CLASSIC ART: THOSE ENDURING ICONS!

The true heart of the entire Star Wars saga that will never be diminished - Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Princess Leia Organa may be older but are never less than heroic, dedicated to keeping peace in the galaxy many years after their battle against the Empire at Endor. Lovely art by Xavier Thomas for the Brazilian exclusive cover edition of Troy Denning's Crucible, the retirement of the Skywalker saga in the original version of the Expanded Universe, prior to 2014's Disney takeover.

OUT IN PAPERBACK: 'STAR WARS: CRUCIBLE'

Now firmly part of LUCAS BOOKS revised and controversial "Legends" branding, the final (?) adventure of the post Classic Trilogy original heroes, Crucible, by fan favourite Troy Denning, arrives in UK paperback this month from ARROW. Overall, its a pretty good last hurrah for them, as a pair of scheming, deadly alien businessmen- brothers in mayhem-making!- have designs on the New Republic and the elimination of its greatest protectors.

Its a diverting enough read that will keep fans happy in the run-up to the much anticipated live action return of Luke, Leia, Han and co. with EPISODE VII.

Original hardback review: STAR WARS AFICIONADO MAGAZINE: CRUCIBLE

Available 19th June 2014, get Crucible here: Crucible: Star Wars: Amazon.co.uk: Troy Denning: Books

AFICONADO REVIEW (2009): 'LEGACY OF THE FORCE: INVINCIBLE'

STAR WARS: LEGACY OF THE FORCE 

BOOK NINE- INVINCIBLE

By Troy Denning

Released in paperback in the UK by ARROW BOOKS

Reviewed by Scott Weller

With the intriguing Tatooine Ghost and the epic volume Star by Star of THE NEW JEDI ORDER already under his literary belt, popular sci-fi novelist Troy Denning knows the characters, old and new, of the STAR WARS SAGA and its EXPANDED UNIVERSE by heart-and he has a writing style, alongside Matthew Stover, that fans have always enjoyed. So it is no surprise to discover that he had been chosen by the people at LUCAS BOOKS to bring to all-important life the next, and final, chapter of the LEGACY OF THE FORCE saga after previous devastating developments in books like Sacrifice and Revelation. And if you thought your heart strings had been effectively plucked out with the former, and the tragic murder of Mara Jade Skywalker, brace yourselves for the darkness ahead, as INVINCIBLE takes four of our primary characters –in particular the two key children of the Solo family- into a arena of evil and conflict, and a lightsaber showdown, that make you wonder if they’ll ever get out of it…they say it’s always darkest before the dawn and INVINCIBLE may prove it!

This final novel has so much to tie up there are moments when you wonder whether it can be done successfully and so live up to reader expectations. Well, for the most part it does. And, fortunately for us, Denning has never been afraid of such challenges. Surprisingly, many fans expected an adventure the size of STAR BY STAR-which you can damage your fingers from holding-it’s that weighty!! But, as any good book reader knows, the page count shouldn’t matter as long as the story is told well and can be read well. Despite that smaller page count, the author puts everything into INVINCIBLE’s story and characters that needs to be told.

Denning’s writing style is fast and fluid as expected and the descriptions of the action are fine, as are the stronger characterizations which, intriguingly, many feel are far superior than they have been in the last few LOTF books and in certain parts of Denning’s previous novels within the cycle.

As mentioned earlier, the book focuses on four characters who have proved highly popular with LOTF readers- Jacen, Jaina, their father, Han Solo, and Luke’s son, Ben (the latter mostly in a B plot that utilizes his character in a better way than most of the previous books in the LOTF series), though primarily on Jaina and the challenge of meeting her destiny as “Sword of the Jedi”. Many fans may bemoan the lack of participation of most the other main classic characters (like Luke and Leia) in major ways this time, and miss the way all the previous STAR WARS books have criss-crossed the stars in following the numerous plotlines-there is less of that here and the story is much more concentrated in a manner that you could say is all the better for it-there’s no serious epic Death Star type weapon or major league Imperial plot to be blown up, or a race against time in that kind of sense. The search-and-destroy mission aspect of this book is not handled the way you expect. Also positively, many readers have enjoyed Boba Fett’s appearance in this adventure much more than previously in this particular series, and he has some enjoyable in-character dialogue…has he outstayed his welcome? Probably, but everyone loves him regardless!

