Product Description

In the annals of adventure and exploration, few names shine as brightly as those of the various vessels bearing the noble appellation of Enterprise. Equally distinguished are the many brave captains who have led their respective ships into battle, danger, and glory. STAR TREK® : ENTERPRISE LOGS celebrates the proud history of those ships and their captains with an outstanding collection of new stories starring each of the men and women who have held command upon the bridge of one Enterprise or another.

STAR TREK®

ENTERPRISE LOGS

From the trim fighting sloop that actually fought for freedom in America's Revolutionary War to the state-of-the-art starship commanded by Jean-Luc Picard, this unique anthology presents some of the most thrilling moments in the careers of Kirk, Pike, Decker, Garrett, and many other legendary captains, as told by several popular and bestselling Star Trek authors, including:

From yesterday's history to tomorrow's boldest imaginings, join the ongoing saga chronicled in STAR TREK: ENTERPRISE LOGS.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1017988 in Books
• Published on: 2000-06-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 304 pages

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Chapter One: Captain Israel Daniel Dickenson

The Sloop-of-War Enterprise

"In every revolution, there's one man with a vision...."

Captain James T. Kirk, Star Trek

Diane Carey

Diane knows a little more than most of her colleagues about ships and the rigors of command. In addition to being an accomplished author of science fiction and historical fiction, she is also a seafaring type, preferring older vessels. In fact, Diane braved the lash of early winter, crewing aboard the 1893 Schooner Lettie G. Howard and arriving at New York City's docks. She stopped rigging and cooking just long enough to complete the following story.

This summer, Diane adds her own vision to the Star Trek universe with a new series of novels, starting with Wagon Train to the Stars and introducing one and all to the U.S.S. Challenger.

Diane's contributions to Star Trek extend back more than a decade, including the giant novel Final Frontier, which gave readers a glimpse at George Kirk, father to James. She has written six Original Series novels, four novels set during The Next Generation (including the first original story), six adaptations and one original Deep Space Nine story, and two Voyager novelizations.

With her husband, Greg Brodeur, Diane continues to whip up exciting stories, and shrewd readers will detect the loving attention paid to the starships, making them vital characters along with their crew.

Diane adds:

Special thanks to Captain Austin Becker and the Sloop-of-war Providence of Rhode Island, replica of John Paul Jones's fighting ship, for their help and good works in preserving Revolutionary War history.

My admiration and gratitude also go to Captain Erick Tichonuk, First Mate Len Ruth, and all the crew at the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum of Basin Harbor, Vermont, for their hospitality and advice, and their faithful tending of the replica Gunboat Philadelphia. The original Philadelphia resides at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. Another of Benedict Arnold's gunboats, believed to be the Spitfire, has recently been found at the bottom of Lake Champlain. As a sailor of historic ships, I convey my applause to the team recovering this national treasure, and hope she soon rises to receive the tribute she deserves.

The Veil at Valcour

"Are the Americans all asleep and tamely giving up their liberties?"

Benedict Arnold, 1775

Dawn, October 11, 1776

"That's the signal gun! Row for it, men! Royal Navy in sight! Heave! Heave!"

Frosted orange leaves roared across the chop. Wind snatched away the coxun's orders. Beneath me a dirty bateau clawed upward, punching through whitecaps against a bitter wind. An hour ago the wind had been at my back. Now, scratching down the Adirondack hemlocks and spruces, it chipped at my nose and cheeks and froze the moisture in my eyes.

"How near are we? Will we see the Continental Navy soon?"

"Heave! Few minutes. Hard over, larboard! Heave!"

Black lake, black land -- the large double-ended bateau muscled up on its right side as if hauled by a winch! I let out a strangled shout and became intimate with the gnawing water at my left elbow. Everything was so black, so dark, that I entertained a brief crazed fear that the men in this boat were the only Americans here and we would face the British ships all alone.

The coxun's fingers dug at my collar as he pulled me back to my seat. "Keep a grip on them fascines there, your honor."

"What happened?"

"Tiller's over. We're coming into the strait."

"It's the devil's own dark! How could you know to turn?"

"Wind dropped. We're in the lee of Valcour Island. We'll meet up with the American navy any minute."

