Books Rank the novels of the new canon

I'm currently reading Thrawn: Alliances. This is my list of the novels I've finished from favorite to least favorite.

1. Ahsoka
2. Master and Apprentice
3. Aftermath
4. Aftermath: Empire's End
6. Bloodline
7. Aftermath: Life Debt
8. Dark Disciple
9. Lost Stars
10. Lords of the Sith
11. Thrawn
12. Tarkin
13. Catalyst

 

Phasma is hands down my favorite SW book. The funny thing is, I had zero interest in reading it until I fell in love with Vi Moradi from Black Spire (which is also a wonderful book! Needless to say, I have a new favorite SW author!). Several times while reading it, I had to pick my jaw up off the floor. The character of Phasma is a stone-cold psychopath, and the way Ms. Dawson portrays her is chilling.

 

Updated ranking having just finished Thrawn: Alliances.

1. Ahsoka
2. Master and Apprentice
3. Aftermath
4. Aftermath: Empire's End
6. Bloodline
7. Aftermath: Life Debt
8. Dark Disciple
9. Lost Stars
10. Lords of the Sith
11. Thrawn: Alliances
12. Thrawn
13. Tarkin
14. Catalyst

Next up: Phasma.

 

I finished A Crash of Fate yesterday afternoon. Here is my ranking of YA novels:
Lost Stars
Most Wanted
Ahsoka
Queen's Shadow
Leia, Princess of Alderaan
Rebel Rising
A Crash of Fate

 

Adult

1. Thrawn - everything I could ever want from a novel, a look behind the curtain of the Imperial military from the Grand Admiral himself
2. Aftermath: Empire's End - solid ending to the trilogy, made the downfall of the Empire believable and added to the Emperor's mythos
3. Last Shot - really fun story with Han and Lando, I liked how the story was woven together through the past and present
4. Master and Apprentice - don't typically enjoy the prequel era, everything about this book is solid: plot, characterization, writing; great mystery, intrigue and storytelling
5. Tarkin - really enjoyed the internal politics of the Empire
6. Lords of the Sith - interesting to see the Vader/Palpatine interactions
7. Aftermath: Life Debt - really enjoy seeing the galactic powers struggle for dominance after Endor
8. Solo: A Star Wars Story - I don't enjoy movie novels, this one was different, adding scenes and descriptions that gave characters more depth and motivation
9. From a Certain Point of View - really enjoyable, luckily the ones I didn't care for were the really short stories, some continuity mistakes towards the end of the book
10. Battlefront II: Inferno Squad - solid book looking at the internal conflict the Empire creates within it's own ranks, fun to then watch cut-scenes from game
11. Thrawn: Alliances - disappointed after loving Thrawn, found the writing choppy and confusing, had to re-read sections, still Thrawn and Vader are bad ass
12. Catalyst - slow and plodding story, but one that kept moving forward despite few action sequences, I enjoyed looking into the workings of the early Empire
13. Phasma - enjoyable and unexpected backstory that provides good depth to a character poorly utilized in the films
14. Bloodline - good mix of action and politics, but it was difficult to see how useless the NEU New Republic is
15. Dark Disciple - never knew where the story was going, was a really nice surprise
16. Aftermath - different style of novel, but the content was interesting
17. Battlefront: Twilight Company - solid action, never enthralling, enjoyed exploring the Rebellion during this time
18. Canto Bight - first two stories were hard to get through (had to really concentrate to read Mira Grant's writing), last two were good, especially The Ride
19. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story - better adaptation than TFA, but still didn't add a whole lot to the movie itself, found Jyn's motives to be confusing at times
20. Heir to the Jedi - the first person viewpoint was different (and not in a good way)
21. A New Dawn - I see lots of people really enjoyed it, I found it to be dull
22. The Last Jedi: The novel was better than the movie, but I still have serious problems with the story
23. The Force Awakens - glossed over the best parts and didn't properly capture the funny moments from the film, and added little to the story

