The Official SHATTERPOINT discussion thread (spoilers allowed)

I already have a favorite quote "A shame he cant touch the Force,he might have made a fine Jedi" if only Mace knew just how wrong he is in more ways than one.

I also like Matt Stovers writing style better than most other writers,he really gets into a characters head and lets you know what their thinking and that helps you understand why they do certain things and what their true motivations are.

 

Coleman was killed, so there's a vacency

 

I already have a favorite quote "A shame he cant touch the Force,he might have made a fine Jedi" if only Mace knew just how wrong he is in more ways than one.

Does he say that about Palpatine?


This book looks sweet.

And damn you dp4m! *shakes fist* Why can't I have a TV like that? Oh wait, it's because I'm poor.

 

If that quote is directed towards Palpatine, that is absolutely AWESOME!

 

Yes, it is directed at Palpy.

I'm not 100 pages in, but my favorite part so far is when Mace flips the bird at a couple of cops.

 

This book will rock. That's a sweet quote, and I can just see Mace flipping off the cops!

 

That entire scene with Palpatine just makes you want to scream at the book. They are so close, and yet have no idea. It is quite frustrating.

 

Just finished Shatterpoint today and let me say ... this book is not to be missed. I won't say I enjoyed it all the way throughout ... its not a "fun" Star Wars book (though there are moments of fun). It is more of an experience. In many ways, I found Shatterpoint to be even more exhausing than Traitor. Afterwards, I really felt as if I had been in a war myself, right along with the characters.

I point this out because one of the few novels that had this effect on me was All Quiet on the Western Front, one of the supposed inspirations for this book. However, I found myself more weary of the Haruun Kal war than the hell that Paul faced on the German front lines. And that I guess is the point. Jedi feel death more acutely than regular people, and the code that makes them Jedi makes a concept of war especially damaging to them. In some cases, the mind can shatter. In others, the mind will be bruised but can recover (but will never be the same way again).

The comments about Anakin Skywalker at the end of the book are especially appropriate and nicely placed to bring what feels like Haruun Kal's own universe directly into the GFFA. The conclusion Mace draws makes Anakin's journey seem all the more profound.

That's a mark of an excellent Star Wars novel. It adds something new to the universe, an angle not previously seen or a written path not often taken. It makes the mythos that much more real to us, at the same time expanding the horizons of what could be. I'm glad not every Star Wars book is Shatterpoint-like. But the EU is much better for its creation.

Thank you Mr. Stover for a great book. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go take a well deserved rest.

 

Be sure to rate it in the Lit Review Special thread.

 

I'm getting it in a couple hours. I hope.

 

What is said about Anakin? I probably won't be able to get my hands on this for a week or two!


SPOIL ME!!!

Shelly

 

What amazes me is the speed this book moves at. Traitor was exellent, but it was heavier reading, took longer. This one flows like nothing. And Stover is one of the few Star Wars authors whom you can tell apart just by the style of the writing, whereas many (though not all) of the other writers' stuff just blends together.

I'm on page 99 now, and I'm absolutely hooked. Del Rey has definitely taken the EU in a dyamic direction.

 

Just picked up Shatterpoint last night, and have been reading it all day at work. It's a great read. Lots of action, some great bits of humor(especially from Nick Rostun, and the scene where Mace gives the local "Law enforcement" the finger. Pg. 38), there are even some parts where I was actually worried for Mace, even though I know he will make it out alive. I stopped reading at the beginning of part 3 "Shatterpoint", and I am wondering how they are going to get off the planet.

 

The Kaminoan clone troopers are not only the best soldiers we have, they are very nearly our only soldiers. We would use them to train civilian volunteers and law-enforcement personnel in weapons and tactics, but the Separatists have managed to keep nearly all 1.2 million of them fully engaged, rushing from system to system and planet to planet to meet probing attacks from the bewildering variety of war droids that the TechnoUnion, with the financial backing of the Trade Federation, turns out in seemingly unlimited quantities."

That's rediculous. If the Clone troopers are the Republic's only soldiers , then the Republic is fighting one farce of a war. The Confederacy droid troopers are completely useless. Worse than useless. 1.2 million troopers should not be able to wage a galactic war.I could believe there were only 1.2 million if the Republic started nationalizing the Planetary Security Forces. That means the clone troopers are a special forces, while the Security Forces do most of the real fighting. However, that quote implies that that's not the case.

It has to be the case. I'm going to choose to believe he was only talking forces that belonged to the Republic. The Republic Grand Army has to be working in conjunction with the Planetary Security Forces. The nationalization of those Forces has not yet begun it would seem. Not surprising since the war only started six months before.

That quote is also interesting because it gives us an idea of the strength of the Confederate forces. Apparently they can only field enough units to launch an inbasion of a few planets a time.

I get the feeling that the Confederacy relies more on unconventional warfare than it does conventional warfare. Probaly terror tactics. Just look at the Republic comics for evidence of that.

As for the Republic be only 1,000 years old, well we know that some people think of the Republic as beginning only a 1,000 years ago. Sio Bibble didn't exactly speak of it as if it had only been reformed

 

Is there any actual Clone Wars battles?

 

Well there is a battle for the planet at the end with Clone troopers and TF fighters but its a little more complex then the battle of Geonosis (in the terms of whos on what side and that sort of thing. It changes several times during the battle).

 

ok, good

 

I just got it. It does go pretty fast. I'm pretty impressed so far.

 

Flips off cops?


I NEED this book!




Who's the big bad Jedi Knight
Who chops up badguys with a blade of light?


MACE!


Can ya dig it?


They say that Mace is one bad mudda--SHUT YO MOUF!



Talkin' bout Mace...

 

Okaaaay... and back to our regularly scedualed discusion

 

Matthew Trias:

Does it really matter? As Star Wars is a mythological fantasy is it not better to just believe that 1.2 million troops can do a galaxy wide job?
I don't see the need to bring realism into the picture, because Star Wars is anything but realistic, IMHO.
It seems like another rule to the Star Wars galaxy is that 1.2 million troops can fight a galaxy wide war, besides I don't believe the Rebellion was ever a large faction, yet they managed to fight a war against a huge Empire.
Its all about suspension of disbelief.

 

1.2 Million soldiers isn't enough, but also remember that they're fighting from the air and from the ground. I imagine that there is also several parallel missions like Dapa's to train planetary militias to fight better.

 

Btw, on an utterly random and quite bizarre note; I'll be getting SP asap, but is there a volcanic eruption in the book anywhere..? I'd be fascinated to see Matt's writing style at work with something like that!

 

Sort of. There's a point that I'm at right now where Mace finds a crawler stranded in a lava flow and rescues the people inside.

 

Will someone PLEASE tell me what (if anything) is said relating to Anakin Skywalker? I'd really appreciate it!

Shelly


PS: Pwetty please? [face_pout]