main
side
curve
  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

Books Rank the novels of the new canon

Discussion in 'Literature' started by ScorpionJedi, Jan 7, 2016.

  1. devilinthedetails

    devilinthedetails Fiendish Fanfic & SWTV Manager, Interim Tech Admin star 6 Staff Member Administrator

    Registered:
    Jun 19, 2019
    Updated to include my rankings for Alphabet Squadron.

    My rankings for the ones I've read or listened to in the case of Dooku: Jedi Lost.

    Top Tier:

    Lost Stars: I went into this one not expecting much and found an excellent book. It had a large scope, complex characters with believably different perspectives, and a compelling friendship that evolved into a romance where the two characters ultimately came down on opposing sides of a galactic conflict. Five stars.

    Bloodlines: Another excellent work by Claudia Gray (what a find she has been for the new canon). Thrilling exploration of New Republic politics, a wonderful delve into Leia's character, and the same sort of complex treatment of different perspectives with strong character growth that distinguished Lost Stars. Five stars.

    Catalyst: Truly epic in scope and scale. Wonderful characterization and really added to Rogue One. One of Luceno's strongest Star Wars works in my opinion. Five stars.

    Rogue One: Tight, gripping prose that works well with the dark, gritty tone of the Rogue One movie, and delves more deeply into the psychology of the main characters. An excellent novelization of a great movie. Four and a half stars.

    Dooku: Jedi Lost: Very well done audio drama. Really fleshes out Dooku's backstory. Wonderful voice acting by the people who do Yoda and Qui-Gon Jinn especially. Would love another project like this in the future. Four and a half stars.

    Alphabet Squadron: A great book and the best of Alexander Freed's entries thus far in the New Canon. I found that it had the same gritty, raw writing style Freed displayed in his other New Canon novels, and I do feel that Freed is really carving himself a niche as an author of these war stories. Yrica Quell was an interesting character to me since I could see both her noble side and how deeply Imperial propaganda had influenced her and warped her perspective on events like the destruction of Alderaan. The evolution of Alphabet Squadron was fascinating to read as was learning the backstories of the individual members of the squad, who all experienced their own traumas and losses. I also like the political exploration of how the New Republic, so used to experiencing defeat, must learn how to handle victory, and of the Imperial suicide bombers, who seem to resonate in our own contemporary world of violent radicalization and terrorism. Four and a half stars.

    Very Good:

    Leia: Princess of Alderaan: Once again, Gray does a great job bringing Leia to life, I love seeing Alderaan in more detail, and Holdo is an amusing, likable character when Gray writes her. Another strong entry from Gray. Four stars.

    Master and Apprentice: Gray does an admirable job fleshing out Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon as well as their relationship with one another. There are some interesting flashbacks to Qui-Gon's relationship with Dooku as well. The ending of the story has a genuinely surprising twist I would say. So far Gray has yet to disappoint. Four stars.

    Queen's Shadow: Loved how this book brought Padme and Sabe to life and put them in the spotlight. The focus on Republic politics was nice, and I enjoyed learning more about Naboo, and generally seeing more of the characters from Naboo. Four stars.

    Solo: A good novelization overall with a tone that fit the movie it was adapting. Added some backstory and motivation to Q'ira's character that was moving to read. Got a bit melodramatic when it came to L3 dying though. Felt like more narrative weight was put on that than Rio and Val's deaths, which didn't work for me. L3 really only works for me as joke. Four stars.

    Battlefront: Twilight Company: This had been on my "to read" pile for awhile but I read through it at last and was overall very impressed. Freed has a gritty, raw style of writing that works really well with war stories such as this one. Numir's character development throughout the book was compelling as was his complex relationship with Everi Chalis, a fascinating, complicated character in her own right. This book does a good job delving into the different motivations of various characters on the Rebel and Imperial side of the war. The only criticism I have is that the book somehow felt a bit slow in the opening part despite all the action and it took me a little time to make sense of who all the characters were, but I felt after Hoth especially there was such an uptick in momentum that I truly couldn't put it down. Definitely another solid, strong work by Freed all things considered. Four out of five stars.

    Battlefront: Inferno Squad: I really enjoyed it and found it to be a gripping read for the most part. Iden to me was a complex, fascinating, and believable protagonist, and her decision with the Mentor at the end caught me by surprise while also being a genuinely fitting reflection of her evolution throughout the novel. Her family history and relationships with her parents are also interesting and kept me emotionally engaged throughout the book. Each of the members of Inferno Squad is well fleshed out as a character with deep, complicated relationships with the other members of their squad as well as with the rebel partisan cell where they operated undercover. I also think Golden did an excellent job depicting Imperial society in a realistic fashion. To me she has a real gift for showing both the completion and cooperation in cutthroat societies like the Empire in Inferno Squad or the Lost Tribe of the Sith in her now Legends Fate of the Jedi books. I know Golden isn't an author to everyone's tastes but this is another book of hers that I've enjoyed (her only miss for me has really been Dark Disciple). Four out of five stars.

    Middle of the Pack
    :

    Last Shot: An overall action-packed and enjoyable read. The prose was at its best when it was crisp and laced with slang in keeping with the scoundrel characters who populate it, and at its worst when the author seemed to want to elevate it by jamming in random words that seemed to have been plucked from the thesaurus without regard for what would actually flow in context. The glimpses of Han, Leia, and Ben's family life were very sweet though tinged with sorrow when I think about how Ben will someday slay his own father. Gor is an interesting, compelling villain, and the chance to explore more of Utapau was appreciated. Lando's relationship with L-3 was well-depicted, uniting the past and present parts of his story well, while Han's past and present stories didn't come together for me quite as strongly. The Ewok character annoyed me, though the Gungan was cool. I thought the Wookie and Ewok languages took up too much space in the story given there is no glossary in the back. That could definitely be scaled back next time unless a glossary is given. Overall, I wouldn't mind seeing Older get another shot at writing scoundrels despite the title of this book. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Lords of the Sith: Some interesting insights into Vader's thought processes and his relationship with Sidious, but I felt like it scratched the surface compared to how in-depth it could have gone. Plot was fairly compelling. 3 and a half stars.

    Last Jedi:
    Fairly strong novelization that does add something to the movie it adapts. Prose not as gripping as that in Solo or Rogue One, which impacts its spot in my rankings here. 3 and a half stars.

    A New Dawn: Some interesting character work and a reasonably gripping plot. Prose somewhat lackluster, and nothing stood out as truly exceptional to me in any way. Just a run-of-the-mill Star Wars book. Not bad and not great. 3 stars.

    Tarkin: Some engaging character work done with Tarkin, but overall the plot felt underwhelming. 3 stars.

    Resistance Reborn: I thought the second half of the book was stronger than the first. The prose was competent to strong throughout as was the worldbuilding. Poe's character didn't work for me throughout the first half of the book, but in the second he worked better for me especially when he was teamed up with Finn. Finn was in character for me but I'd have loved to have seen more of him. Rey didn't work for me as she came across as too timid. Leia seemed mostly in character to me. Liked the ensemble nature but also would've preferred more of Rey, Finn, and Poe working together than we saw. This book overall is kind of disappointing to me because I felt it promised a lot it for me didn't deliver and ended up being only mediocre when it could have been exceptional. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Force Collector: A fairly quick and engaging read. Probably felt the most "YA" of any of the "YA" books produced in the New Canon that I've read thus far. Maize to me was the best original character in this story. Karr's family background was interesting in that readers can piece it together throughout the book--the answer may be obvious to an adult reader, but the mystery seems appropriate for the YA audience for which the book was intended. The school parts of the book were pretty mediocre, but the story picked up once we got to traveling to worlds from the PT, ST, and original worlds not from the movies. The Force plot and history of the Jedi was the strongest part of the book for me, though I would've preferred more original story there and less taken from the PT and the OT films with which the readers are already presumably familiar. The ending was overall pretty strong and moving. Not a bad effort but not a great one either. It had a neat premise that I'm not sure was explored to its full potential. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Rise of Skywalker: Overall, a reasonably strong novelization. Expanded and explained some details that weren't covered in TROS that helped make the plot flow better. Likewise some of the pacing issues in the movie were improved upon in this novelization. The writing technique was competent but not exceptional. Relationships like the ones between Rey, Finn, and Poe as well as between Rey and Luke and Rey and Leia were fairly well-explored. The parts pertaining to Rey/Kylo didn't work for me much better in the novel than in the movie. Despite some lackluster passages, the writing was mostly competent and succeeded at resolving some of the pacing issues and expanding on some important plot points from TROS. 3 and a half out of 5 stars.

    Disappointing:

    Phasma: The prose was written in a style I couldn't get into. For a book that was supposed to be about discovering the Phasma beneath the mask, this book failed to be that for me. I wanted to learn more about Phasma's time in the First Order (maybe something about how she was kidnapped and brainwashed since youth that would have made her a more sympathetic character). I didn't need the whole Mad Max post-apocalypse style story that to me felt out of place in Star Wars. Cardinal really was the only engaging character to me. I've avoided other projects by this author. Two stars.

    Dark Disciple: Just a book I couldn't quite get into. I normally like Christie Golden's work but this fell flat for me. Really disappointing considering how much she could have done with Ventress since she did a great job bringing Vastara to life. Still there were some interesting sections about Jedi philosophy and the Clone Wars. It's just when I read those sections I wondered why the rest of the book couldn't come anywhere close to that level. Probably for me Golden's weakest Star Wars entry. Two stars.

    Force Awakens: By far the weakest of the movie novelizations to me. Alan Dean Foster's prose is just very clunky and dull to me, and I felt not much was added that the movie didn't provide. One and a half stars.

    Aftermath trilogy: The writing style with all the fragments didn't work for me. At. All. Just. To. Offer. An. Insight. Into. How. Annoying. It. Was. I. Wrote. A. Brief. Section. In. That. Stilted. Style. Okay, I'll stop now since I'm sure everyone got the point. The original characters also didn't do much for me (most of them irritated me) and the only parts that really engaged me were the interludes, which made me wonder why the story couldn't have focused on the more fascinating interludes. One star for the interludes and I'll be unlikely to pick up anything by the author again.
     
  2. Xander Vos

    Xander Vos Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Aug 3, 2013
    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. The Rise of Skywalker - This was ok, but didn't really improve my impression of the story. Which I suppose isn't Carson's fault, but she didn't add much to the narrative to improve it, and doubled-down in some ways.
    20. Life Debt - Eh it was ok but nothing special.
    21. Aftermath - Good characters but didn't like the writing style at all.
    22. The Force Awakens - Foster tries to make this way too hard Sci-Fi which is jarring.
    23. 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.
     
    Last edited: May 11, 2020
    Tython Awakening and Merric like this.
  3. Merric

    Merric Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Jan 26, 2013
    WOW! I'm a bit surprised to see Dark Disciple ranked at the bottom of the list! Especially since I cam here to say that Dark Disciple is favorite of the books I've read so far. But then again I just recently got into reading the books in the new canon and have read only 3 books. I also haven't read anything about Quinlan before so this was my first experience reading about him.

    1: Dark Disciple: I knew I was going to love this book going into it as I'm such a huge fan of Ventress in general. I could have honestly done without most of the romance stuff but it wasn't off putting or anything, and it somewhat worked. Despite it being a romance novel about Quinlan and Ventress I found myself waaaay more interested Akar Deshu's relationship with Quinlan Vos, though. That's what really made me love this book to death. I got chocked up when Desh just let his emotions pour out upon finding out that someone he cared so deeply for had turned to the dark side. There's just something about jedi who go against the code and act on their emotions, that I love. These kind of stories are just perfect for me. I do have to say though, this would have definitely worked better as a cartoon, like what was originally intended. You can almost feel that it was meant to be a series of episodes, with some filler in between. And with the filler removed it does feel fast paced at times.
    2: Master and Apprentice: I really really liked this one. The scenes with Dooku are great, it was interesting hearing about all the prophecies, the plot twist at the end is shocking. I can't express how perfect the author grasped these characters, especially Qui-gon. It was also refreshing seeing Obi-wan in such a light that we've just never seen before. Also we got to see why Obi-wan hates flying which was both funny and sad. What I would give for a series of books like these that take place before TPM...
    3: Ahsoka: It was pretty good. I feel like when I read other books this one will drop pretty down far on my list, though.

    I'm also Planning to read Queen's Shadow and Dooku Jedi Lost by the end of the month.
     
    Last edited: May 12, 2020
  4. Xander Vos

    Xander Vos Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Aug 3, 2013
    I just found it incredibly poorly written and hamfistedly fit into the Clone Wars timeline.
     
    spicer and Merric like this.
  5. Chrissonofpear2

    Chrissonofpear2 Jedi Knight star 3

    Registered:
    Mar 25, 2020
    I did not think it was worst, but was a bit sore on how it... borrowed so much from the Republic comics arcs, whilst redoing other bits. It felt a bit unremarkable, also, at time, but by no means bad. I would rate it above Heir to the Jedi and Aftermath book 1. Of that trilogy, I liked Life Debt best, with Empire's End a close second. Treason I will asses more thoroughly when I get paperback. And I am halfway through Alphabet Squadron at moment, which feels very solid.
     
  6. devilinthedetails

    devilinthedetails Fiendish Fanfic & SWTV Manager, Interim Tech Admin star 6 Staff Member Administrator

    Registered:
    Jun 19, 2019
    Updated to include my rankings for Queen's Peril.

    My rankings for the ones I've read or listened to in the case of Dooku: Jedi Lost.

    Top Tier:

    Lost Stars: I went into this one not expecting much and found an excellent book. It had a large scope, complex characters with believably different perspectives, and a compelling friendship that evolved into a romance where the two characters ultimately came down on opposing sides of a galactic conflict. Five stars.

    Bloodlines: Another excellent work by Claudia Gray (what a find she has been for the new canon). Thrilling exploration of New Republic politics, a wonderful delve into Leia's character, and the same sort of complex treatment of different perspectives with strong character growth that distinguished Lost Stars. Five stars.

    Catalyst: Truly epic in scope and scale. Wonderful characterization and really added to Rogue One. One of Luceno's strongest Star Wars works in my opinion. Five stars.

    Rogue One: Tight, gripping prose that works well with the dark, gritty tone of the Rogue One movie, and delves more deeply into the psychology of the main characters. An excellent novelization of a great movie. Four and a half stars.

    Dooku: Jedi Lost: Very well done audio drama. Really fleshes out Dooku's backstory. Wonderful voice acting by the people who do Yoda and Qui-Gon Jinn especially. Would love another project like this in the future. Four and a half stars.

