"Destiny's Way," by Walter Jon Williams [Del Ray, 2002]

<b><i><font color=red>Destiny's Way</b></i></font> by Walter Jon Williams

<img src=http://www.theforce.net/jedicouncil/interview/pics/destinysway.jpg>



<b><font color=green>Synoposis</b></font>

<i>n the war against the ruthless Yuuzhan Vong, the fall of Coruscant leaves the New Republic divided by internal strife, and on the verge of bowing to conquest. But those who steadfastly refuse to consider surrender?Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Leia Organa Solo, and their children and comrades-in-arms?are determined to seize victory against overwhelming odds. And now, finally, there are signs that the tide may be turning in the New Republic?s favor.

After capturing crucial Yuuzhan Vong intelligence, Jedi fighter-pilot Jaina Solo prepares to lead a daring surprise strike against an enemy flagship. Meanwhile, Jaina?s brother Jacen?liberated from the hands of the enemy and newly schooled in an even greater mastery of the Force by the Jedi Knight Vergere?is eagerly poised to bring his unique skills to bear against the invaders. And on Mon Calamari, the New Republic?s provisional capital, the retired, ailing hero Admiral Ackbar has conceived a major tactical plan that could spell the beginning of a swift end for the Yuuzhan Vong.

Yet even as opposing squadrons face off in the depths of space, intrigue runs rampant: in the heated political race for Chief of State . . . in the shadows where Yuuzhan Vong spies plot assassinations . . . and in the inscrutable creature Vergere, a Jedi Knight whose allegiance is impossible to predict. And as Luke Skywalker sets about reestablishing the Jedi Council, the growing faction opposed to the ways of the Force unveil a terrifying weapon designed to annihilate the Yuuzhan Vong species. But in doing so, they may be dooming the New Republic to becoming the very thing it has sworn to fight against?and unleashing the power of the dark side.</i>

 

Sweet book I like it a lot. Vergere dies right? I never liked her all those riddles and things downright annoying

 

Yeah, but she goes out in a sick blaze of glory just like ganner, crashing an A Wing into thee space station or whatever it is on Ebaq 9 That alone made it a 10, especially with her appearing as a force ghost afterwards

 

This book is one of my favourites... I would have liked to see Tsavong Lah die in another way though; I was realy expecting Jacen to be the one to do it.

 

9. Very entertaining.

 

I gave it a 9. Of course, I read this post-Traitor, so the character development was nothing by comparison, but I love the Star-Warsy-ness of Destiny's Way. It just seems more in touch with Luca's vision than most of the NJO. In addition, it had one of the best character deaths I've ever read. Definitely worth picking up.

EDITS: Danged markup codes...

 

I'm giving "Destiny's Way" an 8. It's a solid read, and one of my favourites in the series. I may post up a full review of it one day, when I re-read the NJO.

 

I give it an 8. It was definently a great book, and the battle of Ebaq was one of my favorite space battles in all of Star Wars. The only reason I gave it an 8 instead of a 9 is because of Vergere, one of my favorite characters. I liked that she went out in a blaze of glory, but before that I didn't feel that Walter Jon Williams captured her character as well as Mathew Stover did. After she died, I would've liked to have a better closing between her and Jacen.

It was still a great book, but I read it just after I did "Traitor" so I had really high expectations.

 

The part where Luke is knighting the young jedi, who do you think could of been talking through him when he called Jaina The sword of the Jedi? At first I thought maybe Vergere, but there was nothing more that really followed. Only the uncomfortable feeling of the other Jedi.

 

I gave it a 9.

After Traitor, I was worried that the next book would suffer from its greatness, but Mr Williams pulls through with a highly entertaining book.
The spectacle of an Old Republic Jedi in the NJO environment was unfortunately lightly covered. I totally wanted Luke asking about Yoda, the old Jedi Council, HIS FATHER!!!, ect. But I can understand, theyre in the middle of a war and his thoughts arent on patching up history.
The knighting of the SBS survivors was great, though the public spectacle of it kind of goes against the idea of the Jedi, IMO. as does having polititions on the Jedi, er, High Council. Especially after seeing ROTS!!! Oh well...
The last fifty ager or so totally sucked me in!!! The battle in the core had me cheering and throwing down the book in excitement. Our guys are finally winning!!! The struggle in the moon bases tunnels was like Star By Star revisited. THE Best moment was Jacen calling Tsavong Lah and challenging him. YES YES YES!!! I hear a lot of people say the authors after Traitor dont capture Jacen's growth, but I thought he was perfect here.
I am now off to read Ylesia!

 

So the tide turns....

10

 

Well, I read it last year, so my memory is a little fuzzy.
I gave it a 9, mainly because it was the first NJO book i read and I had no idea what great books led up to it. I liked the final battle between Jaina and Tsavong Lah (sp.?) And the part where Luke knighted the kids was good too. After reading the others, it definately isnt as good as Vector Prime or Traitor, but still a great book.
And Vergere annoyed the puuduu out of me. I'm glad she died.