While the boat hurled itself vertical on the unhappy chop, then skated sickeningly downward, I sat upon a prickle of hardwood saplings, twice as long as I was tall, stripped of every branch and tightly bound into nine- or ten-inch bundles so that they were almost tree trunks again. Five of these bundles, a great weight indeed at nearly two hundred pounds each, were strapped across the bateau's wide beam, and caused the boat to wobble and struggle horridly. Along with those, piles of evergreen boughs with warty bark and needles assaulted my legs with every shiver. What could a navy want with trees?

I strained to see into the darkness, but might as well have had a mask over my eyes. The shore of New York, on our left until now, remained invisible. Around us, Lake Champlain was deeply cloaked.

Then, out of the night, came a voice blasting on the wind. "Hands to the tops'l sheets and braces! Bring the tops'l yard abeam! Don't worry, boys, we possess the caution of youth! Other words, none!"

A huge dark mass surged out of the night, angling over my head as if I'd stepped onto a porch. Swinging in a wide arch came a thirty-foot wooden spear with four enormous triangular sails lancing the sky like great teeth. A ship's bowsprit, inches away!

"Oh!" I dropped back and kissed the water again.

Moonless night had hidden an entire ship!

The ship's sides were mounted with bundles of cut evergreens, a shaggy fence making the vessel into a giant bottlebrush. What an otherworldly sight! Camouflage?

"Hard over, Henry!" the voice again came as our bateau rowed abreast of the massive shuddering object. If the boat and the ship came together on the same wave, we'd be crushed. "Port brace, haul away! Lavengood, Thorsby, Barrette, man the bunts and clews. LaMay, show them the lines, quick, man! Barclay and Rochon, lend Hardie a hand! McCrae, your brace is fouled in the spruces. Don't hurt your hands. McCrae, do you hear me? Stephen!"

Black hull planks bumped the bateau. Bracketing his mouth, the coxun shouted up. "On deck! Heave us a painter!"

High above, a wall of angular gray sail snapped in anger. Then, flap, flap...crack! -- the wind filled it! The ship heeled hard, bit the water, and leaped beyond us.

"Sheet her in and stand by! Larboard, slack your sheet! Clew the tops'l! McCrae, what do you think you're doing? Rochon, I said stand by on that sheet!"

That wind-muffled voice -- did I recognize it? Or was it wishfulness after three cargo boats and two fishing smacks?

Just above me, a lantern flickered to life, dancing on the night. Its fiendish glow changed everything. Hemp ropes veined a hundred feet into the sky. Two great wooden strakes carried a huge sail that swung like a swan's wing.

From an unseen hand, a rope snaked out to the bateau, falling a foot from me. The coxun snatched it up, and twisted it to a cleat, and thus we wheeled sidewise toward the surging wooden wall.

"Is this the right ship?" I called. "I'm seeking Israel Daniel Dickenson, aboard the Betsy. Or is it the George? I've got conflicting information on the ship's name."

"We don't call our ships that way." The coxun grasped a spruce bow fixed to the ship and with superhuman power dragged the bateau close, and we skated an inch from disaster. "Get up there, man, before we're beat to splinters!"

As the bateau heaved upward, I stood and put one foot on the bateau's rail. "I'll break my neck!"

"Jump!" the coxun bellowed, "or you'll have seventy ton of sloop in your gullet!"

With one toe I pushed upward, hands scratching for a grip. Boughs rustled, my cloak and tricorn hat disappeared, and I was carried up and away, a fly clinging to a mule's black belly!

"Fend off!" the coxun called. Oars blunted the ship's sides. The boat roached away.

"Heaven help me!" With me riding her wet flank, the ship clawed forward and defied New York's western shore with her long bowsprit. Over me the hostile sail whistled. Above it, a smaller square sail crawled into a bundle and screamed on its yards. I saw all this in an instant -- lines snapped, blocks creaked, water sprayed, boughs whipped, and the yard squawked like an enraged pelican trying to snap me up.

Again, that voice. "Hands to the larboard side, for God's sake!"

A force grabbed me from above. I lost my legs. My body went straight outward on the wind. Headfirst I plunged through the bundled branches and flopped face-first upon a tilted deck. Pressing my hands to the planks, I twisted to look up.