    Alphabet Squadron: A great book and the best of Alexander Freed's entries thus far in the New Canon. I found that it had the same gritty, raw writing style Freed displayed in his other New Canon novels, and I do feel that Freed is really carving himself a niche as an author of these war stories. Yrica Quell was an interesting character to me since I could see both her noble side and how deeply Imperial propaganda had influenced her and warped her perspective on events like the destruction of Alderaan. The evolution of Alphabet Squadron was fascinating to read as was learning the backstories of the individual members of the squad, who all experienced their own traumas and losses. I also like the political exploration of how the New Republic, so used to experiencing defeat, must learn how to handle victory, and of the Imperial suicide bombers, who seem to resonate in our own contemporary world of violent radicalization and terrorism. Four and a half stars.

    Very Good:

    Leia: Princess of Alderaan: Once again, Gray does a great job bringing Leia to life, I love seeing Alderaan in more detail, and Holdo is an amusing, likable character when Gray writes her. Another strong entry from Gray. Four stars.

    Master and Apprentice: Gray does an admirable job fleshing out Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon as well as their relationship with one another. There are some interesting flashbacks to Qui-Gon's relationship with Dooku as well. The ending of the story has a genuinely surprising twist I would say. So far Gray has yet to disappoint. Four stars.

    Queen's Shadow: Loved how this book brought Padme and Sabe to life and put them in the spotlight. The focus on Republic politics was nice, and I enjoyed learning more about Naboo, and generally seeing more of the characters from Naboo. Four stars.

    Solo: A good novelization overall with a tone that fit the movie it was adapting. Added some backstory and motivation to Q'ira's character that was moving to read. Got a bit melodramatic when it came to L3 dying though. Felt like more narrative weight was put on that than Rio and Val's deaths, which didn't work for me. L3 really only works for me as joke. Four stars.

    Battlefront: Twilight Company: This had been on my "to read" pile for awhile but I read through it at last and was overall very impressed. Freed has a gritty, raw style of writing that works really well with war stories such as this one. Numir's character development throughout the book was compelling as was his complex relationship with Everi Chalis, a fascinating, complicated character in her own right. This book does a good job delving into the different motivations of various characters on the Rebel and Imperial side of the war. The only criticism I have is that the book somehow felt a bit slow in the opening part despite all the action and it took me a little time to make sense of who all the characters were, but I felt after Hoth especially there was such an uptick in momentum that I truly couldn't put it down. Definitely another solid, strong work by Freed all things considered. Four out of five stars.

    Battlefront: Inferno Squad: I really enjoyed it and found it to be a gripping read for the most part. Iden to me was a complex, fascinating, and believable protagonist, and her decision with the Mentor at the end caught me by surprise while also being a genuinely fitting reflection of her evolution throughout the novel. Her family history and relationships with her parents are also interesting and kept me emotionally engaged throughout the book. Each of the members of Inferno Squad is well fleshed out as a character with deep, complicated relationships with the other members of their squad as well as with the rebel partisan cell where they operated undercover. I also think Golden did an excellent job depicting Imperial society in a realistic fashion. To me she has a real gift for showing both the completion and cooperation in cutthroat societies like the Empire in Inferno Squad or the Lost Tribe of the Sith in her now Legends Fate of the Jedi books. I know Golden isn't an author to everyone's tastes but this is another book of hers that I've enjoyed (her only miss for me has really been Dark Disciple). Four out of five stars.

    Middle of the Pack
    :

    Last Shot: An overall action-packed and enjoyable read. The prose was at its best when it was crisp and laced with slang in keeping with the scoundrel characters who populate it, and at its worst when the author seemed to want to elevate it by jamming in random words that seemed to have been plucked from the thesaurus without regard for what would actually flow in context. The glimpses of Han, Leia, and Ben's family life were very sweet though tinged with sorrow when I think about how Ben will someday slay his own father. Gor is an interesting, compelling villain, and the chance to explore more of Utapau was appreciated. Lando's relationship with L-3 was well-depicted, uniting the past and present parts of his story well, while Han's past and present stories didn't come together for me quite as strongly. The Ewok character annoyed me, though the Gungan was cool. I thought the Wookie and Ewok languages took up too much space in the story given there is no glossary in the back. That could definitely be scaled back next time unless a glossary is given. Overall, I wouldn't mind seeing Older get another shot at writing scoundrels despite the title of this book. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Lords of the Sith: Some interesting insights into Vader's thought processes and his relationship with Sidious, but I felt like it scratched the surface compared to how in-depth it could have gone. Plot was fairly compelling. 3 and a half stars.

    Last Jedi:
    Fairly strong novelization that does add something to the movie it adapts. Prose not as gripping as that in Solo or Rogue One, which impacts its spot in my rankings here. 3 and a half stars.

    A New Dawn: Some interesting character work and a reasonably gripping plot. Prose somewhat lackluster, and nothing stood out as truly exceptional to me in any way. Just a run-of-the-mill Star Wars book. Not bad and not great. 3 stars.

    Tarkin: Some engaging character work done with Tarkin, but overall the plot felt underwhelming. 3 stars.

    Resistance Reborn: I thought the second half of the book was stronger than the first. The prose was competent to strong throughout as was the worldbuilding. Poe's character didn't work for me throughout the first half of the book, but in the second he worked better for me especially when he was teamed up with Finn. Finn was in character for me but I'd have loved to have seen more of him. Rey didn't work for me as she came across as too timid. Leia seemed mostly in character to me. Liked the ensemble nature but also would've preferred more of Rey, Finn, and Poe working together than we saw. This book overall is kind of disappointing to me because I felt it promised a lot it for me didn't deliver and ended up being only mediocre when it could have been exceptional. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Force Collector: A fairly quick and engaging read. Probably felt the most "YA" of any of the "YA" books produced in the New Canon that I've read thus far. Maize to me was the best original character in this story. Karr's family background was interesting in that readers can piece it together throughout the book--the answer may be obvious to an adult reader, but the mystery seems appropriate for the YA audience for which the book was intended. The school parts of the book were pretty mediocre, but the story picked up once we got to traveling to worlds from the PT, ST, and original worlds not from the movies. The Force plot and history of the Jedi was the strongest part of the book for me, though I would've preferred more original story there and less taken from the PT and the OT films with which the readers are already presumably familiar. The ending was overall pretty strong and moving. Not a bad effort but not a great one either. It had a neat premise that I'm not sure was explored to its full potential. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Rise of Skywalker: Overall, a reasonably strong novelization. Expanded and explained some details that weren't covered in TROS that helped make the plot flow better. Likewise some of the pacing issues in the movie were improved upon in this novelization. The writing technique was competent but not exceptional. Relationships like the ones between Rey, Finn, and Poe as well as between Rey and Luke and Rey and Leia were fairly well-explored. The parts pertaining to Rey/Kylo didn't work for me much better in the novel than in the movie. Despite some lackluster passages, the writing was mostly competent and succeeded at resolving some of the pacing issues and expanding on some important plot points from TROS. 3 and a half out of 5 stars.

    Queen's Peril: The two strengths of this book were character development and world-building. With character development, there was bonding between Padme and her handmaidens, who all received backstories, as well as the fleshing out of Governor Bibble and Captain Panaka beyond their TPM selves while still keeping them in their TPM roles. There were also interesting insights into characters such as Palpatine/Sidious, Maul, and Valoroum among others. With the world-building, we see more in depth exploration of the taxation of trade routes issue in the Senate prior to TPM, we learn of the isolationism that had prevailed under the reign of Naboo's prior queen (before Amidala), and we hear how an agricultural situation involving a low crop yield will exacerbate the danger of the Trade Federation blockade with the backdrop of Naboo's rich culture all the while. The world-building and story is at its strongest in the first two thirds of the book before the events of TPM. Once the events of TPM start in the final third, the story becomes rushed and at times reads almost like a summary of events rather than anything more detailed. This creates an "unbalanced" feel to the story's structure as the exposition is very well-developed but the conclusion becomes almost anticlimactic due to being hurried. Really I can't even understand why the rush to get through the events of TPM existed since the book was only 276 pages. More exploration of the events of TPM could definitely have fit in the book. I was torn between three and a half or four stars for this book but decided to go with three and a half stars for the structural issues and to distinguish that it is indeed on a lower tier than Queen's Shadow. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Disappointing:

    Phasma: The prose was written in a style I couldn't get into. For a book that was supposed to be about discovering the Phasma beneath the mask, this book failed to be that for me. I wanted to learn more about Phasma's time in the First Order (maybe something about how she was kidnapped and brainwashed since youth that would have made her a more sympathetic character). I didn't need the whole Mad Max post-apocalypse style story that to me felt out of place in Star Wars. Cardinal really was the only engaging character to me. I've avoided other projects by this author. Two stars.

    Dark Disciple: Just a book I couldn't quite get into. I normally like Christie Golden's work but this fell flat for me. Really disappointing considering how much she could have done with Ventress since she did a great job bringing Vastara to life. Still there were some interesting sections about Jedi philosophy and the Clone Wars. It's just when I read those sections I wondered why the rest of the book couldn't come anywhere close to that level. Probably for me Golden's weakest Star Wars entry. Two stars.

    Force Awakens: By far the weakest of the movie novelizations to me. Alan Dean Foster's prose is just very clunky and dull to me, and I felt not much was added that the movie didn't provide. One and a half stars.

    Aftermath trilogy: The writing style with all the fragments didn't work for me. At. All. Just. To. Offer. An. Insight. Into. How. Annoying. It. Was. I. Wrote. A. Brief. Section. In. That. Stilted. Style. Okay, I'll stop now since I'm sure everyone got the point. The original characters also didn't do much for me (most of them irritated me) and the only parts that really engaged me were the interludes, which made me wonder why the story couldn't have focused on the more fascinating interludes. One star for the interludes and I'll be unlikely to pick up anything by the author again.
     
  7. Xander Vos

    Xander Vos Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Aug 3, 2013
    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. Solo: A Star Wars Story - Really enjoyed this, easily the most of all the film novelisations. Lafferty does really well to capture the humour of the movie and expands on the story in a really compelling way.
    10. Alliances - Preferred this to the first Thrawn novel but not by much.
    11. Thrawn
    12. From A Certain Point of View - great fun stories.
    13. Rogue One - Good retelling of the movie from Freed.
    14. Resistance Reborn - Good original characters, compelling plot, movie characters tread water.
    15. Twilight Company - Good book but felt very dense.
    16. Last Shot - Good story but felt a bit clumsily told.
    17. Empire's End - Good conclusion to the trilogy but wasn't a fan of the trilogy as a whole.
    18. Alphabet Squadron - Another very dense book that was tough to get through, but when it got going it was quite good.
    19. The Last Jedi - Enjoyed this a lot more than the movie, Fry is a great writer.
    20. The Rise of Skywalker - This was ok, but didn't really improve my impression of the story. Which I suppose isn't Carson's fault, but she didn't add much to the narrative to improve it, and doubled-down in some ways.
    21. Life Debt - Eh it was ok but nothing special.
    22. Aftermath - Good characters but didn't like the writing style at all.
    23. The Force Awakens - Foster tries to make this way too hard Sci-Fi which is jarring.
    24. 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.
     
    Sinrebirth likes this.
  8. Xammer

    Xammer Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Jan 31, 2009
    This is a very inefficient thread, it would be nicer if people just updated their old posts and the thread were sorted in update order (I know this is not possible, it's just wishful thinking).
     
  9. Xander Vos

    Xander Vos Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Aug 3, 2013
    Or people do as I'm doing and then people can discuss and comment on new reviews? What's inefficient about it?
     
  10. Xammer

    Xammer Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Jan 31, 2009
    That once you make a new post the old one still exists even though all the information is contained in the new one.
     
  11. Darkslayer

    Darkslayer #1 Sabine Wren Fan star 7

    Registered:
    Mar 26, 2013
    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) 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.

    3) Dooku: Jedi Lost A

    Finally! I've really hoped for a Dooku book for quite some time and this one definitely delivered. One of the best books of the new canon and in my top 10 Star Wars books period, this book did a great job of sprinkling in easter eggs and making Dooku a protagonist that you could like and root for while showing glimpses of his eventual fall. I only wish Luceno had written it as I feel like Dooku was a character made for him, but I'll take the excellent book I was given. Here's hoping for a sequel, as I feel there's definitely more meaty material where the book ends.

    4) 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.

    5) 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.

    6) 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.

    7) 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.

    8) 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.

    9) 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.

    10) 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.

    11) 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.

    12) 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.

    13) 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).

    14) 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.

    15) 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.

    16) 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).

    17) 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.

    18) 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.

    19) 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.
     
    Sith Iratus likes this.
  12. devilinthedetails

    devilinthedetails Fiendish Fanfic & SWTV Manager, Interim Tech Admin star 6 Staff Member Administrator

    Registered:
    Jun 19, 2019
    Updated to include my ranking of Shadow Fall.

    My rankings for the ones I've read or listened to in the case of Dooku: Jedi Lost.

    Top Tier:

    Lost Stars: I went into this one not expecting much and found an excellent book. It had a large scope, complex characters with believably different perspectives, and a compelling friendship that evolved into a romance where the two characters ultimately came down on opposing sides of a galactic conflict. Five stars.

    Bloodlines: Another excellent work by Claudia Gray (what a find she has been for the new canon). Thrilling exploration of New Republic politics, a wonderful delve into Leia's character, and the same sort of complex treatment of different perspectives with strong character growth that distinguished Lost Stars. Five stars.

    Catalyst: Truly epic in scope and scale. Wonderful characterization and really added to Rogue One. One of Luceno's strongest Star Wars works in my opinion. Five stars.

    Rogue One: Tight, gripping prose that works well with the dark, gritty tone of the Rogue One movie, and delves more deeply into the psychology of the main characters. An excellent novelization of a great movie. Four and a half stars.

    Dooku: Jedi Lost: Very well done audio drama. Really fleshes out Dooku's backstory. Wonderful voice acting by the people who do Yoda and Qui-Gon Jinn especially. Would love another project like this in the future. Four and a half stars.

