10 Biggest Secrets Revealed In Star Trek Novels

Star Trek: The Motion Picture: The Novel was written by Gene Roddenberry, though it is often credited to Alan Dean Foster. Foster was responsible for the story credit, while the novel is based on Roddenberry's own screenplay. There are lots of additional pieces of information here, none of which were included in the final film.

First, the name Tiberius is first confirmed as James Kirk's middle name. This is explained by his grandfather, Samuel, being obsessed with Ancient Rome, and Ceasar in particular. This would later be spoken on-screen in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. On this topic, Tiberius had been spoken in The Animated Series, though at the time, this was not considered canon.

In the novel, though omitted from the film, Kirk possess a neural transceiver, which allows him to receive messages beamed directly to his mind. It is via this that the audience learns that three Klingon K'T'Inga Class Battlecruisers have been attacked by V'ger. This would be the first time that the upgraded Battlecruisers received this name, though it was not said aloud on-screen.

There are other reveals in the novel, such as Lt. Ilia choosing to shave her head to make herself less attractive, and the fact that the other victim in the transporter accident that killed Commander Sonak was an Admiral named Ciana. Ciana had been Kirk's spouse for one year, making the deaths far more personal to Kirk than suggested on-screen.