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samtherat17's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
This was a pretty good book, but I'm a little disappointed considering how good Edge of Victory 1 was.
cj13's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Genocide, Chronic illness, Body horror, Xenophobia, War, Violence, Self harm, Racism, Pregnancy, and Medical content
Moderate: Classism, Grief, and Death
blancwene's review against another edition
2.0
For 2021, I decided to reread Del Rey’s first attempt at a multi-author book series in the Star Wars universe: The New Jedi Order, which was published between 1999 and 2003. This shakes out to 19 novels, two eBook novellas, three short stories, and a tangentially-related prequel era novel.
This week’s focus: the second book in the Edge of Victory duology, Edge of Victory: Rebirth by Greg Keyes.
SOME HISTORY:
Greg Keyes loves research. For his Age of Unreason series, which takes place in an alternate 18th century in which Sir Isaac Newton discovered the basics of alchemy, Keyes looked up everything from pre-Revolutionary War Boston to 18th century fashions and recipes. In writing the Edge of Victory duology, Keyes extensively utilized the first generation of the Essential Guides--seven books that detailed the characters, vehicles, technology, planets, alien species, and droids of the Expanded Universe up to that point. (He also read all the previous NJO books, which is more than you can say for some of the authors: *cough*Walter Jon Williams) Edge of Victory: Rebirth made it to number eleven on the New York Times paperback bestseller list for the week of August 26, 2001, and was on the NYT list for two weeks.
MY RECOLLECTION OF THE BOOK:
I was surprised by how little I remembered of the actual subplots! I remembered Jaina and Kyp, but that was it. The imminent arrival of the Skywalker baby overshadowed everything else in my memory.
A BRIEF SUMMARY:
With no help from the divided New Republic, the Jedi stand alone against the Yuuzhan Vong. As Han and Leia take controversial risks to bolster the Jedi resistance and Jaina Solo attempts to bring Kyp Durron back into the fold, Corran Horn and his teenage companions uncover a Yuuzhan Vong plot against the planet Yag’Dhul...
THE CHARACTERS:
Just in Edge of Victory: Rebirth alone we have 1) Corran Horn, Anakin Solo, and Tahiri Veila off on a simple refueling mission that goes very wrong; 2) Luke Skywalker and his wife Mara Jade dealing both with the New Republic government as well as Mara’s illness and her pregnancy; 3) Han Solo, Leia Organa Solo, and their son Jacen off on work for Luke's Great River movement; 4) Jaina Solo unable to rejoin Rogue Squadron, so her uncle dispatches her to find out what Kyp Durron's been up to; 5) we have the aforementioned Yuuzhan Vong plot against the planet Yag’Dhul; and 6) we have a subplot with the shaper Nen Yim. That’s six main subplots, and then other stuff going on as well.
Tahiri is still dealing with the aftermath of the torture she suffered at the hands of the Yuuzhan Vong shapers. She feels that the other Jedi kids distrust her and are wary of her, so she forces herself along on a routine refueling trip with Corran Horn and Anakin. While on Eriadu, Anakin and Tahiri do not stay on the ship as Corran tells them, but instead head off in search of a Jedi in need. The Jedi dies, but with his dying breath he says one word: Yag’Dhul. So they make their way right into the middle of a Yuuzhan Vong fleet; their ship is destroyed, and they end up commandeering a Yuuzhan Vong spy vessel.
We get the first hint that what Anakin and Vua Rapuuung and Tahiri did on Yavin IV has spread to other Yuuzhan Vong, particularly the Shamed Ones, as they meet a shamed one who's perfectly willing to work with Jedi because of this mythology that's been built around their escapades on Yavin IV. There's some shenanigans where the station loses atmosphere and Anakin and Tahiri are stuck in a locker for a while and behave as you might expect teenagers to do. But ultimately the Yuuzhan Vong are repelled at Yag’Dhul and the planet is, for now, still safe.
Anakin thinks a little more about how—for better or worse—he influences the younger generation of the Jedi; Corran Horn learns that teenagers are difficult to deal with; and Anakin and Tahiri take their first steps toward some kind of relationship, although it's still in its preliminary stages at this point.
