Star Trek TNG: The Persistence of Memory
{5/5} “Even if they reached B-4 before the inevitable collapse of his positronic matrix, he wasn’t sure he could bring himself to erase Data’s memory engrams from the android’s brain. He knew that doing so was the only way to prevent the android’s mental disintegration, which would result in the irretrievable corruption of Data’s engrams in any case, but willfully expunging the last traces of his best friend’s identity from the universe felt to La Forge as if fate itself was perpetrating a cruel joke upon him.”
Data’s brother B-4 is kidnapped and the Enterprise rushes to the scene — Captain Picard takes charge of the investigation. On the planet they find a being who looks suspiciously like Data, but it’s not B-4 — he eludes the Starfleet team sent to capture him. Could it be there’s another android created by Dr. Soong that they didn’t know about? It looks like the Breen kidnapped B-4 — what do they want with him?
The Persistence of Memory by David Mack was published in 2012. It’s first in the Cold Equations trilogy that’s part of the Star Trek: The Next Generation series.
If you’re a fan of Dr. Soong, Data’s creator, this is the book for you. Much of the book takes place in the past, showing us a couple of events from a different point of view and other fascinating events we didn’t previously know about. (Soong was first seen in “Brothers” in which Data and Lore both return to him when he activates a homing beacon.)
In the present, a dangerous mission takes the Enterprise into Breen territory and an away team onto a Breen planet. Picard, Worf, and La Forge are featured.
One person we thought was dead is found to be alive.*
Mack knows how to write a terrific Star Trek book, and this is one. Although the story does come to a conclusion, you will definitely want to read the sequel.
There have been lots of changes in the Star Trek universe since Nemesis, many of galactic importance. But the biggest change on a personal level comes near the end of this book.**
Mack is the author of several Star Trek books, including Typhon Pact: Zero Sum Game and the Destiny trilogy.
Spoiler alert
*Dr. Soong
**Data’s memories are implanted in a new android body