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A review by coenobi
Star Wars Jedi: Battle Scars by Sam Maggs
3.0
I liked this book more than I thought I would at certain times, but less than I'd hoped. Nevertheless, it was a fun adventure that hightened my hype-levels for Jedi: Survivor quite a bit, which I didn't think was possible.
First of all, Sam Maggs really has the voices of the characters down in this book. Cal, Merrin, Greez and Cere are very recognizable in the way they're written, from the first page to the last. We get so much development and insight in these characters, in the way only books can give you, and I really like that. I've always liked the Mantis Crew, from the fist time I played Jedi: Fallen Order, and I still did on my third playthrough a couple months back. But I always thought Cal got massively overshadowed by Cere, Trilla, Merrin (oh, Merrin) and Greez. Here, we finally get to know how he thinks and feels, aside from his tragic past and the PTSD he sufferes because of it.
The best part of this books is Merrin. Definitely Merrin. She's always been my favorite member of the Mantis Crew but gets introduced so late into the game that you barely spend time with her. You're with her (and in ways you didn't expect at all) in this book so much and get to know what drives (or better said, doesn't) her into such detail, it's great. And that's what I like the most about this book. How we delve into the character's heads, especially Merrin's.
The thing that's not as good about this book, and, as I said at the beginning, made me want to like it more than I thought I did, is that it feels a bit messy. We get POV's by all the core four. And that's great. But you read about Merrin having trouble with her powers like 6 times in ten pages. And I know that that's a big part of what troubles her, but, I mean... I know that after the first 2 times it's mentioned. It's not a big problem, but it definitely made me go 'Oh no...', because I was really looking forward to this book, being as big a fan of the game as I am.
It also feels like it took a LONG time to get going. And after finishing it, I'm pretty much okay with that, as it's way more driven by the characters overcoming their troubles than big things happening (and big things happen, eventually), but I didn't know that that would be the case.
Anyway, this wasn't the best Star Wars novel I've read, but it was a fun one! But I've had better.
First of all, Sam Maggs really has the voices of the characters down in this book. Cal, Merrin, Greez and Cere are very recognizable in the way they're written, from the first page to the last. We get so much development and insight in these characters, in the way only books can give you, and I really like that. I've always liked the Mantis Crew, from the fist time I played Jedi: Fallen Order, and I still did on my third playthrough a couple months back. But I always thought Cal got massively overshadowed by Cere, Trilla, Merrin (oh, Merrin) and Greez. Here, we finally get to know how he thinks and feels, aside from his tragic past and the PTSD he sufferes because of it.
The best part of this books is Merrin. Definitely Merrin. She's always been my favorite member of the Mantis Crew but gets introduced so late into the game that you barely spend time with her. You're with her (and in ways you didn't expect at all) in this book so much and get to know what drives (or better said, doesn't) her into such detail, it's great. And that's what I like the most about this book. How we delve into the character's heads, especially Merrin's.
The thing that's not as good about this book, and, as I said at the beginning, made me want to like it more than I thought I did, is that it feels a bit messy. We get POV's by all the core four. And that's great. But you read about Merrin having trouble with her powers like 6 times in ten pages. And I know that that's a big part of what troubles her, but, I mean... I know that after the first 2 times it's mentioned. It's not a big problem, but it definitely made me go 'Oh no...', because I was really looking forward to this book, being as big a fan of the game as I am.
It also feels like it took a LONG time to get going. And after finishing it, I'm pretty much okay with that, as it's way more driven by the characters overcoming their troubles than big things happening (and big things happen, eventually), but I didn't know that that would be the case.
Anyway, this wasn't the best Star Wars novel I've read, but it was a fun one! But I've had better.