Young Adult

1. Ahsoka - tight and well paced story, wasn't expecting to enjoy it but the young adult novels excel, I read it in two days
2. Most Wanted - fun and enjoyable story that provided fantastic background to the main characters in Solo
3. Leia, Princess of Alderaan - good book, explores Leia's character and is spot on while doing so, surprised how old she was when she became involved in the Rebellion
4. Rebel Rising - a good read about a tragic story/life
5. A Crash of Fate - a harlequin Star Wars novel, character motivations and scene descriptions were shaky, but I found in engaging and enjoyable
6. Lost Stars - I enjoyed how it intertwined throughout the OT
7. Queen's Shadow - nothing happened. It read like a daily journal of Senator Amidala, no major consequences or overarching plot. Too much talk about outfits haha

Young Reader

1. Moving Target: A Princess Leia Adventure - excellent writing and a compelling story, I fist pumped when I found out what the name of the stolen shuttle was
2. Before the Awakening: a real surprise, the writing and action sequences were excellent, three wonderfully told stories
3. Lando's Luck: an enjoyable story that really nails the Lando character is his early days with L3 and the Falcon
4. Smuggler's Run: A Han Solo & Chewbacca Adventure - a fun adventure with Han and Chewie, didn't wow me but the story was interesting enough
5. Guardians of the Whills - story was slow and steady but with enough interest to keep my attention, good example of life under the thumb of the Empire
6. Pirate's Price - Hondo's perspective was initially fun, but that faded as the book went along; the later stories seemed like an afterthought
7. The Weapon of a Jedi: A Luke Skywalker Adventure - it was just okay, I found the story slow, lacking major sequences, and with minimal plot scope
8. The Legends of Luke Skywalker: difficult to get interested in stories that may not be 'factual', especially when the first story is a tall tale
9. Spark of the Resistance - rushed writing, terrible dialogue, childish character interactions, and the plight of the Resistance reminds me why I'm not fond of the Canon arc
10. The Mighty Chewbacca in the Forest of Fear!: this one really felt like a children's book to me, both in story and the writing

 

YA NOVELS:
Lost Stars
Force Collector
Most Wanted
Ahsoka
Queen's Shadow
Leia, Princess of Alderaan
Rebel Rising
A Crash of Fate

 

Good idea, I might post my lists in here and update them as I read.

1. Bloodline - This felt a lot like the old EU in a really good way. Really loved the story and pacing.
2. Catalyst - Luceno is a great storyteller and really dug into the detail to give a great backstory to Rogue 1.
3. Inferno Squad - Surprised myself with how much I loved this book, really awesome plot with compelling characters.
4. Lords of the Sith - Great action and pacing, another that felt like the old EU.
5. Tarkin - Again a big fan of Luceno's storytelling.
6. A New Dawn - Good interesting story that I enjoyed more than I expected.
7. Master and Apprentice - Grey's got a great grasp on Star Wars.
8. Alliances - Preferred this to the first Thrawn novel but not by much.
9. Thrawn
10. From A Certain Point of View - great fun stories.
11. Rogue One - Good retelling of the movie from Freed.
12. Twilight Company - Good book but felt very dense.
13. Last Shot - Good story but felt a bit clumsily told.
14. Empire's End - Good conclusion to the trilogy but wasn't a fan of the trilogy as a whole.
15. Alphabet Squadron - Another very dense book that was tough to get through, but when it got going it was quite good.
16. The Last Jedi - Enjoyed this a lot more than the movie, Fry is a great writer.
17. Life Debt - Eh it was ok but nothing special.
18. Aftermath - Good characters but didn't like the writing style at all.
19. The Force Awakens - Foster tries to make this way too hard Sci-Fi which is jarring.
20. Dark Disciple - Just really did not like this at all. The writing style and the pacing of the story were all just way off base.

Don't think I've forgotten any..

 

Top of the Pack

Thrawn: Simply brilliant. Showing Thrawn's progression from small assignments to progressively more important commands was simply brilliant. Loved Vanto as well, even more than Pellaeon.

Aftermath: Life Debt: I was surprised that I enjoy this book this much, given that I neither care too much for Wookiees nor did I like Wendig's writing in the first. But it's a surprising fast-paced and interesting story that also manages to be one of the most relevant books to understanding the new Canon. The character's interactions and personalities are by far Wendig's strength, it reminded me quite a lot of times of the characters of a Tabletop RPG group.

Master and Apprentice: While the actual story itself isn't that noteworthy, I felt that it captured perfectly the relationship between Obi Wan and Qui Gon Jinn and the status of the Jedi Council pre-TPM. Very strong vibes from the old Jedi Apprentice books, as well.