    Alphabet Squadron: A great book and the best of Alexander Freed's entries thus far in the New Canon. I found that it had the same gritty, raw writing style Freed displayed in his other New Canon novels, and I do feel that Freed is really carving himself a niche as an author of these war stories. Yrica Quell was an interesting character to me since I could see both her noble side and how deeply Imperial propaganda had influenced her and warped her perspective on events like the destruction of Alderaan. The evolution of Alphabet Squadron was fascinating to read as was learning the backstories of the individual members of the squad, who all experienced their own traumas and losses. I also like the political exploration of how the New Republic, so used to experiencing defeat, must learn how to handle victory, and of the Imperial suicide bombers, who seem to resonate in our own contemporary world of violent radicalization and terrorism. Four and a half stars.

    Shadow Fall: This book might have surpassed its predecessor, Alphabet Squadron, as my favorite entry from Alexander Freed. It was more tightly plotted than the first book in the series as it didn't need to introduce us to the members of the squad, and there was a sense of mounting tension built throughout the story that came to an intense climax. A creepy cult and a weird tower part of a pet research project of Palpatine's contribute to the suspense and tension. The setting of Triothe and its system with its black hole is interesting, and I like the detailed focus on this setting rather than hopping throughout the galaxy. The characters are painted in shades of gray and the war isn't black and white. Themes of altered memory, guilt, trauma, and confession pervade the book in a powerful way. Another brilliant story from Freed. Five stars.

    Very Good:

    Leia: Princess of Alderaan: Once again, Gray does a great job bringing Leia to life, I love seeing Alderaan in more detail, and Holdo is an amusing, likable character when Gray writes her. Another strong entry from Gray. Four stars.

    Master and Apprentice: Gray does an admirable job fleshing out Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon as well as their relationship with one another. There are some interesting flashbacks to Qui-Gon's relationship with Dooku as well. The ending of the story has a genuinely surprising twist I would say. So far Gray has yet to disappoint. Four stars.

    Queen's Shadow: Loved how this book brought Padme and Sabe to life and put them in the spotlight. The focus on Republic politics was nice, and I enjoyed learning more about Naboo, and generally seeing more of the characters from Naboo. Four stars.

    Solo: A good novelization overall with a tone that fit the movie it was adapting. Added some backstory and motivation to Q'ira's character that was moving to read. Got a bit melodramatic when it came to L3 dying though. Felt like more narrative weight was put on that than Rio and Val's deaths, which didn't work for me. L3 really only works for me as joke. Four stars.

    Battlefront: Twilight Company: This had been on my "to read" pile for awhile but I read through it at last and was overall very impressed. Freed has a gritty, raw style of writing that works really well with war stories such as this one. Numir's character development throughout the book was compelling as was his complex relationship with Everi Chalis, a fascinating, complicated character in her own right. This book does a good job delving into the different motivations of various characters on the Rebel and Imperial side of the war. The only criticism I have is that the book somehow felt a bit slow in the opening part despite all the action and it took me a little time to make sense of who all the characters were, but I felt after Hoth especially there was such an uptick in momentum that I truly couldn't put it down. Definitely another solid, strong work by Freed all things considered. Four out of five stars.

    Battlefront: Inferno Squad: I really enjoyed it and found it to be a gripping read for the most part. Iden to me was a complex, fascinating, and believable protagonist, and her decision with the Mentor at the end caught me by surprise while also being a genuinely fitting reflection of her evolution throughout the novel. Her family history and relationships with her parents are also interesting and kept me emotionally engaged throughout the book. Each of the members of Inferno Squad is well fleshed out as a character with deep, complicated relationships with the other members of their squad as well as with the rebel partisan cell where they operated undercover. I also think Golden did an excellent job depicting Imperial society in a realistic fashion. To me she has a real gift for showing both the completion and cooperation in cutthroat societies like the Empire in Inferno Squad or the Lost Tribe of the Sith in her now Legends Fate of the Jedi books. I know Golden isn't an author to everyone's tastes but this is another book of hers that I've enjoyed (her only miss for me has really been Dark Disciple). Four out of five stars.

    Middle of the Pack
    :

    Last Shot: An overall action-packed and enjoyable read. The prose was at its best when it was crisp and laced with slang in keeping with the scoundrel characters who populate it, and at its worst when the author seemed to want to elevate it by jamming in random words that seemed to have been plucked from the thesaurus without regard for what would actually flow in context. The glimpses of Han, Leia, and Ben's family life were very sweet though tinged with sorrow when I think about how Ben will someday slay his own father. Gor is an interesting, compelling villain, and the chance to explore more of Utapau was appreciated. Lando's relationship with L-3 was well-depicted, uniting the past and present parts of his story well, while Han's past and present stories didn't come together for me quite as strongly. The Ewok character annoyed me, though the Gungan was cool. I thought the Wookie and Ewok languages took up too much space in the story given there is no glossary in the back. That could definitely be scaled back next time unless a glossary is given. Overall, I wouldn't mind seeing Older get another shot at writing scoundrels despite the title of this book. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Lords of the Sith: Some interesting insights into Vader's thought processes and his relationship with Sidious, but I felt like it scratched the surface compared to how in-depth it could have gone. Plot was fairly compelling. 3 and a half stars.

    Last Jedi:
    Fairly strong novelization that does add something to the movie it adapts. Prose not as gripping as that in Solo or Rogue One, which impacts its spot in my rankings here. 3 and a half stars.

    A New Dawn: Some interesting character work and a reasonably gripping plot. Prose somewhat lackluster, and nothing stood out as truly exceptional to me in any way. Just a run-of-the-mill Star Wars book. Not bad and not great. 3 stars.

    Tarkin: Some engaging character work done with Tarkin, but overall the plot felt underwhelming. 3 stars.

    Resistance Reborn: I thought the second half of the book was stronger than the first. The prose was competent to strong throughout as was the worldbuilding. Poe's character didn't work for me throughout the first half of the book, but in the second he worked better for me especially when he was teamed up with Finn. Finn was in character for me but I'd have loved to have seen more of him. Rey didn't work for me as she came across as too timid. Leia seemed mostly in character to me. Liked the ensemble nature but also would've preferred more of Rey, Finn, and Poe working together than we saw. This book overall is kind of disappointing to me because I felt it promised a lot it for me didn't deliver and ended up being only mediocre when it could have been exceptional. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Force Collector: A fairly quick and engaging read. Probably felt the most "YA" of any of the "YA" books produced in the New Canon that I've read thus far. Maize to me was the best original character in this story. Karr's family background was interesting in that readers can piece it together throughout the book--the answer may be obvious to an adult reader, but the mystery seems appropriate for the YA audience for which the book was intended. The school parts of the book were pretty mediocre, but the story picked up once we got to traveling to worlds from the PT, ST, and original worlds not from the movies. The Force plot and history of the Jedi was the strongest part of the book for me, though I would've preferred more original story there and less taken from the PT and the OT films with which the readers are already presumably familiar. The ending was overall pretty strong and moving. Not a bad effort but not a great one either. It had a neat premise that I'm not sure was explored to its full potential. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Rise of Skywalker: Overall, a reasonably strong novelization. Expanded and explained some details that weren't covered in TROS that helped make the plot flow better. Likewise some of the pacing issues in the movie were improved upon in this novelization. The writing technique was competent but not exceptional. Relationships like the ones between Rey, Finn, and Poe as well as between Rey and Luke and Rey and Leia were fairly well-explored. The parts pertaining to Rey/Kylo didn't work for me much better in the novel than in the movie. Despite some lackluster passages, the writing was mostly competent and succeeded at resolving some of the pacing issues and expanding on some important plot points from TROS. 3 and a half out of 5 stars.

    Queen's Peril: The two strengths of this book were character development and world-building. With character development, there was bonding between Padme and her handmaidens, who all received backstories, as well as the fleshing out of Governor Bibble and Captain Panaka beyond their TPM selves while still keeping them in their TPM roles. There were also interesting insights into characters such as Palpatine/Sidious, Maul, and Valoroum among others. With the world-building, we see more in depth exploration of the taxation of trade routes issue in the Senate prior to TPM, we learn of the isolationism that had prevailed under the reign of Naboo's prior queen (before Amidala), and we hear how an agricultural situation involving a low crop yield will exacerbate the danger of the Trade Federation blockade with the backdrop of Naboo's rich culture all the while. The world-building and story is at its strongest in the first two thirds of the book before the events of TPM. Once the events of TPM start in the final third, the story becomes rushed and at times reads almost like a summary of events rather than anything more detailed. This creates an "unbalanced" feel to the story's structure as the exposition is very well-developed but the conclusion becomes almost anticlimactic due to being hurried. Really I can't even understand why the rush to get through the events of TPM existed since the book was only 276 pages. More exploration of the events of TPM could definitely have fit in the book. I was torn between three and a half or four stars for this book but decided to go with three and a half stars for the structural issues and to distinguish that it is indeed on a lower tier than Queen's Shadow. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Disappointing:

    Phasma: The prose was written in a style I couldn't get into. For a book that was supposed to be about discovering the Phasma beneath the mask, this book failed to be that for me. I wanted to learn more about Phasma's time in the First Order (maybe something about how she was kidnapped and brainwashed since youth that would have made her a more sympathetic character). I didn't need the whole Mad Max post-apocalypse style story that to me felt out of place in Star Wars. Cardinal really was the only engaging character to me. I've avoided other projects by this author. Two stars.

    Dark Disciple: Just a book I couldn't quite get into. I normally like Christie Golden's work but this fell flat for me. Really disappointing considering how much she could have done with Ventress since she did a great job bringing Vastara to life. Still there were some interesting sections about Jedi philosophy and the Clone Wars. It's just when I read those sections I wondered why the rest of the book couldn't come anywhere close to that level. Probably for me Golden's weakest Star Wars entry. Two stars.

    Force Awakens: By far the weakest of the movie novelizations to me. Alan Dean Foster's prose is just very clunky and dull to me, and I felt not much was added that the movie didn't provide. One and a half stars.

    Aftermath trilogy: The writing style with all the fragments didn't work for me. At. All. Just. To. Offer. An. Insight. Into. How. Annoying. It. Was. I. Wrote. A. Brief. Section. In. That. Stilted. Style. Okay, I'll stop now since I'm sure everyone got the point. The original characters also didn't do much for me (most of them irritated me) and the only parts that really engaged me were the interludes, which made me wonder why the story couldn't have focused on the more fascinating interludes. One star for the interludes and I'll be unlikely to pick up anything by the author again.
     
    Last edited: Jul 11, 2020
  13. JABoomer

    JABoomer Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Oct 23, 2009
    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. Dooku: Jedi Lost - these books are making the prequel era much more enjoyable. Different format, which I didn't mind. The explanation of Dooku's dissatisfaction with the Jedi and his relationships within the temple were well told
    5. 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)

    6. Tarkin - really enjoyed the internal politics of the Empire
    7. Thrawn: Treason - as good as you can get without being great, excellent story and writing while not quite a page turner
    8. Lords of the Sith - interesting to see the Vader/Palpatine interactions
    9. Aftermath: Life Debt - really enjoy seeing the galactic powers struggle for dominance after Endor
    10. 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
    11. 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
    12. 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)

    13. Thrawn: Alliances - disappointed after loving Thrawn, found the writing choppy and confusing, had to re-read sections, still Thrawn and Vader are bad ass
    14. 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
    15. Phasma - enjoyable and unexpected backstory that provides good depth to a character poorly utilized in the films
    16. Bloodline - good mix of action and politics, but it was difficult to see how useless the NEU New Republic is
    17. Dark Disciple - never knew where the story was going, was a really nice surprise
    18. Aftermath - different style of novel, but the content was interesting
    19. Battlefront: Twilight Company - solid action, never enthralling, enjoyed exploring the Rebellion during this time
    20. Alphabet Squadron - Clunky writing, mediocre story and characters, and the differences between the starfighter types wasn't fully taken advantage of
    21. 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
    22. 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)

    23. Heir to the Jedi - the first person viewpoint was different (and not in a good way)
    24. A New Dawn - I see lots of people really enjoyed it, I found it to be dull
    25. The Last Jedi: The novel was better than the movie, but I still have serious problems with the story
    26. 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 Peril - I didn't have a problem getting through it, but the plot was sleepy, taking you through mundane palace days until it rehashes Episode I
    9. 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. Tales from a Galaxy Far, Far Away: Aliens - another surprise, this collection contained a bunch of entertaining stories, the best thing about them was they were unique, exploring different situations or aspects from the usual Star Wars
    3. 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
    4. Before the Awakening: a real surprise, the writing and action sequences were excellent, three wonderfully told stories

    Good (3/4)

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

    Okay (2/4)

    6. 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
    7. 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
    8. Pirate's Price - Hondo's perspective was initially fun, but that faded as the book went along; the later stories seemed like an afterthought
    9. 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)

    10. 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
    11. 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
    12. 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
    13. 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
     
    Last edited: Jul 17, 2020
  14. Lobey-One Kenobi

    Lobey-One Kenobi Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2009
    Will need to update my rankings as time goes on, as I've only in the past year dipped my toes into the NU.

