Reviews Books The JC Lit Reviews Special: YLESIA (Ylesia and DW Spoilers)

Gath-

According to the WJW interview she does, and Jacen keeps referring back to the name that Luke gives Jaina during her Knighting ceremoney, "The Sword of the Jedi". I'm at work right now, so I can't post a summary, but I'll type one up later if you want unless someone else beats me to it.

JMA

 

Caine: That quote occurs well after the shadow bombing of the Peace Brigade frigate in space.

After the Peace Brigade frigate; not the Vong ship that Jacen hit with a shadow bomb. It?s on page 55.

And he anticipates for their actions just like he would normally for other species in the Force.

No he doesn?t. In combat, Jacen lets the Force guide him, just as most other Jedi do (I think the specific term is Jedi Battle Meditation). That?s how he could fight the Vong so well in VP. The way Jacen senses their thoughts and such is similar to how he would do so with the Force, but that is only part of how he would normally anticipate an opponent?s actions.

 

I also didnt like how Jaina jumped from Lieutenant to Major, regardless of the dire situation that the NR is in. It was totally ridiculous, and if this keeps up she'll soon outrank Corran, a Colonel who has been in the NR military for well over twenty years when you count seniority. At this rate she'll be Fleet Admiral by the Force Heretic Trilogy.


As far as the thing with Jacen not detecting the Vong in the Force goes, all I can think of is that WJW probably didnt communicate with MWS as they wrote their respective books.

 

Firstly, Tahiri, a junior teenager with very neglibale flight experience, leading a fighter squadron? I'll give the author of Ylesia the benefit of the doubt by not scoffing, but come on!


Jedi are a big Morale point. To have Jedi at the head would boost morale. Let's analyse what we know from Ylesia:

-She is leading a Squdron

-The Squadron is full of Rookies

-They lovingly call themselves Barefeet Squadron

-IIRC, we also find out that she wasn't even in combat in Ylesia



So, what's not to say that those 12 are there to defend or attack to what the Admiral says. The Admiral says charge, they charge. Due to being full of Rookies, they wouldnt be alone, ever. They have the morale booster of a Jedi. I'm struggling to find a problem after reading it

 

106/14 = 7.57/10

 

I was just stopping by the starwars forums when I ran across this statement pertaining to Ylesia:

"Two things I loved was Jacen's shrewd perceptions of Jaina, Luke and Kyp. A more apt description of Kyp in a EU book doesn't come to mind.
And Jag getting tossed across the room. (had to mention it again as the other thread is locked now)
I wish WJW would have let Jaina fininsh that thought on Jag though."

Do any of you who have read the book know what the poster meant by Jacen's perceptions on Jaina, Luke, and Kyp?

 

Corran is either a Colonel or Commander, depending how you read it.



Now, think this way. Tycho got Colonel from ESB-Isards Revenge (And should have already been there). 5 years, and it was overdue. Jaina got Major, below Tycho, in 3.5-4 years. Add the fact that more are dying as of now (They keep saying about green pilots in the top squadrons), and that ranks are needed, and I see it as just.

 

Meh. I still dont like it.

 

Hmmm... I'd go with a 7 for the ebook. I didn't not like it, but it really doesn't rate the same with me as the last NJO books have.

I personally liked Tahiri getting a squadron. I was suprised of course, but what was said is true. She does have fighting experience. More so than a lot of the fighters. Desperate times call for desperate messures. In times of peace, Tahiri probably wouldn't have even been considered. But it isn't a time of peace, and instead a time of war. This far into the war against the Vong, they need experience. I also believe that the Force-meld thing is good for her in helping her heal. I also loved the name. Barefoot squadron!

Jaina being knighted was cool, but I wish I hadn't known that before DW. The Sword of the Jedi. Yours is a restless life, and you shall never know peace, though you will be blessed for the peace you bring others. I can't wait to see that ceremony!

~*~Bria

 

"She does have fighting experience."

Where?

 

She has experience as a Jedi and fighting in a more one on one style with the Vong, but she obviously has no starfighter experience whatsoever.

 

Uh, I think you and I may be saying and talking about 2 completely different things, JJS.

Our pages must be different because on my page 55, there's a conversation between Maal Lah and Thrackan. The passage that I point out occurs on page 58 ("It was good to feel the enemy [the Peace Brigade] in the Force again, Jacen thought. The Yuuzhan Vong were an emptiness in the Force, a black hole into which the light of the Force disappeared. These Peace Brigaders at least registered as a part of the living universe, and because he could feel them in the Force, Jacen could anticipate their actions. Compared to the Yuuzhan Vong, these people were easy.").

This passage occurs from Jacen's perspective in space well after shadow bombing the Peace Brigade frigate and well before shadow bombing the Vong ship in Ylesia's atmosphere.

Also, he wouldn't necessarily say, "Compared to the Yuuzhan Vong, these people [the Peace Brigade] were easy." That he couldn't "anticipate" the Yuuzhan Vong like he could the Peace Brigade. That didn't fit at all in light of his experiences from Traitor.