Meanwhile, back on the Millennium Falcon, Han, Leia, and Jacen are trying to drum up support for Luke Skywalker’s Jedi resistance. They've made a temporary base within the Maw where the former Maw Installation was, but a lot of their plotline is them acting like pirates or privateers attacking Peace Brigade ships, Jacen has some initial difficulties with the track that his father's chosen (which honestly, I don't blame him—piracy is a little extreme even when you're doing it against people who are not working in your best interests) but he comes around to their plan.
And as in [b:Balance Point|320346|Balance Point (Star Wars The New Jedi Order, #6)|Kathy Tyers|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1330833461l/320346._SY75_.jpg|311099], Jaina is still struggling with anger and frustration—in this case that she hasn't been allowed to rejoin Rogue Squadron. Instead, her Uncle Luke dispatches her to discover what Kyp Durron and his Dozen are up to. Remember how in the Dark Tide duology by Stackpole, Admiral Kre’fey went to the remains of the Sernpidal system to scout out what the Yuuzhan Vong were doing? And it very much looked like they were creating a shipyard? Well Kyp has proof that they are constructing a superweapon—a superweapon that, like the Sun Crusher, could destroy entire suns. He has video from a reconnaissance mission to back up his claims, which Jaina takes to Colonel Darklighter, who takes it to Wedge Antilles, so it is now almost a New Republic Military-sanctioned attack on the Sernpidal shipyards.
Kyp is also really confusing to Jaina; he's constantly flirting with her, he offers that she become his apprentice because her aunt is busy right now, and Jaina doesn't know what to think. Of course as it turns out Kyp was lying: it was not a superweapon at the shipwomb, but a new worldship that would have housed civilians. And if Jaina and Colonel Darklighter and Wedge Antilles had known that, they would have never sanctioned that attack.
This is part of what frustrates me so much with Kyp Durron! (Luke frustrates me as well, and I'll get into that a little later.) Kyp is constantly urging action, but for most of the books thus far his squadron hasn't been thinking very strategically. They've been attacking the Yuuzhan Vong, but it's more like flies bothering a giant beast—they’re not actually accomplishing anything, it's action for the sake of action. With this threat at the Sernpidal shipwomb, it looks like he's actually accomplishing something and that he's actually thinking strategically now. If it was a superweapon, I would 100% condone what he did; you need to take something like that out, because it gives the Yuuzhan Vong an unfair advantage that would cause irrevocable harm to the people of the galaxy. But as we learn in the subplot with Nen Yim, the Yuuzhan Vong worldships don’t just house their warriors, they also house their civilians and Shamed Ones. And more importantly, they’re dying. They’re thousands of years old at this point and their living systems are shutting down. So in destroying the worldship, Kyp has essentially said that he doesn't care about civilians, he doesn't care about “the women and the children” to quote Anakin from Attack of the Clones, he wants to wipe them all out. And now Jaina and anyone else who feels remorse from that mission has those potential future deaths on their conscience.
Luke Skywalker and Mara Jade are on Coruscant awaiting the birth of their son when they learn that the Chief of State Borsk Fey'lya has put out a warrant for their arrest. Borsk has been rather frustrating in the New Jedi Order thus far because he doesn't want to commit to anything; after the ultimatum that the Warmaster Tsavong Lah issued at the end of [b:Balance Point|320346|Balance Point (Star Wars The New Jedi Order, #6)|Kathy Tyers|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1330833461l/320346._SY75_.jpg|311099], he doesn't want to support the Jedi, he doesn't want to condemn them, but he wants to arrest Luke or at least make it look like he tried to arrest Luke. So Mara and Luke have to escape Coruscant, and at the same time they find out that Mara's illness has returned. So Mara goes downhill really fast—she’s essentially staying alive to keep her baby alive. Luke is very upset about what's happening with her, but doesn't really do anything until the end when she particularly asks for his help.
And this is what I find so frustrating with Luke in the New Jedi Order! If Kyp’s approach is too aggressive, Luke's approach is far too passive. He comes up with this plan for a Great River, to move the Jedi to safety, but then he doesn't do anything about it. It's all Han and Leia and Kam and Tionne and the characters we encounter in the [b:Emissary of the Void|11422452|Emissary of the Void (Star Wars The New Jedi Order, #8.5)|Greg Keyes|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1479314168l/11422452._SX50_.jpg|16355675] short story. So what is he doing with his time other than lollygagging around, being like, “I can't take action, I just have to sit this out”?? This is the man that destroyed the first Death Star; who was willing to turn himself in to save his father…But here in the New Jedi Order series, when the threat is galaxy wide, he just sits there and does very little.
