David Mack: Oblivion's Gate. Twenty years ago Pocket Books started something incredible by continuing the story of Deep Space Nine, giving fans what happened after the finale, beginning what became affectionally know as the lit-verse and would span the entirety of the 24th century of Star Trek. In this episode of Literary Treks host Matthew Rushing welcomes author David Mack to talk about the final book in the Coda series, Oblivion's Gate. We discuss how he is feeling, hopes for the series, the prelude, the Borg are back in town, the mirror universe, the Riker story, Emissary and The Hand of the Prophets, Worf's love life, Wesley, time's skeleton key, making it mean something, a question, miss writing the most, ending with Picard, David online and final thoughts. Feature: David Mack How David is Feeling (00:01:46) Hopes for the Series (00:03:07) The Prelude (00:15:05) The Borg are Back in Town (00:18:12) Bringing in the Mirror Universe (00:30:05) The Riker Story (00:35:02) Emissary and The Hand of the Prophets (00:40:42) Worf's Love Life (00:46:32) Alpha and Omega (00:52:04) Time's Skeleton Key (00:58:52) Make it Mean Something (01:04:04) Characters You Wish You Could Have Used (01:07:48) Miss Writing the Most (01:11:34) Ending With Picard (01:17:03) David Online and Final Thoughts (01:28:00) Host Matthew Rushing Guest David Mack Production Matthew Rushing (Editor and Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Greg Rozier (Associate Producer) Casey Pettitt (Associate Producer)

Mere Mortals. The Borg continue to threaten the Federation with extinction, and its up to the crews of the Enterprise, Aventine, and Titan to stop them! On New Erigol, the Titan crew find themselves stranded, at the mercy of the mysterious Caelier and their centuries-old companion, Captain Erika Hernandez of the Columbia. Meanwhile, the Enterprise and Aventine explore the subspace tunnels that fill the Azure Nebula. Will they be able to determine which of them the Borg are using to enter Federation space and close it in time? In this episode of Literary Treks, hosts Dan Gunther and Bruce Gibson discus the second book in the Destiny trilogy Mere Mortals. We talk about the Enterprise and Aventine's attempts to scout the subspace tunnels, the plight of the Titan crew, Captain Hernandez's experiences with the Caeliar, President Bacco's attempts to win the Federation allies in their struggle against the Borg, Pazlar and Ra-Havreii's psychological issues, Deanna's ill-fated pregnancy, the shocking ending, and wrap up with our final thoughts. At the top of the show, we respond to listener feedback from The Babel Conference for Literary Treks 286: The Wrong Thing for the Right Reason. News Listener Feedback (00:05:52) Feature: Mere Mortals The Middle Book (00:14:00) Captains Dax and Picard (00:16:39) Subspace Tunnels (00:20:16) Titan on New Erigol (00:32:41) Hernandez's Transformation (00:37:36) President Bacco (00:49:20) Pazlar and Ra-Havreii (00:54:55) Deanna's Plight (01:00:08) The Ending (01:06:03) Ratings (01:16:20) Final Thoughts (01:20:54) Hosts Dan Gunther and Bruce Gibson Production Bruce Gibson (Editor and Producer) Dan Gunther (Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Ken Tripp (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Richard Marquez (Production Manager) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Patreon Manager) Ken Tripp (Associate Producer) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Associate Producer) Justin Oser (Associate Producer) Norman C. Lao (Associate Producer) Greg Rozier (Associate Producer) Jeffery Harlan (Associate Producer) Casey Pettitt (Associate Producer)

Gods of Night. As an apocalyptic Borg attack on the Federation begins, the crews of Starfleet's finest starships must rise to the occasion to defend everything they know and love. Meanwhile, the crashed wreck of the Starship Columbia may hold the key to explaining the Borg's vengeful invasion of the Federation. What happened 200 years ago that caused Columbia to crash, and how did it end up in the Gamma Quadrant? In this episode of Literary Treks, hosts Bruce Gibson and Dan Gunther are joined by The 602 Club's Matthew Rushing to discuss the first book in the Destiny trilogy by David Mack: Gods of Night. We talk about the mystery of the Columbia, the actions of the MACOs that led to her destruction, the mysterious Caeliar, Picard & Crusher's story, Riker & Troi on the Titan, an emotional moment for one of the Voyager crew, the cliffhanger ending, and wrap up with our final thoughts and ratings. In the news segment, we report on four new hardcover books announced at Destination Star Trek Birmingham: The Art of Star Trek: Discovery by Paula M. Block & Terry J. Erdmann, Star Trek: Voyager: A Celebration by Ben Robinson, The Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway "edited" by Una McCormack, and The Artistry of Dan Curry by Dan Curry & Ben Robinson. We also review issue #7 of Star Trek: Year Five and respond to feedback from the Babel Conference for Literary Treks 285: Those Bloody Mind Control Revolts! News Four New Books for 2020 (00:03:50) Star Trek Year Five #7 Comic Review (00:13:15) Listener Feedback (00:21:41) Feature: Gods of Night First Thoughts on Destiny (00:29:59) U.S.S. Aventine Finds the Columbia (00:40:29) Mutiny and Desperation (00:45:23) The Caeliar (00:53:08) Picard and the Borg (01:05:40) Life on the U.S.S. Titan (01:10:44) A Heartbreaking Voyager Moment (01:17:43) The End of Book One (01:23:25) Ratings (01:29:21) Final Thoughts (01:35:16) Hosts Dan Gunther and Bruce Gibson Guest Matthew Rushing Production Bruce Gibson (Editor and Producer) Dan Gunther (Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Ken Tripp (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Richard Marquez (Production Manager) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Patreon Manager) Ken Tripp (Associate Producer) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Associate Producer) Justin Oser (Associate Producer) Norman C. Lao (Associate Producer) Greg Rozier (Associate Producer) Jeffery Harlan (Associate Producer) Casey Pettitt (Associate Producer)

