Reviews Books The JC Lit Reviews Special: SURVIVOR'S QUEST (spoilers)

Yes, it's that time again!

Rate SURVIVOR'S QUEST on a scale from 1 to 10. Please don't rate the book until after you've finished it. Thank you.

Also, please supplement your rating of SURVIVOR's QUEST with a few words (or a lot, as you see fit).

Links to previous review threads, in case you missed 'em:

Shatterpoint: A Clone Wars Novel
Galaxies: The Ruins of Dantooine
Tatooine Ghost
The New Jedi Order: Enemy Lines I: Rebel Dream
The New Jedi Order: Enemy Lines II: Rebel Stand
The New Jedi Order: Traitor
The New Jedi Order: Destiny's Way
The New Jedi Order: Force Heretic I: Remnant
The New Jedi Order: Force Heretic II: Refugee
The New Jedi Order: Force Heretic III: Reunion
The New Jedi Order: The Final Prophecy
The New Jedi Order: The Unifying Force

 

No, to include them is short sighted. People can come out of a book thinking "WOW, BEST BOOK EVAH!!!", and realise on reflection it wasn't. THe older books never got this push, so is unfair.

 

Understand what you're saying, Reaper, but it's a nice place to collect ppl's immediate reactions to the books; and the older ones didn't get it 'cause it wasn't thought of...

 

If you think that it's the best book ever, you should have a reason for it. Somehow, I don't think taht we'll be disapointed with it.

 

Alright . . . I've got the book in my hands. Hopefully my review will be up tomorrow evening.

 

Bringing this up because the book came out today.

 

I'll hopefully finish by tomorrow.

 

I give it a 5.

While it was less htan I expected, the references to the Prequels and the look into Chiss culture was neat.

 

any chnace luke finally took out a dark jedi or sith

 

Counting 1 review: 5/1 = 5

 

I'd rate it as a 6.

Why? Too many unanswered questions...I love the book, but after reading it, and remembering all the NJO...I have so many questions now about what Zahn wrote and why a lot of it SHOULD of come up in NJO and NEVER DID. I know it was written afterwards, but ya know...it's like I, Jedi with all the ignoring of established books that came before it. But it's written way better.

 

Counting 2 reviews: 11/2 = 5.5

 

up

 

7

Good overall premise and generally good, but the author takes too much "liberty" with his own creations at the expense of the norm of the GFFA.

Not to mention my sickening feeling that the Yuuzhan Vong will be "continuity spackled" into the Outbound Flight project.

 

Dp4m, can you please explain those two cryptic comments above? What do you mean by continuity spackle?

That the Vong aren't the unspecified Unknown Regions threat? (Cunningham erased that possibility in DJ). And what do you mena by too much liberty at other continuity's expense?

Some of these reviews are too vague for the norm, then who can understand them . . .?

 

Well I have just read the book and so will give a review. Overall I would give it an 8 but no more.

The Good
Mara dealing with her past. Finally some recognition from Zahn that she was supporting a bad guy even if she did not know he was a Sith Lord.

How Luke and Mara are written is probably the best thats been done out of all the books about them as a couple. Great stuff.

Nice pace the book moves really smoothly and the action does not stop.

The inclusion of Chak Fel and the 501st was not only great from a fan boys stand point but also from the fact that there is tension on whether they die or not since we know Luke and Mara will not be.

The Empire of the Hand. What can I say I would follow these people if I could.

General Drask what can I say I like this guy.

No more of the "blue eyebrow raised looking super cool with a tall stance" discription which is quite welcome.

The Bad
To many unawnsered questions.

Why do the Vagraai want to kill the Chiss and why go to all that trouble to get droid parts?
Why did Thrawn blow up the outbound flight?
Why do the Outbound Flight hate the Jedi?
Why hate the Republic? It cannot be cause of Palpatine since at the time he is just this great guy who every one loves ??????
The whole mystery at the start seemed a bit obvious ?



Overall a good book but to many unawnsered questions????

 

I beleive that we will get the answers in the book that Zahn has out next year which is going to be about outbound flight, when it left coruscant.

I enjoyed it, although I had alot of things to deal with whilst reading so I was unable to post as many spoilers as I wanted, but hopefully I can get back to normal on the Cestus Deception

 

One thing I forgot to mention but did like about this book was Zahn's mention about how dislikable the Jedi are in the prequels. I think that has been one of the big problems with them so far. Apart from Qui-gon (who lets be honest the charachter did not need to be in PT and Obi-wan could easily have filled that role) is the only one that is sympathetic.

 

Counting 4 reviews: 26/4 = 6.5

 

Dp4m, can you please explain those two cryptic comments above? What do you mean by continuity spackle?

That the Vong aren't the unspecified Unknown Regions threat? (Cunningham erased that possibility in DJ). And what do you mena by too much liberty at other continuity's expense?

Some of these reviews are too vague for the norm, then who can understand them . . .?

Certainly.

1) The Yuuzhan Vong might make an appearance in the next Outbound Flight book (CW-era). There are theories on it running abound in the SQ discussion thread, specifically related to a humanoid-but-not-human skeletal remains found on the OFP next to a dead Jedi. This would be the "continuity spackle" I refer to and my dread therein.

2) Mara is said to be better with "delicate" lightsabering work than Luke. Thrawn is hinted at having another clone running around and the instigator behind the Mara/Luke mission to OF. Not only that, Thrawn is thought of by Mara as trying to help the New Republic ("See! He wasn't a bad guy! Look!!!"). All of those above statements are absurd and all of them are essentially made clearly (with Luke saying the part about Mara as well as the descriptive text accompanyment).

That lowered the book 2 full points in my head.

 

An 8. The book was well written, but i think some of it clashed with what was established in the NJO. It makes sense that thrawn would have more then one clone lying around, but again i feel it clashes with the njo.

 

I'd give it a 7.

Luke and Mara together make a good combination, and Zahn does a very good job of making them a "good couple" without being too cutesy about it. Really would like to see this marketed as a book that women would enjoy, as forthright female characters are rather few and far between, except in comics LOL. Zahn gets Mara's conflict right too, I think.

Foreshadowing was well done, although I did get that "too good to be true" feeling pretty fast in.

Pace and scene changes very well done.

Finally, I agree with the "too many unanswered questions" I've read in various message threads. No problem with leaving some things unanswered -- to give credence to additional books and their plotlines -- but really, could readers not have had some explanations given to them, especially in regards to the Jedi aboard the dreadnoughts? What happened to make them so reviled? "We hate them because...." "Fine, we'll talk about that another time." Simplistic, I know, but it seems logical that Luke and Mara should be asking questions. I know I would LOL.

And I wouldn't have minded a "things are different now" speech from Luke, as an explanation of why he has decided that Jedi can have relationships. It's time to examine the past, take the best of that you can, and then make your own way with the rest.

And sorry, but Thrawn needs to stay dead.

 

mara better then luke at lighsaber techniques?

Zahn has doen it again

 

"1) The Yuuzhan Vong might make an appearance in the next Outbound Flight book (CW-era). There are theories on it running abound in the SQ discussion thread, specifically related to a humanoid-but-not-human skeletal remains found on the OFP next to a dead Jedi. This would be the "continuity spackle" I refer to and my dread therein."

Oh c'mon. We know you hate the NJO, but like it or not, it happened, and it would be disrespectful of authors in the future not to foreshadow or make reference to the events that occured in it.

 

Oh c'mon. We know you hate the NJO, but like it or not, it happened, and it would be disrespectful of authors in the future not to foreshadow or make reference to the events that occured in it.

I agree I'm looking forward to the YV clues.