Additionally, as well as Jaina, hero turned baddie Dark Lord Jacen Solo also has some fine character moments, and there are links to the past thrown in that work effectively for long term readers, too. The final duel between brother and sister, as depicted on the nicely realized cover, is a finely described one, though again some readers may find it a bit anti-climactic as part of the overall arc of the series story…

To reveal too much of the book and its story would be a crime, and we at AFICIONADO aren’t party-poopers! All in all, there are some pure STAR WARS/ space opera moments of the best sense and some well described action… and loyal readers may get a shock surprise at the end of the adventure, too…

Judge for yourself and then look forward to STAR WARS: FATE OF THE JEDI!

AFICIONADO RATING: Whether INVINCIBLE ends the LEGACY OF THE FORCE saga in the manner that you’re after is up to you and “your own point of view.” However, with a writer of Troy Denning’s calibre on board to helm such a special LUCAS BOOKS event, you have a better chance of enjoying this read than with some of the other authors out there… 8 out of 10

CLASSIC REVIEW: 'FATE OF THE JEDI - VORTEX'

FATE OF THE JEDI - BOOK SIX: VORTEX

By TROY DENNING

Published in the UK by CENTURY PUBLISHING and in paperback by ARROW

Reviewed by Scott Weller

Plot threads begin, coalesce and continue in the next phase of the FATE OF THE JEDI series, VORTEX, and it’s a read that’s of a much improved, faster pace than previous entries in the series have been, with some readers even boldly stating it to be the best of the nine book adventure saga so far, with a “faster, more intense” feel to the plots structure and pacing, and the further development of the younger Jedi inhabitants of the long post JEDI universe-not my greatest of favourites within the Expanded Universe- who, for the most part, are starting to inter-relate well in this adventure with our Original Trilogy heroes (though some of our classic band, like Han, Leia and Lando, still annoyingly don’t have enough to do or make enough of a mark in the storytelling these days!), with Luke’s Skywalker’s son, Ben, improving with each book, and his scenes with his father, many of them action packed in this part of the story, proving very accessible and readable-they’re a great and formidable Jedi pair as they continue their investigations into the Lost Tribe of the Sith (just how many of these hidden outposts are out there?!) following the previous defeat, but still presence felt, of the Abeloth creature.  And poor old Luke, he’s still having a tough time in his relationships with the female sex-this time an old girlfriend with links to that Abeloth nasty. Bad enough that so many of old flames and Mara Jade have passed on-somebody give this guy a break!

Character build up and dramatic conflict linked to the Jedi Council, and their antagonistic crisis with the New Republic, plus the galaxy spanning anti-slavery movement, also continues, especially with regards to the evil Daala, (well, I say evil: gone off the rails would probably be a better word to describe her!). Finally, the plot lines in that area are starting to move somewhere!

Chuck in a few unexpected plot twists (some regarding reader popular Jaina Solo, who doesn’t quite get the story/plot momentum, that fiery spirit, she previously displayed in Allies), Force ghosts, the odd Classic Trilogy alien cameo (you can’t beat Sullustians!) and the continuing development of the feisty Sith Triber warrior woman Veshtara (her relationship continuing to blossom with Ben Skywalker), who is the key hope for the Jedi to have an uneasy truce with their sworn enemies, and bundle it together with lots of action throughout the storytelling (like Ben and Luke’s confrontation with the mysterious Fallanassi on the moon of Pydyr) and, despite a few character inconsistencies here and there, you have an enjoyable enough continuing foray into the STAR WARS universe. As a book, VORTEX is no classic, but it’s diverting enough for a few hours.

