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A review by luckypluto
Isard's Revenge by Michael A. Stackpole
2.0
About a year ago, I embarked on a quest to re-read all of the X-wing novels, start to finish (as well as Stackpole’s I, Jedi, since it re-uses many of the characters and situations). I loved these books back when I was in middle school, and I wanted to see if they stood the test of time.
Spoiler alert: They don’t.
Or rather, the first four novels in the series are still great reads, and Allston's Wraith Squadron series is passable, but by the time Isard’s Revenge has come around, the formulaic plots and characters have become a bit stale. Stackpole lost some of the charm and excitement of the first four novels in Isard’s Revenge. I actually started reading this back in March, but took a six-month hiatus from it—partly because I was busy, but partly because this novel just didn’t capture my attention. The plot is utterly predictable, and borrows heavily from other tried-and-true-and-now-stale Star Wars elements.I mean, seriously: a clone? Really? That was already done in the comic books and in Zahn's Thrawn trilogy—which takes place around the same time as this novel! And Horn gets captured again?
You know exactly what to expect from this novel: Corran Horn is going to be a total bad ass but remain utterly unchanged by the events of the novel, Wes Jansen is going to make a few jokes, and Wedge Antilles is going to occasionally provide some sage advice. It feels like Stackpole really just phoned this one in.
In fact, while I have fond memories of reading the first seven novels in my boyhood, I don’t remember reading this novel at all. I know I read it because I know I’ve read all the X-wing novels, but I simply don’t have any recollection of this book. That’s how mundane it really is.
I’d recommend passing on this one, but if you’re trying to read all of the X-wing novels, you really can’t. Just try to read this one as fast as possible.
Spoiler alert: They don’t.
Or rather, the first four novels in the series are still great reads, and Allston's Wraith Squadron series is passable, but by the time Isard’s Revenge has come around, the formulaic plots and characters have become a bit stale. Stackpole lost some of the charm and excitement of the first four novels in Isard’s Revenge. I actually started reading this back in March, but took a six-month hiatus from it—partly because I was busy, but partly because this novel just didn’t capture my attention. The plot is utterly predictable, and borrows heavily from other tried-and-true-and-now-stale Star Wars elements.
You know exactly what to expect from this novel: Corran Horn is going to be a total bad ass but remain utterly unchanged by the events of the novel, Wes Jansen is going to make a few jokes, and Wedge Antilles is going to occasionally provide some sage advice. It feels like Stackpole really just phoned this one in.
In fact, while I have fond memories of reading the first seven novels in my boyhood, I don’t remember reading this novel at all. I know I read it because I know I’ve read all the X-wing novels, but I simply don’t have any recollection of this book. That’s how mundane it really is.
I’d recommend passing on this one, but if you’re trying to read all of the X-wing novels, you really can’t. Just try to read this one as fast as possible.