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What Star Wars novels have you read? Liked?
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Solo4114
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PostPosted: Fri Sep 22, 2017 5:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Wajeb Deb Kaadeb wrote:
I'm about half way through the ANH radio drama, and, it surprises me how good it is.

I'm really enjoying it.


I vividly remember listening to the ESB radio drama as a little kid on our local NPR affiliate. I remember thinking to myself "Wait...that's not what Han Solo sounds like...who's Perry King?" But I still loved it.

I used to listen to ANH and ESB on long car rides when I was in college. The ROTJ one was...weaker. It's a lot shorter, and they got a different guy to play Luke. I guess Hamill was busy being the Joker.

I gather there was a fourth audio drama made about the Mission to Ord Mantell, but I've never heard it or seen it for sale.
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Wajeb Deb Kaadeb
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PostPosted: Fri Sep 22, 2017 5:42 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Rebel Mission to Ord Mantel
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MrNexx
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PostPosted: Wed Oct 11, 2017 9:48 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Currently listening to Bloodline, having recently finished Moving Target. I'm really enjoying the Princess Leia novels, partially because I can picture Carrie Fisher in so much of the action. I'm pretty sure that Claudia Gray wrote them that way, but I really had to fight to get through some of the early parts... the politics of Casterfo (I'm listening, so who knows how well that's spelled) early in the book REALLY set my teeth on edge.
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Wajeb Deb Kaadeb
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PostPosted: Wed Oct 11, 2017 10:51 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Bloodline bored me to tears.
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cheshire
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PostPosted: Wed Oct 11, 2017 7:33 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Wajeb Deb Kaadeb wrote:
Bloodline bored me to tears.


I haven't read it. I'm just curious, was it the plotline, writing style, pacing? All of the above? What turned you off?
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Wajeb Deb Kaadeb
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PostPosted: Wed Oct 11, 2017 8:38 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The story is boring. It's not a space-opera, swashbuckling romp, with blaster bolts flying, speeder chases, and starfighter combats. The book is slow as molasses. There are way too many boring scenes in the galactic senate.

There is a BIG REVEAL in the story, which I won't spoil for you. If it were me, I'd re-arrange the scenes. I would have started explaining the state of politics between the Centrists and the Populists. Then, right in the first few chapters, I would have hit the read with the BIG REVEAL. This not only provides conflict for Leia, but it also gives her added incentive to find out who was behind the BIG REVEAL and why they chose that time to reveal it. The rest of the story needs more Star Wars action. As it is, it read like an outline of a story. Gray too often tells me the story when she should be showing me the story.



I was really bored with the book. I saw the BIG REVEAL coming a mile away (another reason why it should have happened early). The story just plodded along.

I will say that Leia is the best part of the book. Gray wrote her well. But, I did feel like Leia was isolated. This is probably because the characters that were around her were new ones, none of which I thought was that interesting. Han has a small part. Luke never shows up. And, I expected to learn more about Ben (and got nothing--I don't even know if he was being taught by Skywalker yet, at the time of this story).

I expected more details about the rise of the First Order and galactic events after Return of the Jedi. Gray's book doesn't deliver on that level at all.
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Falconer
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PostPosted: Thu Oct 12, 2017 11:26 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the review. People are saying Claudia Gray’s writing is so beautiful, but… it seems like her stories are set in the Star Wars universe but not written in the Star Wars genre.
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MrNexx
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PostPosted: Thu Oct 12, 2017 12:20 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

As a counterpoint, I am enjoying it a lot. It's far more written as a political thriller than a space opera, with a lot of the tenets of that genre holding sway.

Leia allies with a political enemy to root out a cartel that is causing trouble near Ryloth, but that slowly reveals a deeper conspiracy (that I haven't gotten all the way in, yet, but I'm pretty sure I've identified where it's going). In the meantime, the factionalism in the Senate between those seeking a strong central authority and those looking for relative planetary autonomy is coming to a head, with the Centrists making a move which forces Leia and her Populists to play the game on the board the Centrists created.

I tend to agree that the writing is beautiful; there's a lot of characterization that takes place in movements, and the emotional content seems comfortably real. She goes deeper into how Leia's reaction to Vader differs from Luke's, and why. How Alderaan still haunts her. Casterfo, the opposition Senator, is given a reasonable set of motivations and backstory, lighting his political views with verisimilitude. While the other characters are new ones (Snap Wexley makes a cameo, and Han makes a few; Luke and Ben are noted as being out of communication), I think they're well developed... Especially Greer, Casterfo, and Seastriker.

Bob was looking for a swashbuckling adventure, which it is not. But as a political thriller? It works well. I'm listening, too, and enjoying January Lavoy's voice work. It isn't as heavily produced as the Aftermath audiobooks were, but still makes good use of Lavoy's voice and Star Wars music.
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Wajeb Deb Kaadeb
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PostPosted: Thu Oct 12, 2017 8:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

MrNexx wrote:
Bob was looking for a swashbuckling adventure, which it is not. But as a political thriller? It works well.


