Just Read: Star Wars: Catalyst (A Rogue One Novel); Comic #3: Rebel Jail; The Rebellion; Tales... Vol. 1: Aliens

Release date! (Photo from my daily Instagram Story)

These book reviews will also be featured on my Goodreads page soon.

For my review of the outstanding Star Wars Aftermath: Life Debt, Book 2 of the Star Wars: Aftermath trilogy, click here.  Also, check out my link about why I’m reading the new canon Star Wars novels.

Star Wars: Catalyst (A Rogue One novel)

By James Luceno

With the upcoming Star Wars film Rogue One opening in theaters tomorrow (!!), I was looking forward to last month's prequel novel, Catalyst.  I pre-ordered my copy from Amazon to arrive exactly on the release date, November 15.

So, was it worth the wait?  Absolutely… With one caveat:  It’s a slow starter that doesn’t kick into high gear until over 100 pages in.  But when it’s hot, it’s hot.

Taking place between the films Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith and Episode IV: A New Hope, the novel Star Wars: Catalyst provides the tense backstory for this Friday’s Rogue One film about the Rebel Alliance’s brave efforts to steal the plans for the original Death Star.

My summary of the plot:  At this earlier point in the Star Wars saga, the original Death Star is still in the planning stages.  And it’s missing its key component:  A massive super weapon that will be capable of destroying an entire planet (And to Princess Leia’s dismay, we original film trilogy fans know how that’s gonna turn out).  Scientist Galen Erso is researching the power of the Kyber crystals which power the Jedi’s lightsabers.  Imperial mucky muck Orson Krennic wants to weaponize the Kybers’ power to produce a superlaser to mount onto the parabolic focusing dish of the yet-to-be-built Death Star.  In order to one-up Grand Moff “Governor” Tarkin on his own Death Star construction project and also become Emperor Palpatine’s right hand man, Krennic tricks Erso into believing that his research will be used for development of clean, renewable energy.

Honestly, it was initially tough to stick with this book.  Pointless subplots involving side characters like Has Orbit and Saw Gerrera feel like a waste of time.  And it’s front loaded with backstory and sci-fi technical jargon, withholding even the first minor action scene until page 61.  Fortunately, the earlier sections also feature cool bits of insight into the construction of the Death Star, the Jedi’s complex relationship with Kyber crystals, and the effect of the Force on non-Jedi who happen to be “Force sensitive” (A term not used in this book).  Cool stuff for Star Wars fans!

The story really gets cooking after this long opening stretch, as husband and wife Erso and Lyra are seemingly pitted against each other to discover the truth about Krennic’s intentions.  I won’t spoil the tension… Other than to say that this novel finally stops feeling like overstretched short story as it transitions into an effective family-in-jeopardy thriller, with fascinating political implications for the Star Wars universe.

Speculative spoiler for the upcoming Rogue One film:  Given the chronology of the Star Wars timeline, Erso and Lyra’s baby daughter Jyn should be of age when the movie takes place.  I’m avoiding most of the movie trailers, but I’m guessing Jyn will be a key member of the “Rogue” squadron who tries to steal the plans for the Death Star (Maybe even the girl on the movie poster?).  If she’s not, then why the cutesy baby/young girl subplot in this novel?  There’s gotta be a payoff.

Verdict: **** (Out of 5 stars) for Star Wars fans, *** for non-fans

Star Wars #3: Rebel Jail

 By Jason Aaron, Kieron Gillen, and Angel Unzueta

Of the three stories collected in this volume, I found the closing young Ben Kenobi/ Luke Skywalker tale to be the most fun.  Ben (Obi-Wan) Kenobi is secretly watching after Luke Skywalker on Tatooine as Biggs and Luke’s other kid friends cheer him on as he tries to fly through Beggar’s Canyon.  Ben saves Luke behind the scenes from various scraps, and has a run in with a bitter Uncle Owen who blames Ben for his brother Anakin’s death.

Even the often lame film prequel trilogy gets some thoughtful love from Ben:  “There’s still hope, Master Qui-Gon.  You thought Anakin was the chosen one.  Perhaps in a way, he was.  If his son shows the same abilities, then just maybe…”

The first two stories in this annual collection are also worthwhile.  Story #1 is about the unglamorous life of Rebel spy Eneb Ray in Coruscant, who needs to be a heartless jerk to his “subjects” for fear of blowing his cover if the Imperials discover his true identity.

Story #2, the Rebel Jail title story, is a fun female empowerment yarn set in Sunspot Prison.  Princess Leia, Doctor Aphra, and Sana open up a can of whoop on the villains… just so that Han Solo and Luke Skywalker can show up to cockily “save the day” for the women after the dust settles.  Haha, go patriarchy!

There are plenty of other funny gags.  C-3PO tries his hand at “fisticuffs.” Han plays backseat driver while Luke learns how to fly the Millennium Falcon.  And they actually get to herd some nerfs!  Hilarious stuff.