Resistance Reborn: Maybe I'm biased since it's the latest I read, but I thoroughly enjoyed this one and felt that it did the best it could given the state of the galaxy as established in the movies. I still think it's non-sensical how it seems that the New Republic simply vanishes after the destruction of it's capital planet by a force that shouldn't have nearly the strength of the Empire, but given that setting, I feel like it does the job. Referencing the characters from other canon books so prominently is

Before the Awakening: We've had at least two or three books and comics for the main characters in the new trilogy, but I feel that not one of them captures their personalities better than the three short stories in this one. A must read for me for anyone who wants to get some backstory on Rey, Poe and Finn.

Middle-top of the Pack (in no particular order)

Lost Stars: It's definitely a good book, and I'd love to see a sequel, but it seems a bit forced how the main characters seemed to be there at such crucial times of the war, given how massive the Empire really is.

Battlefront: Twilight Company: We were overdue a good military book, and this one provides. I did find most of the characters to be forgettable, unfortunately, and wasn't a big fan of the ending.

Thrawn: Alliances / Thrawn: Treason: Not as good as the first one, but still very much enjoyable to those who like to see Thrawn figure out solutions to impossible problems a la Sherlock Holmes.

Aftermath: Empire's End: Not as fun as the second one in the series, but it warrants a mention for being by far the most relevant book to the new Canon since the event's referenced here are integral to everything that comes afterward chronologically.

A New Dawn: This would be my most middle-middle of the pack book of the bunch. It feels like the quintessential Star Wars book: A couple of unlikely heroes stumble into the wicked scheme of on an unapologetically evil villain and thwart him with the help of a bunch of rebellious locals and a little help from the force. I enjoyed it when I read it, but it definitely could have done a lot, lot more to link with the Star Wars show or the Kanan comics, which feels like an oversight.

Middle-bottom of the Pack (In no particular order)

Catalyst/Tarkin: Maybe it's just me, but I just don't find Luceno's writing style interesting at all. It feels like he takes way too long to tell a story and that he likes mysteries and politics but isn't quite that adept at writing either. I did appreciate the fact that he spearheaded the efforts of recanonizing planets and characters from Legends by throwing constant mentions about them before anyone else.

Bloodline: Not Claudia Grey's finest, in my opinion. I enjoyed some parts of it overall, and came to like Ransolm Casterfo, but the main story is entirely forgettable. It also didn't do that much to explain the politics and status of the New Republic for a book so focused on exactly that.

Aftermath: Really torn with this book, because as I said before, I love the characters but Wendig's prose is so distracting and this one doesn't even have that much of a good story to at least serve a saving grace. What pissed me off the most for this one was that it had been promised as "the bridge between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens" and boy, did it not deliver on that promise in the slightest.

Bottom of the Pack

Battlefront: Inferno Squad: Started really strong, but the second half was so, so boring I struggled to finish it. I feel like they could have told so many good stories about Inferno Squad but the main one was the worst.

Canto Bight: Couldn't finish this one. I started with what was recommended to me as "the best story" and found it a complete slog. I was really curious to see a take on the point of view of the less heroic members of the Galaxy, but I didn't find a good match here.

From a Certain Point of View: Feels like it has an even split between good, decent, mediocre and bad stories all together. Also a surprising amount of repeated plotlines or characterizations between stories, or at least it seemed like it to me. At least 7 or 8 authors tried to do a funny take on some scene, and in most cases, it didn't quite work.

 

So I have read the new Thrawn Trilogy.

Worst books I have ever read. So dull so boring. Waste of time to read and paper to print (or megs of storage in my case)

The first was the worst. it was just dull Thrawn being a sue, the governor was a waste, oh and SHE killed all those people, not the perfect Thrawn. The second book is better cause it has Anakin, but even that is bad, he is just so fladerized it's not even funny, he is so dumb (so Thrawn can be smart) and aggressive and it's just so pathetic.

Third book is better cause it has one guy who does not kiss thrawns @$$, but that was about it.

Best books so far are all Cludia Grey and James Luceno.

Aftermath was ok, better than Thrawn.

 

Following. I'm behind on my Canon so will be doing a lot in 2020.