    1. Thrawn: Alliances
    2. Lords of the Sith
    3. Thrawn
    4. Tarkin
    5. Aftermath
     
  15. JABoomer

    JABoomer Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Oct 23, 2009
    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. Dooku: Jedi Lost - different format, which I didn't mind, the explanation of Dooku's dissatisfaction with the Jedi and his relationships within the temple were well told
    5. 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)

    6. Tarkin - really enjoyed the internal politics of the Empire
    7. Thrawn: Treason - as good as you can get without being great, excellent story and writing while not quite a page turner
    8. Lords of the Sith - interesting to see the Vader/Palpatine interactions
    9. Black Spire - everything was very well done, nice to have a meaningful and fun story that doesn't have galaxy spanning consequences
    10. Aftermath: Life Debt - really enjoyed reading about the galactic powers struggle for dominance after Endor
    11. 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
    12. 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
    13. 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
    14. Resistance Reborn - Finn and Rey were underused, Poe went too low (contemplating leaving the Resistance), then too high (assuming 2nd in command of the Resistance), Poe's demotion in TLJ didn't seem to stick, the Rebellion steals a CR90 corvette which is presumably not the Tantive IV seen in TROS, it would have been clearer to use another ship type, only real complaint is the author struggled at scene setting and I often had to re-read sections to understand the setting, and there were numerous occasions where a character had or didn't have an object and it was jarring to the flow of reading

    Okay (2/4)

    15. Thrawn: Alliances - disappointed after loving Thrawn, found the writing choppy and confusing, had to re-read sections, still Thrawn and Vader are bad ass
    16. 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
    17. Phasma - enjoyable and unexpected backstory that provides good depth to a character poorly utilized in the films
    18. Bloodline - good mix of action and politics, but it was difficult to see how useless the NEU New Republic is
    19. Dark Disciple - never knew where the story was going, was a really nice surprise
    20. Aftermath - different style of novel, but the content was interesting
    21. Battlefront: Twilight Company - solid action, never enthralling, enjoyed exploring the Rebellion during this time
    22. Alphabet Squadron - Clunky writing, mediocre story and characters, and the differences between the starfighter types wasn't fully taken advantage of
    23. 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
    24. 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)

    25. Heir to the Jedi - the first person viewpoint was different (and not in a good way)
    26. A New Dawn - I see lots of people really enjoyed it, I found it to be dull
    27. The Last Jedi: The novel was better than the movie, but I still have serious problems with the story
    28. 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. Poe Dameron: Free Fall - very well written and engaging story, the ending was a little bit too rushed and felt forced trying to mesh with the tidbits from TROS
    3. Most Wanted - fun and enjoyable story that provided fantastic background to the main characters in Solo
    4. 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
    5. Rebel Rising - a good read about a tragic story/life
    6. A Crash of Fate - a harlequin Star Wars novel, character motivations and scene descriptions were shaky, but I found in engaging and enjoyable
    7. Lost Stars - I enjoyed how it intertwined throughout the OT
    8. 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)

    9. Queen's Peril - I didn't have a problem getting through it, but the plot was sleepy, taking you through mundane palace days until it rehashes Episode I
    10. 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. Tales from a Galaxy Far, Far Away: Aliens - this collection contained a bunch of unique and entertaining stories, different situations from the usual Star Wars
    3. 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
    4. Before the Awakening: a real surprise, the writing and action sequences were excellent, three wonderfully told stories

    Good (3/4)

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

    Okay (2/4)

    6. 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
    7. Dark Legends - a few good stories but the rest were forgettable, disappointing after Myths & Fables, the serrated paper edges made it hard to turn the page
    8. 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
    9. Pirate's Price - Hondo's perspective was initially fun, but that faded as the book went along; the later stories seemed like an afterthought
    10. 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)

    11. 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
    12. 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
    13. 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
    14. 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[/QUOTE]
     
  16. Todd the Jedi

    Todd the Jedi Mod and Loving Tyrant of SWTV, Lit, & Collecting star 6 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Oct 16, 2008
    Finished the ROS paperback, so here's my updated list for the year.

    Must Reads

    Lost Stars
    The Last Jedi
    Canto Bight*
    -The Ride
    -Rules of the Game
    -Hear Nothing, See Nothing, Say Nothing
    -The Wine in Dreams
    Rebel Rising
    Bloodline
    Moving Target

    Really Good
    Phasma
    Black Spire
    Leia, Princess of Alderaan
    Alphabet Squadron
    Twilight Company
    Queen’s Shadow
    Solo
    Most Wanted
    Master & Apprentice
    A Crash of Fate
    Rogue One
    A New Dawn
    Aftermath
    The Rise of Skywalker
    Thrawn
    The Weapon of a Jedi
    Ahsoka
    Catalyst
    Resistance Reborn
    Aftermath: Empire’s End
    Guardians of the Whills
    Thrawn: Alliances

    Pretty Good
    Smuggler’s Run
    Queen’s Peril
    Poe Dameron: Free Fall

    The Force Awakens
    Aftermath: Life Debt
    Force Collector
    Lords of the Sith
    Inferno Squad
    Dark Disciple
    Thrawn: Treason
    Before the Awakening*
    -Rey
    -Finn
    -Poe
    Spark of the Resistance

    Decent Enough
    Tarkin
    Last Shot
    Heir to the Jedi
    Cobalt Squadron

    *Individual ranks relative only within collection
     
    Chrissonofpear2 likes this.
  17. devilinthedetails

    devilinthedetails Fiendish Fanfic & SWTV Manager, Interim Tech Admin star 6 Staff Member Administrator

    Registered:
    Jun 19, 2019
    Updated to include my rankings of Poe Dameron: Free Fall and Thrawn Ascendancy: Chaos Rising.

    My rankings for the ones I've read or listened to in the case of Dooku: Jedi Lost.

    Top Tier:

    Lost Stars: I went into this one not expecting much and found an excellent book. It had a large scope, complex characters with believably different perspectives, and a compelling friendship that evolved into a romance where the two characters ultimately came down on opposing sides of a galactic conflict. Five stars.

    Bloodlines: Another excellent work by Claudia Gray (what a find she has been for the new canon). Thrilling exploration of New Republic politics, a wonderful delve into Leia's character, and the same sort of complex treatment of different perspectives with strong character growth that distinguished Lost Stars. Five stars.

    Catalyst: Truly epic in scope and scale. Wonderful characterization and really added to Rogue One. One of Luceno's strongest Star Wars works in my opinion. Five stars.

    Rogue One: Tight, gripping prose that works well with the dark, gritty tone of the Rogue One movie, and delves more deeply into the psychology of the main characters. An excellent novelization of a great movie. Four and a half stars.

    Dooku: Jedi Lost: Very well done audio drama. Really fleshes out Dooku's backstory. Wonderful voice acting by the people who do Yoda and Qui-Gon Jinn especially. Would love another project like this in the future. Four and a half stars.

    Alphabet Squadron: A great book and the best of Alexander Freed's entries thus far in the New Canon. I found that it had the same gritty, raw writing style Freed displayed in his other New Canon novels, and I do feel that Freed is really carving himself a niche as an author of these war stories. Yrica Quell was an interesting character to me since I could see both her noble side and how deeply Imperial propaganda had influenced her and warped her perspective on events like the destruction of Alderaan. The evolution of Alphabet Squadron was fascinating to read as was learning the backstories of the individual members of the squad, who all experienced their own traumas and losses. I also like the political exploration of how the New Republic, so used to experiencing defeat, must learn how to handle victory, and of the Imperial suicide bombers, who seem to resonate in our own contemporary world of violent radicalization and terrorism. Four and a half stars.

    Shadow Fall: This book might have surpassed its predecessor, Alphabet Squadron, as my favorite entry from Alexander Freed. It was more tightly plotted than the first book in the series as it didn't need to introduce us to the members of the squad, and there was a sense of mounting tension built throughout the story that came to an intense climax. A creepy cult and a weird tower part of a pet research project of Palpatine's contribute to the suspense and tension. The setting of Triothe and its system with its black hole is interesting, and I like the detailed focus on this setting rather than hopping throughout the galaxy. The characters are painted in shades of gray and the war isn't black and white. Themes of altered memory, guilt, trauma, and confession pervade the book in a powerful way. Another brilliant story from Freed. Five stars.

    Chaos Rising (Thrawn Ascendancy): Zahn has a strong writing style, and I was consistently interested in the politics and world building of Chiss society. liked Thrawn's friendship and overall professional relationship with Admiral Ar'alani where they have a great mutual respect and trust in one another and their careers are entwined together so tightly. I really like how loyal Ar'alani is to Thrawn throughout and how she sees potential for greatness in him but also is aware of his flaws and blindspots. I think she is a great character along with Thalias and Che'ri. This book really shined with its creation and depiction of female characters in my opinion. The relationship between Che'ri and Thalias was one of the most interesting things to read about. There's a compelling dynamic between them with Thalias having a history of being a former sky-walker herself and it's sweet to see her caring for Che'ri. I do find the idea of sky-walkers losing their power to navigate as they come out of childhood intriguing.All in all, a very satisfying read for me even if I did wish that the memories arc had a bit more clearly developed conflict and resolution arc of its own as well as a bit less of Thrawn always being portrayed as the smartest guy in the room. But those are fairly minor quibbles. Definitely a recommended read for Star Wars fans! Four and a half out of five stars.

    Very Good:

    Leia: Princess of Alderaan: Once again, Gray does a great job bringing Leia to life, I love seeing Alderaan in more detail, and Holdo is an amusing, likable character when Gray writes her. Another strong entry from Gray. Four stars.

    Master and Apprentice: Gray does an admirable job fleshing out Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon as well as their relationship with one another. There are some interesting flashbacks to Qui-Gon's relationship with Dooku as well. The ending of the story has a genuinely surprising twist I would say. So far Gray has yet to disappoint. Four stars.

    Queen's Shadow: Loved how this book brought Padme and Sabe to life and put them in the spotlight. The focus on Republic politics was nice, and I enjoyed learning more about Naboo, and generally seeing more of the characters from Naboo. Four stars.

    Solo: A good novelization overall with a tone that fit the movie it was adapting. Added some backstory and motivation to Q'ira's character that was moving to read. Got a bit melodramatic when it came to L3 dying though. Felt like more narrative weight was put on that than Rio and Val's deaths, which didn't work for me. L3 really only works for me as joke. Four stars.

    Battlefront: Twilight Company: This had been on my "to read" pile for awhile but I read through it at last and was overall very impressed. Freed has a gritty, raw style of writing that works really well with war stories such as this one. Numir's character development throughout the book was compelling as was his complex relationship with Everi Chalis, a fascinating, complicated character in her own right. This book does a good job delving into the different motivations of various characters on the Rebel and Imperial side of the war. The only criticism I have is that the book somehow felt a bit slow in the opening part despite all the action and it took me a little time to make sense of who all the characters were, but I felt after Hoth especially there was such an uptick in momentum that I truly couldn't put it down. Definitely another solid, strong work by Freed all things considered. Four out of five stars.

    Battlefront: Inferno Squad: I really enjoyed it and found it to be a gripping read for the most part. Iden to me was a complex, fascinating, and believable protagonist, and her decision with the Mentor at the end caught me by surprise while also being a genuinely fitting reflection of her evolution throughout the novel. Her family history and relationships with her parents are also interesting and kept me emotionally engaged throughout the book. Each of the members of Inferno Squad is well fleshed out as a character with deep, complicated relationships with the other members of their squad as well as with the rebel partisan cell where they operated undercover. I also think Golden did an excellent job depicting Imperial society in a realistic fashion. To me she has a real gift for showing both the completion and cooperation in cutthroat societies like the Empire in Inferno Squad or the Lost Tribe of the Sith in her now Legends Fate of the Jedi books. I know Golden isn't an author to everyone's tastes but this is another book of hers that I've enjoyed (her only miss for me has really been Dark Disciple). Four out of five stars.

    Middle of the Pack
    :

    Last Shot: An overall action-packed and enjoyable read. The prose was at its best when it was crisp and laced with slang in keeping with the scoundrel characters who populate it, and at its worst when the author seemed to want to elevate it by jamming in random words that seemed to have been plucked from the thesaurus without regard for what would actually flow in context. The glimpses of Han, Leia, and Ben's family life were very sweet though tinged with sorrow when I think about how Ben will someday slay his own father. Gor is an interesting, compelling villain, and the chance to explore more of Utapau was appreciated. Lando's relationship with L-3 was well-depicted, uniting the past and present parts of his story well, while Han's past and present stories didn't come together for me quite as strongly. The Ewok character annoyed me, though the Gungan was cool. I thought the Wookie and Ewok languages took up too much space in the story given there is no glossary in the back. That could definitely be scaled back next time unless a glossary is given. Overall, I wouldn't mind seeing Older get another shot at writing scoundrels despite the title of this book. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Lords of the Sith: Some interesting insights into Vader's thought processes and his relationship with Sidious, but I felt like it scratched the surface compared to how in-depth it could have gone. Plot was fairly compelling. 3 and a half stars.

    Last Jedi:
    Fairly strong novelization that does add something to the movie it adapts. Prose not as gripping as that in Solo or Rogue One, which impacts its spot in my rankings here. 3 and a half stars.

    A New Dawn: Some interesting character work and a reasonably gripping plot. Prose somewhat lackluster, and nothing stood out as truly exceptional to me in any way. Just a run-of-the-mill Star Wars book. Not bad and not great. 3 stars.

    Tarkin: Some engaging character work done with Tarkin, but overall the plot felt underwhelming. 3 stars.

    Resistance Reborn: I thought the second half of the book was stronger than the first. The prose was competent to strong throughout as was the worldbuilding. Poe's character didn't work for me throughout the first half of the book, but in the second he worked better for me especially when he was teamed up with Finn. Finn was in character for me but I'd have loved to have seen more of him. Rey didn't work for me as she came across as too timid. Leia seemed mostly in character to me. Liked the ensemble nature but also would've preferred more of Rey, Finn, and Poe working together than we saw. This book overall is kind of disappointing to me because I felt it promised a lot it for me didn't deliver and ended up being only mediocre when it could have been exceptional. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Force Collector: A fairly quick and engaging read. Probably felt the most "YA" of any of the "YA" books produced in the New Canon that I've read thus far. Maize to me was the best original character in this story. Karr's family background was interesting in that readers can piece it together throughout the book--the answer may be obvious to an adult reader, but the mystery seems appropriate for the YA audience for which the book was intended. The school parts of the book were pretty mediocre, but the story picked up once we got to traveling to worlds from the PT, ST, and original worlds not from the movies. The Force plot and history of the Jedi was the strongest part of the book for me, though I would've preferred more original story there and less taken from the PT and the OT films with which the readers are already presumably familiar. The ending was overall pretty strong and moving. Not a bad effort but not a great one either. It had a neat premise that I'm not sure was explored to its full potential. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Rise of Skywalker: Overall, a reasonably strong novelization. Expanded and explained some details that weren't covered in TROS that helped make the plot flow better. Likewise some of the pacing issues in the movie were improved upon in this novelization. The writing technique was competent but not exceptional. Relationships like the ones between Rey, Finn, and Poe as well as between Rey and Luke and Rey and Leia were fairly well-explored. The parts pertaining to Rey/Kylo didn't work for me much better in the novel than in the movie. Despite some lackluster passages, the writing was mostly competent and succeeded at resolving some of the pacing issues and expanding on some important plot points from TROS. 3 and a half out of 5 stars.

