Simon & Schuster has launched a new middle-grade Star Trek series for the fans of Star Trek: Prodigy. The second novel in the series is Supernova, based on the video game of the same name, the narrative is somewhat confined by the story of the game, but it remains an entertaining first-book adventure for the crew of the USS Protostar, and picks up shortly after the end of the previous story, Dangerous Trade.

Set between the mid-season break between episodes ten and eleven Supernova sees the Protostar arriving in a system composed of a trio of planets and a sun partially enclosed by a Dyson sphere. The young crew, Dal R’El, Gwyndala, Zero, Jankom Pog, Rok-Tahk and Murf are accidentally transported to the trio of planets, separating them.

On the planets, they find the remains of a civilization, and Watchers, the robotic forces used by Gwyn’s father, The Diviner on the prison planet of Tars Lamora. Are there more Vau N’Akat forces on the planet, is there another Drednok?

As they work to understand what is going on, the holographic Janeway tells them they are running out of time, the sunstar is about to go supernova unless the Dyson sphere, which is leeching energy from the planets to open a nearby wormhole, is shut down.

Pearlman works in lots of continuity and in-universe references, and while you can hem and haw over whether members of a crew in the Delta Quadrant would be aware of Rura Penthe, it’s still fun to see the way the universe is tied together.

He also works to make the characters sound like their on-screen counterparts and is able to walk the balance between making the material accessible to younger readers while making sure the ideas that make Trek are there throughout.

Much like the series, which is made as an easy way into the world of Star Trek for younger viewers and families, or even neophyte fans, Supernova carries on with that tradition, making the established characters fun and accessible while hinting at the bigger world beyond the viewscreen.

Star Trek has along history with Simon & Schuster, and Prodigy can proudly join their ranks as they boldly go, discovering not only what Starfleet (and by extension Star Trek) is all about, but who they are as well.

I’ll look forward to more journeys aboard the Protostar.

Star Trek: Prodigy – Supernova is available from Simon & Schuster now!