martytdx's Full Review: Troy Denning - Star by Star
If you are a Star Wars fan, like me, then you have been thoroughly enjoying the New Jedi Order series that have been on the market for the last two years. And you would have noticed that they books were starting to lose their edge for the last couple of volumes... Well, they're back.
Star by Star by Troy Denning moves back to some of the meatier and better stories by the likes of Stackpole and Luceno. Denning seems to have more a grip on a thrilling style of writing the Star Wars characters, and of bringing fans back into a great series.
In the New Jedi Order, the terrible Yuuzhan Vong have invaded the galaxy, razing anything in their path in a quest to take over the New Republic and all of their neighbors. Initially, nothing seemed able to stop them, but the New Republic and the Jedi Knights have valiantly fought back - slowing, if not stopping, the Vong advances.
Their fight has angered the Vong into calling for all the Jedi's heads - and some in the New Republic are more than willing to supply them. Jedi are being rounded up for Vong sacrifices to their Gods, and Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Princess Leia are joining with old and new friends to do whatever they can to change the tide.
In this book, a new threat has appeared - a creature which can stalk and kill the Jedi in a way that the Yuuzhan Vong could not. Now, with their hidden base also being under assault, a group of Jedi are on a secret mission to find and destroy the source of these beasts. Meanwhile, Luke, Leia and Han are fighting to protect themselves from threats born both inside and outside their galaxy.
Meanwhile, the Vong advance is accelerating toward the Core and the heart of the New Republic. The Senate does the usual and bickers while the military tries to protect their sorry hides. Will they be able to hold off the Vong from Corellia, the Core and Coruscant?
Denning has recreated the voice that I had enjoyed in the early books, making it enjoyable to relish in the Star Wars universe again. Although it is tough to watch as the characters in the series suffer through loss after loss, it is also thrilling to read as they fight back with increasing success. He does a great job with the many space battles and also is commendable in his portrayal of the key characters in the series, breathing new life into them.
But perhaps the most poignant of the pieces of the book, the unsuspected loss of a major character added another element that is often missing from books of this type - a sense of reality that even the good guys sometimes don't make it out alive.
The book is BIG - almost 1,000 pages, and it carries well for most of it. My only complaint would be that some of the scenes seemed to drag on if only to make it reach that prodigious length - they could have easily been condensed and given the same harrowing conclusion. But other than that, this is probably the best book in the last 4 or 5 in the series. If you like the Star Wars books and have been reeling from the lack of 'oomph' they have had lately, take heart - the Force is with them again.
P.S. Denning is also responsible for the e-book only novel Recovery which steps back a bit to tell a bit of a side story of Han and Leia after the fall of Duros. I haven't finished that one yet, but the beginnings of it make me want more of Denning's work. And I'll have a review of it as soon as I finish...
The New York Times bestselling Star Wars series The New Jedi Order enthralls readers with its epic drama and thrilling adventure. Now readers will pie...More at HotBookSale
As the New Republic is besieged by the merciless Yuuzhan Vong, Leia Organa Solo faces a terrible ultimatum, while her younger son Anakin lays out a da...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.