 

Update:

1. Bloodline - This felt a lot like the old EU in a really good way. Really loved the story and pacing.
2. Catalyst - Luceno is a great storyteller and really dug into the detail to give a great backstory to Rogue 1.
3. Inferno Squad - Surprised myself with how much I loved this book, really awesome plot with compelling characters.
4. Lords of the Sith - Great action and pacing, another that felt like the old EU.
5. Tarkin - Again a big fan of Luceno's storytelling.
6. A New Dawn - Good interesting story that I enjoyed more than I expected.
7. Master and Apprentice - Grey's got a great grasp on Star Wars.
8. Alliances - Preferred this to the first Thrawn novel but not by much.
9. Thrawn
10. From A Certain Point of View - great fun stories.
11. Rogue One - Good retelling of the movie from Freed.
12. Resistance Reborn - Good original characters, compelling plot, movie characters tread water.
13. Twilight Company - Good book but felt very dense.
14. Last Shot - Good story but felt a bit clumsily told.
15. Empire's End - Good conclusion to the trilogy but wasn't a fan of the trilogy as a whole.
16. Alphabet Squadron - Another very dense book that was tough to get through, but when it got going it was quite good.
17. The Last Jedi - Enjoyed this a lot more than the movie, Fry is a great writer.
18. Life Debt - Eh it was ok but nothing special.
19. Aftermath - Good characters but didn't like the writing style at all.
20. The Force Awakens - Foster tries to make this way too hard Sci-Fi which is jarring.
21. Dark Disciple - Just really did not like this at all. The writing style and the pacing of the story were all just way off base.

 

How's Rebels Reborn?

For me. what I've read:

1. Bloodline- really good pre-TFA story
2. Afternath- cool characters and good set up
3. Thrawn- nice getting in his head
4. Thrawn: Alliance- a nice sequel, I'm yet to read the last
5. Life Debt- good follow, more cool interludes
6. Empire's End- great conclusion
7. Tarkin- great character study
8. Phasma- a surprising origin story and intro to her
9. Last Shot- I liked the team up
10. Catalyst- a must to read before R1 but the tech stuff was a turnoff. Again, to appreciate R1 it's a must.
11. A New Dawn- wasn't particularly great but good intro to Kanan and Hera
12. Most Wanted- really didn't care for, just meh

 

Update:

1. Bloodline - This felt a lot like the old EU in a really good way. Really loved the story and pacing.
2. Catalyst - Luceno is a great storyteller and really dug into the detail to give a great backstory to Rogue 1.
3. Inferno Squad - Surprised myself with how much I loved this book, really awesome plot with compelling characters.
4. Lords of the Sith - Great action and pacing, another that felt like the old EU.
5. Thrawn: Treason - Really enjoyed this. Easily the best Thrawn book we've had in the new canon. Very engaging story and flowed well.
6. Tarkin - Again a big fan of Luceno's storytelling.
7. A New Dawn - Good interesting story that I enjoyed more than I expected.
8. Master and Apprentice - Grey's got a great grasp on Star Wars.
9. Alliances - Preferred this to the first Thrawn novel but not by much.
10. Thrawn
11. From A Certain Point of View - great fun stories.
12. Rogue One - Good retelling of the movie from Freed.
13. Resistance Reborn - Good original characters, compelling plot, movie characters tread water.
14. Twilight Company - Good book but felt very dense.
15. Last Shot - Good story but felt a bit clumsily told.
16. Empire's End - Good conclusion to the trilogy but wasn't a fan of the trilogy as a whole.
17. Alphabet Squadron - Another very dense book that was tough to get through, but when it got going it was quite good.
18. The Last Jedi - Enjoyed this a lot more than the movie, Fry is a great writer.
19. Life Debt - Eh it was ok but nothing special.
20. Aftermath - Good characters but didn't like the writing style at all.
21. The Force Awakens - Foster tries to make this way too hard Sci-Fi which is jarring.
22. Dark Disciple - Just really did not like this at all. The writing style and the pacing of the story were all just way off base.

 

^You should really read Aftermath: Life Debt and Aftermath: Empire's End. A lot of people that didn't like the first book like the other two.