 

Hey,
I just finished listening to this on audio cd and it was cool because I just like the part when all the jedi apprentices became Jedi Knights.

I also like the Solo Twins plus Varzeer, I can't spell it right now anyway.
Is this book the next book of Traitor or something else?
I forget that. I like it when Luke skywalker is a lot older now and knows what he is doing.

FORCE AND PEACE!

 

I just finished re-reading it, and it reminded me why I really love the NJO. I gave it a 10. I really liked the Battle of Ebaq 9, especially the Jedi hunting part. I also liked seeing some of the political procedures carried out by the New Republic. Plus, it turned the tide for the Jedi and the citizens of the galaxy. Until I had read Destiny's Way, I was getting really upset at how much the Jedi and the New Republic got it's butt whooped repeatedly.

 

This installment of The New Jedi Order is filled with espionage and intrigue. Nothing is truly as it seems. Most intriguing in this novel is Vergere. Seemingly unpredictable, Vergere is a very deep character. No one writes this character better than Walter Jon Williams, who endears Vergere to his readers even after all the anguish and pain she has caused.

While past novels have been about the downfall of the New Republic, Destiny?s Way, though fraught with sinister undertones, brings a new sense of hope to The New Jedi Order series. The series has often been criticized as being too dark, and Destiny?s Way has its share of dark overtones, but Walter Jon Williams implants in the reader the idea that there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

 

Jacen's return and the about last...25 pages were totally awesome...Jacen actually took charge. And Jaina's duel was super. And Jag's message was really cute.

 

10.

Exciting, thought provoking, my characters (as I've come to think of them) did exactly what I would expect from them. Great addition to NJO. I just can't say engough of the direction Star Wars has taken, it's just perfect. Nor can I say enough about the authors of NJO, Walter Jon Williams had me spellbound.

 

Took me a minute to get into it. I had skipped around the NJO, and had only an inkling of the fallout many of the characters were experiencing from Star By Star, etc.

However, I stuck with the book and was glad I did. It was a strong work. Loved the Alpha Red discussion/debate, and I also liked the mysterious Vergere. And Jacen's return was cool as well.

 

7.5/10

One of the high points of the NJO for me, I liked the action and the intrigue occuring on all fronts during this book. We were about due for some buildup to the climax of the series at this point, and this book delivers fairly well. I enjoyed the feeling of desperation which seemed to be driving the main characters to extreme measures in this story and which ultimately resulted in some major engagments with dire consequences for both sides. Vergere is a goner (or is she?). The warmaster finally gets whacked by Jaina, and the NR/GFFA finally starts to make at least some headway against the Vong. However, at this point I am still looking for some more resolution regarding Vergere's view of the Force and what it means to the Jedi organizaton. They (authors/ publisher) are still being a bit too ambiguous about it for my liking and I am begining to wonder if they haven't written themselves into a corner that they can't work their way out of now. We shall see, but at any rate I think they needed to do much better job develping this important part of the story in order for me to really give this book high marks across the board.

 

I enjoyed the book. It was a bit slow in the beginning, but I really enjoyed the action at the end of the book. It does make me wonder why Vergere would give up her life for Jacen, when it seemed throughout the series she only cared more for herself, but I have been told there is "reason" later - they were good not to spoil me

 

This was the First New Jedu Order book I read, it is totally amazing and worth a perfect score!!

 

8

The first 350 or so pages were a good, easy, breezy read, there wasn't anything deep and characterization was tossed out the window, but it moved at a fast pace and was very easy to read. This book really excelled in depicting the Battle of Ebaq 9, the best full on fleet battle scene I have read so far in the EU.

 

Unlocked by request.

 

Thanks, dp.

I'm not completely sure what I thought about this one. Maybe, like reading Dark Journey after Star by Star, reading this one after Traitor really raised my expectations. As a result, raised expectations may have lowered my opinion a bit and brought out the flaws a little more. Overall, I agree with those who consider it to be a "solid" read and, being one of the NJO's five hardcover stories, plenty happens throughout. Some parts seem a bit slow and Williams, IMO, tells rather than shows a bit more than I would like, but that's still a minor complaint. Like I said, a lot happens whether it's returns of long missed characters like Winter and Ackbar, the beginning of the New Republic's transformation to the Galactic Alliance, the reformation of the Jedi Council, Alpha Red, or Cal Omas being brought to the forefront. I have to say, I like the guy. And speaking of characters I like, reading Nom Anor's chapters and thoughts are always quite entertaining. It seems as the series goes on we get more from his POV, and I always look forward to them.

And, of course, this little recap of the book wouldn't be complete without the climactic Battle of Ebaq 9. Like the climaxes of the three preceding books and SbS before them, it's rather epic in that Star Wars way. With the sacrifice of Vergere (unfortunate as I rather liked her) and the final vanquishing of Tsavong Lah, this is another hardcover that feels like quite the game changer. And I love how Jaina doesn't even give Lah a second thought after he's dead. Perfect.

Finally, even though I know something about Onimi's true nature, that final scene is still rather intriguing. I'm looking forward to the secret behind that in the NJO's final five books.

8/10