AFICIONADO RATING: Another sold read, but, as I’ve said before, could this particular saga have been done better in a shorter, more compact storytelling run? 7.5 out of 10

AFICIONADO REVIEW: 'STAR WARS - CRUCIBLE' NOVEL

STAR WARS: CRUCIBLE

A novel by Troy Denning

Published in UK hardback from CENTURY PUBLISHING


Reviewed by Scott Weller


Not yet ready to trade their lightsabers and blasters in for zimmer frames, or willing to enter the Coruscant old folks home, our original Classic Trilogy icons return for one last (?) adventure in Troy Denning's zippily paced action/adventure tale CRUCIBLE, out now in UK hardback from CENTURY PUBLISHING.

45 years on from the film saga and after the tumultuous events of the FATE OF THE JEDI which left the galaxy in a fractured state with the attack by the Sith, this footnote to that two parts good, one part bad book series has a despicable pair of evil, powerful alien twins- the Columi Qrephs- out to take over the galaxy from their mining operation/galactic trade company in deep space, alongside powerful help from an familiar and equally lethal fugitive enemy, with Luke, Han and Leia, plus a little help from friends old and relatively new, being the only people capable of stopping them. But not before the old guys, our true STAR WARS heroes, are put through one helluva wringer emotionally and physically. Han and Leia particularly have it the worse (its like the author was saying to himself, well, what seven shades of hell can I put them through today!), with the bizarre but intriguing aliens having a particularly old and personal grudge against the former mercenary space pilot. "Revenge is a dish best served cold, and it is very cold in space."

Making some sly yet affectionate references to our gang entering their senior years, and lending a kind of "It's not the years, its the mileage" mentality to them, Denning's books may not be one of the all-time classics of the STAR WARS book range, but the overall drama is told well enough to satisfy- our heroes are well captured, the action sequences are pretty big and effectively described (there's an epic fight to the death lightsaber battle which brings in new plot elements linked to the nature of the Force), and there are some further inventive ideas here and there to keep it all afloat (introducing vicious humanoid alien reptiles, Nargons, that are part cyborg, which, at first, prove effective henchmen, plus Han having to fight for his life over a very different kind of Sabacc game). Chuck in some Mandalorians, a vital link to THE CLONE WARS animated series, as well as other FATE continuity, and there's a confection that will surely please a lot of Expanded Universe fans.

Bringing closure to the FATE OF THE JEDI series, CRUCIBLE works well enough as a last-hurrah action piece than in providing any real kind of depthfully affectionate send-off to the characters. If this is indeed the very last book for our older, wiser, but no less heroic-to-the-core Classic Trilogy favourites in this particular time frame, then LUCAS BOOKS have made a wise decision to end it here and now (its well of story ideas now truly run dry IMHO), and on this mostly successful, crowd-pleasing note.

AFICIONADO RATING: 6.5 out of 10 

AFICIONADO CLASSIC REVIEW: 'FATE OF THE JEDI - BOOK THREE: ABYSS'

STAR WARS: FATE OF THE JEDI

BOOK THREE-ABYSS

By Troy Denning

Originally published in hardback in the UK by CENTURY PUBLISHING, and now in paperback from ARROW

Reviewed by Scott Weller

There’s a fine old saying that you can always judge a man by the caliber of his enemies. And in the case of Luke Skywalker, they’ve all been pretty formidable-Darth Vader, the Emperor, Shira Brie, the Yuuzhan Vong, Jorus C'Baoth, and many more that I could roll off the top of my head. Now, as the FATE OF THE JEDI saga enters the third book in its series, old and new enemies come to the fore as Luke and his trusty son Ben continue their dark explorations in discovering what led to Jacen Solo turning to the Dark Side and finding a path to the conquering of the Jedi madness that has afflicted their order within the New Republic. Things have already gotten off to a rocky start for them on this mysterious and danger fraught journey but now its all about to take a sinister new turn as they explore the dark recesses of The Maw.

