Star Trek: Strange New Worlds: Asylum

By: Una McCormack

Narrated by: Robert Petkoff

A new Star Trek adventure based on the thrilling Paramount+ TV series Star Trek: Strange New Worlds!

When Una Chin-Riley and Christopher Pike meet at Starfleet Academy after one of his lectures, they immediately become friends. A stellar student, Una is the “poster girl” of her class, and Pike is determined to become a Starfleet captain with his own ship, rhetorically assembling his dream crew. As their friendship evolves, Pike also suspects Una is involved with the Euxhana, a Chionian cultural minority, who are seeking asylum in Federation space, leading to more questions than answers.

Twenty-five years later, Una and Pike are working together on the USS Enterprise to settle a Chionian trade agreement when a pro-Euxhana saboteur launches a terrorist attack. When the suspect is taken into custody for interrogation and is discovered to have a history with Una, her past associations resurface, threatening to expose a secret she’s been harboring all these years…

Like a Young Adult Story

There was enough story to keep my interest, but some of the minor plot lines were a bit simplistic, in one case a little unrealistic.

True to the show and engaging.

A much stronger addition to the Strange New Worlds story. As where the first book to accentuate this excellent Star Trek show seemed like it could take place completely separate from the overall timeline, this book takes place distinctly after a specific episode of the show (Ad Astra per Aspera) and relies slightly upon the reader’s existing knowledge of those Season 2 events. Well written and engaging, this tale focuses primarily on Captain Pike and Una Chin-Riley (No.1), switching between their academy days together and the current mission. Appropriate for genuine Star Trek, there’s not a lot of action, but more focus on philosophical, political, and dramatic themes. It’s very good character-building, and, if you enjoy the tv series, this well-constructed and well-told story will interest you.

Fun Trek Story

There was some heavy-handed fan service, but, overall I enjoyed the story. There's more politics than action, but most of the best Trek stories are like that.

A great political Star Trek story.

Great performance and a great story. Not a ton of action, but definitely worth the listen.

Great book!

Una writing about Una was amazing. She’s one of my favorite Star Trek authors! Started out a bit slow but was captivating.