On the Yuuzhan Vong side we have the attempt on Yag’Dhul: the Warmaster sends his relative Qurang Law to work with Nom Anor to take over the planet. We learn that Nom Anor has got the Shapers to make himself another disguise (this one makes him look like a Givin). We also see the extent to which Nom Anor is willing to kill his own people to keep his secrets. He turns on the warriors that are accompanying him, and he uses a blaster (which should be completely against his beliefs!) to make sure that no one knows what happened with the Jedi there.
And in a separate, other Yuuzhan Vong subplot, we have Nen Yim, the Shaper Adept from [b:Edge of Victory I: Conquest|320347|Edge of Victory I Conquest (Star Wars The New Jedi Order, #7)|Greg Keyes|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1403184941l/320347._SY75_.jpg|1776613]. She’s been sent to one of those dying worldships in disgrace after her master’s actions on Yavin IV. She wants to save the worldship, but she doesn't have the knowledge base to do that—so she once again turns to heresy. I like Nen Yim, I like learning more about their culture, but I also wondered how needed her subplot was here. A lot of it features her being frustrated, her trying to work within these constraints. And it turns out to have all been a test: Kae Kwaad the Master Shaper was actually Onimi, the jester of the Supreme Overlord. Shimrra is going to make her a Master Shaper now, and she's going to be working outside of the Shaper tradition as an officially, secretly sanctioned heretic.
ISSUES:
Like the Agents of Chaos duology, the Edge of Victory consisted of one book tightly focused on a character (Han in [b:Agents of Chaos I: Hero's Trial|836080|Agents of Chaos I Hero's Trial|James Luceno|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320522548l/836080._SY75_.jpg|311083]; Anakin in [b:Edge of Victory I: Conquest|320347|Edge of Victory I Conquest (Star Wars The New Jedi Order, #7)|Greg Keyes|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1403184941l/320347._SY75_.jpg|1776613]) and then a second book that opened up the story to more characters and subplots. And as with [b:Agents of Chaos: Jedi Eclipse|157984|Agents of Chaos II Jedi Eclipse|James Luceno|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320522545l/157984._SY75_.jpg|152469], I found that Rebirth lost that close focus on our initial protagonist that I loved so much in the first book. Keyes doesn’t delve as deeply into Anakin’s Jedi journey, and instead broadens and redirects his attention on other characters--which is fine! It’s nice to check in on Han and Leia after their ordeals, and follow Jaina on her mission. But I felt like Anakin went back to being a side character, and most of his plotline revolved around his burgeoning relationship with Tahiri.
I also felt like apart from Jaina and Kyp’s subplot, the others weren’t wrapped up in a satisfactory manner. Han and Leia become privateers despite Jacen’s protests, and actively harry the Peace Brigade. They uncover information, arrive to find it’s a trap, and...that’s it. Part of their mission was finding a new secret base for the Jedi, but that’s accomplished by Kam Solusar and Tionne offscreen! Likewise, Corran and Anakin and Tahiri uncover a possible Yuuzhan Vong military action against Yag’Dhul, but they’re stuck on the station for a key chunk of it. On the Vong front, Tsavong Lah seems to be thinking more revengeful than strategical in ambushing the Solos--and the bulk of the action is actually undertaken by Nom Anor and Lah’s relative.
And the conclusions of two subplots felt rather too deus ex machina-esque for my own taste. First, the Millenium Falcon (or the Princess of Blood)’s escape from Lah’s trap. We got a scientific explanation from both Han and Jacen as to how and why it worked, but it felt closer to [b:Vector Prime|192214|Vector Prime (Star Wars The New Jedi Order, #1)|R.A. Salvatore|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1412181316l/192214._SX50_.jpg|2799032]’s bizarre science than the usual stuff encountered in a Star Wars story.