 

Updating

1) Dark Disciple A+

A great book that resolves Ventress's story in TCW. It felt so much like the TV show, which I was grateful for as I am a huge fan of the show and still miss it. I will admit I teared up at the end of this one.

2) Bloodline A+

A fantastic look at the galaxy between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, but also a great character study of our favorite princess. I loved the string-pulling and it being the Empire that had to subtlety for a change. Plus I love the study of politics IRL so this book was right up my ally. I didn't like the direction Leia was taken in TFA but this book made it A LOT easier for me to swallow. Excellent job Claudia Gray.

3) Catalyst A

James Luceno is back, and this time he gives Rogue One the Darth Plagueis treatment. While it gets a bit technical at times, the book is structured very similarly to the Plagueis book - I flew through the last third of the novel. Even though I knew the outcome I was still on the edge of my seat. Bonus points for the typical myriad of Luceno EU references.

4) Ahsoka A

This was another great character study. As stated above, I am a big TCW fan so of course I was very excited to read this book. It did not disappoint and was actually better than I anticipated! Glad we got to see the (extremely) early days of the rebellion and how Ahsoka was one of the first to join. She was also a beast in combat. Also loved the interludes that discussed Ahsoka's time during ROTS and the Siege of Mandalore - bonus points for working as a quasi-sequel to the Legends Kenobi novel by wrapping up a loose end in that book.

5) Lords of the Sith A-

Sidious and Vader Kick Butt could be an alternative title for this book. Vader was written so well, and Sidious's machinations were in full effect. I really enjoyed the Twi'leks too actually, as we saw the return of Cham Syndulla and his band of freedom fighters.

6) Rebel Rising A-

This book is basically a biography of Jyn Erso, but it manages to give a very good character arc to her as well. I also really liked Revis's portrayal of Saw.

7) Aftermath: Empire's End B+

This one got a bit dry at times, but the last two-thirds of the book had me turning pages at a breakneck pace. The Battle of Jakku was epic and Rax was a great villain.

8) Thrawn B+

Another character study (NuCanon seems fond of these), Timothy Zahn returns and shows us Thrawn's rise to power in the Empire. He's a wonderfully complex character, and reading from Thrawn's PoV was a real treat. Also enjoyed the characterization that Zahn gave to Governor Pryce in Rebels.

9) Leia: Princess of Alderaan B

Unfortunately, this is the worst of the YA books that I have read. Although it was still an enjoyable book, I didn’t find myself too invested in Leia’s trials, and as they took up like half the book. Also the romance was a tad cheesy to me. Those two things kept it from reaching Grade A status with me. However, any parts dealing with the politics, the rebellion, or Leia’s family issues were great. Overall a good, but not great, book.

10) Master and Apprentice B

It was fantastic to read a story about Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon. Seeing the dynamics of this pairing contrasted against the Dooku and Qui-Gon master-apprentice relationship was just fantastic. The exploration of the prophecies was well-done. I only wish the main plot had been a little more interesting, but the character work helped to make up for it.

11) Lost Stars B-

This book was lots better than I expected. The only reason I have it lower is because love stories are just not my thing. However it was a new and different concept so props to Claudia Gray for doing a great job.

12) Aftermath: Life Debt C+

Mixed feelings on this one. The story and world-building were great. What I did not like though was that Han Solo was written very out of character. I know much of that is due to where he is at in TFA, but I feel like there could have been a more organic way to get him there (like Leia in Bloodlines).

13) Tarkin C

Honestly, I was disappointed with this one. The parts with Tarkin's backstory were a slog. I'm glad Vader guest-starred, and I thought getting inside the mind of Tarkin was interesting, but overall despite the typical Luceno universe-building there just isn't as much here as there is in his other works.

14) Phasma C-

This book was a struggle for me to get through. It’s pace was just to slow. It did a good job building Phasma as a character though and showing how her rise affected the First Order.

15) Aftermath C-

I have a bizarre relationship with this one. Tried to read it once before TFA came out, gave up about 100 pages in. Upon hearing good things about Life Debt I tried again and I liked it much better. The story is decent and the end battle is cool. The book feels very padded to me though and it drags the score down a lot.

16) Heir to the Jedi D+

I liked the first person. I liked the characterization of Luke. I liked him learning how to build a lightsaber and be his awkward self. Unfortunately though there really isn't that much that happens in this book, hence the low score. It's not a bad book, it's just kinda forgettable, which for a Star Wars book loses a lot of my points in my evaluation.

