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mjedib's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This is a fun “get the squad together” type story that follows the resistance in the first week after the Last Jedi. One of the main character focuses is on Leia who is struggling to find hope after losing Luke and having her call for help go unanswered but she must push forward and use her connections to save the resistance. The Leia content in this feels kind of like a spiritual sequel to Bloodline. Poe has to deal with his guilt over all the mistakes he made in the Last Jedi and he has his squadron and friends motivating him to move forward. His arc was the heart of the novel and he especially has some great moments like when he talks about his mothers love for flying. There’s also a first order officer in this book that has a really disturbing story that plays out over the book which I thought was handled well. Finn gets a decent amount to do but I wanted more from Rey, Rose, and Chewie. I’ve also seen this book referred to as the No Way Home of Star Wars which is hilariously accurate. Characters from several of the stories between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens show up including the Aftermath trilogy, Bloodline, Battlefront 2 Resurrection campaign, and the Poe Damerom comics. He’s on the cover so it’s not a spoiler that Wedge is in this and it was really interesting to see him settled into his new life and now having to consider abandoning it. Something else I really loved about this book is it paints a good picture of the first order occupation and what’s going on across the Galaxy. It has a good explanation for why people are so afraid to stand up to the first order. Ultimately a really solid book but could maybe be developed more in a few places.
ib_ratton's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Entertaining Star Wars fluff.
The story is exciting, interesting, and entertaining but not a lot happens. It seems like the book was trying so hard to stay in the canon that nothing significant truly happens. It's a shame because the writing is pretty good! I truly wish it had more substance to it.
The overall story lacks the draw to make it a book worth absolutely reading. However, if you are looking for a book just to immerse yourself in the Star Wars universe, you'll have a lot of fun with this one!
The story is exciting, interesting, and entertaining but not a lot happens. It seems like the book was trying so hard to stay in the canon that nothing significant truly happens. It's a shame because the writing is pretty good! I truly wish it had more substance to it.
The overall story lacks the draw to make it a book worth absolutely reading. However, if you are looking for a book just to immerse yourself in the Star Wars universe, you'll have a lot of fun with this one!
nowturtle's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.25
rheren's review against another edition
3.0
Pretty forgettable Disney cash grab. It's a story, but at the end the cardboard bad guys that we meet have been conveniently done away with, and the good guys that we know all made it to the end: they had an adventure but they end in pretty much the same situation that they were in before, nothing has really changed. It's a story, but it doesn't really need to exist, I didn't feel like it explained anything or advanced the plot in any major way. It's not terrible, but also nothing memorable or notable.
dawnatien's review
adventurous
funny
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
To be honest 3/4 of the book were inspiring quotes sewn together... Almost a parody of Star Wars... Until we reached the espionnage part of the story, once there everything became much more enjoyable.
tomesproject's review against another edition
2.0
2.5/5 - Rebecca Roanhorse, give me your AO3 account name, I want to read your FinnPoe diplomatic mission fics.
I think this is a fine story, but I absolutely had to get the audiobook in order to finish this story because, after TROS, everything feels so useless? I started this book in November and made note of lines like "No one can save Ben but himself" from Leia and that just didn't matter at all. I will definitely read Rebecca Roanhorse in the future, but this book stumbled because of the franchise it's apart of.
I think this is a fine story, but I absolutely had to get the audiobook in order to finish this story because, after TROS, everything feels so useless? I started this book in November and made note of lines like "No one can save Ben but himself" from Leia and that just didn't matter at all. I will definitely read Rebecca Roanhorse in the future, but this book stumbled because of the franchise it's apart of.
lkthomas07's review against another edition
5.0
Yes!!! Ha, I couldn’t give this anything less than 5 stars but that’s probably because I was just so excited for it that I loved everything about it. I was waiting for Ransolm to return ever since Bloodline! Really fun and this got me psyched for ROS.
thepancreas11's review against another edition
3.0
It feels a little incomplete, just as some of the reviews say it is, but I don't think that's a bad thing, necessarily. Expanded Universe novels can sometimes play the role of the next link in the chain, which is certainly the point here. I don't think it would stand alone, apart from Star Wars, but then, it doesn't really have to. Sure, most of the character development has been done elsewhere, there isn't really an antagonist outside of that great evil in the sky that is the First Order. This book is like a movement in a symphony, a part of something larger that gives it power through context and shared themes.
Plot aside, I love the writing style. I think that Rebecca Roanhorse captures our heroes perfectly, especially Leia. The first chapter felt like a stream of consciousness from Carrie Fisher herself. In general, she does a good job of changing the tone and voice of the story to reflect the point of view character. It's impressive to get one consistent voice; it's a thing of beauty when you can master a half a dozen voices. It's worth the read just to witness that greatness.
If anything bugged me, the lack of specificity did. "A pilot in Phantom Squadron died," for instance. Who? How? What did they fly? When you write in an Expanded Universe, every little detail matters. There are stories for every creature in the cantina because people are curious and hungry for the exposition. That's what makes an expanded universe so appealing. I wish she had named more of these characters so that they could take part in other stories, their threads could be pulled in the future.
I do love the representation in this novel, though. It's nice to see Star Wars embracing diversity finally.
Plot aside, I love the writing style. I think that Rebecca Roanhorse captures our heroes perfectly, especially Leia. The first chapter felt like a stream of consciousness from Carrie Fisher herself. In general, she does a good job of changing the tone and voice of the story to reflect the point of view character. It's impressive to get one consistent voice; it's a thing of beauty when you can master a half a dozen voices. It's worth the read just to witness that greatness.
If anything bugged me, the lack of specificity did. "A pilot in Phantom Squadron died," for instance. Who? How? What did they fly? When you write in an Expanded Universe, every little detail matters. There are stories for every creature in the cantina because people are curious and hungry for the exposition. That's what makes an expanded universe so appealing. I wish she had named more of these characters so that they could take part in other stories, their threads could be pulled in the future.
I do love the representation in this novel, though. It's nice to see Star Wars embracing diversity finally.