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jendilemma's review against another edition
4.0
This book was fun to read with a lot of interesting ideas and a lot of female-narrated POV, but i also acknowledge that it was pretty bad on two main fronts - 1) main characters from the Star Wars universe acting totally out of character, and 2) a ridiculously rushed ending.
twilliamson's review against another edition
1.0
In the worst Star Wars book since the catastrophically bad Lando Calrissian and the Starcave of Thonboka in 1983, Vonda McIntyre delivers one hell of a terrible novel.
See: Han Solo drunk for the majority of the book! See: Luke Skywalker join a cult worshiping a giant blob! See: Princess Leia reinvent her image by going '90s grunge!
McIntyre's novel isn't just bad, it's almost incoherent. The plot takes 300 pages to develop to a point that makes any sense, and presents so many plot contrivances and deus-ex-machina revelations so as to make the whole book feel not just bad but impractically bad.
She also completely misunderstands and misrepresents virtually every single character in the novel. While all characters in the book are poorly served, of special note are Luke Skywalker, who is here presented as a naive dunderhead with the wit of a hammer, and Princess Leia, here represented as the world's most privileged idiot of a galactic leader. None of it sits particularly well, and it feels like McIntyre never watched a fucking Star War in her life.
In all, this is one fucking abomination of a novel, and I would comfortably hate it even if it weren't Star Wars. It just doesn't work on any convincing level, and I wish it had been sucked into a black hole like the crystal star of its title.
See: Han Solo drunk for the majority of the book! See: Luke Skywalker join a cult worshiping a giant blob! See: Princess Leia reinvent her image by going '90s grunge!
McIntyre's novel isn't just bad, it's almost incoherent. The plot takes 300 pages to develop to a point that makes any sense, and presents so many plot contrivances and deus-ex-machina revelations so as to make the whole book feel not just bad but impractically bad.
She also completely misunderstands and misrepresents virtually every single character in the novel. While all characters in the book are poorly served, of special note are Luke Skywalker, who is here presented as a naive dunderhead with the wit of a hammer, and Princess Leia, here represented as the world's most privileged idiot of a galactic leader. None of it sits particularly well, and it feels like McIntyre never watched a fucking Star War in her life.
In all, this is one fucking abomination of a novel, and I would comfortably hate it even if it weren't Star Wars. It just doesn't work on any convincing level, and I wish it had been sucked into a black hole like the crystal star of its title.
gingerreader99's review against another edition
1.0
I read this a few years ago and only realized it wasn't in my list until recently and even years later. I can say that this is part of the trash that was left behind when the legends continuity was disregarded.
jroberts1995's review against another edition
1.0
I thought I disliked Children of the Jedi, but then I read Planet of Twilight. I thought I disliked Planet of Twilight -- but then I read The Crystal Star. Had someone asked me - as I closed Vonda McIntyre's novel for the last time - "What happened?", my response would have been, "Not much."
As a number of other reviewers have pointed out, the characters are bizarrely out-of-character. Han becomes the cautious one whilst Leia assumes the role of the reckless risk-taker; Luke becomes a narrative non-factor, and Jaina thinks and acts like someone three times her age.
The land of the titular Crystal Star is poorly described, as are even its most important inhabitants. As a result, the book never really escapes an impression of plotlessness, excluding the initial premise of missing children. The Crystal Star would have been far more appropriate as a brief novella.
I'm a bit of a completionist when it comes to reading/watching my favourite series, but I'd advise even keen Star Wars fans to skip this one. Just read the plot summary on Wookieepedia; you'll save yourself a lot of time and confusion.
As a number of other reviewers have pointed out, the characters are bizarrely out-of-character. Han becomes the cautious one whilst Leia assumes the role of the reckless risk-taker; Luke becomes a narrative non-factor, and Jaina thinks and acts like someone three times her age.
The land of the titular Crystal Star is poorly described, as are even its most important inhabitants. As a result, the book never really escapes an impression of plotlessness, excluding the initial premise of missing children. The Crystal Star would have been far more appropriate as a brief novella.
I'm a bit of a completionist when it comes to reading/watching my favourite series, but I'd advise even keen Star Wars fans to skip this one. Just read the plot summary on Wookieepedia; you'll save yourself a lot of time and confusion.
caestus's review against another edition
3.0
The Crystal Star has a reputation for being one of the worst of the Star Wars novels, but I actually didn’t quite agree when I read it. Vonda McIntyre, a longtime Star Trek author, is quite creative and comes up with some neat setting elements like the worldship and the ghostlings, and I felt Waru was actually quite interesting. McIntyre writes Han and C-3P0 well, as well as an unusually adventurous Leia. But what I felt was best was actually Jaina. Jaina’s maybe a little more mature than she should be but still written as a child rather than a tiny adult like some writers write kids, she still has adventures and you can already see her love of gadgets. It also establishes Jaina and Jacen’s friend Lusa, who would return in Young Jedi Knights
On the other hand, I do recognize why it wasn’t well regarded. While McIntyre’s Han and Leia are pretty good, her Luke is just all wrong, He’s rude and ineffective and panicky; it’s supposed to be justified in that he’s losing his connection to the force but he was fully cut off from the Force in Heir to the Empire and he was still an experienced resistance fighter. Without getting in to too many spoilers, while evil enough the villains never feel like a serious threat. They make a good foe for Jaina, but Jaina is five. The villains never seem like a match for Leia or Han; Luke is in danger during the finale but only because he’s totally out of character. Furthermore, McIntyre’s version of the Star Wars galaxy feels notably different than most; I didn’t mind but I could see where some fans would. The book also doesn’t add much to the existing Star Wars universe.
In the end, while I recognized its flaws, I did enjoy the Crystal Star. Still, I’d only recommend it for fans of the Expanded Universe; if you are jumping into the EU, start with Heir to the Empire or Rogue Squadron.
On the other hand, I do recognize why it wasn’t well regarded. While McIntyre’s Han and Leia are pretty good, her Luke is just all wrong, He’s rude and ineffective and panicky; it’s supposed to be justified in that he’s losing his connection to the force but he was fully cut off from the Force in Heir to the Empire and he was still an experienced resistance fighter. Without getting in to too many spoilers, while evil enough the villains never feel like a serious threat. They make a good foe for Jaina, but Jaina is five. The villains never seem like a match for Leia or Han; Luke is in danger during the finale but only because he’s totally out of character. Furthermore, McIntyre’s version of the Star Wars galaxy feels notably different than most; I didn’t mind but I could see where some fans would. The book also doesn’t add much to the existing Star Wars universe.
In the end, while I recognized its flaws, I did enjoy the Crystal Star. Still, I’d only recommend it for fans of the Expanded Universe; if you are jumping into the EU, start with Heir to the Empire or Rogue Squadron.
david_agranoff's review against another edition
1.0
I have enjoyed this author's Star Trek novels, So I had high hopes that all the low opinions I heard on this novel were wrong. Nope it's terrible. The plot makes little sense, some scenes take 20 pages that could have been done in five. Snoozer. Awful.