OT: Christie Golden Part of Next Star Wars 9-Book Series

[Julio Angel Ortiz]

I only mention this because of Ms. Golden's past association with Trek. But Golden, along with Aaron Allston and Troy Denning, will be writing the next 9-book Star Wars series, Fate of the Jedi. This takes place after their last series, Legacy of the Force.

I'm a big fan of Star Wars books (New Jedi Order and onwards), and I'm curious if any others here are and what they think of her involvement in the new series. I haven't read enough of her books to get a good feel for her style, but what I did read (the first two books in the Voyager relaunch) gave me pause. Still, I think it's great to see her get this opportunity and I can't wait to see how it turns out.

The first novel in the series, Outcast, comes out in April 2009.

 

[BryanSorensen]

Re: OT: Christine Golden Part of Next Star Wars 9-Book Series

Oh no you didn't! I thought anything Lucas went against the charter of this fine organization!

 

[KRAD]

Re: OT: Christine Golden Part of Next Star Wars 9-Book Series

It's Christie Golden, not Christine. Could a kindly mod fix the subject line, please?

 

[Trent Roman]

Re: OT: Christine Golden Part of Next Star Wars 9-Book Series

Pif. I gave up on the tedious, simplistic exercise in repetition that was Legacy of the Force four books in. This new series has the same format and author line-up, save for replacing one author I midly dislike for one I actively dislike. Pass.

(Incidently, it's TheForce.Net that seems to have first made the error of calling her Christine instead of Christie)

Fictitiously yours, Trent Roman

 

[Thrawn]

Re: OT: Christine Golden Part of Next Star Wars 9-Book Series

Wow.

Yeah, uh, this is... comical at this point.

I used to love Star Wars books (see: my username ), but Legacy Of The Force was just stupid, and taking Traviss (who I like a lot, in every book she's written except Legacy) and replacing her with the author of the simplistic, poorly-thought-out drivel that I thought Homecoming etc were? This does not inspire confidence.

I'll pass.

 

[Stevil2001]

Re: OT: Christine Golden Part of Next Star Wars 9-Book Series

Legacy of the Force was so mediocre-- part of it due to this rotating author approach-- that I've little inclination to pick up Fate of the Jedi. And a nine-book series all in hardcover? I think I'll pick up the first once it's in paperback, but I'm not very hopeful. Allston and Denning are usually reliable authors, but they were less than so in LotF.

 

[Thrawn]

Re: OT: Christine Golden Part of Next Star Wars 9-Book Series

Legacy of the Force was so mediocre-- part of it due to this rotating author approach-- that I've little inclination to pick up Fate of the Jedi. And a nine-book series all in hardcover? I think I'll pick up the first once it's in paperback, but I'm not very hopeful. Allston and Denning are usually reliable authors, but they were less than so in LotF.

Allston was fine, Denning was atrocious. I liked the Dark Nest books a lot, but I don't know what got into him here. Allston and Traviss seemed to really be trying, at first, to make Jacen's fall into a sympathetic journey (especially Traviss in Sacrifice), but Denning just made him into a MUA-HA-HA idiot villain that all the other characters just gave up on.

And the multiple author approach also managed to simultaneously leave plot threads dangling uselessly between books by one author (like Fett, only appearing in Traviss's), and also cover the same ground over and over and over again with little movement forward. It was... lame.

 

[JD]

Re: OT: Christine Golden Part of Next Star Wars 9-Book Series

Hmmm, I haven't read Legacy of the Force yet so I don't really know what to make of the new series. But comparing what I've heard about Travis to what I've heard about Christie Golden (I haven't read any book by either of them yet, althought I do own the first Voyager: Dark Matters book, and the LotF: Sacrifice) it sounds like this was a bad move.
I actually have the first, fifth, and sixth LotF books, but I fell a litle behind on Trek so I'm trying to get caught up on it before going back to Star Wars.

 

[Thrawn]

Re: OT: Christine Golden Part of Next Star Wars 9-Book Series

I think the first two Legacy books are fantastic, and then it's pretty much all downhill from there. So, even if you're impressed with the first one, read at your own risk.

Traviss's Republic Commando series, on the other hand, is pretty wonderful.

 

[Jack Bauer]

Re: OT: Christine Golden Part of Next Star Wars 9-Book Series

Legacy is the worst series so far in the novel line. I finished Sacrifice a few months ago and stopped there. I'm dreading reading the other books. I'll finish it but who knows when. Hopefully the next series will be better. But all hardcovers? Ugh. Why?

alternating writers doesn't work. it's too choppy. I prefer the way NJO did it with duologies.

 

[Thrawn]

Re: OT: Christine Golden Part of Next Star Wars 9-Book Series

I actually liked NJO quite a lot, except for that odd trilogy in the final year that slowed the series's momentum to a complete crawl.

 

[Julio Angel Ortiz]

It's Christie Golden, not Christine. Could a kindly mod fix the subject line, please?

She's mentioned as Christine in the announcement, which is why I wrote that. Anyhow, I fixed it.

EDITED ADD:

Wow, I guess I'm the only one who enjoyed Legacy of the Force despite its flaws. I'll be reading this series, despite the fact that it's all hardcovers.

 

[RandyS]

Re: OT: Christine Golden Part of Next Star Wars 9-Book Series

Legacy is the worst series so far in the novel line. I finished Sacrifice a few months ago and stopped there. I'm dreading reading the other books. I'll finish it but who knows when. Hopefully the next series will be better. But all hardcovers? Ugh. Why?

alternating writers doesn't work. it's too choppy. I prefer the way NJO did it with duologies.

