Product Description

The Romulan Empire is in disarray after the destructive leadership of the Reman Shinzon, and Ambassador Spock launches a bold attempt to reunify the Romulans with their distant forbears, the Vulcans. But when Spock is publicly assassinated at a Romulan peace rally, Starfleet and the Federation are unable to search for the criminals responsible without triggering an intergalactic war. Thus it falls to James T. Kirk to investigate the death of his beloved friend. Given covert assistance by Captains Jean-Luc Picard on the newly-refitted Enterprise and Will Riker on the Argo, Kirk travels to Romulus as a civilian, accompanied by his eight-year-old son Joseph and the cantankerous Dr McCoy. There he discovers an alluring enemy from his past and discovers that Spock's apparent murder hides a deeper mystery, one that reaches back in time to the very origins of life on Earth. Trapped on a deadly, alien world on the eve of a civil war that could plunge the galaxy into a civilization-ending conflict, Kirk's investigation brings him at last to a hidden Reman fortress. There he uncovers the true threat facing the Romulans, and learns that for peace to prevail he must sacrifice his son, whose blood holds a staggering secret...

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #183878 in Books
• Published on: 2005-02-07
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 352 pages

About the Author
William Shatner is known to millions as the actor who played Captain James T. Kirk throughout the original Star Trek television series and several movies. He is now a bestselling science fiction author.

Customer Reviews

A great return to classic Shatner trek
After the slow paced, dissapointing Captains Peril, Shatner stikes back with this excellent story. Continuing to weave threads from established Star Trek stories into his books, this story picks up where Star Trek 10 : Nemesis, left off. While the film was ultimatly dissapointing, Shatner has picked up where the film left off, and delved deeper into the story, examining the Romulan / Reman relationship. Providing an explanation for Shinzons attempted attack, that we never got in Nemesis. All the usual suspects are here, and they are on a mission (or three) to Romulus, charged with securing the future safety of the Federation. This is what we had been waiting for, a top-notch Romulan story.

This book races along, with a story to match any other trek novel, and is most definatly one of my favourites.

..
There is no mystique as to whether William Shatner's novels in his Star Trek series are ghost written, as they are co written and all of them have been and this is not a secret, he thanks them at the start of the books and they are very well known writers of other Star Trek fiction. These co writers will obviously be in tune with the current Star Trek series even if Mr Shatner is not and what is wrong with a bit of continuity in Science Fiction, it is a good thing. Anyway the book itself, for its genre is excellent and the characterisation and interaction between, Spock, Kirk and Mccoy are always excellent and affectionately written. Looking forward to Captain's Glory, his books are not rocket science but they are entertaining..

Captain's Blood - Someone Shoot Shatner
Captain's Blood, the latest Kirk escapade penned by William Shatner and Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens, begins in the wake of Star Trek Nemesis. Spock, speaking for the cause of Unification on Romulus, is assassinated in the opening, fuelling Starfleet to request Jim Kirk, his son Joseph, Bones, Scotty, Picard, La Forge, Crusher and the holographic Doctor to go and investigate. A promising start indeed.

The story gets you involved rather quickly, with the Romulan Star Empire's stability on tenterhooks and the mysterious Remans looming over the page, you begin to expect good things from this novel. I was personally disappointed with Shatner's continuation of Kirk's adventures after Avenger, which was good, but not as good as The Return, or even The Ashes of Eden. The mirror universe trilogy bored me to tears. It seems so lame to me, so irrelevant. So I was happy when he left that one alone. But now I'm unhappy again. Shatner introduces Norinda, a character from Kirk's original mission aboard the Enterprise NCC-1701. Things start to go down hill around here; the story starts to put the breaks on. They never even get to Romulus, and get to unravel the political mess it is in, never encounter the Tal Shiar, because this wildcard character is responsible for everything.

As a fan, I personally believe that Star Trek literature should exist primarily to explore more of what has already been laid out in film and television. The return of Kirk was a welcomed exception. So when you start reading a book that starts with a nice Romulan adventure, and ends with the beginning of a galactic invasion, little or nothing to do with a possible Romulan Civil war, you feel milked. Milked for your money I mean, because it seems Shatner is reeling these books off for the hell of it now. The detailed characterisation we appreciated in The Ashes of Eden, The Return and Avenger are just not there. The exploration of the Star Trek universe has seemingly ended. This book was a perfect opportunity for Shatner and the Reeves-Stevens's to tell us more about the dichotomy of the Romulan people, to tell us the story of Picard and Kirk seeking the truth behind the apparent death of their friend Spock. It was also the chance for us to see the return of the Tal Shiar, the Romulan secret police, we all know how much fun they can be. But no, they may have gone to Romulus, they may be on Remus, but it's nothing to do with Romulans, nothing to do with Remans, its all thanks to an intergalactic shape-shifter. Woo.

This book seems to be the child of a misplaced hunger for surprise. It's as if Shatner said, well, this book is about the catastrophic possibility of a Romulan/Reman civil war. But I want to surprise the fans: I want to put a twist in it! I know what's original! An invasion from another galaxy! Nothing whatsoever to do with the Romulan Star Empire! Great thinking, Bill.

This book seems a purely empty journey, solely for the purpose of another sequel, Captain's Glory. Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps, if the 'surprise' plot twist (that of Norinda being responsible for EVERYTHING), had been delivered with more skill and grace that it was, it might have been interesting. But it wasn't, because it's written like silly string.

You should probably only read half way through this book, and then put it on your shelf to collect dust. Yes, it would leave you wondering what happened; where did the story go? Well, I read the whole book, and I was still left wondering where the potentially engrossing novel I was reading went to. It must have been beamed out of Shatner's mind as he wrote it.

Out of 10, if 1 is 'a complete waste of time', and 10 is 'I'm a richer person for having read Captain's Blood', then I'd give it a 2, tops. These books continuing the adventures of James T. Kirk should be entitled 'Star Trek: The Continuing Adventures of Bill Shatner's Retirement Fund'.

At least we have the next instalment, Captain's Glory, promised to us. That will surely tell us more of the impending GALACTIC INVASION we can look forward to. I for one can't wait ;)