17) A New Dawn D

I'm part-way through but I've given up on it for now. I don't like the Rebels characters that much (why does it have to be Kanan who gives Obi-Wan the signal beacon idea he uses in ROTS - I feel like the saga is put around Rebels characters as opposed to the other way around) to begin with but also it feels like the overall story of this book has been covered better in other books. Hera's stuff that I've read was decent.

 

The Gungan really bugged me because it basically re-writes an entire species (that had appeared in numerous other sources including TCW) for the sake of a cheap joke about stereotypes.

 

ADULT

Great (4/4)

1. Thrawn - everything I could ever want from a novel, a look behind the curtain of the Imperial military from the Grand Admiral himself
2. Aftermath: Empire's End - solid ending to the trilogy, made the downfall of the Empire believable and added to the Emperor's mythos
3. Last Shot - really fun story with Han and Lando, I liked how the story was woven together through the past and present
4. Master and Apprentice - don't typically enjoy the prequel era, everything about this book is solid: plot, characterization, writing; mystery, intrigue and storytelling

Good (3/4)

5. Tarkin - really enjoyed the internal politics of the Empire
6. Lords of the Sith - interesting to see the Vader/Palpatine interactions
7. Aftermath: Life Debt - really enjoy seeing the galactic powers struggle for dominance after Endor
8. Solo: A Star Wars Story - I don't enjoy movie novels, this one was different, adding scenes and descriptions that gave characters more depth and motivation
9. From a Certain Point of View - really enjoyable, luckily the ones I didn't care for were the really short stories, some continuity mistakes towards the end of the book
10. Battlefront II: Inferno Squad - solid book looking at the internal conflict the Empire creates within it's own ranks, fun to then watch cut-scenes from game

Okay (2/4)

11. Thrawn: Alliances - disappointed after loving Thrawn, found the writing choppy and confusing, had to re-read sections, still Thrawn and Vader are bad ass
12. Catalyst - slow and plodding story, but one that kept moving forward despite few action sequences, I enjoyed looking into the workings of the early Empire
13. Phasma - enjoyable and unexpected backstory that provides good depth to a character poorly utilized in the films
14. Bloodline - good mix of action and politics, but it was difficult to see how useless the NEU New Republic is
15. Dark Disciple - never knew where the story was going, was a really nice surprise
16. Aftermath - different style of novel, but the content was interesting
17. Battlefront: Twilight Company - solid action, never enthralling, enjoyed exploring the Rebellion during this time
18. Alphabet Squadron - This should have been a slam dunk for me, as the military genre of Star War is my jam - I even imagined a similar concept (Rainbow squadron) many years ago, I found the writing to be clunky, and re-reading sentences for full comprehension prevented me from getting into a flow and enjoying the book, I didn't find the story or the characters that engaging, found it hard to wrap my head around how a well run TIE wing deserves this much attention, and didn't think the differences between the starfighter types was taken full advantage of, but Freed gets full marks for most creative planet/character naming.
19. Canto Bight - first two stories were hard to get through (had to really concentrate to read Mira Grant's writing), last two were good, especially The Ride
20. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story - better adaptation than TFA, but still didn't add a whole lot to the movie itself, found Jyn's motives to be confusing at times

Bad (1/4)

21. Heir to the Jedi - the first person viewpoint was different (and not in a good way)
22. A New Dawn - I see lots of people really enjoyed it, I found it to be dull
23. The Last Jedi: The novel was better than the movie, but I still have serious problems with the story
24. The Force Awakens - glossed over the best parts and didn't properly capture the funny moments from the film, and added little to the story

YOUNG ADULT

Great (4/4)

1. Ahsoka - tight and well paced story, wasn't expecting to enjoy it but the young adult novels excel, I read it in two days

Good (3/4)

2. Most Wanted - fun and enjoyable story that provided fantastic background to the main characters in Solo
3. Leia, Princess of Alderaan - good book, explores Leia's character and is spot on while doing so, surprised how old she was when she became involved in the Rebellion
4. Rebel Rising - a good read about a tragic story/life
5. A Crash of Fate - a harlequin Star Wars novel, character motivations and scene descriptions were shaky, but I found in engaging and enjoyable
6. Lost Stars - I enjoyed how it intertwined throughout the OT
7. Force Collector - it was good, not great, and at times you wondered where it was going, but the ending pulled it all together

