Written by the nicest guy in podcasting, Trigor continues the adventures of Pilot X and his spaceship Verity after they destroyed three civilizations, including Pilot X’s own, to save the galaxy.

Part Star Trek, part Doctor Who and all Tom Merritt, the story is packed with the technology journalist, writer, and broadcaster’s sensibilities. It’s filled with good and well thought out science fiction, interesting characters, and a hint of a tutorial of how democracy and politics works  

The first two thirds of Trigor reads like Star Trek, a story of a hopeful futuristic universe filled with things to discover and humanoids, being traversed by a time ship piloted by a man who is the last of his people. 

As Pilot X tries to come to terms with what he did, his ship, Verity, detected a signal. It was similar to the one made by the device that Pilot X used to reset the universe. Determined not to let it happen again, Pilot X and Verity embark on a mission to stop it.

There’s action, comedy, intrigue, and drama. I especially loved how the character of Pilot X and Verity organically developed throughout the story. But everything changes when the girl enters the scene. 

In the last third of the book, the story goes all Doctor Who, slightly unhinged with commentary on the real world, and a female protagonist that’s very much like a companion from Doctor Who.

I like Star Trek, but not a fan of Doctor Who, so by the end of the book I cannot give it full points.Don’t get me wrong, I love most of the book, the characters, the worlds, and the quirks. It made me miss pie and coffee.

However, once Kayla is introduced, things feel off, things feel rushed. Perhaps it’s because she reads like a Mary Sue, Manic Pixie Dream Girl, and the MacGuffin all in one. One can argue that Verity is almost the same way, but the ship a lot more character development.

That’s how I feel about it anyway. Nevertheless, it is undeniable that the best independant and well thought out source for technology news is the Daily Tech News Show with Tom Merritt, Sara Lane, and Roger Chang.