Reviews Books The JC Lit Reviews Special: JEDI TRIAL (spoilers)

What can I say, another hardcover disappointment.

Poor characterization, horrible dialogue.

The only good thing IMO, was Anakin at the end.

This was the Clone Wars novel that I was waiting for.

A major letdown.

6 out of 10.

 

Counting 10 reviews: 73.35/10 = 7.34

 

Thought it was a decent Clone Wars novel that actually gave some insight into some major players in the Clone Wars(albeit minor, as with Dooku, Palps and Ventress). Thought Anakin was portrayed fairly well with nice glimpses of him as being a strong military leader and of him letting his emotions getting the best of him.

Dialogue seemed on par with most Star Wars books but I do think that was a quick and cheesy hook-up for Odie and Erk.

8/10

 

Strange, I didn't see any of you people saying how well-thought out and well-written rhonderoo's review was. Her's is by far the best review I've seen here so far.

 

That may have something to do with that I disagree with it almost entirely. . .

EDIT: I feel like I should say two things, maybe help to qualify my attitude a bit.

1) I feel like there are certain people who go into certain novels (whether all SW novels, or just particular ones -- Jedi Trial got a lot of hype as "the definitive Clone Wars novel") convinced that they're going to be great, and so have already made their decision before even having read the thing. I'll admit I've at times been guilty of the same thing -- particularly when it comes to Stover novels. But it seems there are some who will rave about anything that has the words Star Wars on the cover.

2) I don't want to sound like a raving egomaniac here, but my guess is that I'm better read and have more . . . cultivated taste in fiction than probably 90% of the people there. Which is not to say that my readings of the books are more valid than anyone else's -- if you enjoy them, I'm glad, and there is after all no disputing taste. But it dismays me when I see poorly and carelessly written novels getting great reviews, because that's pretty much telling Del Rey that it's okay to print such subpar materials, and I'd like to have to read through as few of the bad ones as possible.

 

Or that it was positive? These authors made a big mistake in not coming here, they'll see.

And before you get all wadded up, that was an opinion - just like your review.

EDIT:

I don't want to sound like a raving egomaniac here, but my guess is that I'm better read and have more . . . cultivated taste in fiction than probably 90% of the people there. Which is not to say that my readings of the books are more valid than anyone else's -- if you enjoy them, I'm glad, and there is after all no disputing taste. But it dismays me when I see poorly and carelessly written novels getting great reviews, because that's pretty much telling Del Rey that it's okay to print such subpar materials, and I'd like to have to read through as few of the bad ones as possible.

Wow, but that did sound a little egotistical. It all boils down to personal taste. People who hyped this book or any other up to be the "definitive Clone Wars novel" have no one but themselves to blame. By the way, what is a "definitive Clone Wars novel"? Who defined it? What is their creditentals? I've not seen ONE of them INCLUDING Hard Contact that I would call the "definitive Clone Wars novel"?... Reviews are no more than one person's opinion compared to anothers, let's be honest. I've seen some pretty pretentious geekiness going on in Lit these days, no wonder people are leaving it in droves.


Wow, is there negativity and drama everywhere on these forums? Things aren't looking good around here.

 

Hey -- these Lit Reviews Specials are my babies. I don't just run them out of habit, y'know. I enjoy reading the reviews, good and bad -- seeing how the community at large thinks of the novels, seeing what works and what doesn't work for different people.

I also keep track of how many reviews each particular book gets, the average review for each for each one, etc. I intend, probably around the time Episode III comes out, to post some analyses, some stuff that I've found interesting over the past few years of Lit Review threads. . .

And if you think this place is too negative, check out the HARD CONTACT review thread.

Wow, but that did sound a little egotistical. It all boils down to personal taste.

Exactly.

People who hyped this book or any other up to be the "definitive Clone Wars novel" have no one but themselves to blame.

Again we agree.

By the way, what is a "definitive Clone Wars novel"?

