Apologies

Sorry for the lack of posts, dear readers, but with the fate of the Star Wars Expanded Universe in question in the last few months, I decided to cool my heels with the reviews featuring them. Now that we know it's called the Legendary Universe, I'm debating on whether to continue with the reviews for it because I don't think anyone's all that interested in them.

The other reason I haven't written some is that the last few David Weber's Honor Harrington saga books are massive and it's taking my a while to summarize the main plot. Same goes for Captain Vorpatril's Alliance by Lois Bujold and Anne Bishop's Murder of Crows. I'm also unable to find copies of Xanth: Quest for Magic by Piers Anthony so I can't finish the review for his wonderfully puny saga.

Now, I've thought about ways around this, but I'd like your opinion. Do you think I should continue with the Star Wars Legendary Universe books now that they're only used for idea mining? Or do you think I should scrap them all together and just take a month to review each of the other series I've got on the project shelf? I'm very interested in hearing your opinions. Please leave your suggestions in the comments section.

Book Review: Star Wars: X-Wing: Iron Fist SPOILERS!

In July 1998, Aaron Allston published his second X-Wing novel (X-Wing 6). It promised to be great, and yet fell into his stereo-typical writing of juvenile kids acting as adults. Synopsis:  Against all odds, the controversial Wraith Squadron has survived its first covert mission. But now they are called upon to cheat death twice. This time Wedge Antilles sends them in to stop the warlord Zsinj and his Super Star Destroyer, Iron Fist. If Zsinj joins the Empire, it could turn the tide of war against the Rebels. The Wraith Squadron's mission: infiltrate the warlord's fleet and uncover his carefully guarded plans. To do so, they must pose as ruthless pirates seeking to join Zsinj's forces. And that means first becoming pirates in space lanes teeming with Imperial Navy patrols. If that isn't enough to get them killed, they'll have to pass one last test—a suicide mission for Zsinj. Can they survive the test and turn the tables on Zsinj? Or is this the end for Wraith Squadron?

The novel opens with the Wraiths in a bar fight on Coruscant, but the New Republic Military Police arrive, and arrest them. Garik "Face" Loran takes them down when he notices their so-called Corellian walks aren't genuine. Colonel Atton Repness and Admiral Ackbar debrief them, then Ackbar give the Wraiths new orders. Ton Phanan and Kell Tainer recall that Repness was the one who wrecked Tyria Sarkin's career because she wouldn't steal a ship for him. Ton decides to bring Face in and then use Implacable survivor Lara Nostil against Repness and flush his illegal thefts out into the open. They convince Wedge to go along with it and then they get Lara to agree. Meanwhile, Piggy and Runt note that Zsinj is conversing with pirates, either to enlist them or get intel from them. Three new crew members join: Dia Passik, a Twi'lek ex-slave; Castin Donn, hacker; and Shalla Nelprin, whose sister is in the Katarn Commandos. Zsinj gets a communique from Gara--now Lara--and she offers to help bring Wraith Squadron down. Lara goes to expose Repness, but he subdues her. However, General Airen Cracken shows up and arrests Repness. Lara breezes through the remedial training and joins up with Wraith Squadron. Meanwhile, the Wraiths meet up with General Han Solo on Mon Remonda along with Rogue Squadron. Zsinj finds out where Lara is and is pleased that he can use her to end Solo's hunt for him. It's on Mon Remonda that Face suggests Wraith Squadron splits up and have only certain members infiltrate Zsinj's people. Under the name of Hawk-bats, Face leads Ton, Lara, Shalla, Wes, and a stuffed toy Ewok against Zsinj's fleet, but Ton dies. Ton leaves everything he owns to Face. The Hawk-bat's now include Face, Dia, Kell, and the Ewok toy. They attempt to join Zsinj, but Castin has stowed away and is found by Zsinj's men. Face pretends to not know him and Zsinj has him executed. Meanwhile, Myn Donos and Lara head to Aldivy so Lara can reunite with her "brother" and update Zsinj on Wraith Squadron, but a frantic call to Myn cuts that short as he strafes the place. Castin, meanwhile, stowed away with Face and gang who are now "working for" Zsinj. It's then revealed that ex-Imperial and former Rogue Squadron member Baron Soontir Fel is indeed working for Zsinj inhis old unit, 181st Imperial Fighter Wing/Group. Castin's caught, then brought before Zsinj, Melvar, Face and company. Dia, staying in character, kills Castin, though she notes to Face that Castin was already dead when two stormtroopers presented him to them. She goes insane and attempts to kill herself, but Kell and Face restrain her. Piecing together the data Zsinj gave Face and from what little Castin was able to obtain before his death, the Wraiths discover that Kuat Drive Yards, in orbit above Kuat, is Zsinj's next target, and the warlord is after a Super Star Destroyer. The Hawk-bats and Zsinj, with numerous others, attack KDY. The battle rages on and Shalla Nelprin is presumed dead, but is actually hiding and awaiting pick up after the battle. In the midst of the battle, Wedge, as Kettch, teams up with his brother in law (Fel) and the two of them fight alongside each other, and Wedge learns that Syal (his sister) is still alive, but Fel insists that the only other great human pilot is Luke and that Wedge can't hold a candle to either of them. After the fight, Face meets again with General Melvar, the Vibroaxe squadron leader, and others to receive payment. Zsinj, however, notices Mon Remonda and orders Iron Fist and Razor's Kiss to destroy the ship and Han Solo. But Rogue Squadron--led by Captain Tycho Celchu--and Wraith Squadron, with additional units, help defend the ship. Maneuvers by Solo's entire task force send Zsinj fleeing from the battle. Shalla--who was sabotaging Razor's Kiss--and Piggy are recovered, and Razor's Kiss is destroyed. As a result, Shalla is allowed to paint a half-SSD on her X-Wing in recognition that half of Razor's Kiss was her kill. Face reveals that after his surgery,he had his scars removed and looks younger than he used to.