Bad (1/4)

8. Queen's Shadow - nothing happened. It read like a daily journal of Senator Amidala, no major consequences or overarching plot. Too much talk about outfits haha

YOUNG READER

Great (4/4)

1. Myths & Fables - An unexpectedly great read, the stories were all short, sharp, well written and incredibly fun!
2. Moving Target: A Princess Leia Adventure - excellent writing and a compelling story, I fist pumped when I found out what the name of the stolen shuttle was
3. Before the Awakening: a real surprise, the writing and action sequences were excellent, three wonderfully told stories

Good (3/4)

4. Lando's Luck: an enjoyable story that really nails the Lando character is his early days with L3 and the Falcon

Okay (2/4)

5. Smuggler's Run: A Han Solo & Chewbacca Adventure - a fun adventure with Han and Chewie, didn't wow me but the story was interesting enough
6. Guardians of the Whills - story was slow and steady but with enough interest to keep my attention, good example of life under the thumb of the Empire
7. Pirate's Price - Hondo's perspective was initially fun, but that faded as the book went along; the later stories seemed like an afterthought
8. The Weapon of a Jedi: A Luke Skywalker Adventure - it was just okay, I found the story slow, lacking major sequences, and with minimal plot scope

Bad (1/4)

9. The Legends of Luke Skywalker: difficult to get interested in stories that may not be 'factual', especially when the first story is a tall tale
10. Cobalt Squadron - this one was plodding and hard to get through, Rose learning to overcome her confidence issues doesn't make the best plot outline.
11. Spark of the Resistance - rushed writing, terrible dialogue, childish character interactions, the plight of the Resistance reminds me why I'm not fond of new Canon
12. The Mighty Chewbacca in the Forest of Fear!: this one really felt like a children's book to me, both in story and the writing

 

Well, let's see. I've enjoyed quite a few of the new books, but some simply didn't click with me that well. Aftermath took... some getting used to, and I skipped book one. It did improve over time though. I have enjoyed most of Alexander Freed's work thus far (though he still hasn't filled the gaping Allston/Stackpole chasm in the franchise). Luceno remains good, if sometimes overly wordy, value, and I look forward to a possible further Palpatine story, if he comes back. Claudia Grey has also impressed, and Rae Carson is off to a good start, with Most Wanted, and the new novelization.

Zhan I will always keep an eye on, and I really liked Thrawn. Alliances not so much, but Treason seems pretty decent.

 

Updating

1) Dark Disciple A+

A great book that resolves Ventress's story in TCW. It felt so much like the TV show, which I was grateful for as I am a huge fan of the show and still miss it. I will admit I teared up at the end of this one.

2) Bloodline A+

A fantastic look at the galaxy between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, but also a great character study of our favorite princess. I loved the string-pulling and it being the Empire that had to subtlety for a change. Plus I love the study of politics IRL so this book was right up my ally. I didn't like the direction Leia was taken in TFA but this book made it A LOT easier for me to swallow. Excellent job Claudia Gray.

3) Catalyst A

James Luceno is back, and this time he gives Rogue One the Darth Plagueis treatment. While it gets a bit technical at times, the book is structured very similarly to the Plagueis book - I flew through the last third of the novel. Even though I knew the outcome I was still on the edge of my seat. Bonus points for the typical myriad of Luceno EU references.

4) Ahsoka A

This was another great character study. As stated above, I am a big TCW fan so of course I was very excited to read this book. It did not disappoint and was actually better than I anticipated! Glad we got to see the (extremely) early days of the rebellion and how Ahsoka was one of the first to join. She was also a beast in combat. Also loved the interludes that discussed Ahsoka's time during ROTS and the Siege of Mandalore - bonus points for working as a quasi-sequel to the Legends Kenobi novel by wrapping up a loose end in that book.

5) Lords of the Sith A-

Sidious and Vader Kick Butt could be an alternative title for this book. Vader was written so well, and Sidious's machinations were in full effect. I really enjoyed the Twi'leks too actually, as we saw the return of Cham Syndulla and his band of freedom fighters.

