-Luc Picard believes Starfleet can make a stand. This discovery gives the Federation some breathing room and time to plan a counter offensive. They plan to put together an armada of ships that will destroy the Borg staging ground once the Aventine or Enterprise find its exact location, but it may not be enough. There are too many conduits to explore and the Borg could appear at any moment, and Picard knows that when they do, it will be the end of the Federation and all known life. 

What separates this book from so many other Star Trek stories, is the incredible amount of detail that David provides when it comes to the aftermath of space battle. We have seen sickbays filled to the brim with injured officers before, often times in the midst of combat or immediately right after, but Mister Mack holds nothing back and provides us with a stunning amount of gory detail in this story, even down to what kind of surgery is performed, the lives that are lost and the horrible fashion in which they die.  It is a fine reminder that space is a dangerous place and despite the perfect nature of the Federation, there are still beings out there willing to harm and willing to take a life. 

But what matters most here, is the sheer suspense that builds as the story progresses. Page after page we know that the Borg will be coming and that the fight will be the stuff of legend, and it leaves the reader as uneasy as the characters. In fact this book takes us deep inside Jean-Luc Picard's mind, for the first time showing us exactly what he really knows about the Borg and truly how much he fears them. This is a book that exudes desperation, fear and panic but never in an over the top or ridiculous fashion. If Gods of Night was the simmering pot of water, everything in Mere Mortals brings it to a boil, leaving you ready to see just how explosive the story will end in the third book, Lost Souls.  

A great villain can make a big difference in the quality of a story and in some cases, the more vile and evil they are, the more they captivate us. The idea that something or someone so awful can exist is truly fascinating and in the Star Trek universe no villain fits the bill of evil 'perfection' better than the omnipotent Borg. They first appeared in The Next Generation and the impact of their arrival was felt throughout all aspects of the Trek franchise, especially TNG and Voyager.  

They were and continue to be a chilling nemesis for the Federation. Half man, half machine, united to a cause by one hive mind and hungry to assimilate new technology and cultures into their collective, but as the franchise continued on, the Borg lost their proverbial teeth, becoming more of a nuisance on Voyager than the death sentence they appeared to be on The Next Generation. Thankfully, the Borg are a force to be reckoned with once again, courtesy of author David Mack and his trilogy of novels: Star Trek Destiny.

The first book in the Destiny series; Gods of Night, takes place a little over a year after the events of Star Trek: Nemesis and unfortunately for the United Federation of Planets, the Borg have returned. Somehow, they have managed to evade all of Starfleet’s defenses and appear without warning before conducting devastating surgical strikes. The attacks are escalating, Starfleet’s casualties are mounting and other cultures in the Alpha and Beta quadrants are quickly being threatened. But as the Federation scrambles to repel the Borg once more, the discovery of the wreckage of the long lost U.S.S. Columbia, will set in motion a series of events that will bring together the past and the present and help decide the fate of the galaxy.

It is an epic and ambitious setup that David Mack has put together in this novel, and what makes the book so ambitious for starters, is the fact that it spans across several eras of the Trek universe, and also because it involves a slew of important captains/characters to help tell this sweeping tale. We are of course reunited with Picard and Riker and their respective ships the U.S.S. Enterprise and U.S.S. Titan but a few new captains appear here as well, and they are equally as important to the story. The final fate of Captain Erika Hernandez and the crew of the U.S.S. Columbia is a big part of this tale, and I simply cannot leave out the newly commissioned Captain Ezri Dax of Deep Space Nine fame as she takes the conn of the U.S.S. Aventine. 

If that seems like a lot of characters and stories to keep track of, it is. But David Mack handles it with ease, and makes it easy for the reader to follow along. There is a purpose for everything in this story and for assembling so many characters and it is difficult to discuss much more without unloading spoilers upon you. But know that the story is kept at a break neck pace, which for a setup novel, is an unexpected and pleasant surprise, and David does a phenomenal job of weaving a powerful tapestry here that feels like a Star Trek movie and there is also plenty of action and starship combat courtesy of the Borg. But the bottom line is; this is a good read that quickly reels you in and keeps you snared by giving us spot on characterizations and by providing incredible tension, but most importantly this book sets up so many fascinating questions that you're compelled to pick up the next entry in the series to learn more and to see where this rich story will take you next...

Sue Duff is a Denver based author, that has managed to captivate countless readers with a slick prose that instantly grabs your attention, and her wonderful writing style has helped create a stellar series of novels that easily transport the reader to rich and stunning worlds, known as The Weir Chronicles. The third book in the series, Sleight of Hand is one that we here at Nerds That Geek reviewed last year and as luck would have it, the newest entry in the saga, Stack a Deck is available now in digital format and since we are equally as curious about this novel as well, we sat down with Sue, to discuss her new book and the future of the franchise.

Nerds That Geek: What can you tell us about the plot to 'Stack a Deck' without giving anything major away?
Sue Duff: In the previous book, Sleight of Hand, Ian’s life on Earth is turned upside down. In the fourth book, Stack a Deck, he travels to Earth’s alternate universe, Thrae, to rescue Rayne and discovers just how ruthless and barbaric Aeros and the Primary can be. It’s not only a jolt to Ian, but marks his evolution into becoming the hero the readers always knew he could be. In the meantime, Patrick and Jaered are forced to work together, and the lessons they learn from each other will carry them into the final, and ultimate battle everyone is about to face.

Nerds That Geek: What are you most excited for the fans to discover in this story?
Sue Duff: The interrelationships between the primary, core characters grow deeper, and stronger than ever! I always knew that there were major, OMG plot moments in the third book for the readers, and I didn’t disappoint. But in the fourth book, Ian and his gang make hardcore emotional sacrifices while at the same time exposing their feelings in ways I suspect the readers didn’t see coming. It prepares them for the showdown in the fifth and final book, and leaves them all vulnerable. They don’t all survive.

Nerds That Geek: Is there a sense of sadness with the release of this book, knowing that the final story is around the corner?
Sue Duff: Absolutely! I’ve spent most of my waking energy and dreams on these characters and telling their story over the past few years. Even with the ultimate battle on the horizon, there won’t be an “ending” with the next, and last book. There is always more to tell. If the fans aren’t ready for the gang to slip silently into the night, tangents can be found and honed, certainly. I don’t know if I have full length novels left to tell, but novellas and short stories are always a possibility.

Nerds That Geek: Once the fans finish this book, when can they expect the finale, and is there anything you can tell us about it?
Sue Duff: I’m counting on having the fifth book available no later than this time next year, February 2018. I’ve already hinted that not everyone survives when they take on Aeros and the Primary (including his Pur army). That’s about as much as I’m willing to spill. But by the time the fans finish the fourth book, Stack a Deck, they’ll see where things are headed!

Nerds That Geek: What's on the agenda next for you after this book?
​Sue Duff: I have a very exciting story that I’m already developing. It’s about a sixteen-year-old girl who finds out that there’s far worse things than her simple looks, her stupid life and her seemingly dull future! I hope to do it justice!

To learn more about Stack a Deck, and other novels in the series, visit Sue's Website and to order a digital copy today (Hardcover and Paperback copies will be available on 2/15) head on over to Amazon, and make sure to follow Sue's Facebook and Twitter pages for more exciting updates on the upcoming conclusion to the thrilling Weir Chronicles saga!