I didn't like it as a political thriller, either.

The pace was just too slow.



Quote:
I'm listening, too, and enjoying January Lavoy's voice work. It isn't as heavily produced as the Aftermath audiobooks were, but still makes good use of Lavoy's voice and Star Wars music.


I listened to the book as well, and I will say that Lavoy's Leia is AMAZING. She did a fantastic job capturing Leia, which is refreshing, since many of the Star Wars audiobooks do much better jobs on Han and Luke rather than Leia.
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MrNexx
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 27, 2017 12:27 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Listening to The Force Awakens, I laughed at the destruction of the Special Forces TIE Fighter Finn & Poe escaped in... it sounded like a GM telling his players how THOROUGHLY he was taking away an overpowered piece of equipment.

"It's crashed into the ground, completely destroyed."
"Maybe we can salvage some equipment or schematics or something."
"It is also on fire."
"Ok, we'll wait for that to die down, no problem, something will survive."
"It is now sinking into the sand, faster and faster."
"Damn, well, that'll put out the fire, then we can dig it up."
"Once it is completely out of sight, it explodes."
"...this is why we never let you GM, Alan.
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Wajeb Deb Kaadeb
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 27, 2017 12:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

MrNexx wrote:
Listening to The Force Awakens, I laughed at the destruction of the Special Forces TIE Fighter Finn & Poe escaped in... it sounded like a GM telling his players how THOROUGHLY he was taking away an overpowered piece of equipment.

"It's crashed into the ground, completely destroyed."
"Maybe we can salvage some equipment or schematics or something."
"It is also on fire."
"Ok, we'll wait for that to die down, no problem, something will survive."
"It is now sinking into the sand, faster and faster."
"d*mn, well, that'll put out the fire, then we can dig it up."
"Once it is completely out of sight, it explodes."
"...this is why we never let you GM, Alan.


LOL! Laughing
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Sutehp
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 27, 2017 2:11 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

MrNexx wrote:
Listening to The Force Awakens, I laughed at the destruction of the Special Forces TIE Fighter Finn & Poe escaped in... it sounded like a GM telling his players how THOROUGHLY he was taking away an overpowered piece of equipment.

"It's crashed into the ground, completely destroyed."
"Maybe we can salvage some equipment or schematics or something."
"It is also on fire."
"Ok, we'll wait for that to die down, no problem, something will survive."
"It is now sinking into the sand, faster and faster."
"d*mn, well, that'll put out the fire, then we can dig it up."
"Once it is completely out of sight, it explodes."
"...this is why we never let you GM, Alan.


That's just awesome beyond words. 8)
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MrNexx
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PostPosted: Sat Oct 28, 2017 8:41 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Still listening to The Force Awakens, and the scene where Finn has no idea what tool she is asking for? I'm picturing him as an Ewok learning enough to get a 2D Technical.
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MrNexx
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 30, 2017 9:42 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

More Force Awakens musings: The description of Han's freighter into which he captures the Millennium Falcon? Reminds me of the opening section of Space Quest 3, and the ship from which Roger escapes in the Aluminum Mallard.
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Dredwulf60
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PostPosted: Tue Oct 31, 2017 3:25 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Jedi Trial.

I thought I would really like this book.

It was written by David Sherman and Dan Cragg, the two guys that wrote the StarFIST series of books, which I quite like.

The book is cringe-inducing. These guys can't write Star Wars.

I can see the appeal; it was shortly after the release of Attack of the Clones and there was a general push for media related to the Clone Wars setting; but before the cartoon Clone Wars. So someone probably said "Hey, lets get these guys who are known for writing realistic military sci-fi to take a shot at writing a military based Star Wars tale!"

And this is what we got.

---Spoilers beware---

Reading it, I can really see how they tried hard, and I applaud the effort. But it's still awful.

For instance, the lecturing of Anakin on the importance of logistics in battle. From a real-world point of view; sure. In Star Wars? Are you kidding me??? Making sure the clones have enough water...do the clones even CARRY water bottles? Does anyone in the galaxy?

The character of Captain Slayke and his merry band of 'sons and daughters of freedom' comes across as a kind of Mary-sue; like a the kind of military commander the authors would see themselves as but transported into the Star Wars universe.

And they take too many liberties with Anakin IMHO; like they took it upon themselves to show him going to the brink of the dark side by seeing someone who reminded him of his mother. (and Qui Gon's voice comes through the Force to calm him.) And how his service in this relatively minor skirmish is what convinces the council that he can graduate to Jedi Knight? Not buying it.

And he is selected for the mission by some other jedi who also happens to have a secret wife? Seriously??

Anyway, not too impressed. But then again, I enjoy very few Star Wars books, so others may love this one.

I'd rather go back and read a StarFIST book.
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