6) Rebel Rising A-

This book is basically a biography of Jyn Erso, but it manages to give a very good character arc to her as well. I also really liked Revis's portrayal of Saw.

7) Aftermath: Empire's End B+

This one got a bit dry at times, but the last two-thirds of the book had me turning pages at a breakneck pace. The Battle of Jakku was epic and Rax was a great villain.

8) Thrawn B+

Another character study (NuCanon seems fond of these), Timothy Zahn returns and shows us Thrawn's rise to power in the Empire. He's a wonderfully complex character, and reading from Thrawn's PoV was a real treat. Also enjoyed the characterization that Zahn gave to Governor Pryce in Rebels.

9) Leia: Princess of Alderaan B

Unfortunately, this is the worst of the YA books that I have read. Although it was still an enjoyable book, I didn’t find myself too invested in Leia’s trials, and as they took up like half the book. Also the romance was a tad cheesy to me. Those two things kept it from reaching Grade A status with me. However, any parts dealing with the politics, the rebellion, or Leia’s family issues were great. Overall a good, but not great, book.

10) Master and Apprentice B

It was fantastic to read a story about Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon. Seeing the dynamics of this pairing contrasted against the Dooku and Qui-Gon master-apprentice relationship was just fantastic. The exploration of the prophecies was well-done. I only wish the main plot had been a little more interesting, but the character work helped to make up for it.

11) Lost Stars B-

This book was lots better than I expected. The only reason I have it lower is because love stories are just not my thing. However it was a new and different concept so props to Claudia Gray for doing a great job.

12) Aftermath: Life Debt C+

Mixed feelings on this one. The story and world-building were great. What I did not like though was that Han Solo was written very out of character. I know much of that is due to where he is at in TFA, but I feel like there could have been a more organic way to get him there (like Leia in Bloodlines).

13) Tarkin C

Honestly, I was disappointed with this one. The parts with Tarkin's backstory were a slog. I'm glad Vader guest-starred, and I thought getting inside the mind of Tarkin was interesting, but overall despite the typical Luceno universe-building there just isn't as much here as there is in his other works.

14) Phasma C-

This book was a struggle for me to get through. It’s pace was just too slow. It did a good job building Phasma as a character though and showing how her rise affected the First Order.

15) Queen's Shadow C-

This book was so boring it took me half a year to finish. It's really unfortunate because it's about Padme, and stories with her between TPM and AOTC have such huge potential. But most of the plot threads just went nowhere and there wasn't even an antagonist (which can work, but didn't here).

16) Aftermath C-

I have a bizarre relationship with this one. Tried to read it once before TFA came out, gave up about 100 pages in. Upon hearing good things about Life Debt I tried again and I liked it much better. The story is decent and the end battle is cool. The book feels very padded to me though and it drags the score down a lot.

17) Heir to the Jedi D+

I liked the first person. I liked the characterization of Luke. I liked him learning how to build a lightsaber and be his awkward self. Unfortunately though there really isn't that much that happens in this book, hence the low score. It's not a bad book, it's just kinda forgettable, which for a Star Wars book loses a lot of my points in my evaluation.

18) A New Dawn D

I'm part-way through but I've given up on it for now. I don't like the Rebels characters that much (why does it have to be Kanan who gives Obi-Wan the signal beacon idea he uses in ROTS - I feel like the saga is put around Rebels characters as opposed to the other way around) to begin with but also it feels like the overall story of this book has been covered better in other books. Hera's stuff that I've read was decent.

 

Just updating my list with a few more books. I just finished Master and Apprentice by Claudia Gray. I expect a lot from a Gray novel and I was not disappointed. I’m looking forward to more good things in the upcoming High Republic series.

1. Lost Stars
2. Thrawn
3. Master and Apprentice
4. Bloodline
5. Catalyst
6. Thrawn: Alliances
7. Dark Disciple
8. A New Dawn
9. Tarkin
10. Inferno Squad
11. From a Certain Point of View
12. Resistance Reborn
13. Leia: Princess of Alderaan
14. Lords of the Sith
15. Aftermath: Empire’s End
16. Guardians of the Whills
17. Heir to the Jedi
18. Aftermath: Life Debt
19. Aftermath
20. Last Shot