    Queen's Peril: The two strengths of this book were character development and world-building. With character development, there was bonding between Padme and her handmaidens, who all received backstories, as well as the fleshing out of Governor Bibble and Captain Panaka beyond their TPM selves while still keeping them in their TPM roles. There were also interesting insights into characters such as Palpatine/Sidious, Maul, and Valoroum among others. With the world-building, we see more in depth exploration of the taxation of trade routes issue in the Senate prior to TPM, we learn of the isolationism that had prevailed under the reign of Naboo's prior queen (before Amidala), and we hear how an agricultural situation involving a low crop yield will exacerbate the danger of the Trade Federation blockade with the backdrop of Naboo's rich culture all the while. The world-building and story is at its strongest in the first two thirds of the book before the events of TPM. Once the events of TPM start in the final third, the story becomes rushed and at times reads almost like a summary of events rather than anything more detailed. This creates an "unbalanced" feel to the story's structure as the exposition is very well-developed but the conclusion becomes almost anticlimactic due to being hurried. Really I can't even understand why the rush to get through the events of TPM existed since the book was only 276 pages. More exploration of the events of TPM could definitely have fit in the book. I was torn between three and a half or four stars for this book but decided to go with three and a half stars for the structural issues and to distinguish that it is indeed on a lower tier than Queen's Shadow. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Free Fall (Poe Dameron): I like the glimpses into the life on the settlement of Yavin IV and the details about Poe missing his mother and his complicated relationship with his father. Interesting to see him meeting Zorri and the Spice Runners. Pretty believable how he kind of finds himself in over his head before he knows what he is involved in, because that feels like a very teenager thing to have happen. The focus on independence, escape, freedom, and developing an identity all work well with a YA novel. The prose is fairly utilitarian and easy to get through with some injections of wit to add to the fun. The most annoying writing quirk is the frequent uses of major character full names in both dialogue and narration. It's like the author is trying to add some extra drama and weight to things and that just isn't working for me. The ending was stronger than the beginning in my opinion. I liked the revelation with Zorri’s identity, the confrontation between Poe and his father as well as the tension surrounding the summit. The book feels episodic but comes together in the end. A glimpse into Poe’s time in the criminal underground and why he chose to leave it. Also Babu Frik was adorable. Overall, a solid and reasonably exciting book. Not the best of Disney's YA books but enjoyable. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Disappointing:

    Phasma: The prose was written in a style I couldn't get into. For a book that was supposed to be about discovering the Phasma beneath the mask, this book failed to be that for me. I wanted to learn more about Phasma's time in the First Order (maybe something about how she was kidnapped and brainwashed since youth that would have made her a more sympathetic character). I didn't need the whole Mad Max post-apocalypse style story that to me felt out of place in Star Wars. Cardinal really was the only engaging character to me. I've avoided other projects by this author. Two stars.

    Dark Disciple: Just a book I couldn't quite get into. I normally like Christie Golden's work but this fell flat for me. Really disappointing considering how much she could have done with Ventress since she did a great job bringing Vastara to life. Still there were some interesting sections about Jedi philosophy and the Clone Wars. It's just when I read those sections I wondered why the rest of the book couldn't come anywhere close to that level. Probably for me Golden's weakest Star Wars entry. Two stars.

    Force Awakens: By far the weakest of the movie novelizations to me. Alan Dean Foster's prose is just very clunky and dull to me, and I felt not much was added that the movie didn't provide. One and a half stars.

    Aftermath trilogy: The writing style with all the fragments didn't work for me. At. All. Just. To. Offer. An. Insight. Into. How. Annoying. It. Was. I. Wrote. A. Brief. Section. In. That. Stilted. Style. Okay, I'll stop now since I'm sure everyone got the point. The original characters also didn't do much for me (most of them irritated me) and the only parts that really engaged me were the interludes, which made me wonder why the story couldn't have focused on the more fascinating interludes. One star for the interludes and I'll be unlikely to pick up anything by the author again.
     
    Chrissonofpear2 likes this.
  18. Xander Vos

    Xander Vos Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Aug 3, 2013
    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. Solo: A Star Wars Story - Really enjoyed this, easily the most of all the film novelisations. Lafferty does really well to capture the humour of the movie and expands on the story in a really compelling way.
    10. Alliances - Preferred this to the first Thrawn novel but not by much.
    11. Thrawn
    12. From A Certain Point of View - great fun stories.
    13. Rogue One - Good retelling of the movie from Freed.
    14. Resistance Reborn - Good original characters, compelling plot, movie characters tread water.
    15. Twilight Company - Good book but felt very dense.
    16. Last Shot - Good story but felt a bit clumsily told.
    17. Empire's End - Good conclusion to the trilogy but wasn't a fan of the trilogy as a whole.
    18. Shadow Fall - Much like its predecessor and Twilight Company, I think at times Freed becomes bogged down with too many points of view leading to quite a drawn out first and second act before a rushed conclusion to, when you step back and review the plot of the book, a really small plot. It's as if by padding with more characters Freed tries to draw out a very thin plot into a novel. I'm hoping the concluding book in this trilogy pulls it all together.
    19. Alphabet Squadron - Another very dense book that was tough to get through, but when it got going it was quite good.
    20. The Last Jedi - Enjoyed this a lot more than the movie, Fry is a great writer.
    21. The Rise of Skywalker - This was ok, but didn't really improve my impression of the story. Which I suppose isn't Carson's fault, but she didn't add much to the narrative to improve it, and doubled-down in some ways.
    22. Life Debt - Eh it was ok but nothing special.
    23. Aftermath - Good characters but didn't like the writing style at all.
    24. The Force Awakens - Foster tries to make this way too hard Sci-Fi which is jarring.
    25. 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.
     
  19. Xander Vos

    Xander Vos Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Aug 3, 2013
    Wish I could just update my last post..

    Update:


    1. Bloodline - This felt a lot like the old EU in a really good way. Really loved the story and pacing.
    2. Light of the Jedi - Really loved this book, a great start to a new era full of storytelling potential.
    3. Catalyst - Luceno is a great storyteller and really dug into the detail to give a great backstory to Rogue 1.
    4. Inferno Squad - Surprised myself with how much I loved this book, really awesome plot with compelling characters.
    5. Lords of the Sith - Great action and pacing, another that felt like the old EU.
    6. Thrawn: Treason - Really enjoyed this. Easily the best Thrawn book we've had in the new canon. Very engaging story and flowed well.
    7. Tarkin - Again a big fan of Luceno's storytelling.
    8. A New Dawn - Good interesting story that I enjoyed more than I expected.
    9. Master and Apprentice - Grey's got a great grasp on Star Wars.
    10. Solo: A Star Wars Story - Really enjoyed this, easily the most of all the film novelisations. Lafferty does really well to capture the humour of the movie and expands on the story in a really compelling way.
    11. Alliances - Preferred this to the first Thrawn novel but not by much.
    12. From A Certain Point of View: ESB - Enjoyed more than the first one, some really brilliant stories
    13. Thrawn
    14. From A Certain Point of View - great fun stories.
    15. Rogue One - Good retelling of the movie from Freed.
    16. Resistance Reborn - Good original characters, compelling plot, movie characters tread water.
    17. Twilight Company - Good book but felt very dense.
    18. Last Shot - Good story but felt a bit clumsily told.
    19. Empire's End - Good conclusion to the trilogy but wasn't a fan of the trilogy as a whole.
    20. Shadow Fall - Much like its predecessor and Twilight Company, I think at times Freed becomes bogged down with too many points of view leading to quite a drawn out first and second act before a rushed conclusion to, when you step back and review the plot of the book, a really small plot. It's as if by padding with more characters Freed tries to draw out a very thin plot into a novel. I'm hoping the concluding book in this trilogy pulls it all together.
    21. Alphabet Squadron - Another very dense book that was tough to get through, but when it got going it was quite good.
    22. The Last Jedi - Enjoyed this a lot more than the movie, Fry is a great writer.
    23. The Rise of Skywalker - This was ok, but didn't really improve my impression of the story. Which I suppose isn't Carson's fault, but she didn't add much to the narrative to improve it, and doubled-down in some ways.
    24. Life Debt - Eh it was ok but nothing special.
    25. Aftermath - Good characters but didn't like the writing style at all.
    26. The Force Awakens - Foster tries to make this way too hard Sci-Fi which is jarring.
    27. 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.
     
    Last edited: Feb 1, 2021
  20. Todd the Jedi

    Todd the Jedi Mod and Loving Tyrant of SWTV, Lit, & Collecting star 6 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Oct 16, 2008
    But then no one would but you would know you've updated your list. [face_monkey]
     
  21. JABoomer

    JABoomer Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Oct 23, 2009
    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. Dooku: Jedi Lost - different format, which I didn't mind, the explanation of Dooku's dissatisfaction with the Jedi and his relationships within the temple were well told
    5. 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)

    6. Tarkin - really enjoyed the internal politics of the Empire
    7. Thrawn: Treason - as good as you can get without being great, excellent story and writing while not quite a page turner
    8. Lords of the Sith - interesting to see the Vader/Palpatine interactions
    9. Black Spire - everything was very well done, nice to have a meaningful and fun story that doesn't have galaxy spanning consequences
    10. Aftermath: Life Debt - really enjoyed reading about the galactic powers struggle for dominance after Endor
    11. 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
    12. 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
    13. 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
    14. Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker - I dislike the plot of TROS and think it was a poor conclusion to the saga, however, this may have been the best movie adaptation I have ever read, it doesn't spend more time then it has to on what you've already seen but adds lots of new content, the more ridiculous moments are less jarring on paper where they are on par with events in other Star Wars novels
    15. Resistance Reborn - Finn/Rey underused, Poe's arc varied too widely, poor scene setting, several times a character had then didn't have an object (jarring to read)

    Okay (2/4)


    16. Thrawn: Alliances - disappointed after loving Thrawn, found the writing choppy and confusing, had to re-read sections, still Thrawn and Vader are bad ass
    17. 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
    18. Phasma - enjoyable and unexpected backstory that provides good depth to a character poorly utilized in the films
    19. Bloodline - good mix of action and politics, but it was difficult to see how useless the NEU New Republic is
    20. Dark Disciple - never knew where the story was going, was a really nice surprise
    21. Aftermath - different style of novel, but the content was interesting
    22. Battlefront: Twilight Company - solid action, never enthralling, enjoyed exploring the Rebellion during this time
    23. Alphabet Squadron - Clunky writing, mediocre story and characters, and the differences between the starfighter types wasn't fully taken advantage of
    24. 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
    25. 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)

    26. FACPOV: The Empire Strikes Back - thoroughly disappointing, besides a few gems these stories were implausible and tangential to TESB, adding little to the mythos of what we see on screen
    27. Heir to the Jedi - the first person viewpoint was different (and not in a good way)
    28. A New Dawn - I see lots of people really enjoyed it, I found it to be dull
    29. The Last Jedi: The novel was better than the movie, but I still have serious problems with the story
    30. 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. Poe Dameron: Free Fall - very well written and engaging story, the ending was a little bit too rushed and felt forced trying to mesh with the tidbits from TROS
    3. Most Wanted - fun and enjoyable story that provided fantastic background to the main characters in Solo
    4. 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
    5. Rebel Rising - a good read about a tragic story/life
    6. A Crash of Fate - a harlequin Star Wars novel, character motivations and scene descriptions were shaky, but I found in engaging and enjoyable
    7. Lost Stars - I enjoyed how it intertwined throughout the OT
    8. 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)

    9. Queen's Peril - I didn't have a problem getting through it, but the plot was sleepy, taking you through mundane palace days until it rehashes Episode I
    10. 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. Tales from a Galaxy Far, Far Away: Aliens - this collection contained a bunch of unique and entertaining stories, different situations from the usual Star Wars
    3. 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
    4. Before the Awakening: a real surprise, the writing and action sequences were excellent, three wonderfully told stories

    Good (3/4)

    5. Lando's Luck: an enjoyable story that really nails the Lando character is his early days with L3 and the Falcon
    6. The Clone Wars: Stories of Light and Dark - was well written, I would have preferred more new stories or at least more stories that added to what we see on screen
    7. The Mandalorian - a well written and concise telling of the story


    Okay (2/4)

    8. 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
    9. Dark Legends - a few good stories but the rest were forgettable, disappointing after Myths & Fables, the serrated paper edges made it hard to turn the page
    10. 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
    11. Pirate's Price - Hondo's perspective was initially fun, but that faded as the book went along; the later stories seemed like an afterthought
    12. 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)

    13. 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
    14. 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
    15. 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
    16. 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
     
  22. devilinthedetails

    devilinthedetails Fiendish Fanfic & SWTV Manager, Interim Tech Admin star 6 Staff Member Administrator

    Registered:
    Jun 19, 2019
    Updated to include my rankings of Thrawn, Light of the Jedi, Test of Courage, and Into the Dark.

    My rankings for the ones I've read or listened to in the case of Dooku: Jedi Lost.

    Top Tier:

    Lost Stars: I went into this one not expecting much and found an excellent book. It had a large scope, complex characters with believably different perspectives, and a compelling friendship that evolved into a romance where the two characters ultimately came down on opposing sides of a galactic conflict. Five stars.

    Bloodlines: Another excellent work by Claudia Gray (what a find she has been for the new canon). Thrilling exploration of New Republic politics, a wonderful delve into Leia's character, and the same sort of complex treatment of different perspectives with strong character growth that distinguished Lost Stars. Five stars.

    Catalyst: Truly epic in scope and scale. Wonderful characterization and really added to Rogue One. One of Luceno's strongest Star Wars works in my opinion. Five stars.

    Rogue One: Tight, gripping prose that works well with the dark, gritty tone of the Rogue One movie, and delves more deeply into the psychology of the main characters. An excellent novelization of a great movie. Four and a half stars.

    Dooku: Jedi Lost: Very well done audio drama. Really fleshes out Dooku's backstory. Wonderful voice acting by the people who do Yoda and Qui-Gon Jinn especially. Would love another project like this in the future. Four and a half stars.

    Alphabet Squadron: A great book and the best of Alexander Freed's entries thus far in the New Canon. I found that it had the same gritty, raw writing style Freed displayed in his other New Canon novels, and I do feel that Freed is really carving himself a niche as an author of these war stories. Yrica Quell was an interesting character to me since I could see both her noble side and how deeply Imperial propaganda had influenced her and warped her perspective on events like the destruction of Alderaan. The evolution of Alphabet Squadron was fascinating to read as was learning the backstories of the individual members of the squad, who all experienced their own traumas and losses. I also like the political exploration of how the New Republic, so used to experiencing defeat, must learn how to handle victory, and of the Imperial suicide bombers, who seem to resonate in our own contemporary world of violent radicalization and terrorism. Four and a half stars.

    Shadow Fall: This book might have surpassed its predecessor, Alphabet Squadron, as my favorite entry from Alexander Freed. It was more tightly plotted than the first book in the series as it didn't need to introduce us to the members of the squad, and there was a sense of mounting tension built throughout the story that came to an intense climax. A creepy cult and a weird tower part of a pet research project of Palpatine's contribute to the suspense and tension. The setting of Triothe and its system with its black hole is interesting, and I like the detailed focus on this setting rather than hopping throughout the galaxy. The characters are painted in shades of gray and the war isn't black and white. Themes of altered memory, guilt, trauma, and confession pervade the book in a powerful way. Another brilliant story from Freed. Five stars.

