Barbara Hambly writes fantasy and some horror, and gets to exercise those chops in the Star Trek universe. The result is a good story and great interactions with the female characters.

There are a few points that don't quite fit, but overall the author has a good command of the Enterprise, which is the setting for most of this book. We also see there is a lot going on behind the scenes on the ship, and hear (perhaps too much) about a hated science lab chief named Bergdahl.