ABYSS is a return to better form for author/fan favourite Troy Denning after the sadly lackluster LEGACY OF THE FORCE: INVINCIBLE, which brought that saga limping weakly to an end rather than breaking new boundaries of action and excitement. In this book, characterization for our Jedi heroes Ben and Luke Skywalker is now stronger than previously, helped with Denning’s previous experience of the saga’s heroes and a good ear for believable (at least within the STAR WARS universe) dialogue. The book, back to a worthier page count as a hardback, also has much more atmosphere and suspense with the introduction of the books new threat (which you’ll have to read about –we don’t want to spoil things). Overall, so far, this new LUCAS BOOKS saga has had a pretty rocky start, but ABYSS could be the stabilizing element story-wise that it has so desperately needed-hopefully, future books from Allston and Golden (the principal other writers of the set) will expand on Denning’s plot-lines with greater success.

The new Sith Race becomes a bit more complex with ABYSS than they had been when introduced in Christie Golden’s previous book OMEN. Denning changes the game with them slightly, too, giving sharper focus to the main assassin characters, and making them overall more interesting in the new situation they find themselves in when they are forced to land on a dangerous jungle world, and then building on that with a further new malicious threat uncovered at The Maw, which we hope will have further dangerous/universe altering consequences for the STAR WARS universe. Though there are continuity clashes with what had been set-up in James Luceno’s MILLENNIUM FALCON novel, ABYSS also brings back the Mandalorians in a good way within the Daala/Coruscant Jedi madness story, and even Han and Leia get in on some of the action of this plot-line-their scenes pretty good after their previous poor utilization as, for the most part, an un-necessary plot filler device in numerous sections of the previous books.

There’s a sense of some mystery at last (a little bit more about the background behind Jacen’s conversion to the Dark Side slowly unraveling to keep interest), as well as some good description of scary sequences involving the Sith Tribe fighting for survival, the Sith Assassins on their mission and the Skywalker’s and their events at The Maw. Regrettably, though, Luke’s unusual journey into the land of the dead sadly doesn’t quite live up to the potential the reader hopes for within Denning’s descriptions and there are still some sections of the book linked to this new saga that aren’t working for me-some readers may also be shocked by events at the books conclusion with regards to the new Sith. And then there’s my usual complaints that certain characters beyond the Lucas originals still don’t make much of an impact on me and also peak my irritation factor (i.e. Jaina Solo).

Overall, I can’t honestly say that there’s much originality to ABYSS, either on the STAR WARS front or beyond-there are echoes of ALIEN, STAR TREK, TOTAL RECALL. DOCTOR STRANGE, classic sci-fi authors (Robert Silverberg, Arthur C. Clarke, heck, even a bit of Michael Crichton is thrown in for good measure!!) and some of the good old fashioned horror/mystery comics from DC comics that were eerie enough to unsettle me as a kid, but they do say its always wise to steal from the best, and certainly Denning does to a degree that many fans will still find compelling!

AFICIONADO RATING: The strongest entry in the FATE OF THE JEDI series thus far, ABYSS is a step in the right direction and really hits its stride toward its conclusion. Worth a look for regular fans of the EXPANDED UNIVERSE who’d been disappointed by some of it’s previous works. Let’s hope though, in the long run, that this doesn’t turn out to be the best of the new nine book run, and that future books improve on Denning’s work if the writers can seriously attune themselves to its overall great potential. 8 out of 10

NOW IN PAPERBACK: 'FATE OF THE JEDI - APOCALYPSE'

As we eagerly await official news confirming the return of the Classic STAR WARS Trilogy heroes to our cinema screens in 2016, why not settle back and finish the epic Expanded Universe Fate of the Jedi book series, as Troy Denning's Apocalypse brings it all to its nine-part, action-packed conclusion in paperback from 7th March, courtesy of the UK's ARROW BOOKS.