Vendetta. The Borg: the Federation's most lethal adversary. A force of nature, nearly unstoppable, and the harbinger of doom for any civilization unfortunate enough to come to the attention of this cybernetic menace. The crew of the Enterprise thwarted their attack on the Federation once; but now, when this relentless enemy comes again in force, can the Federation once again be saved? In this episode of Literary Treks, hosts Bruce Gibson and Dan Gunther discuss the TNG novel Vendetta by Peter David. We talk about Picard's mysterious connection to a woman with a vendetta, the horrors of a Borg attack, Geordi's quixotic role in the novel, new types of Borg, Picard's rival, the Doomsday Machine, the theme of Vendetta, how this book compares to its sequel, Before Dishonor, and wrap up with our final thoughts and ratings. In the news section, we talk about a number of new releases: issue #2 of Star Trek: Aftermath, the 40th anniversary edition of the novelization of Star Trek: The Motion Picture by Gene Roddenberry, and Star Trek: The Next Generation: Collateral Damage by David Mack. We also review issue #6 of Star Trek: Year Five, and respond to listener feedback from the Babel Conference for Literary Treks 281: The Next Evolutionary Step of the Borg. News New Releases (00:03:24) ST: Year Five #6 Comic Review (00:05:53) Listener Feedback (00:16:46) Feature: Vendetta Picard's Long Lost Love (00:28:43) The Borg Attack! (00:34:09) Geordi "Don Quixote LaForge (00:38:49) The First Female Borg (00:43:32) A Ferengi Borg (00:48:39) Capt. Korsmo and Cmdr. Shelby (00:51:34) Guinan's Sister (00:58:02) Striving to Achieve (01:03:18) A Prequel to Before Dishonor (01:12:54) Ratings (01:15:46) Final Thoughts (01:19:43) Hosts Dan Gunther and Bruce Gibson Production Bruce Gibson (Editor and Producer) Dan Gunther (Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Ken Tripp (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Richard Marquez (Production Manager) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Patreon Manager) Ken Tripp (Associate Producer) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Associate Producer) Justin Oser (Associate Producer) Norman C. Lao (Associate Producer) Greg Rozier (Associate Producer) Jeffery Harlan (Associate Producer)

The Return. Shortly after Star Trek: Generations was released, William Shatner pitched a story featuring the return of Captain Kirk to the land of the living. Paramount passed on the story, but undeterred, Shatner sold the idea as a novel. The Return would prove to be a great seller, with many fans wanting to read the story of the resurrection of a Star Trek legend. In this episode of Literary Treks hosts Matthew Rushing and Dan Gunther talk about William Shatner’s The Return. We discuss bringing back Kirk, maniacal Borg, V’ger and the Borg, an empty grave, Kirk worship and our ratings. In the new segment we discuss the cover and blurb for Force and Motion as well as the penultimate issue of Starfleet Academy and Ongoing #55, the Legacy of Spock. News Force and Motion: Cover and Blurb (00:01:44) Starfleet Acadamy #4 (00:06:34) Ongoing #55 (00:11:16) Feature: The Return Critical Mass (00:17:07) Bringing Back Kirk (00:18:02) Maniacal Borg (00:24:48) V’gee and the Borg (00:30:44) An Empty Grave (00:38:08) Kirk Worship (00:47:50) Ratings (00:58:02) Final Thoughts (01:02:28) Hosts Matthew Rushing and Dan Gunther Production Matthew Rushing (Editor and Producer) Norman C. Lao (Executive Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Charlynn Schmiedt (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Richard Marquez (Production Manager) Will Nguyen (Content Manager) Ken Tripp (Associate Producer) Will Nguyen (Associate Producer) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Associate Producer) Bruce Gibson (Associate Producer)

Alien Spotlight, Part I. Is assimilation your thing? How about a nice fight to the death with ice cleavers? Maybe you prefer a tall glass of kanar? We all have our favorite alien races, and in 2007 IDW turned the spotlight on some of Star Trek's most famous aliens with a series of comics that told stories unique to each. In the episode of Literary Treks, Matthew Rushing and Christopher Jones take you through three of these stories and discuss a Borg plot to assimilate every life form in the galaxy at birth, Andoria's secessionist movement, and possibly Kira and Garak involved in some Cardassian plot… it's kind of hard to tell. In our news segment we judge Michael A. Martin's Seasons of Light and Darkness by its cover, unveil yet another cover for IDW's version of "The City On the Edge of Forever," find out more about David Mack's Section 31: Disavowed, and do a beauty pass of Cross Cult's USS Voyager refit. Plus, we try to figure out if Batman is actually working for Section 31.