I've asked the same thing. I think it's somewhere in the Jedi Trial discussion thread.

Reviews are no more than one person's opinion compared to anothers, let's be honest.

I know. No one's review is any more valid than anyone else's. And I know very well that I don't write reviews very well. I know too that everyone has different tastes.

I think that this is a bad book. I think that the characters are ill-defined caricatures and are poorly developed when they're developed at all. I think the plot is nothing special. I think the action is not engaging. And beyond what I think, I know for a fact that there were a lot of grammatical and structural mistakes on the level of sentences and paragraphs. To me, it was a poor novel, and a poor Star Wars novel. I'm glad you enjoyed, but I also wish you hadn't, because if the ones I think are crappy do poorly, we're probably less likely to see more of the same.

 

Mas . . .

...But it dismays me when I see poorly and carelessly written novels getting great reviews, because that's pretty much telling Del Rey that it's okay to print such subpar materials...

I'm digitalising the holo clear hear. So what you're saying is, I'm not the only one who's seen a dramatic rise of fast food burgers in this restaurant, that good eating flew out with the dinos.

I don't have your devourous book appetite, Mas; I prefer to write 'em than spend too long reading 'em. But I know simple slushpile fare from delicacies, and Del Rey is fine with the former. It's all a marketing lure: entice the younger buyers in, and they'll buy your product longer. Unless the excessive use of Binks in TPM was paranoid coincidence not to hook a new younger generation on SW.

And with Allston back on the menu, corny wit and juvenile stupidity is coming thrice more. Might as well have Kevin Anderson's young adult audience material back; it makes no difference.

Powerhouse of publishing---riiight! You don't see authors writing such average stories in their own books, no you don't. One can only imagine what the editors are telling them . . . pssst, write more Han and Leia adventures, readers never tire of seeing the Falcon blast through a millionth blockade. Sixty isn't that old. And for Sith's sake, don't sprinkle X-wing dogfights every second chapter, saturate it more, yes more.

Ah well. SW comics have never been better. This burger does have some taste.

 

And the thing is, some of us (or at least me) will keep buying, in the vain hope that there's a kernel of goodness somewhere in each book. (That hope is what kept me going through all seven years of Voyager; unfortunately, there's no endpoint for me to stop at, seeing as how they're jumping back & forth throughout the timeline.... )

 

Counting 11 reviews: 81.35/11 = 7.4

 

1) I feel like there are certain people who go into certain novels (whether all SW novels, or just particular ones -- Jedi Trial got a lot of hype as "the definitive Clone Wars novel") convinced that they're going to be great, and so have already made their decision before even having read the thing. I'll admit I've at times been guilty of the same thing -- particularly when it comes to Stover novels. But it seems there are some who will rave about anything that has the words Star Wars on the cover.


I must admit that I fall into this every now and again, pretty much with the Clone Wars novels. True, I had high hopes for Jedi Trial and Cestus Deception, but I do hold my final judgement until I've finished the book. Usually, I enjoy it. I have for Shatterpoint, Cestus Deception and Jedi Trial. True, the writing may be lacking, the plot might be a little weird or complicated, but I'm trying to get out of the over-analytical stage that so many of the people on the boards here are in. My rating comes with the story, whether I enjoy it. I don't care, usually, about continuity errors, and things that are usually nitpicked for months here. Just read it and enjoy it.

 

I don't care, usually, about continuity errors, and things that are usually nitpicked for months here. Just read it and enjoy it.

I wish more people thought like you do. Imagine that - reading a book because you enjoy it as part of your recreational time instead of using it as a platform to tell everyone how much it sucks.

 

I wish more people thought like you do. Imagine that - reading a book because you enjoy it as part of your recreational time instead of using it as a platform to tell everyone how much it sucks.

Erm . . . I don't know what you're talking about, honestly.

