The Antares Maelstrom

Star Trek: The Original Series

By: Greg Cox

Narrated by: Robert Petkoff

Length: 11 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's summary

An epic new Star Trek saga by New York Times best-selling author Greg Cox set during the original Five-Year Mission!

The final frontier erupts into chaos as vast quantities of a rare energy source are discovered beneath the surface of Baldur-3, a remote planet beyond the outer fringes of Federation space. Now, an old-fashioned “gold rush” is underway as a flood of would-be prospectors, from countless worlds and species, races toward the planet to stake their claim. 

The galactic stampede threatens the stability of neighboring planets and space stations, as widespread strife and sabotage and all-around pandemonium result in a desperate need for Starfleet assistance. Captain James T. Kirk and the crew of the Starship Enterprise are dispatched to deal with the escalating crisis...which lies on the other side of a famously perilous region of space known as the Antares Maelstrom.

©2019 Greg Cox (P)2019 Simon & Schuster Audio

zzzzzzzzz

Waited a for this to come out.
Story jumps around which was not bad but overall
not a good space adventure. No bone spock interaction Kirk doesn't do much either

Just what I look for in classic Star Trek

Great story, loved the gold rush analogy. The adventures on the uncontacted planet were well handled, and who doesn’t love a maelstrom? Appreciate the positive outlook of the original series. Excellent narrator as well.

A fun OT

I love the gold rush analogy in this story. It’s apt and that’s not the only thing Kirk and his crew encounter on this mission. All in all the narration is excellent and story fun.
Side note. This is where Star Trek is showing fans are smart. Two time lines is a good thing. Especially when you aren’t a fan of one....
PS please keep putting out original trek. I’ll be happy for years as long as it’s good.

Like the good old days!

This is the most entertaining Star Trek novel I have read since the late 1970s or early 1980s! I hope that he writes more STOS novels. I would definitely try any that he wrote. I am so pleased! :)

didn't like

struggled to finish. didn't like the story line. won't requimed . . . . .

Could not finish

I see a lot of reviews that enjoyed the 'gold rush' story.

I did not.

Stupid people doing stupid stuff.

I found myself yelling at the radio as the cast of characters are all just awful people. I had no investment in any of them (not the Star Fleet members). IRL this story would have gone like this. Enterprise shows up, everyone is really awful, disrespectful, and just plain stupid. They created the terrible situation they are in. Enterprise leaves them to their own devices. the end.

A fun time

Greg Cox clearly knows Star Trek or at least researches the show well. This book was full of amusing call backs to a number of excellent episodes of the series. Greg Cox also captures the feel of an original series episode in many ways. This book was a fun little romp using the setting of the original series to tell a new story. Anatres Maelstrom has in many ways written a novel that captures the mood and character of the show.

The story itself is more like several smaller stories locked together. While a major incident has caused the enterprise to come to this part of space the various major characters have to go on various side missions and adventures to deal with the larger problem. Generally set in the later years of the Enterprise's Five Year Mission you can see how the Chekov, Sulu, Uhura, Kirk, Spock, Bones, Scotty and the rest have influenced each other and their careers moving forward. In some ways it feels like a story about how Kirk has caused his staff to grow and become bolder people and how their adventures have improved their skills and talents.

I enjoyed how hopeful, fun, and adventurous the story became exploring its concept and these characters. giving the various crew members their own little plots and stories. Further exploring how some parts of settled space and civilian people living on the frontier without the resources the Enterprise has was an interesting concept to flesh out. I would have enjoyed if the story had focused a bit more on some moments of tension between the Baldur 3 colonists who distrust the Federation and explored that tension a bit more but that clearly isn't the story Greg Cox wanted to write and the story he made was really fun and interesting.

This story makes me want to read more books by Greg Cox who clearly knows how to put together a fun and interesting story.

Robert Petkoff does a fine job voice acting this book. I enjoyed how he tried to give emotion to the text and act. Further he did an excellent job with Chekov's accent. He did a number of good voices and moments. While at times I had a little trouble telling some characters apart and I didnt love his voice for Spock this was minor in the face of general competency and a well read book. Excellent production quality to the recording as well.

It was ok.

This was not my favorite Star Trek story. I get that it was trying to be "a mission" and not necessarily a Kahn or George and Gracey level installment. I just didn't grab me the way many other Trek novels have. Robert Petkoff was outstanding as always.

Clearly an author that never watched the show.

Complete lack of understanding the original characters mixed with an inability to develop a coherent plot. I've read scores of Star Trek books and seen everything on the screen and this had no relative bearing on the original series and any meaningful way. Gave up about halfway through the story; was just too grating to tolerate.

What a ride!

The perfect TOS adventure! The show couldn't have done it better--everyone gets to share in the action.

Another great Star Trek story

Great story with great characters and great story lines. I like that there were three story lines, that gave more time for Sulu to shine commanding his own away team on the space station. The main story was Kirk helping the gold rush planet, while Spock had the C story investigating incursions to a near by pre-warp planet. A very good book, I highly recommend