I just finished reading the four books of Peter David's new Star Trek series, The Final Frontier. For those of you who aren't familiar with Peter David, he is the greatest Star Trek writer they've ever had. He's even more famous for his writing of The Hulk and Supergirl comics. Wizard magazine has consistently rated him among the top 10 writers in comics for as long as I can remember, and he's usually in the top 5.

The Final Frontier is about a new crew and a new(ly refurbished) ship, the Excaliber (Ambassador class, which is somewhat similar to Galaxy, but smaller). Although it is four books, it' written as if a single large book was broken into four pieces. Each book by itself is fairly thin.

From where I'm standing, it almost seems that this series began as Quintin Stone's return to Star Fleet. But perhaps Peter David felt that Stone could not fit the role without series modifications to his character. Also, the captain's history with Commander Shelby was important to the story, and that really wasn't feasible with Stone. One other thing to consider is why Stone would leave the planet Paradise, abandoning Eleanor Buch Carter and her daughter.

So David reincarnated Quintin Stone in M'k'n'zy of Calhoun, who changed his name to Mackenzie Calhoun after joining StarFleet. Mackenzie was a former freedom fighter who lead his people in a successful revolt against tyrannical conquering race. Calhoun, like Stone, has a long scar down the right side of his face that he keeps to remind him of past events. Like Stone, he's a maverick who likes to follow his own rules. Like Stone, he's a master of combat, both hand-to-hand and ranged. Like Stone, there was a situation in StarFleet in which he was in command and things went horribly wrong (Calhoun's situation on the Grissom was never fully explained). I can't see StarFleet ever giving Quintin stone a captaincy, though.

If you like Trek books, read this series. It includes other characters such as the Enterprise's Doctor Selar, and Commander Shelby. I just hope that Peter David continues The Final Frontier beyond just the four books.