Above me, a narrow man-shaped shadow loomed. "Get those fascines over to Philadelphia and mounted on. Should've been well done by midnight. Give them to Blake, he's the mate. Or Captain Rue himself. Tell them to rig their canopy and hurry! The wind's from the north!"

I rolled over and choked, "Daniel! Thank Heaven!"

The shadow's shoulders lowered some, arms out at his sides. His head tipped forward. Against the bleak sky, shoulder-length unbound hair flew wildly. "Adam Ghent, that's not you on my deck."

He offered no hand to help me up. His unglazed anger was visible even in the dark.

But wait -- the sky had lightened. As I drew to my feet and braced my legs, I could make out men around me doing feverish work, sawing, tying, hauling lines in a clutter of iron tools, round shot, wadding, tackles, blocks, piles of rope, and sponge rammers. A boy of about ten years used a bellows to keep a stone hearth glowing inside a formation of bricks. There were no uniforms. The men wore anything from muslin to buckskin, some with wool vests and tricorns or any manner of hat they could construct, and buff or black breeches. They didn't look like a navy.

I stood upon a deck that took up the front half of the ship. On my left was a snarly-looking black cannon. On my right stood a set of ladder steps leading up to another deck, a higher one, which scooped back to the stern. I could just make out more men up there, minding a huge tiller.

Through the shaggy fence of branches, I saw another ship on the water, almost as large as this one, with two quill-shaped yards jabbing the sky. Massive parallelograms of canvas carried her into a crescent of anchored vessels, a line of ghost...

Customer Reviews

Enterprise Logs - Fascinating and well told stories!
From the colonial shores of America during the revolutionary war to the southern Pacific ocean in the embroiled second world war to the farthest reaches of the galaxy the proud name Enterprise has born the banner of honor, freedom and justice, conveying humanities best to friend and foe alike. In these pages you will find ten exceptional, intriguing and truly inspirational short stories written by several of Star Trek's finest authors. Along with the exceptional stories contained within the pages of this exceptional anthology there is a brief bio of the author telling each story.

Captain Israel Daniel Dickenson commanding the Sloop-of-War Enterprise
The Veil at Valcour by Diane Carey - Given her extensive experience with sailing ships of this time period, very few authors could've taken on the task of telling this wonderful story about the Sloop-of-War Enterprise, a ship seized by colonial sailors from the British during the American Revolutionary war. Although I have little clue of the majority of the terminology used in this story, I found the story itself to be truly inspirational.

Captain Osborne B. Hardison commanding the U.S.S. Enterprise
World of Strangers by Diane Carey - Here, Diane Carey takes on the task of telling a brief story of the USS Enterprise during WWII in the Pacific. She takes and accomplishes that task quite well as she turns not so much to telling the tale of the combat itself but to the human side of the equation and the terrible sacrifices and loss this war brought on. Only one minor point of contention on my part, military time doesn't work as it is portrayed in this great story.

Captain Robert April commanding the USS Enterprise NCC-1701
Though Hell Should Bar the Way by Greg Cox - Having read every Trek novel written by this author up to the date of this publication, I believe I can say unequivocally that Greg Cox's stories in the Star Trek universe are absolutely exceptional and a complete joy to read! In this short story we meet Captain Robert April as he's leading his ship and crew at breakneck speed to get to Tarsus IV in time before a famine starts taking lives. Along the way though, they encounter Klingon commander Kor and his orders to stop any and all Federation vessels from approaching Tarsus IV.

Captain Christopher Pike commanding the USS Enterprise NCC-1701
Conflicting Natures by Jerry Oltion - I've only had the please so far of reading one of Jerry Oltion's previous stories, but I can definitely say now that he has an excellent writing style that I enjoy. Here he tells the hilarious story of Captain Pike, after engaging Klingons having to pick up an Eremoid that wishes to "observe" the crew in their day to day routine. The camaraderie of the crew really sticks out in this one.

Captain James T. Kirk commanding the USS Enterprise NCC-1701 & NCC-1701-A
The Avenger by Michael Jan Friedman - Star Trek's most prolific author proffers up this tale of Captain Kirk on a mission to see that peace talks between the Draqqi and the Iach'tu end successfully. Early in his career, Kirk had been briefly stationed on Draqqana and of course, there is a woman involved. There is a murder of a high profile Draqqi in the midst of the peace talks and Kirk pairs up with that woman who is now the chief Draqqi investigator. This story is in quite good keeping with Michael Jan Friedman's excellent style of writing.