    Chaos Rising (Thrawn Ascendancy): Zahn has a strong writing style, and I was consistently interested in the politics and world building of Chiss society. liked Thrawn's friendship and overall professional relationship with Admiral Ar'alani where they have a great mutual respect and trust in one another and their careers are entwined together so tightly. I really like how loyal Ar'alani is to Thrawn throughout and how she sees potential for greatness in him but also is aware of his flaws and blindspots. I think she is a great character along with Thalias and Che'ri. This book really shined with its creation and depiction of female characters in my opinion. The relationship between Che'ri and Thalias was one of the most interesting things to read about. There's a compelling dynamic between them with Thalias having a history of being a former sky-walker herself and it's sweet to see her caring for Che'ri. I do find the idea of sky-walkers losing their power to navigate as they come out of childhood intriguing.All in all, a very satisfying read for me even if I did wish that the memories arc had a bit more clearly developed conflict and resolution arc of its own as well as a bit less of Thrawn always being portrayed as the smartest guy in the room. But those are fairly minor quibbles. Definitely a recommended read for Star Wars fans! Four and a half out of five stars.

    Light of the Jedi: This book is a great first one to read to introduce the High Republic era. It tells a story of disaster on a large scale and how the Jedi, high-ranking Republic politicians and individual planet politicians come to terms with an impossible to predict crisis, and how regular citizens whose lives are interrupted and in danger of total destruction deal with the same. A wide and diverse cast of characters, Jedi and non-Jedi alike, are introduced, and the story feels as if it is an ensemble epic rather than following the journey of one or two characters. The feeling of an era of optimism and expansion, of embracing diversity and being inspired to produce literal Great Works, is developed and depicted with aplomb. The enemy Nihil are an interesting adversary as well given that they seem to be fascinating foils to the Jedi, representing darkness and despair where the Jedi represent light and hope. This book did a great job getting me invested in the High Republic era, and I don't even have any minor quibbles with it. A truly great job by Mr. Soule. Five out of five stars for this magnificent work that introduced a new era of Star Wars and many new characters that can be developed and expanded in other High Republic stories.

    Test of Courage: The plot of this story involves its protagonists, a young prodigy Jedi Vernestra, a Padawan Imri who has just lost his Master, and the children (Honesty and Avon) of two politicians stranded on deserted planet in the wake of the hyperspace disaster that is more deeply delved into and explained in Light of the Jedi. The early part of the story where the actual disaster that strands the Jedi takes place is not that impressive though not terrible with the politician's daughter Avon seeming kind of bratty and Vernestra not seeming to have much personality beyond being a prodigy, and the book would've been on the way to a middle of the pack ranking if its intensity didn't racket up in intensity around 30% into it. Once the book passed that milestone in my Kindle, it seemed to find its voice and footing in a big way. There was a more in-depth exploration of Avon's curiosity and Vernestra's capacity to sympathize with others. There was some interesting Force and discussion of different Force powers (such as being an empath and being able to discover a planet's position in place by sensing the life on it in a process called wayfinding in a possible connection to TROS). There is a clash between the Nihil, the Jedi, and the children, but the larger conflict is the one between the Jedi and the Dark Side response of grief and anger in the face of death and loss. I was really impressed at how this book for middle grade readers didn't shy away from exploring grief, anger, and loss with honesty and intensity. The themes explored really made the book possible for older readers to enjoy. Obviously the book is written at the reading level and with the lexicon appropriate for middle grade readers, but I won't dock points for a story being written for the audience it is marketed toward. I'd give it a four and a half stars with the half star deducted for the early part of the book that the book does manage to overcome to become something meaningful and special.

    Into the Dark: Claudia Gray has never disappointed me, so this was the book of the announced High Republic era that had me the most excited since it was revealed it would be published, and she does not let me down in this book. Her writing style is excellent as ever, the plot is well-developed with multiple surprising twists and the deft tying together of seemingly different plot threads into one tapestry, and her characters all are explored in depth and given strong characters arcs. The depiction of the teenage characters Affie and Reath is an area of particular focus given that it is a YA novel, and their character arcs are put in special spotlight. There is some fascinating Force lore and exploration of how Jedi confront grief, loss, and the Dark Side that seems to be emerging as an essential, unifying theme of the High Republic era thus far. There are flashbacks to a past mission that connect to the present at the end and really flesh out the motivations and character journeys of two of the Jedi Knights, showing how the past can shape and influence people in different ways. Another truly top tier Claudia Gray novel that I highly recommend to others. I can't stop raving about it. Five out of five stars.

    Very Good:

    Leia: Princess of Alderaan: Once again, Gray does a great job bringing Leia to life, I love seeing Alderaan in more detail, and Holdo is an amusing, likable character when Gray writes her. Another strong entry from Gray. Four stars.

    Master and Apprentice: Gray does an admirable job fleshing out Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon as well as their relationship with one another. There are some interesting flashbacks to Qui-Gon's relationship with Dooku as well. The ending of the story has a genuinely surprising twist I would say. So far Gray has yet to disappoint. Four stars.

    Queen's Shadow: Loved how this book brought Padme and Sabe to life and put them in the spotlight. The focus on Republic politics was nice, and I enjoyed learning more about Naboo, and generally seeing more of the characters from Naboo. Four stars.

    Solo: A good novelization overall with a tone that fit the movie it was adapting. Added some backstory and motivation to Q'ira's character that was moving to read. Got a bit melodramatic when it came to L3 dying though. Felt like more narrative weight was put on that than Rio and Val's deaths, which didn't work for me. L3 really only works for me as joke. Four stars.

    Battlefront: Twilight Company: This had been on my "to read" pile for awhile but I read through it at last and was overall very impressed. Freed has a gritty, raw style of writing that works really well with war stories such as this one. Numir's character development throughout the book was compelling as was his complex relationship with Everi Chalis, a fascinating, complicated character in her own right. This book does a good job delving into the different motivations of various characters on the Rebel and Imperial side of the war. The only criticism I have is that the book somehow felt a bit slow in the opening part despite all the action and it took me a little time to make sense of who all the characters were, but I felt after Hoth especially there was such an uptick in momentum that I truly couldn't put it down. Definitely another solid, strong work by Freed all things considered. Four out of five stars.

    Battlefront: Inferno Squad: I really enjoyed it and found it to be a gripping read for the most part. Iden to me was a complex, fascinating, and believable protagonist, and her decision with the Mentor at the end caught me by surprise while also being a genuinely fitting reflection of her evolution throughout the novel. Her family history and relationships with her parents are also interesting and kept me emotionally engaged throughout the book. Each of the members of Inferno Squad is well fleshed out as a character with deep, complicated relationships with the other members of their squad as well as with the rebel partisan cell where they operated undercover. I also think Golden did an excellent job depicting Imperial society in a realistic fashion. To me she has a real gift for showing both the completion and cooperation in cutthroat societies like the Empire in Inferno Squad or the Lost Tribe of the Sith in her now Legends Fate of the Jedi books. I know Golden isn't an author to everyone's tastes but this is another book of hers that I've enjoyed (her only miss for me has really been Dark Disciple). Four out of five stars.

    Thrawn: Zahn's writing style is strong throughout, the plot is well-developed, strategy takes a central role, and the scenes of Imperial politicking and backstabbing are some of the best in the book in my opinion. Thrawn's relationship with Eli is interesting and complex. Eli might be my favorite character in the book, and I did especially enjoy the Thrawn reflections that were interspersed throughout the story. My only criticism is there is quite a bit of that: "Thrawn is smarter than everyone, and always at least three moves ahead of everybody" going on, and that can become kind of annoying when a whole story is built around that premise of just reminding the reader over and over how clever Thrawn is relative to everybody else. Still, a fairly minor quibble that does not destroy an overall very well-written and enjoyable book. Zahn's writing and plotting are strong enough to cover a larger sin than that. Four stars just for the somewhat excessive Thrawn glorification, but I'm looking forward to reading the next two books in the New Canon Thrawn trilogy.

    Middle of the Pack
    :

    Last Shot: An overall action-packed and enjoyable read. The prose was at its best when it was crisp and laced with slang in keeping with the scoundrel characters who populate it, and at its worst when the author seemed to want to elevate it by jamming in random words that seemed to have been plucked from the thesaurus without regard for what would actually flow in context. The glimpses of Han, Leia, and Ben's family life were very sweet though tinged with sorrow when I think about how Ben will someday slay his own father. Gor is an interesting, compelling villain, and the chance to explore more of Utapau was appreciated. Lando's relationship with L-3 was well-depicted, uniting the past and present parts of his story well, while Han's past and present stories didn't come together for me quite as strongly. The Ewok character annoyed me, though the Gungan was cool. I thought the Wookie and Ewok languages took up too much space in the story given there is no glossary in the back. That could definitely be scaled back next time unless a glossary is given. Overall, I wouldn't mind seeing Older get another shot at writing scoundrels despite the title of this book. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Lords of the Sith: Some interesting insights into Vader's thought processes and his relationship with Sidious, but I felt like it scratched the surface compared to how in-depth it could have gone. Plot was fairly compelling. 3 and a half stars.

    Last Jedi:
    Fairly strong novelization that does add something to the movie it adapts. Prose not as gripping as that in Solo or Rogue One, which impacts its spot in my rankings here. 3 and a half stars.

    A New Dawn: Some interesting character work and a reasonably gripping plot. Prose somewhat lackluster, and nothing stood out as truly exceptional to me in any way. Just a run-of-the-mill Star Wars book. Not bad and not great. 3 stars.

    Tarkin: Some engaging character work done with Tarkin, but overall the plot felt underwhelming. 3 stars.

    Resistance Reborn: I thought the second half of the book was stronger than the first. The prose was competent to strong throughout as was the worldbuilding. Poe's character didn't work for me throughout the first half of the book, but in the second he worked better for me especially when he was teamed up with Finn. Finn was in character for me but I'd have loved to have seen more of him. Rey didn't work for me as she came across as too timid. Leia seemed mostly in character to me. Liked the ensemble nature but also would've preferred more of Rey, Finn, and Poe working together than we saw. This book overall is kind of disappointing to me because I felt it promised a lot it for me didn't deliver and ended up being only mediocre when it could have been exceptional. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Force Collector: A fairly quick and engaging read. Probably felt the most "YA" of any of the "YA" books produced in the New Canon that I've read thus far. Maize to me was the best original character in this story. Karr's family background was interesting in that readers can piece it together throughout the book--the answer may be obvious to an adult reader, but the mystery seems appropriate for the YA audience for which the book was intended. The school parts of the book were pretty mediocre, but the story picked up once we got to traveling to worlds from the PT, ST, and original worlds not from the movies. The Force plot and history of the Jedi was the strongest part of the book for me, though I would've preferred more original story there and less taken from the PT and the OT films with which the readers are already presumably familiar. The ending was overall pretty strong and moving. Not a bad effort but not a great one either. It had a neat premise that I'm not sure was explored to its full potential. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Rise of Skywalker: Overall, a reasonably strong novelization. Expanded and explained some details that weren't covered in TROS that helped make the plot flow better. Likewise some of the pacing issues in the movie were improved upon in this novelization. The writing technique was competent but not exceptional. Relationships like the ones between Rey, Finn, and Poe as well as between Rey and Luke and Rey and Leia were fairly well-explored. The parts pertaining to Rey/Kylo didn't work for me much better in the novel than in the movie. Despite some lackluster passages, the writing was mostly competent and succeeded at resolving some of the pacing issues and expanding on some important plot points from TROS. 3 and a half out of 5 stars.

    Queen's Peril: The two strengths of this book were character development and world-building. With character development, there was bonding between Padme and her handmaidens, who all received backstories, as well as the fleshing out of Governor Bibble and Captain Panaka beyond their TPM selves while still keeping them in their TPM roles. There were also interesting insights into characters such as Palpatine/Sidious, Maul, and Valoroum among others. With the world-building, we see more in depth exploration of the taxation of trade routes issue in the Senate prior to TPM, we learn of the isolationism that had prevailed under the reign of Naboo's prior queen (before Amidala), and we hear how an agricultural situation involving a low crop yield will exacerbate the danger of the Trade Federation blockade with the backdrop of Naboo's rich culture all the while. The world-building and story is at its strongest in the first two thirds of the book before the events of TPM. Once the events of TPM start in the final third, the story becomes rushed and at times reads almost like a summary of events rather than anything more detailed. This creates an "unbalanced" feel to the story's structure as the exposition is very well-developed but the conclusion becomes almost anticlimactic due to being hurried. Really I can't even understand why the rush to get through the events of TPM existed since the book was only 276 pages. More exploration of the events of TPM could definitely have fit in the book. I was torn between three and a half or four stars for this book but decided to go with three and a half stars for the structural issues and to distinguish that it is indeed on a lower tier than Queen's Shadow. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Free Fall (Poe Dameron): I like the glimpses into the life on the settlement of Yavin IV and the details about Poe missing his mother and his complicated relationship with his father. Interesting to see him meeting Zorri and the Spice Runners. Pretty believable how he kind of finds himself in over his head before he knows what he is involved in, because that feels like a very teenager thing to have happen. The focus on independence, escape, freedom, and developing an identity all work well with a YA novel. The prose is fairly utilitarian and easy to get through with some injections of wit to add to the fun. The most annoying writing quirk is the frequent uses of major character full names in both dialogue and narration. It's like the author is trying to add some extra drama and weight to things and that just isn't working for me. The ending was stronger than the beginning in my opinion. I liked the revelation with Zorri’s identity, the confrontation between Poe and his father as well as the tension surrounding the summit. The book feels episodic but comes together in the end. A glimpse into Poe’s time in the criminal underground and why he chose to leave it. Also Babu Frik was adorable. Overall, a solid and reasonably exciting book. Not the best of Disney's YA books but enjoyable. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Disappointing:

    Phasma: The prose was written in a style I couldn't get into. For a book that was supposed to be about discovering the Phasma beneath the mask, this book failed to be that for me. I wanted to learn more about Phasma's time in the First Order (maybe something about how she was kidnapped and brainwashed since youth that would have made her a more sympathetic character). I didn't need the whole Mad Max post-apocalypse style story that to me felt out of place in Star Wars. Cardinal really was the only engaging character to me. I've avoided other projects by this author. Two stars.

