Nerds That Geek Book Review - 'Star Trek: Destiny' #3 - 'Lost Souls'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

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. 

---