Yeah, but the NJO's main problem was that it was too damned long, and diverged far too much. About 12 books too long. I haven't read Legacy yet, but I'm hoping it's shorter length will lead to a more cohesive storyline. NJO was all over the place.

 

[RandyS]

It's Christie Golden, not Christine. Could a kindly mod fix the subject line, please?

She's mentioned as Christine in the announcement, which is why I wrote that. Anyhow, I fixed it.

EDITED ADD:

Wow, I guess I'm the only one who enjoyed Legacy of the Force despite its flaws. I'll be reading this series, despite the fact that it's all hardcovers.

So will I, once they're all paperbacks.

 

[Stevil2001]

Re: OT: Christine Golden Part of Next Star Wars 9-Book Series

Yeah, but the NJO's main problem was that it was too damned long, and diverged far too much. About 12 books too long. I haven't read Legacy yet, but I'm hoping it's shorter length will lead to a more cohesive storyline. NJO was all over the place.

Personally, I felt like tNJO was way more cohesive than LotF. The chunked duologies/trilogies of tNJO meant that each author carved out his/her own little story within the megastory, whereas with LotF everyone was trying to write one story and not really holding it together.

 

[Trent Roman]

Re: OT: Christine Golden Part of Next Star Wars 9-Book Series

Yeah, but the NJO's main problem was that it was too damned long, and diverged far too much. About 12 books too long. I haven't read Legacy yet, but I'm hoping it's shorter length will lead to a more cohesive storyline. NJO was all over the place.

I don't agree that the NJO was incohesive, but Legacy is far worse. The way plot threads were dropped by the other two and then reappeared in the next book by that author, it's like they weren't even talking to each other. Which is probably true, because if they had talked to each other they might have realized they were all writting the same bloody story, only with different locales and guest characters. I swear, when Alema Rar escaped (for the third or fourth time, at this point) on an ejector chair or something like that, I said to myself: "This is it. Now she's gonna shake her fist and say: 'I'll get you next time, Gadget!'" Ugh, so tacky.

I really don't think the problem is alternating authors; Vanguard has chosen that angle, and has enjoyed much critical success. The problem is communication and editorial oversight... particularly the latter, since all three of the Legacy authors (Allston particularly) had good titles to their names previously, with the pathos and nuance that the arc ought to have merited. Well, admitedly, I've never been keen on Traviss, but I know that's a question of taste when it comes to the Republic Commando books rather than any weakness on Traviss' part.

Fictitiously yours, Trent Roman

 

[William Leisner]

Wait... so there are Star Wars books, too?

 

[Dayton Ward]

Yeah, but I don't read them. I mean, they're not canon, so what's the point?

 

[Stevil2001]

Re: OT: Christine Golden Part of Next Star Wars 9-Book Series

I really don't think the problem is alternating authors; Vanguard has chosen that angle, and has enjoyed much critical success. The problem is communication and editorial oversight... particularly the latter, since all three of the Legacy authors (Allston particularly) had good titles to their names previously, with the pathos and nuance that the arc ought to have merited.

Vanguard's books come out once a year at the most, though, meaning that the previous book in the series is done by the time that next one is being written. LotF had nine books in two years-- the second, Bloodlines was actually finished before the first, Betrayal was. That was the problem with the multi-author approach.

I tended to like the individual installments, but they added up to a less-than-cohesive whole. How many times did Ben decide that maybe Jacen was up to no good? And how ineffective a leader can Luke Skywalker possibly be?

 

[Julio Angel Ortiz]

Re: OT: Christine Golden Part of Next Star Wars 9-Book Series

I really don't think the problem is alternating authors; Vanguard has chosen that angle, and has enjoyed much critical success. The problem is communication and editorial oversight... particularly the latter, since all three of the Legacy authors (Allston particularly) had good titles to their names previously, with the pathos and nuance that the arc ought to have merited.

Vanguard's books come out once a year at the most, though, meaning that the previous book in the series is done by the time that next one is being written. LotF had nine books in two years-- the second, Bloodlines was actually finished before the first, Betrayal was. That was the problem with the multi-author approach.

I tended to like the individual installments, but they added up to a less-than-cohesive whole. How many times did Ben decide that maybe Jacen was up to no good? And how ineffective a leader can Luke Skywalker possibly be?

Here are a few things that bugged me:

• The meaning behind Caedus' sacrifice changes a couple of times, as if the authors couldn't settle on one thing.
• Jaina spends all this time training with Boba Fett, receiving the Baskar gauntlet, and even learns the shatterpoint technique... and never winds up using any of them. That blows half of Revelation's purpose out the window.
• Caedus could have had a few more clear-cut victories during his reign. His effectiveness is a real mixed bag through the latter half of Legacy of the Force, until Invincible, where he as it his best.
• Just what did Legacy of the Force mean? What was it in the series? That the Skywalker blood is destined to produce Sith Lords?
• Caedus takes Tahiri as his apprentice too late in the series, saves her in Revelation because he feels that she is critically linked to his destiny... and then that comes to nothing.
• The civil war was resolved, for the most part, off-screen. Invincible should been much more epic in scope, considering it is the end of a 9-book series.

I still love the series despite its flaws. Guess I'm weird like that.