A review by lefthandedmatt
Pathways: Star Trek Voyager by Jeri Taylor
3.0
A midly entertaining story that involves the main characters regaling each other with tales of their pasts. That would be an enticing reason to read if Voyager actually had interesting characters. As it turns out, the stories are mostly decent, although some fare better than others.
Chakotay's story is easily the weakest and most boring (just like him), whereas Tom Paris, Neelix and Kes get the most engaging backstories. Each tale seems to follow a similar theme about being unable to fit in and needing to prove yourself, but some go into pretty dark and emotional territory.
The framing story of the crew trapped in an alien prison is the real low point. Their attempt to escape is quite laughable in its mediocrity, and the writing quality is particularly poor through these sections.
Given that Jeri Taylor wrote the book, there's an element of semi-canon about it all and some of the back story details did get referred to in the show, so it's probably a fun read for anyone who particularly loves Voyager. That's definitely not me.
Chakotay's story is easily the weakest and most boring (just like him), whereas Tom Paris, Neelix and Kes get the most engaging backstories. Each tale seems to follow a similar theme about being unable to fit in and needing to prove yourself, but some go into pretty dark and emotional territory.
The framing story of the crew trapped in an alien prison is the real low point. Their attempt to escape is quite laughable in its mediocrity, and the writing quality is particularly poor through these sections.
Given that Jeri Taylor wrote the book, there's an element of semi-canon about it all and some of the back story details did get referred to in the show, so it's probably a fun read for anyone who particularly loves Voyager. That's definitely not me.