You'll notice that the most of the bad reviews here don't have anything to do with continuity errors and nitpicky type stuff. I read all of the Star Wars novels to enjoy in my recreational time. So when I get burned on a bad one, I am going to tell people that it sucks. I don't expect much from a Star Wars novel, but I do expect to be entertained, and I don't think that's too much to ask. But when a book is this poorly written, the entertainment value isn't there. I actually didn't find this one as boring as The Cestus Deception, but its other problems were quite a bit more significant.

 

I think the problem here is: "How dare you say this book is bad! Obviously you are just out to get Star Wars."

Ladies and germs I like to call those people "fanatics". Honestly no one can say that all of the Star Wars books have been good. When Del REy is delivering crap like "The Cestus Deception" or "NJO: Remnant" or even to an extent this book. While I'm enjoying it it's really not up to par with what I like to read. The writing is juvenile so far, and while I don't call myself a good author, I can write better dialogue then this.

Let's not kid ourselves folks Star WArs books haven't been as good as they used to be. Where's books like "Cloak of Deception"? Or "Thrawn's Trilogy" or "The Unifying Force"?

I mean for God's sake I've rated four out of the last five novels with a grade below nine. I'm disgusted that I have to do this. I really am. But c'mon guys Del Rey's books haven't been great, they really haven't.

To be honest I'm starting to look forward to my Doctor Who books more than I am my Star Wars ones.

I may sound more cynical than I mean to but I blame it on sickness. Damn whatever I have.

 

Actually, I see this overall as a really good time for SW books. Since AotC came out here's how I'd break down the novels:

Good:
Traitor (The New Jedi Order) by Matthew Stover (08/2002)
Destiny?s Way (The New Jedi Order) by Walter Jon Williams (10/2002)
Tatooine Ghost by Troy Denning (03/2003)
Shatterpoint (A Clone Wars Novel) by Matthew Stover (06/2003)
The Final Prophecy (The New Jedi Order) by Greg Keyes (10/2003)
The Unifying Force (The New Jedi Order) by James Luceno (11/2003)
Survivor?s Quest by Timothy Zahn (02/2004)
MedStar I: Battle Surgeons (A Clone Wars Novel) by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry (07/2004)
Republic Commando: Hard Contact by Karen Traviss (10/2004)

Okay:
Enemy Lines II: Rebel Stand (The New Jedi Order) by Aaron Allston (06/2002)
MedStar II: Jedi Healer (A Clone Wars Novel) by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry (09/2004)

Bad:
Episode II: Attack of the Clones by R. A. Salvatore (04/2002)
Force Heretic I: Remnant (The New Jedi Order) by Sean Williams and Shane Dix (02/2003)
Force Heretic II: Refugee (The New Jedi Order) by Sean Williams and Shane Dix (05/2003)
Force Heretic III: Reunion (The New Jedi Order) by Sean Williams and Shane Dix (07/2003)
The Ruins of Dantooine (Galaxies) by Voronica Whitney-Robinson (01/2004)
The Cestus Deception (A Clone Wars Novel) by Steven Barnes (06/2004)
Jedi Trial (A Clone Wars Novel) by David Sherman and Dan Cragg (10/2004)

And of the next three, I can guarantee you all three will fall into the "Good" category

 

That's still 7 bad novels, though. That's a lot for three years.

 

sidious618, you're speaking my language, this I like.

Mas, tell me you seriously didn't think Rebel Stand was "okay"! It was pure utter filler material that did nothing but milk the cow, the way Wheel of Time does. Why limit your writing style with a character that can't even talk? Wouldn't you also be lethal if you had 6 saber blades sticking out of you?

And you know what's even worse? Once Luke's party finished up on Coruscant they fought at Borelias. It was the biggest joke of all. Let's hurry up and finish his storyline, and show him ALSO at Borelias.

And yet another absurd Vong character. Czulkang exhibited any tactical brilliance, as he was supposed to be? He did nothing but react like a granite slug to Antilles.

And the capper: Lusankya has gotta be the cream of the Republic's cake, so it's utterly okay to put a young bumbling fool of a Took to captain it?