Check out our original review here: STAR WARS AFICIONADO MAGAZINE: APOCALYPSE

AFICIONADO REVIEW: 'FATE OF THE JEDI: APOCALYPSE'

STAR WARS: FATE OF THE JEDI - APOCALYPSE

By Troy Denning

Published in the UK by CENTURY PUBLISHING

Reviewed by Scott Weller

Reaching a zenith of fast paced action in its final section, it’s a shame that the much anticipated concluding book of the nine-part FATE OF THE JEDI series, APOCALYPSE, by popular author Troy Denning, doesn’t totally succeed in giving the once promising book series-originally designed by LUCAS BOOKS to re-invigorate the STAR WARS saga in printed form-the ultimately satisfying climax that it deserves, and especially after what has proved to be a very long, and often downright frustrating, four-year publishing duration.

Containing an imbalanced mix of over and underwritten material, with middle books that, in my opinion, contained lots of padding and many out of character characterizations, plus some downright poor underuse of some of our Classic STAR WARS heroes within occasionally wacky ideas and set pieces, Denning, part of the series triad with Aaron Allston and Christie Golden, works hard in rounding things off, trying to keep both the series epic sweep and its story momentum intact, with some good, if not totally perfect, plot strands utilizing our old and new Jedi heroes, and a now legion of supporting players, alongside some well described, worthy adventuring, and consequence facing, as the final battle against the Sith and the Abeloth continues across the besieged Coruscant-now the second time the once glistening world had been infiltrated/ attacked since the epic Palpatine kidnap of EPISODE III.

Most of the books previously dangling questions are given answers of sort’s -though some of those relating to the nature of the Force made me a little uneasy, clashing with my perceived view of it from seeing the movies. The conception and existence of the book series-spanning Abeloth creature also wasn’t quite what I expected, either, but not being officially cannon in my eyes anyway I’ll overall accept what the writer/s ultimately did with it/her. Die-hard fans hoping for game-changing deaths galore after the online rumour mill started up a while back are going to be very disappointed, though, and it won’t be spoiling things to say that the book has a happy ending. C’mon, this is still a fairy-tale universe, after all! Our band of heroes (and anti-heroes) have been moved and counter moved around the chess board block but they’re now in stationery positions until they can be manipulated all over again for the surely inevitable follow-up.

Now more than ever, though, I think that LUCAS BOOKS has to think very carefully about their future multi-part book plans, and I certainly think the entire range in general is in danger of going very stale- it’s definitely reached a point where it needs fresher and more innovative blood (and I think they should spread out their wings beyond core American talent, too). Would it also be harmful to move the saga away from the Sith and all the current, and very heavy, continuity baggage bogging it down, so as to find new and more diverse and epic villains beyond the frontiers of the New Republic? Thinking outside of the box has been the core motto of George Lucas for years-how about consulting with the Father Creator on ideas for the future literary destinies of the characters he originally, and lovingly, created? After all, he still has a whole wad of notes for the aborted Episodes Six to Nine that could surely be mined…

Overall, though, and despite such festering criticisms, I can’t totally dismiss the FATE OF THE JEDI series as a wasted opportunity- the ambition was there to try and make a big creative mark after the prior success of THE NEW JEDI ORDER and LEGACY OF THE FORCE series, with some new concepts, character off-shoots and big ideas- but something wasn’t quite pulled off in its ultimate translation, in a way that made it more of a footnote to the previous series rather than a fresh and innovative new step towards the future…

STAR WARS AFICIONADO RATING: Not quite a shockwave ending to the saga, then. Rather a large ripple, instead. 7 out of 10

AFICIONADO REVIEW: FATE OF THE JEDI - VORTEX

The galaxy is once more in crisis, and Luke and Ben Skywalker may be the only hope at restoring peace within the New Republic. Check out our review of the recently published FATE OF THE JEDI series sixth book, VORTEX, by Troy Denning, published by CENTURY in the UK, here: FATE OF THE JEDI. BOOK SIX: VORTEX


UPDATE 8/4/2012: Now available in paperback in the UK from ARROW BOOKS.