    Dark Disciple: Just a book I couldn't quite get into. I normally like Christie Golden's work but this fell flat for me. Really disappointing considering how much she could have done with Ventress since she did a great job bringing Vastara to life. Still there were some interesting sections about Jedi philosophy and the Clone Wars. It's just when I read those sections I wondered why the rest of the book couldn't come anywhere close to that level. Probably for me Golden's weakest Star Wars entry. Two stars.

    Force Awakens: By far the weakest of the movie novelizations to me. Alan Dean Foster's prose is just very clunky and dull to me, and I felt not much was added that the movie didn't provide. One and a half stars.

    Aftermath trilogy: The writing style with all the fragments didn't work for me. At. All. Just. To. Offer. An. Insight. Into. How. Annoying. It. Was. I. Wrote. A. Brief. Section. In. That. Stilted. Style. Okay, I'll stop now since I'm sure everyone got the point. The original characters also didn't do much for me (most of them irritated me) and the only parts that really engaged me were the interludes, which made me wonder why the story couldn't have focused on the more fascinating interludes. One star for the interludes and I'll be unlikely to pick up anything by the author again.
     
    Chrissonofpear2 likes this.
  23. JABoomer

    JABoomer Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Oct 23, 2009
    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. Dooku: Jedi Lost - different format, which I didn't mind, the explanation of Dooku's dissatisfaction with the Jedi and his relationships within the temple were well told
    5. 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)

    6. Tarkin - really enjoyed the internal politics of the Empire
    7. Thrawn Ascendancy: Chaos Rising - a bit slow at times, but I enjoyed exploring the Chiss government and military
    8. Thrawn: Treason - as good as you can get without being great, excellent story and writing while not quite a page turner
    9. Lords of the Sith - interesting to see the Vader/Palpatine interactions
    10. Black Spire - everything was very well done, nice to have a meaningful and fun story that doesn't have galaxy spanning consequences
    11. Doctor Aphra - a fun and light-hearted read, I enjoyed the first half more (scenes where I hadn't read the corresponding comics yet), definitely don't mind the format
    12. Aftermath: Life Debt - really enjoyed reading about the galactic powers struggle for dominance after Endor
    13. 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
    14. 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
    15. 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 the game
    16. Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker - despite my dislike of TROS, this is a great movie adaptation, doesn't dwell on what we've seen and added lots of new content
    17. Resistance Reborn - Finn/Rey underused, Poe's arc varied too widely, poor scene setting, several times a character had then didn't have an object (jarring to read)

    Okay (2/4)


    18. Thrawn: Alliances - disappointed after loving Thrawn, found the writing choppy and confusing, had to re-read sections, still Thrawn and Vader are bad ass
    19. 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
    20. Phasma - enjoyable and unexpected backstory that provides good depth to a character poorly utilized in the films
    21. Bloodline - good mix of action and politics, but it was difficult to see how useless the NEU New Republic is
    22. Dark Disciple - never knew where the story was going, was a really nice surprise
    23. Aftermath - different style of novel, but the content was interesting
    24. Battlefront: Twilight Company - solid action, never enthralling, enjoyed exploring the Rebellion during this time
    25. Alphabet Squadron - Clunky writing, mediocre story and characters, and the differences between the starfighter types wasn't fully taken advantage of
    26. 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
    27. 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)

    28. FACPOV: The Empire Strikes Back - disappointing, besides a few gems the stories are implausible/tangential to TESB, adding little to the mythos of what's on-screen
    29. Alphbet Squadron: Shadow Fall - a chore to read, the overall story was okay, but my brain doesn't READ the way Freed WRITES, which is a real bummer because his military centric stories are right up my alley
    30. Heir to the Jedi - the first person viewpoint was different (and not in a good way)
    31. A New Dawn - I see lots of people really enjoyed it, I found it to be dull
    32. The Last Jedi: The novel was better than the movie, but I still have serious problems with the story
    33. 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. Poe Dameron: Free Fall - very well written and engaging story, the ending was a little bit too rushed and felt forced trying to mesh with the tidbits from TROS
    3. Most Wanted - fun and enjoyable story that provided fantastic background to the main characters in Solo
    4. The High Republic: Into the Dark - a solid story, solidly written, Geode was quite the character
    5. 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
    6. Rebel Rising - a good read about a tragic story/life
    7. A Crash of Fate - a harlequin Star Wars novel, character motivations and scene descriptions were shaky, but I found in engaging and enjoyable
    8. Lost Stars - I enjoyed how it intertwined throughout the OT
    9. 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)

    10. Queen's Peril - I didn't have a problem getting through it, but the plot was sleepy, taking you through mundane palace days until it rehashes Episode I
    11. 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. Tales from a Galaxy Far, Far Away: Aliens - this collection contained a bunch of unique and entertaining stories, different situations from the usual Star Wars
    3. 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
    4. Before the Awakening: a real surprise, the writing and action sequences were excellent, three wonderfully told stories

    Good (3/4)

    5. The High Republic: A Test of Courage - I found the writing clunky at first, but it turned into a great story, one of the more well written of the junior novels
    6. Lando's Luck: an enjoyable story that really nails the Lando character is his early days with L3 and the Falcon
    7. The Clone Wars: Stories of Light and Dark - was well written, I would have preferred more new stories or at least more stories that added to what we see on screen
    8. The Mandalorian - a well written and concise telling of the story

    Okay (2/4)

    9. 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
    10. Dark Legends - a few good stories but the rest were forgettable, disappointing after Myths & Fables, the serrated paper edges made it hard to turn the page
    11. 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
    12. Pirate's Price - Hondo's perspective was initially fun, but that faded as the book went along; the later stories seemed like an afterthought
    13. 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)

    14. 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
    15. 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
    16. 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
    17. 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
     
    Last edited: May 20, 2021
    devilinthedetails likes this.
  24. devilinthedetails

    devilinthedetails Fiendish Fanfic & SWTV Manager, Interim Tech Admin star 6 Staff Member Administrator

    Registered:
    Jun 19, 2019
    Updated to include my rankings of Thrawn: Alliances and Thrawn: Treason.

    My rankings for the ones I've read or listened to in the case of Dooku: Jedi Lost.

    Top Tier:

    Lost Stars: I went into this one not expecting much and found an excellent book. It had a large scope, complex characters with believably different perspectives, and a compelling friendship that evolved into a romance where the two characters ultimately came down on opposing sides of a galactic conflict. Five stars.

    Bloodlines: Another excellent work by Claudia Gray (what a find she has been for the new canon). Thrilling exploration of New Republic politics, a wonderful delve into Leia's character, and the same sort of complex treatment of different perspectives with strong character growth that distinguished Lost Stars. Five stars.

    Catalyst: Truly epic in scope and scale. Wonderful characterization and really added to Rogue One. One of Luceno's strongest Star Wars works in my opinion. Five stars.

    Rogue One: Tight, gripping prose that works well with the dark, gritty tone of the Rogue One movie, and delves more deeply into the psychology of the main characters. An excellent novelization of a great movie. Four and a half stars.

    Dooku: Jedi Lost: Very well done audio drama. Really fleshes out Dooku's backstory. Wonderful voice acting by the people who do Yoda and Qui-Gon Jinn especially. Would love another project like this in the future. Four and a half stars.

    Alphabet Squadron: A great book and the best of Alexander Freed's entries thus far in the New Canon. I found that it had the same gritty, raw writing style Freed displayed in his other New Canon novels, and I do feel that Freed is really carving himself a niche as an author of these war stories. Yrica Quell was an interesting character to me since I could see both her noble side and how deeply Imperial propaganda had influenced her and warped her perspective on events like the destruction of Alderaan. The evolution of Alphabet Squadron was fascinating to read as was learning the backstories of the individual members of the squad, who all experienced their own traumas and losses. I also like the political exploration of how the New Republic, so used to experiencing defeat, must learn how to handle victory, and of the Imperial suicide bombers, who seem to resonate in our own contemporary world of violent radicalization and terrorism. Four and a half stars.

    Shadow Fall: This book might have surpassed its predecessor, Alphabet Squadron, as my favorite entry from Alexander Freed. It was more tightly plotted than the first book in the series as it didn't need to introduce us to the members of the squad, and there was a sense of mounting tension built throughout the story that came to an intense climax. A creepy cult and a weird tower part of a pet research project of Palpatine's contribute to the suspense and tension. The setting of Triothe and its system with its black hole is interesting, and I like the detailed focus on this setting rather than hopping throughout the galaxy. The characters are painted in shades of gray and the war isn't black and white. Themes of altered memory, guilt, trauma, and confession pervade the book in a powerful way. Another brilliant story from Freed. Five stars.

    Chaos Rising (Thrawn Ascendancy): Zahn has a strong writing style, and I was consistently interested in the politics and world building of Chiss society. liked Thrawn's friendship and overall professional relationship with Admiral Ar'alani where they have a great mutual respect and trust in one another and their careers are entwined together so tightly. I really like how loyal Ar'alani is to Thrawn throughout and how she sees potential for greatness in him but also is aware of his flaws and blindspots. I think she is a great character along with Thalias and Che'ri. This book really shined with its creation and depiction of female characters in my opinion. The relationship between Che'ri and Thalias was one of the most interesting things to read about. There's a compelling dynamic between them with Thalias having a history of being a former sky-walker herself and it's sweet to see her caring for Che'ri. I do find the idea of sky-walkers losing their power to navigate as they come out of childhood intriguing.All in all, a very satisfying read for me even if I did wish that the memories arc had a bit more clearly developed conflict and resolution arc of its own as well as a bit less of Thrawn always being portrayed as the smartest guy in the room. But those are fairly minor quibbles. Definitely a recommended read for Star Wars fans! Four and a half out of five stars.

    Light of the Jedi: This book is a great first one to read to introduce the High Republic era. It tells a story of disaster on a large scale and how the Jedi, high-ranking Republic politicians and individual planet politicians come to terms with an impossible to predict crisis, and how regular citizens whose lives are interrupted and in danger of total destruction deal with the same. A wide and diverse cast of characters, Jedi and non-Jedi alike, are introduced, and the story feels as if it is an ensemble epic rather than following the journey of one or two characters. The feeling of an era of optimism and expansion, of embracing diversity and being inspired to produce literal Great Works, is developed and depicted with aplomb. The enemy Nihil are an interesting adversary as well given that they seem to be fascinating foils to the Jedi, representing darkness and despair where the Jedi represent light and hope. This book did a great job getting me invested in the High Republic era, and I don't even have any minor quibbles with it. A truly great job by Mr. Soule. Five out of five stars for this magnificent work that introduced a new era of Star Wars and many new characters that can be developed and expanded in other High Republic stories.

    Test of Courage: The plot of this story involves its protagonists, a young prodigy Jedi Vernestra, a Padawan Imri who has just lost his Master, and the children (Honesty and Avon) of two politicians stranded on deserted planet in the wake of the hyperspace disaster that is more deeply delved into and explained in Light of the Jedi. The early part of the story where the actual disaster that strands the Jedi takes place is not that impressive though not terrible with the politician's daughter Avon seeming kind of bratty and Vernestra not seeming to have much personality beyond being a prodigy, and the book would've been on the way to a middle of the pack ranking if its intensity didn't racket up in intensity around 30% into it. Once the book passed that milestone in my Kindle, it seemed to find its voice and footing in a big way. There was a more in-depth exploration of Avon's curiosity and Vernestra's capacity to sympathize with others. There was some interesting Force and discussion of different Force powers (such as being an empath and being able to discover a planet's position in place by sensing the life on it in a process called wayfinding in a possible connection to TROS). There is a clash between the Nihil, the Jedi, and the children, but the larger conflict is the one between the Jedi and the Dark Side response of grief and anger in the face of death and loss. I was really impressed at how this book for middle grade readers didn't shy away from exploring grief, anger, and loss with honesty and intensity. The themes explored really made the book possible for older readers to enjoy. Obviously the book is written at the reading level and with the lexicon appropriate for middle grade readers, but I won't dock points for a story being written for the audience it is marketed toward. I'd give it a four and a half stars with the half star deducted for the early part of the book that the book does manage to overcome to become something meaningful and special.

    Into the Dark: Claudia Gray has never disappointed me, so this was the book of the announced High Republic era that had me the most excited since it was revealed it would be published, and she does not let me down in this book. Her writing style is excellent as ever, the plot is well-developed with multiple surprising twists and the deft tying together of seemingly different plot threads into one tapestry, and her characters all are explored in depth and given strong characters arcs. The depiction of the teenage characters Affie and Reath is an area of particular focus given that it is a YA novel, and their character arcs are put in special spotlight. There is some fascinating Force lore and exploration of how Jedi confront grief, loss, and the Dark Side that seems to be emerging as an essential, unifying theme of the High Republic era thus far. There are flashbacks to a past mission that connect to the present at the end and really flesh out the motivations and character journeys of two of the Jedi Knights, showing how the past can shape and influence people in different ways. Another truly top tier Claudia Gray novel that I highly recommend to others. I can't stop raving about it. Five out of five stars.

    Very Good:

    Leia: Princess of Alderaan: Once again, Gray does a great job bringing Leia to life, I love seeing Alderaan in more detail, and Holdo is an amusing, likable character when Gray writes her. Another strong entry from Gray. Four stars.

    Master and Apprentice: Gray does an admirable job fleshing out Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon as well as their relationship with one another. There are some interesting flashbacks to Qui-Gon's relationship with Dooku as well. The ending of the story has a genuinely surprising twist I would say. So far Gray has yet to disappoint. Four stars.

    Queen's Shadow: Loved how this book brought Padme and Sabe to life and put them in the spotlight. The focus on Republic politics was nice, and I enjoyed learning more about Naboo, and generally seeing more of the characters from Naboo. Four stars.

    Solo: A good novelization overall with a tone that fit the movie it was adapting. Added some backstory and motivation to Q'ira's character that was moving to read. Got a bit melodramatic when it came to L3 dying though. Felt like more narrative weight was put on that than Rio and Val's deaths, which didn't work for me. L3 really only works for me as joke. Four stars.

    Battlefront: Twilight Company: This had been on my "to read" pile for awhile but I read through it at last and was overall very impressed. Freed has a gritty, raw style of writing that works really well with war stories such as this one. Numir's character development throughout the book was compelling as was his complex relationship with Everi Chalis, a fascinating, complicated character in her own right. This book does a good job delving into the different motivations of various characters on the Rebel and Imperial side of the war. The only criticism I have is that the book somehow felt a bit slow in the opening part despite all the action and it took me a little time to make sense of who all the characters were, but I felt after Hoth especially there was such an uptick in momentum that I truly couldn't put it down. Definitely another solid, strong work by Freed all things considered. Four out of five stars.