Second, Mara’s illness: I haven’t been hugely keen on how her illness plays out, from hugely debilitating (the Dark Tide duology) to normal again thanks to Vergere’s tears ([b:Balance Point|320346|Balance Point (Star Wars The New Jedi Order, #6)|Kathy Tyers|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1330833461l/320346._SY75_.jpg|311099]). Here, we learn that she has to stop taking a synthetic version of Vergere’s tears because it’s built up this toxic reaction that’s affecting her baby. She quickly goes downhill, and devotes all her energy to protecting the fetus. Near the end, she lets Luke in with the Force, he sees a vision of their son’s possible future, the three of them join together, and….I guess she’s cured? We’re told by Mirax Terrik that her illness is gone and her baby is safe, but we don’t actually see anything of that! True, the Force is a mystical energy field and so much about it cannot be explained, but I would have liked a teeny bit of explanation here--or at the very least, to not have found out about her recovery offscreen.
My usual prescription for a book that feels scattered and incohesive is more editing, but I feel like Rebirth required the opposite approach: more time to develop these concepts and linger with these characters. The paperback is only 292 pages, and I would have been fine with more pages spent on each of these subplots. (And maybe a glimpse at what Kam and Tionne were doing as well?)
IN CONCLUSION:
Edge of Victory: Rebirth introduces some developments that will be important in subsequent books: the Jedi heresy among the Shamed Ones, Nen Yim’s shaping discoveries, and the birth of Ben Skywalker. Unfortunately, the plot as a whole felt messy, and I wish that the book was longer so that some of the ideas could have been expanded and further fleshed out.
Next up: another short story! This one was released in six parts from both Star Wars Gamer and Star Wars Insider: [b:Emissary of the Void|11422452|Emissary of the Void (Star Wars The New Jedi Order, #8.5)|Greg Keyes|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1479314168l/11422452._SX50_.jpg|16355675] by Greg Keyes.
My YouTube review: https://youtu.be/sZzjzOHkGEw
This week’s focus: the second book in the Edge of Victory duology, Edge of Victory: Rebirth by Greg Keyes.
SOME HISTORY:
Greg Keyes loves research. For his Age of Unreason series, which takes place in an alternate 18th century in which Sir Isaac Newton discovered the basics of alchemy, Keyes looked up everything from pre-Revolutionary War Boston to 18th century fashions and recipes. In writing the Edge of Victory duology, Keyes extensively utilized the first generation of the Essential Guides--seven books that detailed the characters, vehicles, technology, planets, alien species, and droids of the Expanded Universe up to that point. (He also read all the previous NJO books, which is more than you can say for some of the authors: *cough*
MY RECOLLECTION OF THE BOOK:
I was surprised by how little I remembered of the actual subplots! I remembered Jaina and Kyp, but that was it. The imminent arrival of the Skywalker baby overshadowed everything else in my memory.
A BRIEF SUMMARY:
With no help from the divided New Republic, the Jedi stand alone against the Yuuzhan Vong. As Han and Leia take controversial risks to bolster the Jedi resistance and Jaina Solo attempts to bring Kyp Durron back into the fold, Corran Horn and his teenage companions uncover a Yuuzhan Vong plot against the planet Yag’Dhul...
THE CHARACTERS:
Just in Edge of Victory: Rebirth alone we have 1) Corran Horn, Anakin Solo, and Tahiri Veila off on a simple refueling mission that goes very wrong; 2) Luke Skywalker and his wife Mara Jade dealing both with the New Republic government as well as Mara’s illness and her pregnancy; 3) Han Solo, Leia Organa Solo, and their son Jacen off on work for Luke's Great River movement; 4) Jaina Solo unable to rejoin Rogue Squadron, so her uncle dispatches her to find out what Kyp Durron's been up to; 5) we have the aforementioned Yuuzhan Vong plot against the planet Yag’Dhul; and 6) we have a subplot with the shaper Nen Yim. That’s six main subplots, and then other stuff going on as well.
Tahiri is still dealing with the aftermath of the torture she suffered at the hands of the Yuuzhan Vong shapers. She feels that the other Jedi kids distrust her and are wary of her, so she forces herself along on a routine refueling trip with Corran Horn and Anakin. While on Eriadu, Anakin and Tahiri do not stay on the ship as Corran tells them, but instead head off in search of a Jedi in need. The Jedi dies, but with his dying breath he says one word: Yag’Dhul. So they make their way right into the middle of a Yuuzhan Vong fleet; their ship is destroyed, and they end up commandeering a Yuuzhan Vong spy vessel.
