Totality: The New Borg

Review Disclaimer: When listening to an audio book, it's harder to take notes to write a more detailed review (usually I'm driving). Because I also came into the trilogy with the final novel (an abridged reading), my rating was affected. Despite these inconveniences, I'm sure future readers, or listeners, will be engrossed in the Star Trek universe as throughly as I was. So, enjoy my short and sweet review of a purely entertaining read.

This is an abridged audio version of the third book in a trilogy about an enemy called the Totality. Star Trek fans will enjoy this reading by William Shatner because he brings the characters alive with his engaging impersonations (although he could work on his women's voices). This audio book was like a radio show broadcast with special effects and a musical score that rivals the series. 

The main negative aspect to this book is the fact that it's abridged. I recommend reading the print version and then listening to the audio CDs to gain a different experience of the story. 

Finally, remember that it's the finale to a trilogy, so try reading the first two books in the series. I didn't realize this fact until after I had finished listening to it. Despite this unfortunate realization, I still throughly enjoyed the book and was able to follow most of the back-story. 

This book has an engaging and interesting villain, the Totality, which will draw Borg fans into the depths of the Star Trek universe. Countering the villain's efforts to consume humanoid life in the universe are favorite heroes from various Star Trek series: Captain Kirk, Captain Picard, Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy, Chief Engineer Scott, and even Admiral Kathryn Janeway, to name a few. Overall, I enjoyed the interactions between Picard and Kirk the best, many of the scenes were thought provoking or comical depending on the situation. And of course the epic battle between the heroes and the villain had me on the edge of my seat until the interesting conclusion. 

Although the entire crew of the Next Generation makes an appearance in this book there was one question left unanswered for me: Where was Data?