    Battlefront: Inferno Squad: I really enjoyed it and found it to be a gripping read for the most part. Iden to me was a complex, fascinating, and believable protagonist, and her decision with the Mentor at the end caught me by surprise while also being a genuinely fitting reflection of her evolution throughout the novel. Her family history and relationships with her parents are also interesting and kept me emotionally engaged throughout the book. Each of the members of Inferno Squad is well fleshed out as a character with deep, complicated relationships with the other members of their squad as well as with the rebel partisan cell where they operated undercover. I also think Golden did an excellent job depicting Imperial society in a realistic fashion. To me she has a real gift for showing both the completion and cooperation in cutthroat societies like the Empire in Inferno Squad or the Lost Tribe of the Sith in her now Legends Fate of the Jedi books. I know Golden isn't an author to everyone's tastes but this is another book of hers that I've enjoyed (her only miss for me has really been Dark Disciple). Four out of five stars.

    Thrawn:
    Zahn's writing style is strong throughout, the plot is well-developed, strategy takes a central role, and the scenes of Imperial politicking and backstabbing are some of the best in the book in my opinion. Thrawn's relationship with Eli is interesting and complex. Eli might be my favorite character in the book, and I did especially enjoy the Thrawn reflections that were interspersed throughout the story. My only criticism is there is quite a bit of that: "Thrawn is smarter than everyone, and always at least three moves ahead of everybody" going on, and that can become kind of annoying when a whole story is built around that premise of just reminding the reader over and over how clever Thrawn is relative to everybody else. Still, a fairly minor quibble that does not destroy an overall very well-written and enjoyable book. Zahn's writing and plotting are strong enough to cover a larger sin than that. Four stars just for the somewhat excessive Thrawn glorification, but I'm looking forward to reading the next two books in the New Canon Thrawn trilogy.

    Thrawn: Alliances: I do like Zahn's writing style which always seems crisp and competent to me. Batuu was an interesting setting to me, and I did find myself intrigued enough that I bought Black Spire, which I had avoided doing for awhile due to not enjoying Dawson's other entry, so that I could read it at one point. The story being told across two time periods worked for me. I overall enjoyed the dynamic of seeing Thrawn and Anakin work together during the Clone Wars and then seeing Thrawn collaborate again with Vader after his fall to the Dark Side. My favorite part was the flashbacks to the PT era, and getting to see Padme in action. My least favorite part was just that there is that element of Thrawn worship and Thrawn being five steps ahead of everyone always that can get irritating. The Thrawn worship is ultimately what keeps the book at a four out of five star rating for me, but Thrawn's writing style, the flashbacks to the PT era, getting to see Padme in action, and the introduction to Black Spire as an intriguing setting were still enough to keep the book in the solidly four star territory for me. A very good book but not an excellent one because the author is just a bit too attached to Thrawn to the story's detriment at times.

    Thrawn: Treason: I appreciated that Eli was back since I had enjoyed the dynamic between Thrawn and Eli in the first book of this trilogy. It was also cool to see Admiral Ara'lani (apologies if I spell her name wrong) because I was really drawn to her character in the first Thrawn Ascendency book, and it was interesting to compare their relationship in this book to the one they have in the Ascendency book. Commodore Faro is also a character I enjoy reading about. The glimpse into Imperial politics and board room battles over funding was engaging to me since I always enjoy those elements in stories. Some of my favorite bits involved Tarkin and Krennic and all their petty political games and drama. Also, I felt this book had a great twist at the end that genuinely surprised me, and the theme of treason throughout was compelling. Zahn's writing style continues to be confident and competent. The only criticism I have is that I'm more drawn to characters like Eli, Faro, Krennic, Tarkin, and Ara'lani than to Thrawn himself. I'm not as enamored of Thrawn even if he is always supposed to be the smartest person in the room. I'd give this book a four out of five star rating like the other books in the trilogy. All in all, a strong and enjoyable series. Looking forward to the next Ascendency novel that I've preordered for my Kindle.

    Middle of the Pack
    :

    Last Shot: An overall action-packed and enjoyable read. The prose was at its best when it was crisp and laced with slang in keeping with the scoundrel characters who populate it, and at its worst when the author seemed to want to elevate it by jamming in random words that seemed to have been plucked from the thesaurus without regard for what would actually flow in context. The glimpses of Han, Leia, and Ben's family life were very sweet though tinged with sorrow when I think about how Ben will someday slay his own father. Gor is an interesting, compelling villain, and the chance to explore more of Utapau was appreciated. Lando's relationship with L-3 was well-depicted, uniting the past and present parts of his story well, while Han's past and present stories didn't come together for me quite as strongly. The Ewok character annoyed me, though the Gungan was cool. I thought the Wookie and Ewok languages took up too much space in the story given there is no glossary in the back. That could definitely be scaled back next time unless a glossary is given. Overall, I wouldn't mind seeing Older get another shot at writing scoundrels despite the title of this book. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Lords of the Sith: Some interesting insights into Vader's thought processes and his relationship with Sidious, but I felt like it scratched the surface compared to how in-depth it could have gone. Plot was fairly compelling. 3 and a half stars.

    Last Jedi:
    Fairly strong novelization that does add something to the movie it adapts. Prose not as gripping as that in Solo or Rogue One, which impacts its spot in my rankings here. 3 and a half stars.

    A New Dawn: Some interesting character work and a reasonably gripping plot. Prose somewhat lackluster, and nothing stood out as truly exceptional to me in any way. Just a run-of-the-mill Star Wars book. Not bad and not great. 3 stars.

    Tarkin: Some engaging character work done with Tarkin, but overall the plot felt underwhelming. 3 stars.

    Resistance Reborn: I thought the second half of the book was stronger than the first. The prose was competent to strong throughout as was the worldbuilding. Poe's character didn't work for me throughout the first half of the book, but in the second he worked better for me especially when he was teamed up with Finn. Finn was in character for me but I'd have loved to have seen more of him. Rey didn't work for me as she came across as too timid. Leia seemed mostly in character to me. Liked the ensemble nature but also would've preferred more of Rey, Finn, and Poe working together than we saw. This book overall is kind of disappointing to me because I felt it promised a lot it for me didn't deliver and ended up being only mediocre when it could have been exceptional. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Force Collector: A fairly quick and engaging read. Probably felt the most "YA" of any of the "YA" books produced in the New Canon that I've read thus far. Maize to me was the best original character in this story. Karr's family background was interesting in that readers can piece it together throughout the book--the answer may be obvious to an adult reader, but the mystery seems appropriate for the YA audience for which the book was intended. The school parts of the book were pretty mediocre, but the story picked up once we got to traveling to worlds from the PT, ST, and original worlds not from the movies. The Force plot and history of the Jedi was the strongest part of the book for me, though I would've preferred more original story there and less taken from the PT and the OT films with which the readers are already presumably familiar. The ending was overall pretty strong and moving. Not a bad effort but not a great one either. It had a neat premise that I'm not sure was explored to its full potential. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Rise of Skywalker: Overall, a reasonably strong novelization. Expanded and explained some details that weren't covered in TROS that helped make the plot flow better. Likewise some of the pacing issues in the movie were improved upon in this novelization. The writing technique was competent but not exceptional. Relationships like the ones between Rey, Finn, and Poe as well as between Rey and Luke and Rey and Leia were fairly well-explored. The parts pertaining to Rey/Kylo didn't work for me much better in the novel than in the movie. Despite some lackluster passages, the writing was mostly competent and succeeded at resolving some of the pacing issues and expanding on some important plot points from TROS. 3 and a half out of 5 stars.

    Queen's Peril: The two strengths of this book were character development and world-building. With character development, there was bonding between Padme and her handmaidens, who all received backstories, as well as the fleshing out of Governor Bibble and Captain Panaka beyond their TPM selves while still keeping them in their TPM roles. There were also interesting insights into characters such as Palpatine/Sidious, Maul, and Valoroum among others. With the world-building, we see more in depth exploration of the taxation of trade routes issue in the Senate prior to TPM, we learn of the isolationism that had prevailed under the reign of Naboo's prior queen (before Amidala), and we hear how an agricultural situation involving a low crop yield will exacerbate the danger of the Trade Federation blockade with the backdrop of Naboo's rich culture all the while. The world-building and story is at its strongest in the first two thirds of the book before the events of TPM. Once the events of TPM start in the final third, the story becomes rushed and at times reads almost like a summary of events rather than anything more detailed. This creates an "unbalanced" feel to the story's structure as the exposition is very well-developed but the conclusion becomes almost anticlimactic due to being hurried. Really I can't even understand why the rush to get through the events of TPM existed since the book was only 276 pages. More exploration of the events of TPM could definitely have fit in the book. I was torn between three and a half or four stars for this book but decided to go with three and a half stars for the structural issues and to distinguish that it is indeed on a lower tier than Queen's Shadow. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Free Fall (Poe Dameron): I like the glimpses into the life on the settlement of Yavin IV and the details about Poe missing his mother and his complicated relationship with his father. Interesting to see him meeting Zorri and the Spice Runners. Pretty believable how he kind of finds himself in over his head before he knows what he is involved in, because that feels like a very teenager thing to have happen. The focus on independence, escape, freedom, and developing an identity all work well with a YA novel. The prose is fairly utilitarian and easy to get through with some injections of wit to add to the fun. The most annoying writing quirk is the frequent uses of major character full names in both dialogue and narration. It's like the author is trying to add some extra drama and weight to things and that just isn't working for me. The ending was stronger than the beginning in my opinion. I liked the revelation with Zorri’s identity, the confrontation between Poe and his father as well as the tension surrounding the summit. The book feels episodic but comes together in the end. A glimpse into Poe’s time in the criminal underground and why he chose to leave it. Also Babu Frik was adorable. Overall, a solid and reasonably exciting book. Not the best of Disney's YA books but enjoyable. Three and a half out of five stars.

    Disappointing:

    Phasma: The prose was written in a style I couldn't get into. For a book that was supposed to be about discovering the Phasma beneath the mask, this book failed to be that for me. I wanted to learn more about Phasma's time in the First Order (maybe something about how she was kidnapped and brainwashed since youth that would have made her a more sympathetic character). I didn't need the whole Mad Max post-apocalypse style story that to me felt out of place in Star Wars. Cardinal really was the only engaging character to me. I've avoided other projects by this author. Two stars.

    Dark Disciple: Just a book I couldn't quite get into. I normally like Christie Golden's work but this fell flat for me. Really disappointing considering how much she could have done with Ventress since she did a great job bringing Vastara to life. Still there were some interesting sections about Jedi philosophy and the Clone Wars. It's just when I read those sections I wondered why the rest of the book couldn't come anywhere close to that level. Probably for me Golden's weakest Star Wars entry. Two stars.

    Force Awakens: By far the weakest of the movie novelizations to me. Alan Dean Foster's prose is just very clunky and dull to me, and I felt not much was added that the movie didn't provide. One and a half stars.

    Aftermath trilogy: The writing style with all the fragments didn't work for me. At. All. Just. To. Offer. An. Insight. Into. How. Annoying. It. Was. I. Wrote. A. Brief. Section. In. That. Stilted. Style. Okay, I'll stop now since I'm sure everyone got the point. The original characters also didn't do much for me (most of them irritated me) and the only parts that really engaged me were the interludes, which made me wonder why the story couldn't have focused on the more fascinating interludes. One star for the interludes and I'll be unlikely to pick up anything by the author again.
     
    Last edited: May 23, 2021
  25. Xander Vos

    Xander Vos Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Aug 3, 2013
    Update:

    1. Bloodline - This felt a lot like the old EU in a really good way. Really loved the story and pacing.
    2. Light of the Jedi - Really loved this book, a great start to a new era full of storytelling potential.
    3. Catalyst - Luceno is a great storyteller and really dug into the detail to give a great backstory to Rogue 1.
    4. Inferno Squad - Surprised myself with how much I loved this book, really awesome plot with compelling characters.
    5. Lords of the Sith - Great action and pacing, another that felt like the old EU.
    6. Greater Good - Felt like a classic SW/Zahn novel with a great mystery woven through the book that culminated in a compelling climax to the book. Really enjoying this trilogy so far.
    7. Thrawn: Treason - Really enjoyed this. Easily the best Thrawn book we've had in the new canon. Very engaging story and flowed well.
    8. Tarkin - Again a big fan of Luceno's storytelling.
    9. A New Dawn - Good interesting story that I enjoyed more than I expected.
    10. Master and Apprentice - Grey's got a great grasp on Star Wars.
    11. Chaos Rising - Really enjoyed this fresh look into a corner of the SW Galaxy we haven't seen before, read more as a fantasy book than pure SW which was great.
    12. Solo: A Star Wars Story - Really enjoyed this, easily the most of all the film novelisations. Lafferty does really well to capture the humour of the movie and expands on the story in a really compelling way.
    13. Alliances - Preferred this to the first Thrawn novel but not by much.
    14. From A Certain Point of View: ESB - Enjoyed more than the first one, some really brilliant stories
    15. Thrawn
    16. From A Certain Point of View - great fun stories.
    17. Rogue One - Good retelling of the movie from Freed.
    18. Resistance Reborn - Good original characters, compelling plot, movie characters tread water.
    19. Victory's Price - Certainly flowed the best of the three, but still found that Freed's style is a bit too dense for me to really enjoy.
    20. Twilight Company - Good book but felt very dense.
    21. Last Shot - Good story but felt a bit clumsily told.
    22. Empire's End - Good conclusion to the trilogy but wasn't a fan of the trilogy as a whole.
    23. Shadow Fall - Lacking in plot depth, and padded out with similar characterisations.
    24. Alphabet Squadron - Another very dense book that was tough to get through, but when it got going it was quite good.
    25. The Last Jedi - Enjoyed this a lot more than the movie, Fry is a great writer.
    26. The Rise of Skywalker - This was ok, but didn't really improve my impression of the story. Which I suppose isn't Carson's fault, but she didn't add much to the narrative to improve it, and doubled-down in some ways.
    27. Life Debt - Eh it was ok but nothing special.
    28. Aftermath - Good characters but didn't like the writing style at all.
    29. The Force Awakens - Foster tries to make this way too hard Sci-Fi which is jarring.
    30. 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.