We get the first hint that what Anakin and Vua Rapuuung and Tahiri did on Yavin IV has spread to other Yuuzhan Vong, particularly the Shamed Ones, as they meet a shamed one who's perfectly willing to work with Jedi because of this mythology that's been built around their escapades on Yavin IV. There's some shenanigans where the station loses atmosphere and Anakin and Tahiri are stuck in a locker for a while and behave as you might expect teenagers to do. But ultimately the Yuuzhan Vong are repelled at Yag’Dhul and the planet is, for now, still safe.
Anakin thinks a little more about how—for better or worse—he influences the younger generation of the Jedi; Corran Horn learns that teenagers are difficult to deal with; and Anakin and Tahiri take their first steps toward some kind of relationship, although it's still in its preliminary stages at this point.
Meanwhile, back on the Millennium Falcon, Han, Leia, and Jacen are trying to drum up support for Luke Skywalker’s Jedi resistance. They've made a temporary base within the Maw where the former Maw Installation was, but a lot of their plotline is them acting like pirates or privateers attacking Peace Brigade ships, Jacen has some initial difficulties with the track that his father's chosen (which honestly, I don't blame him—piracy is a little extreme even when you're doing it against people who are not working in your best interests) but he comes around to their plan.
And as in [b:Balance Point|320346|Balance Point (Star Wars The New Jedi Order, #6)|Kathy Tyers|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1330833461l/320346._SY75_.jpg|311099], Jaina is still struggling with anger and frustration—in this case that she hasn't been allowed to rejoin Rogue Squadron. Instead, her Uncle Luke dispatches her to discover what Kyp Durron and his Dozen are up to. Remember how in the Dark Tide duology by Stackpole, Admiral Kre’fey went to the remains of the Sernpidal system to scout out what the Yuuzhan Vong were doing? And it very much looked like they were creating a shipyard? Well Kyp has proof that they are constructing a superweapon—a superweapon that, like the Sun Crusher, could destroy entire suns. He has video from a reconnaissance mission to back up his claims, which Jaina takes to Colonel Darklighter, who takes it to Wedge Antilles, so it is now almost a New Republic Military-sanctioned attack on the Sernpidal shipyards.
Kyp is also really confusing to Jaina; he's constantly flirting with her, he offers that she become his apprentice because her aunt is busy right now, and Jaina doesn't know what to think. Of course as it turns out Kyp was lying: it was not a superweapon at the shipwomb, but a new worldship that would have housed civilians. And if Jaina and Colonel Darklighter and Wedge Antilles had known that, they would have never sanctioned that attack.
This is part of what frustrates me so much with Kyp Durron! (Luke frustrates me as well, and I'll get into that a little later.) Kyp is constantly urging action, but for most of the books thus far his squadron hasn't been thinking very strategically. They've been attacking the Yuuzhan Vong, but it's more like flies bothering a giant beast—they’re not actually accomplishing anything, it's action for the sake of action. With this threat at the Sernpidal shipwomb, it looks like he's actually accomplishing something and that he's actually thinking strategically now. If it was a superweapon, I would 100% condone what he did; you need to take something like that out, because it gives the Yuuzhan Vong an unfair advantage that would cause irrevocable harm to the people of the galaxy. But as we learn in the subplot with Nen Yim, the Yuuzhan Vong worldships don’t just house their warriors, they also house their civilians and Shamed Ones. And more importantly, they’re dying. They’re thousands of years old at this point and their living systems are shutting down. So in destroying the worldship, Kyp has essentially said that he doesn't care about civilians, he doesn't care about “the women and the children” to quote Anakin from Attack of the Clones, he wants to wipe them all out. And now Jaina and anyone else who feels remorse from that mission has those potential future deaths on their conscience.
Luke Skywalker and Mara Jade are on Coruscant awaiting the birth of their son when they learn that the Chief of State Borsk Fey'lya has put out a warrant for their arrest. Borsk has been rather frustrating in the New Jedi Order thus far because he doesn't want to commit to anything; after the ultimatum that the Warmaster Tsavong Lah issued at the end of [b:Balance Point|320346|Balance Point (Star Wars The New Jedi Order, #6)|Kathy Tyers|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1330833461l/320346._SY75_.jpg|311099], he doesn't want to support the Jedi, he doesn't want to condemn them, but he wants to arrest Luke or at least make it look like he tried to arrest Luke. So Mara and Luke have to escape Coruscant, and at the same time they find out that Mara's illness has returned. So Mara goes downhill really fast—she’s essentially staying alive to keep her baby alive. Luke is very upset about what's happening with her, but doesn't really do anything until the end when she particularly asks for his help.
