Reviews Books The JC Lit Reviews Special: CORUSCANT NIGHTS I: JEDI TWILIGHT (Spoilers)

I'm liking the book so far, any insight into the pre-new hope era is fine by me... I enjoyed "Death Star" but this is a better read so far..... current score is 8.7 out of 10.

 

I'm going to give us a 9/10.

Loved the book & can't wait for the rest, was bothered by the whole "Jedi losing their connection to the force business" that seems to be happening alot lately in SW books & superhero things in general. Go ahead Spiderman, fall off a wall. C'mon Jax & Bane, get your arses beat cause your connection to the force has abandoned you again.

Fantastic book, think I'll have another go at it.

 

Average score: 244.82/28 = 8.74

 

I really struggled to finish this one.

Reaves' prose was fine, and I liked the characters and story, but I thought the pacing and overall construction had severe problems.

3/10

 

I'd give this one an 8.5 as a current rating. That'd probably change depending on the overall result of this series, because some of the enjoyment that it provides is a buildup of the anticipation of the next two books. But really it deserves this score for now because it was a solid book of entertainment that worked with enjoyable characters, a good basic plot that for once stayed away from the feeling of the most epic feel of the Star Wars universe coming to crash down upon itself and also works with one of the most enjoyable concepts available for rumination, that being the question of soul, spirit and the Force in droids. I might not have been a fan of the direct familiarity with R2 and 3PO, but the point still worked as an overall comment as to the intention of the author. I look forward to the next.

 

I don't think I've rated it, so I'll do so now.

9/10

One of the best Star Wars books to come out in a long time. Good story, Vader and Xizor were great villains, and all the protagonists were really very interesting and well constructed. Well, except Laranth, who was a really awesome concept, but we did not get to know her too well. Overall, it was great to see more of the underworld, which has been ignored a lot recently, and Coruscant was written in a way to make it a dangerous, cool and varied environment. While I usually appreciate finding new words to look up, especially from a Star Wars book, I have to say that this happened a bit too much here, and especially in the beginning, before I got used to it, constantly pausing to reach for the dictionary did hurt the pacing. Also, while Vader was properly terrifying as he hasn't been in a long time, he did kind of escape with his tail between his legs which was disappointing.

It was a really good book, but there still is a little room for improvement.

 

Average score: 265.32/31 = 8.56

 

9/10

With the exception of a few continuity flibs here and there, as well as occasionally going overboard with stuff like: "in the blink of a sensory organ", this book was absolutely incredible. Vader's portrayal =

Wow. Wow. Wow.

 

Ok, let's discuss CN I. Overall, I thought it was a fantastic read, far more so than any of the LOTFness we've been getting lately. I love the way Reaves ties in plot elements from previous works so effortlessly, without making it feel as if they are there because they are pet characters. He also does a good job with "borrowed" characters such as Nick Rostu and Xizor, who are both represented well throughout the story. Granted, with Xizor, that's a Perry creation and Reaves and Perry are BFFs, but still. I thought all characters were all handled well, and because of that I genuinely cared about their path throughout the story.

I also was intrigued by the introduction of the Paladin concept. A theme throughout this book seemed to be the move of the Jedi away from the Force (as evidenced by Jax's trouble with the Force), so it was a good contrast to show us, as readers, a character who did that intentionally before it became a necessity due to Order 66. Hopefully she turns up again in CN II for some more elaboration, as I'm really digging the concept.

Overall, I really really liked this book. While it might not have received as much hype as LOTF, or TFU, or even TCW, it is still probably the most solid SW book to be released this year so far. Let's only hope Reaves can top himself in #2!

9/10

 

8/10.

I must say i'm surprised to see some of the negative reviews, but everyone's different I suppose.

I found this a delight to read from start to finish, I found its pacing and direction refreshing and the descriptive outlook on Coruscant and the Dark Times drew me in. The characters are not perfect, and thats why they work, for me Jax Pavan never became as unlikable and whiney as Anakin did at times during the prequels.

That said it wasn't entirely what I was expecting. When it was announced and during the lead up I was very much hoping for a true Star Wars private eye to be introduced. While this hasn't happened, yet at least, it still retains a noir-ish edge that sets it apart from other Star Wars literature. I found this approach really underlined the beginning of this dark era in a way that a more epic large scale book could not.

One plus from the novel focusing slightly less on the P.I/noir elements however is that it dosn't forget the most important thign: That its a Star Wars book. The characters immediately feel right, the banter between them is free flowing and fun to read, while the villians are excellently characterised. Admitadley many of these characters are not new, and as such should fit in, however its always nice to see them written in such a way that stays true to the feel of the movies while also moving in a new direction.

Notable mention goes to: Darth Vader and Prince Xixor's characterisation - spot on for both, especially Vader. The use of 'pet' characters - Reaves really made them work within the novel without it feeling contrived, I-5 and Den Dhur are great fun to read. New/underused characters - I always like reading about the 'little' stories.

I'm currently tucking into book II and its shaping up to be even better.

 

Street of Shadows actually goes that route, to some extent.

 

Average score: 291.32/34 = 8.57

 

7.5/10.

a rollicking adventure and a thrill a page. I-5 kicks ass.

but I too was bothered by the Jedi loosing his connection to the force business.

 

Average score: 298.82/35 = 8.54

 

It felt mediocre to me. Piell, Nick, and Dhur as a plot device, Laranth as a Jedi with blasters , Xixor and Vader not having POVs. It was just a mediocre novel.

