This takes place in the "present" of the Next Generation Universe, with a fleet of Starfleet ships sent via slipstream to explore the Delta Quadrant. Captain Chakotay is the captain of Voyager and the Fleet Commander is a woman, Afsarah Eden. While it's her duty explore, she also believes that the Delta Quadrant may hold the answer to her origins--she may not really be human.
The ships encounter an amorphous species who call themselves "The Children of the Storm" and they're able to propel themselves through space by thought alone. They had warned the humans to keep away and leave them alone so are irked when their wishes aren't met. Ships are destroyed. So they have to figure out how to win these creatures over and prevent their destruction.
I still have somewhat mixed feelings about this direction the VOYAGER book series has taken, particularly in that Janeway was killed off in the books some years ago by the Borg, but it makes sense to have them back in the Delta Quadrant. But rather than encounter new aliens they should have some familiar ones as well. Still, I'll probably be on board for the next mission...