 

^ The point was the corrupt senators WANTED Wedge and the Lusankya to be destroy, hence the inexperienced captain. It was a way of appeasing the Yuuzhan Vong.

 

I'm very aware of that. But nonetheless, it was another ton of absurdity in a pile already too high.

 

I feel a little obligated to point something out here. Mast is an english major, and this is what he does. He's spent a lot of time learning about lit and writing. I know a fair amount about science, i have a backround in it. I tend to look at certain things in a more critical way then some non science people.
mast naturaly looks at books with a more critical eye then many of us do. I rate the books on my enjoyment of them. I knew that jedi trial had some issues but overal i like it, and that was how i came up with my score.

 

Not meaning to sound rude, or anything, but...

...isn't this thread for reviews, not discussion?

 

That's still 7 bad novels, though. That's a lot for three years.

That's what you get when you let authors who are new to the SW universe start with a trilogy. Can you imagine what would've happened if the Thrawn trilogy would have sucked? Maybe EU wouldn't even exist anymore by now.

 

The Preview sounds fantastic! The action-scenes are vividly-written, but maybe, that's just in Chapter 25 (--> Excerpt at the OS).

 

Can you imagine what would've happened if the Thrawn trilogy would have sucked?

The Thrawn Trilogy DID suck. Seven plots at once and not one of them made sense or were even wrapped up sufficiently. You needed a map and a flashlight to keep up with the tangents and the Gary Stu's were absolutely cliché. How's that for being a fanatic? If we were rating that set of books it would be... 2.5/10 Seriously. And Mastage isn't the only one with a Lit degree, I assure you. Opinons, people. Remember.

The greatest deception men suffer is from their own opinions. - Leonardo da Vinci


As proof, here's where this would be if it were mine:

Good:

Tatooine Ghost by Troy Denning (03/2003)
Jedi Trial (A Clone Wars Novel) by David Sherman and Dan Cragg (10/2004)
The Unifying Force (The New Jedi Order) by James Luceno (11/2003)
Traitor (The New Jedi Order) by Matthew Stover (08/2002)
Destiny?s Way (The New Jedi Order) by Walter Jon Williams (10/2002)
Balance Point (10/2001)

Hand of Thrawn Dualogy
The Truce at Bakura
I, Jedi

Okay:
Enemy Lines II: Rebel Stand (The New Jedi Order) by Aaron Allston (06/2002)
Shatterpoint (A Clone Wars Novel) by Matthew Stover (06/2003)
The Final Prophecy (The New Jedi Order) by Greg Keyes (10/2003)
Force Heretic II: Refugee (The New Jedi Order) by Sean Williams and Shane Dix (05/2003)
Force Heretic III: Reunion (The New Jedi Order) by Sean Williams and Shane Dix (07/2003)
Survivor?s Quest by Timothy Zahn (02/2004)
Black Fleet Crisis




Bad:
Episode II: Attack of the Clones by R. A. Salvatore (04/2002)
Force Heretic I: Remnant (The New Jedi Order) by Sean Williams and Shane Dix (02/2003)

The Ruins of Dantooine (Galaxies) by Voronica Whitney-Robinson (01/2004)
The Cestus Deception (A Clone Wars Novel) by Steven Barnes (06/2004)
MedStar I: Battle Surgeons (A Clone Wars Novel) by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry (07/2004)
Republic Commando: Hard Contact by Karen Traviss (10/2004)
MedStar II: Jedi Healer (A Clone Wars Novel) by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry (09/2004)


Very Bad:

The Thrawn Trilogy
The Crystal Star
the New Rebellion
Jedi Academy Trilogy


Most Bantam books


And of the next three, I can guarantee you all three will fall into the "Good" category - meh. I hope so.

 

sidious618, you're speaking my language, this I like.

Thank you.
I am almost done with this book and it's not bad but not harcover worthy.