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lacrimaeignis's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
When I saw this book, I was so excited for it and I really wanted to love it as it follows Resistance Pilot Poe Dameron when he is a teenager. Poe was one of my favorite characters in the sequel trilogy (which I do genuinely enjoy and love but recognize that as a trilogy it is a hot mess but that’s a different conversation) so I was definitely intrigued by this book. It covers the random plotline in Rise of Skywalker where we learn that Poe was a Spice Runner for a time and when he met Zorii Bliss. The idea interested me especially because the fact that Poe was a Spice Runner seemed to come out of nowhere in the films and wasn’t really expanded upon. I was also interested because I thought Zorii in the film was a compelling character with a potentially intriguing story but she was given so little screen time and other than being a love interest for Poe seemed to have no characterization. So I thought this book would be a fun read to learn more about Poe’s past and Zorii as a character.
Unfortunately, like the sequel trilogy, the book seems to not really understand Poe’s characterization. In the beginning of the book and at the end, Poe felt like Poe - rebellious but with a hero complex and a love and talent for flying. However, throughout the entire middle portion of the book, there was nothing about the character presented that made him feel like Poe Dameron. In fact, he fell very flat as a character. Now, it could be that the intent with this was because it was a time in Poe’s life where he is learning who he wants to be as a person. And perhaps he fell flat because he was never suited for the role he tried to force himself into. But it was still disappointing.
Zorii also fell pretty flat as a character until near the end but she at least knew what path she wanted to take and continued to follow that path throughout the book. But like in the movie, the “romance” plotline felt very forced and she and Poe had zero chemistry as a couple (yes I know this is geared towards a younger audience but other than Poe thinking Zorii was pretty, there was really nothing leading towards a romantic relationship - no inner monologues, no flirtation, etc. They came across more as siblings or best friends than romantic interests) despite the fact that both characters claim their relationship felt natural and right. They did have a good friendship though and worked well together. Zorii’s backstory was interesting but the “mystery” of who she is was stretched on for far too long.
My biggest issue with the book was the terrible pacing and that the story was presented in a way that takes you out of the scenes. At some point the story stops being told in a straight linear format. What I mean by that is the chapter will start off in the middle of some random action sequence that seems to come out of nowhere. Then rather abruptly will have Poe, or another character thinking about/remembering the events that led up to that moment so we get a flashback of a few hours previously to explain why they’re in the situation they are in. But then the character will be startled by blaster fire or some such thing and realize they need to stop reminiscing and pay attention to what is actually happening. If this had happened just once, that would’ve been fine but it kept happening chapter after chapter for a good portion of the book. It was frustrating to read this again and again and it made the story difficult to follow. When this happened, I found myself not really caring about the characters or the story and I found it a chore to get through. There were many times that I found myself spacing out and not paying attention because of this.
There were also many plot holes and plot lines that were just dropped ( one minor but decently important character is left dying and we never learn if that character actually survived or not; I ended up looking up said character and according to the Star Wars wiki this character survives but it would have been nice to know the outcome in the book ) or weren’t expanded upon. Some things were unnecessarily repeated due to the way the story is presented (there is even a chapter break/cliffhanger that is used twice in a row only a few pages from each other) which was also a bit frustrating. The side characters - particularly Zeva, Babu Frik, Kes, L’ulo, and Eevee - felt more fleshed out than our two main characters and one of those is a droid.
The ending was appropriate for the story and for transitioning into the next step in Poe’s life. But it felt rather rushed. Rather than feeling satisfied with the end, it left me with more questions about certain characters/plot points in the novel than I got resolutions for. I feel like if the final chapter had been longer or there had been one more chapter or an epilogue than it would have been resolved better.
As someone who genuinely enjoys everything in the Star Wars universe, even if I might not agree with some of the plot choices, I did enjoy this novel well enough. All in all, it was interesting enough to keep me reading and the overall idea was good. I was excited to learn more about Kijimi and the Spice Runners and it was refreshing to see bits of the Star Wars universe without Jedi making an appearance. I did enjoy the side characters and there were a couple of times that the pacing was done well enough that I couldn’t put the book down. But overall I felt that it needed to be more fleshed out and needed to be presented in a better storytelling format. If you enjoy Poe Dameron and the sequel trilogy in any capacity then I would say to at least give this book a try. At the very least, it fills in some of the gaps in his backstory and gives a deeper look into parts of the Star Wars universe.
Unfortunately, like the sequel trilogy, the book seems to not really understand Poe’s characterization. In the beginning of the book and at the end, Poe felt like Poe - rebellious but with a hero complex and a love and talent for flying. However, throughout the entire middle portion of the book, there was nothing about the character presented that made him feel like Poe Dameron. In fact, he fell very flat as a character. Now, it could be that the intent with this was because it was a time in Poe’s life where he is learning who he wants to be as a person. And perhaps he fell flat because he was never suited for the role he tried to force himself into. But it was still disappointing.
Zorii also fell pretty flat as a character until near the end but she at least knew what path she wanted to take and continued to follow that path throughout the book. But like in the movie, the “romance” plotline felt very forced and she and Poe had zero chemistry as a couple (yes I know this is geared towards a younger audience but other than Poe thinking Zorii was pretty, there was really nothing leading towards a romantic relationship - no inner monologues, no flirtation, etc. They came across more as siblings or best friends than romantic interests) despite the fact that both characters claim their relationship felt natural and right. They did have a good friendship though and worked well together. Zorii’s backstory was interesting but the “mystery” of who she is was stretched on for far too long.
My biggest issue with the book was the terrible pacing and that the story was presented in a way that takes you out of the scenes. At some point the story stops being told in a straight linear format. What I mean by that is the chapter will start off in the middle of some random action sequence that seems to come out of nowhere. Then rather abruptly will have Poe, or another character thinking about/remembering the events that led up to that moment so we get a flashback of a few hours previously to explain why they’re in the situation they are in. But then the character will be startled by blaster fire or some such thing and realize they need to stop reminiscing and pay attention to what is actually happening. If this had happened just once, that would’ve been fine but it kept happening chapter after chapter for a good portion of the book. It was frustrating to read this again and again and it made the story difficult to follow. When this happened, I found myself not really caring about the characters or the story and I found it a chore to get through. There were many times that I found myself spacing out and not paying attention because of this.
There were also many plot holes and plot lines that were just dropped (
The ending was appropriate for the story and for transitioning into the next step in Poe’s life. But it felt rather rushed. Rather than feeling satisfied with the end, it left me with more questions about certain characters/plot points in the novel than I got resolutions for. I feel like if the final chapter had been longer or there had been one more chapter or an epilogue than it would have been resolved better.
As someone who genuinely enjoys everything in the Star Wars universe, even if I might not agree with some of the plot choices, I did enjoy this novel well enough. All in all, it was interesting enough to keep me reading and the overall idea was good. I was excited to learn more about Kijimi and the Spice Runners and it was refreshing to see bits of the Star Wars universe without Jedi making an appearance. I did enjoy the side characters and there were a couple of times that the pacing was done well enough that I couldn’t put the book down. But overall I felt that it needed to be more fleshed out and needed to be presented in a better storytelling format. If you enjoy Poe Dameron and the sequel trilogy in any capacity then I would say to at least give this book a try. At the very least, it fills in some of the gaps in his backstory and gives a deeper look into parts of the Star Wars universe.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gaslighting, Gun violence, Blood, Murder, Slavery, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Death of parent, Trafficking, and Violence
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