"Agents of Chaos I: Hero's Trial," by James Luceno [Del-Ray, 2000]

<b><i><font color=red>Agents of Chaos I: Hero's Trial</b></i></b></font> by James Luceno

<img src=http://www.theforce.net/books/images/c_herostrial_lg.jpg>


<i>Merciless attacks by an invincible alien force have left the New Republic reeling. Dozens of worlds have succumbed to occupation or annihilation, and even the Jedi Knights have tasted defeat. In these darkest of times, the noble Chewbacca is laid to rest, having died as heroically as he lived--and a grief-stricken Han Solo is left to fit the pieces of his shattered soul back together before he loses everything: friends, family, and faith.

Refusing help from Leia or Luke, Han becomes the loner he once was, seeking to escape the pain of his partner's death in adventure . . . and revenge. When he learns that an old friend from his smuggling days is operating as a mercenary for the enemy, he sets out to expose the traitor. But Han's investigation uncovers an even greater evil: a sinister conspiracy aimed at the very heart of the New Republic's will and ability to fight--the Jedi.

Now Han must face down his inner demons and, with the help of a new and unexpected ally, honor Chewbacca's sacrifice in the only way that matters--by being worthy of it.</i>

 

I give it a ten. Very good, I loved it.

 

I gave it a 2.

Luceno is of course better suited to make lists then novels. His prose and general writing style is horrible. He also adds very little to the NJO plot. What I disliked most is that he made me hate Han Solo in this novel. That says a lot considering Han is one of my favorite characters. Solo was a jerk, I understand he was a character in transition but Luceno took it to far.

-Seldon

 

Good Book....some boring parts but a good book none the less...i give it an 8

 

I HATED this book...
i gave it a 1
An James Luceno is one of my avorite Authors.

 

hmm... i don't remember whether i liked this one or not since there were so many in this series, but i liked the series as a whole so i'll give it an 8

 

7

It was a very good transitional story, and it introduced Droma, so it gets a plus for that. Luceno did a good job of using minor characters to highlight the more important characters, and I personally thought his characterization of Han was spot on. That being said, the book didn't really delve into any important matters other than Han's grieving, and it did meander in places.

 

7, it was good to see Han start to deal with Chewie's death. Also, I really liked the character of Droma. But, it was kinda uneventful compared to other NJO books

 

i thought this book sucked, really bad, it almost turned me completely off the whole star wars book thing

 

6, I was sort of dissapointed, even though Luceno is my favorite SW author

 

7

I think Luceno did an excellent job with writing Han. What I don't understand is what chemical enhancements he was on when he thought up Dorma and the Ryn. Solo saved this book. Without the Ryn its a ten.

 

Han annoyed me and so did Elan

 

i liked this book, but Han seemed really annoying. i felt like slapping him and yelling "just get over it already!!!!!!!!!!!!" but i still give this book an 8

 

9. It had some flaws (as most books do), but the story was solid. And Droma was absolutely perfect.

 

Fair book, not great by any means though. James Luceno is capable of much better work. i dislike the potrayal of Han in this book. Chewie is dead of course but i tire of the books making Han out to be a mopey weakling character. Han is much better than that. I do like it that a cure (hopefully) has been found for Mara's illness. This is another thing that has worn out it's welcome with me because it is the central focus of every conversation Mara has. 6/10, hopefully the next one will be better.

 

7/10

If you have read the "Han Solo Trilogy", the way he is charaterized in Hero's Trial makes perfect sense. Honestly, what would you have acted like if you were in Han's boots at the time? I can't even remember what the Vong were doing in this book, I was so absorbed with Han's character and the shock of losing Chewie.

 

Upping by request.

 

Gracias, dp4m.

I mostly enjoyed this book. For the most part, especially toward the end, it's well paced and I'm always for any book that focuses primarily on Han Solo, seeing as he's my favorite OT character. I also enjoy it when we get to see glimpses of his "good old days" and the life he used to lead. Being a fan of Crispin's Han Solo trilogy made me appreciate the references to that.

It's also nice to see Han deal with the end of Vector Prime, something that was really only hinted at in the Dark Tide duology. Understandable, since Han was only on the periphery in those books. The cameo with Bossk was good to see and I really liked Droma. I wish they'd keep him around.

And, of course, Vergere gets her low-key introduction here. I'll look forward to seeing her again.

Some things did come up a bit short. The Han/Anakin reconciliation at the end, while a nice moment felt somewhat anticlimactic. This may be because I'd felt I'd already seen it happen and drawing it out was unnecessary. And it's still early, but even as they conquer the galaxy, the Vong don't feel like all that huge of a threat. Since Vector Prime, when they seemed all but unstoppable and our heroes had to blow up a planet to stop them, they've become routine. Of course, our heroes will find ways to stop them at some spots or else the story ends, but at the moment, other than the devastation of Ithor, I haven't felt that they've shown to be the greatest of adversaries. But I'm sure with the coming books, particularly Star by Star, my attitude will change on that.

7.5/10

 

Generally this was an average read, but I really enjoyed the character of Droma, and I thought there was good pacing. I give it a 7.