Verdict: **** (Out of 5 stars) for Star Wars fans, *** for non-fans

Star Wars Legends Epic Collection: The Rebellion

By John Wagner, Paul Alden, Randy Stradley, Darko Macan, Cam Kennedy, Raul Trevino, David Fabbri, and Dave Gibbons

“Epic” is an overstatement.  While this graphic novel compilation is better than much of the Legends (read: older, non canon stories) material I’ve read, it falls short of the artwork, characterization, and continuity of the new canon stuff.  That being said, I enjoyed reading these earlier conceptions about the events that went down immediately after the film Star Wars Episode 4: A New Hope.  And we get more Boba Fett.  Who can argue with that?

The standout by far is In the Shadow of Yavin, an extended comic book series which offers a glimpse behind the scenes of the construction of the second Death Star, above the planet Endor.

And all the Ewoks said… “Yub nub!”

Verdict: *** (Out of 5 stars) for Star Wars fans, ** for non-fans

Star Wars: Tales froma Galaxy Far, Far Away, Vol. 1: Aliens

by Landry Q. Walker

This one gets an enthusiastic “meh” from me.  While officially canon, it's six short stories featuring side characters from the film Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens.  If you like aliens as main characters (I do not), this is your bag.

The main hurdle that these short stories try to overcome is that few of the protagonists are memorable characters from The Force Awakens, even for fans.  It’s also challenging to acquire much investment in these characters, due to the short length of these stories.  Some chapters are barely a single page.

For what it’s worth, the best stories are “All Creatures Great and Small” and the really good “The Crimson Corsair and the Lost Treasure of Count Dooku.”  Also, “A Recipe for Death” is notable for a cool fight scene in zero gravity.

As a non sci-fi fan who has loved Star Wars since my childhood, critter stories are a tough sell for me.  But fortunately, the Star Wars universe also has enough mythology and human stories to keep me hooked.

Verdict: ** ½ stars (Out of 5 stars) for Star Wars fans, ** for non-fans

Just read: Star Wars Aftermath, Pt. 2: Life Debt, plus novels Bloodline and A New Dawn

From Vicente Guerrero, Mexico (Updated in the U.S. on 8/19/16):

All of this week’s mini-reviews feature new canon Star Wars books.  See February’s post about why I’m reading the new canon Star Wars novels (link), as well as the difference between Star Wars canon and non-canon (now called “Legends”) material from the old Extended Universe.

I’m taking a short break from my usual theology and outdoor skills books.  The mini-reviews below will also be featured on my Goodreads page soon.

Star Wars: Aftermath, Pt. 2: Life Debt

by Chuck Wendig

For my review of Book #1 of the Star Wars: Aftermath trilogy, click here.

I wasn’t prepared for how thrilling Aftermath 2: Life Debt would be.  I pre-ordered a copy for delivery on release date and waited, with modest expectations.  Aftermath # 1 was a bit of letdown, even amidst the excitement of reading the sample snippet on Kindle before the film premiere of Episode VII: The Force Awakens.  That first book of the trilogy was a stylistic and narrative mess, although I gave it a generous review on my Blogspot page.  It introduced a bunch of new characters whom, despite their involvement the Battle of Endor from Return of the Jedi, I simply didn’t care about as much as I cared about Han, Luke, Leia, Chewbacca, etc. from the original film trilogy.

In contrast, Aftermath 2: Life Debt may be one of the best canon Star Wars novels yet!  Is this the same Chuck Wendig who wrote Aftermath #1?  The writing flows much more smoothly, the pace is zippier, there are some crackerjack action sequences, the Star Wars humor (and emotional impact, on occasion) is right on, the story and “interludes” don’t jump all over the place, and most surprisingly… The plot and characters are tied into both the new films (including scenes on Jakku and Maz’s castle) AND the original trilogy.  Within minutes of opening the book, I literally did a double take when I realized that Han, Leia, and Chewbacca would be major characters.  Disney’s Star Wars Story Group apparently gave Wendig a longer leash this time around, since obvious spoilers for the The Force Awakens are now fair game.  And even more importantly… After starting out with a bang, it also became apparent that this sequel would have a more coherent storyline(s) than the first book.

Oh, and about that parade of new characters whom I just complained about from Aftermath #1… They are much more welcome this time around, now that they’re familiar to readers.  After all, despite the spotlight-stealing exploits of Han/Leia/Chewie, author Wendig writes from the POV of the Endor war veterans from Aftermath and makes it clear that this IS their story.

I won’t spoil the story here, other than to say that Aftermath’s main characters finally cross paths with Leia Organa, Han Solo, and Chewbacca.  Norrra, her son Temmin, Jom, ex-Imperial officer Sinjir, Jas the bounty hunter,  and Dr. Bones have been hunting down war criminals and the remaining leadership of the mostly-defeated Empire (including my new favorite character, the multi-layered Grand Admiral Rae Sloane). Leia recruits Norra and co. when Chewie gets kidnapped and Han goes missing during an attempt to liberate Kashyyyk.  And of course, the aforementioned surviving war criminals who were spared the destruction of the second Death Star are secretly hatching big plans to regroup and recapture the former glory of Palpatine’s Empire.  The rise of the military junta First Order of The Force Awakens is just around the corner.