And this is what I find so frustrating with Luke in the New Jedi Order! If Kyp’s approach is too aggressive, Luke's approach is far too passive. He comes up with this plan for a Great River, to move the Jedi to safety, but then he doesn't do anything about it. It's all Han and Leia and Kam and Tionne and the characters we encounter in the [b:Emissary of the Void|11422452|Emissary of the Void (Star Wars The New Jedi Order, #8.5)|Greg Keyes|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1479314168l/11422452._SX50_.jpg|16355675] short story. So what is he doing with his time other than lollygagging around, being like, “I can't take action, I just have to sit this out”?? This is the man that destroyed the first Death Star; who was willing to turn himself in to save his father…But here in the New Jedi Order series, when the threat is galaxy wide, he just sits there and does very little.
On the Yuuzhan Vong side we have the attempt on Yag’Dhul: the Warmaster sends his relative Qurang Law to work with Nom Anor to take over the planet. We learn that Nom Anor has got the Shapers to make himself another disguise (this one makes him look like a Givin). We also see the extent to which Nom Anor is willing to kill his own people to keep his secrets. He turns on the warriors that are accompanying him, and he uses a blaster (which should be completely against his beliefs!) to make sure that no one knows what happened with the Jedi there.
And in a separate, other Yuuzhan Vong subplot, we have Nen Yim, the Shaper Adept from [b:Edge of Victory I: Conquest|320347|Edge of Victory I Conquest (Star Wars The New Jedi Order, #7)|Greg Keyes|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1403184941l/320347._SY75_.jpg|1776613]. She’s been sent to one of those dying worldships in disgrace after her master’s actions on Yavin IV. She wants to save the worldship, but she doesn't have the knowledge base to do that—so she once again turns to heresy. I like Nen Yim, I like learning more about their culture, but I also wondered how needed her subplot was here. A lot of it features her being frustrated, her trying to work within these constraints. And it turns out to have all been a test: Kae Kwaad the Master Shaper was actually Onimi, the jester of the Supreme Overlord. Shimrra is going to make her a Master Shaper now, and she's going to be working outside of the Shaper tradition as an officially, secretly sanctioned heretic.
ISSUES:
Like the Agents of Chaos duology, the Edge of Victory consisted of one book tightly focused on a character (Han in [b:Agents of Chaos I: Hero's Trial|836080|Agents of Chaos I Hero's Trial|James Luceno|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320522548l/836080._SY75_.jpg|311083]; Anakin in [b:Edge of Victory I: Conquest|320347|Edge of Victory I Conquest (Star Wars The New Jedi Order, #7)|Greg Keyes|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1403184941l/320347._SY75_.jpg|1776613]) and then a second book that opened up the story to more characters and subplots. And as with [b:Agents of Chaos: Jedi Eclipse|157984|Agents of Chaos II Jedi Eclipse|James Luceno|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320522545l/157984._SY75_.jpg|152469], I found that Rebirth lost that close focus on our initial protagonist that I loved so much in the first book. Keyes doesn’t delve as deeply into Anakin’s Jedi journey, and instead broadens and redirects his attention on other characters--which is fine! It’s nice to check in on Han and Leia after their ordeals, and follow Jaina on her mission. But I felt like Anakin went back to being a side character, and most of his plotline revolved around his burgeoning relationship with Tahiri.
I also felt like apart from Jaina and Kyp’s subplot, the others weren’t wrapped up in a satisfactory manner. Han and Leia become privateers despite Jacen’s protests, and actively harry the Peace Brigade. They uncover information, arrive to find it’s a trap, and...that’s it. Part of their mission was finding a new secret base for the Jedi, but that’s accomplished by Kam Solusar and Tionne offscreen! Likewise, Corran and Anakin and Tahiri uncover a possible Yuuzhan Vong military action against Yag’Dhul, but they’re stuck on the station for a key chunk of it. On the Vong front, Tsavong Lah seems to be thinking more revengeful than strategical in ambushing the Solos--and the bulk of the action is actually undertaken by Nom Anor and Lah’s relative.