Captain Will Decker commanding the USS Enterprise NCC-1701
Night Whispers by Diane Duane - Although it had been quite some time since Diane Duane had visited Gene Roddenberry's universe, with this story she makes an excellent return. We visit Captain Will Decker as he is in the process of overseeing the refit of the USS Enterprise right before the events depicted in Star Trek The Motion Picture. Here, Captain Decker must solve the puzzle of some strange script written into the LCARS computer system recently installed on the Enterprise.

Captain Spock commanding the USS Enterprise NCC-1701-A
Just Another Little Training Cruise by A. C. Crispin - This fine author had also taken a lengthy respite from Gene Roddenberry's universe and makes a triumphant return with this outstanding story. Here she tells the tale of Spock, the Captain of the Enterprise as she is being used as an Academy training vessel and the beginnings of his "feelings" toward Saavik. We learn when and where they met and this tale beautifully sets up the events in the exceptional novel, "Vulcan's Heart" by Josepha Sherman and Susan Shwartz.

Captain John Harriman commanding the USS Enterprise NCC-1701-B
Shakedown by Peter David - As one of Star Trek's premier authors, Peter David's stories are well told, thought provoking, captivating, humorous and oft times, quite compelling as is the case with this outstanding story of Captain Harriman. "Somehow" he's been captured by the Romulans and is being interrogated by Rokan, the Tal Shiar's top interrogator. As is with the majority of Peter David's work, this story was a true pleasure to read.

Captain Rachel Garret commanding the USS Enterprise NCC-1701-C
Hour of Fire by Robert Greenberger - In this exciting and invigorating tale, Robert Greenberger takes us to a point early in Captain Rachel Garret's command of the Enterprise. She and the Enterprise are on a mission to find an M Class planet for a race known as the Warin. What is especially poignant about this story is her interaction with the crew and then how that crew deals with the emergency that arises. This story was extremely enjoyable.

Captain Jean Luc Picard commanding the USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D & NCC-1701-E
The Captain and the King by John Vornholt - One of the best series of books to have come out to date was the Captain's Table series and this story is a real treat as John Vornholt revisits this mythical place. This is an interesting tale of how Picard helped a "would be" King of Andoria make the ultimate sacrifice. {ssintrepid}

ST: Enterprise Logs
Star Trek: Enterprise Logs edited by Carol Greenberg is an anthology of adventure and exploration spanning six centuries and ten captains of one proud tradition the appellation known as Enterprise. I found that this book to be both historical and imaginative. Historical in the sense that one Enterpise fought in the Revolutionary War for America's freedom to the command of Jean-Luc Picard on U.S.S. Enterprise 1701-D.

This book covers both seafaring to spacefaring vessels all with the same name and a compelling story with each captain trusted to bring her to battle and back home again. As this is an anthology, the captains are very interesting to read about. Captains Irrael Daniel Dickerson, Osborne B. Hardison, Robert April, Christopher Pike, James T. Kirk, Will Decker, Spock, John Harriman, Rachel Garrett and Jean-Luc Picard are all accounted for here with an interesting tale to tell about the ship they command.

Since this is an anthology we have different authors lending their expertise to each story giving the reader a feel that each captain is speaking. The authors are: Diane Carey, Greg Cox, Jerry Oltion, Michael Jan Friedman, Diane Duane, A.C. Crispin, Peter David, Robert Greenberger, and John Vorholt.

I found this book to be very enjoyable, readable with a flowing narrative, and intriguingly engrossing. The first two stories were right out of America History focusing on the captain of the ship, thus, giving the reader insights into the noteworthiness of these historical figures. As the other stories, imagination rules the story with a heavy dose of the humanity.

The book is a very fast read with enjoyable adventure.

Just the perfect book while cooling your heels...
...stuck on jury duty (sigh). Read this last summer (2000) and enjoyed practically all the submissions tracing the history of the Enterprise Captains, from the first Enterprise (during the Revolutionary War) to Picard. Some very imaginative entries, including Capt. Harriman (Enterprise-B) and Capt. Garrett (Enterprise-C). Highly recommended...