There are too many fan-pleasing moments to count.  One of many examples include a revelation about Boba Fett’s armor, hilarious twists on classic lines from the original film trilogy, and even a swipe at George Lucas’ controversial “Special Edition” film alterations:  Jas, while calculating the odds of getting the draw on Han Solo in a barroom blaster fight, assures herself that Han would most definitely shoot first.

Not-so-hidden Easter egg: While reading Life Debt (Aftermath #2), it finally dawned on me that the Aftermath in the trilogy’s title refers to the aftermath of Return of the Jedi’s climactic Battle of Endor, which precedes this story arc.  Apparently, I’m a little slow.

Star Wars movie fans-- If you’re looking for the perfect place to jump into the new canon novels, this is it!  I literally lost sleep from the excitement of reading this book on opening week.  The Star Wars: Aftermath novel trilogy concludes on January 31, 2017 with Aftermath: Empires End.  The wait is gonna be unbearable.

Verdict: ***** (Out of 5 stars) for Star Wars fans, **** for non-fans

Star Wars: Bloodline

by Claudia Gray

Though this story takes place after the Aftermath novel trilogy, this novel feels like it’s missing some key backstory from that time period.  The obvious reason: Author Gray didn’t have access to the events of Aftermath (or alternately, was forbidden by the Story Group to reference them).  The downside of this limitation is that Leia Organa, the main character, is constantly reminiscing about scenes from the Star Wars original film trilogy, as though nothing else had happened in the years that have passed.  Had I read it as a non tied-in standalone novel (or had I not started reading the Aftermath trilogy first), I would have enjoyed Bloodline more.

Another barrier I had to enjoying this book was that the plot was more political than action-oriented.  Had I known that from the start, I would’ve approached this novel with different expectations.  The action set pieces may have seemed less disappointing… Particularly the boss battle (with an unremarkable villain) clocks in at barely 2 ½ pages long.

That being said, this book won me over by the final chapters. I naturally started caring more about the fate of the characters when it finally dawned on me that this is more of a character-driven novel than an action yarn. And Leia’s political motivations for concealing her true heritage (read: secretly being the daughter of the deceased Darth Vader) made for some engaging reading.

This story certainly has its moments.  My motivation to resume reading my Kindle copy of Christie Golden’s previous Star Wars novel, Lost Stars, has been restored.

Parental advisory: In addition to a higher volume of PG rated language than I’m accustomed to in Star Wars novels, Bloodline depicts more alcohol consumption than any book in recent memory.  Not that this would offend many people, but it’s excessive to the point of seeming lazily repetitive.  For what it’s worth.

Verdict: **** (Out of 5 stars) for Star Wars fans, *** for non-fans

Star Wars: A New Dawn

by John Jackson Miller, Narrated by Marc Thompson

This review is primarily of the reading/production of the audio version only, not the book itself.

As an audio book, A New Dawn is top notch.  The story is less impressive, though a decent diversion.  Fans of Kanan and Hera from the Star Wars Rebels TV show on Disney XD will especially love this.

Narrator Marc Thompson has quite a knack for making a merely okay story engaging, and also at creating a sense of urgency and excitement during the action scenes.  He is a genius at making each character come alive.  The voice renderings of Count Vidian and Zeluna are a little over the top and a bit annoying, respectively, but the other characters are unique in a good way.

The action sequences are enhanced with occasional flourishes of John Williams’ orchestrated Star Wars musical themes and realistic sound effects.  The zip-lining scene is one of many standouts.

The best part of the story for me is the introduction of a young Rae Sloane, my favorite character/villain (so far) of the Aftermath novel trilogy.  The to-be Grand Admiral Sloane even references Count Vidian’s “Forget the old way” line during an introspective moment of Aftermath: Life Debt.  If anything, this book may be worth a read/listen if only to learn more about Sloane’s early military career.

This isn’t a solid recommendation.  But overall, this audiobook makes for an entertaining listen.

Verdict: *** (Out of 5 stars) for Star Wars fans, *** for non-fans

Star Wars: Obi-Wan and Anakin

By Charles Soule, and illustrated by Marco Checchetto

Other than the beautifully illustrated long shots, there are few reasons to pick up this pre-Episode III, standalone graphic novel.  The main story is of little consequence.  The Anakin/Palpatine flashbacks are a bit more interesting, but they don’t add anything significant to Anakin’s backstory than what we already know from the films.

And I realize that this is a comic book, but it’s too comic-booky for my taste.  For example… It’s downright bizarre to see recognizable Star Wars film characters like Jar Jar Binks and that albino horn-scarf dude from Jabba’s palace wandering aimlessly around a seedy bar in “Coruscant, Sub-Surface Level 2685,” like a bunch of distracting background extras.

Verdict: This isn’t the Obi-Wan comic you’re looking for. You can go about your business. Move along.

 ** (Out of 5 stars) for Star Wars fans, * for non-fans