In the seemingly male-dominated world of Star Trek and sci-fi, this volume makes a convincing argument for the female gothic in the television series Star Trek Discovery. Drawing on the works of Ann Radcliffe, Charlotte Brontë, and Mary Shelley, Millsap-Spears demonstrates how Discovery embraces the female gothic tropes of adventure, explained supernatural, escape narratives, heroines, villains, and ineffective heroes. She furthers shows that while the female gothic is present in earlier Star Trek episodes, the traditional gothic heroine is not fully realized until the arrival of the strong central figure of Michael Burnham, the courageous, first female captain of color in the Star Trek franchise. Instead of a gloomy abbey or castle, Burnham finds danger and love on a dark planet while using her bravery and intelligence to repeatedly save herself and her crew. Fans will appreciate this fresh take on Discovery. And while the multiple references to the gothic and scholarly works may initially put off general readers, the specific examples from various episodes quickly bring balance and draw readers in. This heavily researched volume is a valuable resource for scholars across multiple fields.Highly recommended. General readers through faculty.

Choice Reviews

Star Trek: Discovery and the Female Gothic offers a deep dive into the history of the female gothic and scholarly responses to it, as well as into the unique position of Star Trek: Discovery in the wider Star Trek canon. It provides a fascinating glimpse into the ways in which a series grounded in science fiction and adventure narratives makes use of apparently incongruous gothic tropes and narrative forms. The Discovery series emerges here as a critically reflexive addition to the Star Trek universe, one that, like the gothic heroine herself, dares to highlight the casually colonialist, heteronormative, misogynist, and blithely optimistic discourses that underpin it. Star Trek: Discovery and the Female Gothic is a valuable resource for scholars and fans alike, boldly going into territories old and new.

Dara Downey, Trinity College Dublin

Star Trek, along with much of American science fiction, has long been seen as a masculine genre, made for men, by men, about men. In Star Trek Discovery and the Female Gothic, however, Carey Millsap-Spears boldly re-situates the franchise in the rich, complex history of the female gothic narrative. By tracing a direct line between classic female gothic authors Ann Radcliffe and Mary Shelley, Millsap-Spears offers a much-needed re-examination of a beloved science fiction universe through an historical and critical lens.

Liz Faber, Dean College

If you’ve never thought that Star Trek Discovery and the female Gothic belong together, then let this entertaining and informative book show you where you must boldly go. By linking risk-taking heroines of centuries past to cutting-edge science fiction on television, Carey Millsap-Spears makes an original and compelling contribution.

Devoney Looser, Professor of English, University of Missouri

In Tell Fear No: Star Trek Discovery and the Female Gothic, Carey Milsap-Spears persuasively delineates the Gothic roots of the Star Trek franchise, and convincingly argues that Star Trek: Discovery – female led and orientated – can be further characterised as part of a tradition of “Female Gothic” dating back to Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley and Charlotte Brontë. With rich and satisfying analyses of both the Gothic and Star Trek, this a welcome addition to the burgeoning scholarship on the most recent entries in a franchise that marries both science and emotion.

Una McCormack, associate fellow of Homerton College, Cambridge, and NYT bestselling science fiction author

The spirit that undergirds the Star Trek continuum in its entirety is encapsulated in the axiom of ‘Eyes Open’ that compels us to tell fear ‘no’. Like an intrepid Starfleet science officer, Carey Millsap-Spears expertly peels away the layers of a narrative substrate—the Female Gothic—and makes it unambiguously visible and accessible to Trekademics, other scholars, and fans alike. If you do not (yet) appreciate what Discovery is trying to do and/or if you still harbor reservations about newer Star Trek, after having read this book you will likely feel and think differently. Reading and understanding Discovery as a contemporary remediation of the Female Gothic makes things simply click into place.

Steve Rabitsch, University of Oslo