The Return (Shatner novel)
| Company type | Novel |
|---|---|
| Industry | Publishing |
| Founded | 1996 |
| Founder | William Shatner, Garfield Reeves-Stevens, Judith Reeves-Stevens |
| Products | Star Trek novel |
The Return is a novel authored by William Shatner in collaboration with Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Judith Reeves-Stevens. Set within the Star Trek universe, it forms part of the "Shatnerverse" and deviates from the canonical Star Trek timeline. Its continuation is found in the sequel, Avenger.
Plot summary
The narrative opens on Veridian III shortly after the events of Star Trek Generations. Following the burial of James T. Kirk by Jean-Luc Picard, Kirk’s body is illicitly taken by Romulan forces allied with the Borg. Employing advanced alien technology, they revive Kirk and restore his katra, implanting fabricated memories intended to turn him against the Federation. Their objective is to eliminate Picard, who serves as Starfleet’s primary defense against the Borg threat. Despite this psychological manipulation, Kirk resists commands to assassinate allies such as Worf, Data, and Geordi La Forge.
Concurrently, Picard and Dr. Beverly Crusher join a Federation strike team investigating a colony overtaken by Borg assimilation, infiltrating a retreating Borg vessel where they uncover the alliance between the Borg and Romulans. Meanwhile, Spock discovers this alliance firsthand when captured by Romulan forces; notably, the Borg abstain from assimilating him, suspecting he is already part of their Collective.
Kirk is apprehended on Deep Space Nine during an attempt to assassinate Commander William Riker. Dr. Julian Bashir and Admiral Leonard McCoy succeed in removing the implant responsible for his false memories. Although Kirk retains some lingering impulses, Spock employs a mind meld to completely restore his mental autonomy. They uncover that V'ger (previously Voyager 6) was enhanced by a faction of the Borg, which explains why Spock was spared—they mistook V’ger’s imprint within him as a connection to the Collective. This discovery leads them to pinpoint the location of the Borg homeworld.
Utilizing a commandeered transwarp drive, the senior officers of the Enterprise-D, accompanied by Kirk, Spock, and McCoy, embark on a journey aboard a renamed Enterprise—a Defiant-class starship—directly to the Borg homeworld. There, they incapacitate the Borg/Romulan fleet by disrupting their communications and severing their link to the Collective.
Kirk and Picard beam down to deactivate the Borg central node responsible for maintaining their unity; disabling it would shatter the Collective but cause a lethal explosion for its operator. After deliberating who should make this sacrifice, Kirk feigns surrender, incapacitates Picard, transports him back to the ship, and activates the node himself. Although presumed dead following the blast, Spock senses that Kirk’s presence endures.
Background
The novel was initially titled The Fires of Olympus during its development phase.
Reception
Gideon Kibblewhite reviewed The Return for Arcane magazine, awarding it a score of 5 out of 10. He acknowledged that while the book provided action, pace, and recognizable characters, it lacked innovation in terms of new concepts, characters, or species.
In its review of the audiobook version, The Hour noted some inconsistency in Shatner’s character voices but deemed it "a worthy sequel" that would appeal to dedicated "Star Trek" enthusiasts.
The novel achieved commercial success by reaching number four on The New York Times Best Seller list and number three on The Wall Street Journal Best Seller list.
Reviews
- Evaluation by Neil Jones (1996) featured in Interzone, issue #108, June 1996