5.6/10

 

Read it in a day. Decent book, but just not exciting. Reeves used those heavy diction words again, but were done in descriptive form, not speech, like Shadow Hunter, which was okay. I now need to look up half a dozen new terms... It's an incomplete book, really. Pavan's intermittent internet issues were not really relevent. Better to have had him lose it, rather than the minutes it was. Xizor was okay to see, but I didn't really care for Kaird.

Bonus points for an avian species. I've been waiting for someone to show us one for the first real time. I've been waiting over a decade and a half, Hood damn it. I wanted to see Rostu dead, Hood damn it too. You got a lot of Elomin description which was good, but his sudden betrayal, feebily prompted out of fear, was weakly portrayed. Liked the underworld setting. Shooting incoming laser bolts with laser bolts . . . not my cup of tea. Piell was good to see, as he's been missing in action for years. Thinks he's still a councillor? . . . O-kay. His death was strategic and very realistic. Excellent!

Vader spoke like an idiot. Was a waste to see in this book. The feral droids was an interesting ploy. In a matter of two months, we now have an Imperial Palace? Like other people have said: there's no transitional period. It's like a switch was flipped, and suddenly everything is imperialised overnight.

Overall, I wanted to like this. It was solidly written, which makes Rebirth a faeces embarrassment, but it was missing that needed oomph, that excitement, that tension.

I'll give it a 7.

 

Average score: 311.42/37 = 8.42

 

8/10

Good plot. I liked the weaving of different sub-plots to give perspectives of the different characters. I liked the way Xizor was using everyone around him.

I liked it enough to want to keep reading the next book.

 

8/10.

It got better as it went along. At first, I was bored - especially with the lack of connection with the characters. With the first half, I felt, other than with Den, that I was reading about cardboard standups. I couldn't get into their heads. But as the book went on, the characters became deeper, and I liked them better. I liked the ending a lot, too, although I would've liked to see Vader go up against Jax. Maybe in the second or third book.

Overall, very good. One of the more enjoyable SW novels - and surprisingly so, since the only big canon character was Vader. And Xizor, my fav sneaky villain, was a pleasant addition.

- Serena

 

Average score: 327.42/39 = 8.40

 

I'm not sure how much of my review of this book is biased by what I've read before. It's hard for me, having previously read Shadow Hunter, Medstar, and Shatterpoint and grown fond of many of those characters, to rate this one by itself. That said, I loved this one. Seeing the returns of Den, I-Five, Nick Rostu, and Kaird was a blast. Not to mention great appearances future rivals Vader and Xizor, it really made for an entertaining story following up to the events in Episode III.

Getting to see Even Piell's fate is nice, too. Wasn't he the only council member whose fate we had not yet been shown? Good to get that in the first part of the book.

As for the new characters, I can understand Jax's attitude toward I-Five in this one, what with the information regarding his father and his ideas about droids shattered as they were, but that doesn't mean I have to like him. Laranth didn't get as much development as I'd expected and Rhinnan, though a somewhat interesting character, seemed doomed from the start, making me less interested in his story. I'm glad we did get some payoff with that.

I was a bit disappointed we didn't get the noirish feel I'd expected and Jax never really was a private investigator at any point. The Empire's transition does seemed to have happened overnight and some mentions (like Den's multiple musings concerning Noghri) seemed a bit out of place.

On another note, I think it's interesting that a guy who goes to lengths to make "Star Wars" terms like "pyrowall" and "cloudcutter" would have to resort to using very Earth-based terms like coulombs and gausses. Not really a choice there, I guess, but amusing.

Another thing I found rather enjoyable is after getting two separate characters ruminate on how humans are everywhere, Reaves proceeds to fill the book with alien species of every kind, from the well known to the vague. It's nice when an author remembers that this galaxy is populated with all kinds of sentients, creatures, and critters.

Anyway, a good story that had me riveted from start to finish. 8.75/10

 

Average score: 336.17/40 = 8.40

 

Here is another one who has loved it.

This is the first Reaves novel I've read, so I didn't know any of his original characters and I couldn't imagine I'd like them so much. But it isn't only his original cast, but also Xizor, Vader and Nick, who I already knew he was going to appear, but never imagined he would show up so changed. About the story, while it is true that I expected something a little bit more noirish, I have to say I really enjoyed the plot. The only exception would be Vader's fixation with Pavan. I found it rather needless. Blakc Sun's subplot was also very interesting.

There are also a few things I didn't like. As some have already said, that yevetha and noghris do show up. I didn't enjoy reading how revulsed Jax got when he met I5. It could be because I expected more from a main character, but I didn't see that reaction coming (however, it reminded me a lot of Elijah Baley's first meeting with Daneel Olivaw).

I hope I can read the second one soon

9'5/10.

 

Average score: 345.67/41 = 8.43

 

i was really looking forward to this one but unfortunately it wasn't what i expected. as has been said before there isn't much of the "noir" aspect as one would think. and jax really doesn't do much investigating, more like has everything handed to him. honestly i read the first 1/3 then put it down for a couple of weeks before returning.

that doesn't mean i hated it. quite the contrary, after that sluggish first 1/3 the plot started to come together and it got exciting. the best description of vader in a long time coming from nick's pov.

and speaking of nick, how in the worlds did he survive? i know their medicine ect is better but come on!

not perfect but not poodo either
7/10