Because Jacen *does* anticipate for Yuuzhan Vong actions. During Traitor, he anticipates for the Yuuzhan Vong and their organisms (amphistaffs + flying beetles) in his battle with many YV warriors on the crater. Not necessarily through the Force either, through the "eye of his storm." They're obviously saving the punch line where a Jedi (probably Luke) can sense the Yuuzhan Vong through the Force first.

 

I could have gone happily on my way without reading this ebook. There just wasn't much there.

I felt there was a huge gap in character development from Enemy Lines and Traitor to this. (ie, Jacen seems to have forgotten everything he learned about himself and the Force in Traitor) I really hope this is addressed in DW.

I, too, think that it should have been released after DW. Not that it really spoiled me for DW, I just think that the story would have been better to read afterward.

Judging from this ebook, I am a bit worried about DW. I just don't know if I will enjoy it as much as I have the other books. If I did not already have DW on preorder, I might wait for the paperback on it. I really hate paying $25 for a hardback and be really disappointed in it. I swore off buying SW books back in the old days because of the disappointing writing. I don't want to do it again. Hopefully, the ebook is not fully representative of DW. I almost wonder if it isn't more an editing problem that I have with this more than a writing problem.

Crossing fingers and hoping for the best with DW.

I give it a 4/10.

 

I'm not sure about Luke, but Jacen characterizes Kyp like so in the Force: "the sheer power of Kyp Durron, a power very much akin to rage."

And Jacen constantly refers to the "cold calculation" of Jaina. Of course there is all that about Jaina as the "The Sword of the Jedi...thrusting straight to the heart."

 

Hmm, well Tahiri does have the advantage of knowing how the Yuuzhan Vong think and is more than familiar with the aerodynamics of Coralskippers and Yorik Coral Frigate Analogs. She would know their weaknesses and with greater experience of piloting this would undoubtedly be a great asset. She is gaining this experience by being given the chance to lead a squadron of pilots less experienced than herself and without being thrown into the fray.



Btw, I rate the e-book 8.5/10

 

I felt Jacen was written logically. He's back with real people now, and so he would end up somewhere between his pre-SBS and T selves

 

The characterisation of Jacen was a little off-putting to me. It seemed that he went from his "greater" understanding of the force in Traitor to someone who only saw fit to use this understanding if by chance he remembered he had it. I refer of course to his sudden Vong-thought realisation that a further fleet was going to arrive.

 

That's my point exactly, ganner and H_K. It's like he suddenly remembered he had Vongsense.

And the experiences he acquired from Traitor really didn't mean much. And by experiences, I mean his ability to directly sense the Vong and their machine analogs.

 

I think the specific term is Jedi Battle Meditation

Jedi Battle Meditation is the term for visualizing a favorable outcome for the battle and projecting it telepathically onto the combatants, thereby inspiring your allies and demoralizing your foes. it comes up a lot in TOTJ.

 

From the interview, the Vergere/Luke/Jacen confrontation will be a pretty big deal. Perhaps WJW was just try to not spoil some surprises by limiting Jacen's abilities now? The excerpt from the back really piqued my interest. I think Destiny's Way will be a great novel, and Ylesia is just an offshoot adventure story.

"Ganner never really had a Vong sense."

How could he not have? He made piles of Vong like nothing happening. That ain't just the Force... Otherwise they wouldn't have had any problems in SbS.

 

Caine, I suggest you go back to your own post (9/3 10:46pm) and look at the quote you put there. That is the quote I was talking about, and it was the quote you were talking about when you said ?That quote occurs well after the shadow bombing of the Peace Brigade frigate in space.? In the Microsoft Reader version of the book, that quote can be found on page 55 (or at least it can for me).

Also, he wouldn't necessarily say, "Compared to the Yuuzhan Vong, these people [the Peace Brigade] were easy." That he couldn't "anticipate" the Yuuzhan Vong like he could the Peace Brigade. That didn't fit at all in light of his experiences from Traitor.

Like I said before, the way he anticipates Vong actions is very different from the way he anticipates the actions of the Peace Brigade people. It?s no surprise that he prefers the normal way over the ?Vongside? way.

Because Jacen *does* anticipate for Yuuzhan Vong actions.

I never said otherwise. What I said was that it was different; not nonexistent. Heck, there?s not much sugesting that it?s even superior to the normal way when dealing with Vong in fighter and/or ground combat. If Jacen uses the ?Vongside? he gives up the Force?s guidance and all the other power that goes along with it. If he uses the Force?s guidance and all that other power, he gives up the ?Vongside?. It?s a simple trade off.

dizfactor: Jedi Battle Meditation is the term for visualizing a favorable outcome for the battle and projecting it telepathically onto the combatants, thereby inspiring your allies and demoralizing your foes. it comes up a lot in TOTJ.

Okay? I felt sure that term was used in Vision of the Future for something else? I can?t find it now, though. Oh well? It wasn?t really that important, anyway.

Thanks for the correction.

 

A very solid 8. Great fun, I can't wait for Destiny's Way, it might dethrown Traitor.

 

"And the experiences he acquired from Traitor really didn't mean much. And by experiences, I mean his ability to directly sense the Vong and their machine analogs."


I know! It was like he thought "Hey, this is strange! Oh hell, why don't I use that strange Vongy mentality I nearly died acquiring?"

 

Yeah, it might even dethrone Traitor.

 

I expect it to