Like most Star Trek novels, this is an extended episode. In fact, it reads very much like it might have been a storyline from ST: TNG that was abandoned for some reason. Maybe it was too long. Maybe the showrunners felt they couldn't do it justice. Doesn't matter. I just strapped myself in and enjoyed a pleasant stroll across the world of Lorca as seen through the eyes of the crew of the USS Enterprise-D

Storywise, two hundred years ago (give or take), an Earth colony ship carrying a troupe of minstrel performers crashlanded on Lorca. The tectonic instability and other environmental factors destroyed much of their technology, so the survivors cobbled together a quasi-medieval society with a highly-stratisfied caste system based on masks. Everyone wears a mask all the time and your mask identifies your role in society. You can challenge others for their mask via duels as a way to advance in society. Otherwise, you are stuck as a peasant mask. Naturally, the higher the rank, the more elaborate the mask. The most valuable and important mask is the Wisdom Mask. Whomever wears that has earned the right to be the leader of all Lorcan society.

Against this background, the crew of the Enterprise are bringing a Federation ambassador to welcome the Lorcans back into Federation society after being rediscovered recently. Oddly, the Prime Directive is in effect because they are now a pre-warp civilization, even though they had warp-drive technology in the past. The Federation ambassador has his own agenda for Lorcan society. The Ferengi also get involved because they've been exploiting the Lorcans for their masks, which they can sell for profit on the black market.

As I mentioned, it's really just an extended episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation. There's even a mid-episode cliffhanger when Captain Picard is presumed dead (minor spoiler: he isn't).

I picked this up at my most recent public library book sale. It's the story of a man who escapes a pirate fortress in space, only to be recruited for a top-secret mission by an alien race to find out what those rascally pirates are really up to. I think Carver was influenced by both Cordwainer Smith and Frank Herbert. His description of space travel through the dangerous, chaotic Flux sounds exactly like something Smith or Herbert would write. Legroeder, the main protagonist, belonged to the Rigger Guild before he was abandoned by them for reasons he's still trying to understand. "Rigging" is some sort of psychic ability to navigate the pathways through the Flux (hyperspace). The Flux has dep layers to it that are extremely hazardous to space travel, but may also hold many secrets. Carver has decent world-building skills here. Legroeder is an "everyman" who has been given some training, but nevertheless serves as the audience surrogate for this strange universe. There's also a fair amount of political intrigue. A starliner was lost in the Flux over a hundred years ago. From time to time, people report seeing it again. However, the Centrist worlds are bound and determined to squash any information about it, and will go to any lengths to prevent Legroeder from divulging information about the lost ship or even seeking more answers. They even framed him for murder to try and shut him up (when they weren't trying to assassinate him outright.)