The Best and Worst of Star Wars Novels
- Thread starter Mr Light
- Start date
The X-Wing series is quite good as well.
I know I'm in the minority here but I read 1.5 of the X-Wing series and I just didn't care. There's no Jedi or Force using it. It was just generic military fiction. I'll try to start it again one day...
Also I find lengthy descriptions of dogfights to be incredibly tedious, and I'm an action junkie
Also I find lengthy descriptions of dogfights to be incredibly tedious, and I'm an action junkie
I know I'm in the minority here but I read 1.5 of the X-Wing series and I just didn't care. There's no Jedi or Force using it. It was just generic military fiction. I'll try to start it again one day...
Also I find lengthy descriptions of dogfights to be incredibly tedious, and I'm an action junkie
You may prefer the novels. There's little bit of a Jedi subplot for one of the primary characters.
But yeah, if you're reading a Star Wars series named "X-Wing", then it's pretty much going to be focused on starfighter pilots.
When you're writing about soldiers/pilots in a war it's extremely hard to break away from the tropes and create interesting characters, and as I recall from what I read it did not succeed in doing that. I basically only read it to see how Coruscant was liberated.
Same reason I couldn't be bothered with the Traviss Commando series.
Same reason I couldn't be bothered with the Traviss Commando series.
It would be better as a tv series.
Crystal Star was the only one you tried?
no, i've suffered through others like Tatooine Ghost, Dark Nest Trilogy and several of the Vong Invasion novels. i'm saying that for me personally, i have a hard time getting into Star Wars novels.
Crystal Star is the all time worst Star Wars novel, if that helps
And I like Denning, but Tatooine Ghosts was painfully boring.'
I like the Dark Nest trilogy but I gather a lot of people don't. I thought it did a great job of a) being a NJO Aftermath, b) foreshadowing LOTF, and c) showing the corrupting influence Vergere had on Jacen AND Luke. Luke uses dark side lightning there man!!! And thinks its okay!!!
And I like Denning, but Tatooine Ghosts was painfully boring.'
I like the Dark Nest trilogy but I gather a lot of people don't. I thought it did a great job of a) being a NJO Aftermath, b) foreshadowing LOTF, and c) showing the corrupting influence Vergere had on Jacen AND Luke. Luke uses dark side lightning there man!!! And thinks its okay!!!
Crystal Star is the all time worst Star Wars novel, if that helps
While it's definitely up there, I tend to hold Planet of Twilight in that regard. Then again, a lot of those books I never cared to revisit after getting through them once, so I might not be correctly remembering the order of terribleness.
I haven't read much Star Wars since the very early novels. Where do people rank Splinter of the Mind's Eye and Brian Daley's Han Solo trilogy?
Doctorwhovian
Fleet Captain
Splinter's kind of odd, especially in light of the sequels; The Brian Daley novels are generally well-received. Han Solo At Star's End was actually adapted into an old comic strip (making it the first SW novel to be adapted into comic form, although a Splinter Adaptation was made by Dark Horse in the 90s). There's also a 90's Han Solo trilogy by the late AC Crispin which also incorporates material from those novels (They sort of happened in-between each other I think)
My favorite of the older EU are the Archie Goodwin/Al Williamson comic strips (collected as classic Star Wars in the 90s). At the time they were intended to connect ANH and ESB and featured moments such as the launch of Vader's Star Destroyer, the flight to Hoth from Yavin etc. as well as some ROTJ stuff such as the Mon Calamari joining the alliance and Jabba the Hutt.
My favorite of the older EU are the Archie Goodwin/Al Williamson comic strips (collected as classic Star Wars in the 90s). At the time they were intended to connect ANH and ESB and featured moments such as the launch of Vader's Star Destroyer, the flight to Hoth from Yavin etc. as well as some ROTJ stuff such as the Mon Calamari joining the alliance and Jabba the Hutt.
^I don't know. Threepio's song and dance routine rather put me off. It's a tendency I saw a lot in the early novels where authors would try (and fail) to insert humour for some odd reason and have established characters act very much out of character to suit the story.
I forget which book it was in but I recall a scene with Leia and Mara that totally took me out of it just for the awkward stupidity. They're both out in the wilderness on some planet at night and one of them (Leia I think?) uses a lightsaber in lieu of a torch and Mara marvels at the innovations saying something like "I've never seen a lightsaber used like that before", to whit the other responds something like "you have to make do in extreme circumstances!" I may be misremembering, but I recall the whole thing was played totally straight and it just came off as silly.
I forget which book it was in but I recall a scene with Leia and Mara that totally took me out of it just for the awkward stupidity. They're both out in the wilderness on some planet at night and one of them (Leia I think?) uses a lightsaber in lieu of a torch and Mara marvels at the innovations saying something like "I've never seen a lightsaber used like that before", to whit the other responds something like "you have to make do in extreme circumstances!" I may be misremembering, but I recall the whole thing was played totally straight and it just came off as silly.