And the conclusions of two subplots felt rather too deus ex machina-esque for my own taste. First, the Millenium Falcon (or the Princess of Blood)’s escape from Lah’s trap. We got a scientific explanation from both Han and Jacen as to how and why it worked, but it felt closer to [b:Vector Prime|192214|Vector Prime (Star Wars The New Jedi Order, #1)|R.A. Salvatore|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1412181316l/192214._SX50_.jpg|2799032]’s bizarre science than the usual stuff encountered in a Star Wars story.
Second, Mara’s illness: I haven’t been hugely keen on how her illness plays out, from hugely debilitating (the Dark Tide duology) to normal again thanks to Vergere’s tears ([b:Balance Point|320346|Balance Point (Star Wars The New Jedi Order, #6)|Kathy Tyers|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1330833461l/320346._SY75_.jpg|311099]). Here, we learn that she has to stop taking a synthetic version of Vergere’s tears because it’s built up this toxic reaction that’s affecting her baby. She quickly goes downhill, and devotes all her energy to protecting the fetus. Near the end, she lets Luke in with the Force, he sees a vision of their son’s possible future, the three of them join together, and….I guess she’s cured? We’re told by Mirax Terrik that her illness is gone and her baby is safe, but we don’t actually see anything of that! True, the Force is a mystical energy field and so much about it cannot be explained, but I would have liked a teeny bit of explanation here--or at the very least, to not have found out about her recovery offscreen.
My usual prescription for a book that feels scattered and incohesive is more editing, but I feel like Rebirth required the opposite approach: more time to develop these concepts and linger with these characters. The paperback is only 292 pages, and I would have been fine with more pages spent on each of these subplots. (And maybe a glimpse at what Kam and Tionne were doing as well?)
IN CONCLUSION:
Edge of Victory: Rebirth introduces some developments that will be important in subsequent books: the Jedi heresy among the Shamed Ones, Nen Yim’s shaping discoveries, and the birth of Ben Skywalker. Unfortunately, the plot as a whole felt messy, and I wish that the book was longer so that some of the ideas could have been expanded and further fleshed out.
Next up: another short story! This one was released in six parts from both Star Wars Gamer and Star Wars Insider: [b:Emissary of the Void|11422452|Emissary of the Void (Star Wars The New Jedi Order, #8.5)|Greg Keyes|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1479314168l/11422452._SX50_.jpg|16355675] by Greg Keyes.
My YouTube review: https://youtu.be/sZzjzOHkGEw
alphaalexis's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
verkisto's review against another edition
4.0
This isn't really a four-star book on its own (3.5 stars, really), but I felt the same way about the first book in that series and rounded down, so I figured to even things out, I needed to rate this one four stars.
That being said, I wouldn't recommend picking up these two books and reading them without reading the ... six? seven? ... books that precede it, because you're not going to know enough about what's going on. It'd be like trying to read Stephen King's Insomnia without knowing anything about the rest of the Dark Tower series.
That being said, I wouldn't recommend picking up these two books and reading them without reading the ... six? seven? ... books that precede it, because you're not going to know enough about what's going on. It'd be like trying to read Stephen King's Insomnia without knowing anything about the rest of the Dark Tower series.
ferretbreeder's review against another edition
5.0
I was geared up for another book that focused heavily on Anakin like the first in the Edge of Victory duology, but I was more than happy to see all of these different characters show up (especially Corran). Once I started, I couldn't put it down. Overall, just a very solid story!
huitzilo2012's review against another edition
4.0
I should start this whole thing off by saying I have really enjoyed my time with NJO. As a tween I was very into the SW EU and read everything from "Heir to the Empire" to to the Blsck Fleet Crisis. What I have enjoyed about NJO as opposed to most the preceeding is the continuity of having one big series that everyone contributes to. It gives me a chance as a reader and a fan to develop my understanding and hatred for the Yuuzhan Vong, and will hopeful make this arcs resolution very satisfying.
internpepper's review against another edition
3.0
Nothing special, but the ending is touching. There is another Skywalker!
tiepilot_dandy's review against another edition
4.0
Nen Yim ever the highlight. Not emotionally ready for what's next
peregrineace's review against another edition
3.0
A good comeback from a weak beginning. The birth of Ben Skywalker is a great moment.