All in all, a fast read that gets most of Allston's terrible writing done and over with. Though, yes, he did pass away recently, his writing was indeed found fondly by large members of the EU fans; though this still baffles me, as I can't see why anyone loves his writing. But he will be missed in the former triumvirate that was the Zahn-Stackpole-Allston saga. And now it's just Zahn left writing for Star Wars out of that lot. We will miss you and your terrible jokes, Allston. Yub Yub, Aaron.

Book Review: Star Wars: Maul: Lockdown SPOILERS!

A special treat for you patient viewers. Two books came int he mail last week and I spent my time reading them to review. This is the other.

On January 28 2014, horror author Joe Schreiber published Maul: Lockdown. In this, Maul must overcome gangs of prisoners to track down one arms dealer before Jabba the Hutt or Komari Vosa of the Bando Gora get their hands on him. The events of this book take place after Cloak of Deception by James Luceno and before Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter by Michael Reaves. Synopsis: It's kill or be killed in the space penitentiary that houses the galaxy's worst criminals, where convicts face off in gladiatorial combat while an underworld gambling empire reaps the profits of the illicit blood sport. But the newest contender in this savage arena, as demonic to behold as he is deadly to challenge, is fighting for more than just survival. His do-or-die mission, for the dark masters he serves, is to capture the ultimate weapon: an object capable of obliterating the Jedi and conquering the galaxy. Sith Lords Darth Plagueis and Darth Sidious are determined to possess the prize. And one of the power-hungry duo has his own treacherous plans for it. But first, their fearsome apprentice must take on a bloodthirsty prison warden, a cannibal gang, cutthroat crime lord Jabba the Hutt, and an unspeakable alien horror. No one else could brave such a gauntlet of death and live. But no one else is the dreaded dark-side disciple known as Darth Maul.

The novel opens with Maul surviving a fight against an unknown alien with a living staff. He recalls how he arrived; then he goes about his business of tracking down Iram Radique, a local hidden arms dealer found inside Cog Hive Seven--the prison. As he does so (without use of the Force), a number of things happen: the first is that a mysterious Twi'lek calling himself Zero offers loose advice to Maul; Maul takes down the top two gangs; and an old man and his son offer help.

Maul does fight his way through opponent after opponent, even killing some of Radique's people, much to the ire of the Galactic Gaming Commission. The warden, Sadiki Blirr, brushes off many threats to her by insinuating that Maul--otherwise known as Jaganath--must be killed because he's become a problem. Meanwhile, Hego Damask has sent in a field analyst named Vesto Slipher, who also starts working with Radique in odd ways.

During all this, Darth Sidious oversees Maul's work via hologram communication, but Darth Plagueis informs Sidious through a couple of face-to-face meetings that he's aware of what Maul's doing because of Slipher. But Sidious doubts that Plagueis really knows why Maul was sent there: to acquire a bomb for the Outer Rim for their upcoming war to rip the Republic apart. Sadiki's brother, Dakarai, is often absent mostly when she needs his moral support.

She also learns that Jabba Desilijic Tiure has taken an interest and she kills his hired mercenaries which angers Jabba. Maul eventually learns that Zero is Radique--who is also Dakarai in disguise. Maul receives orders to kill Radique and leave no witnesses--which he does under cover of Jabba and his thugs coming to take over Cog Hive Seven. Jabba's takeover is harassed by Komari Vosa of the Bando Gora who wants Radique's head.

Maul wants to hand over the weapon or Komair, but Komari goes into a blind fury believing it to be a trap, and attempts to kill Maul, but Maul bests her. She accepts the weapon and helps him escape from the prison. Hego Damask informs Palpatine that Cog Hive Seven is no more than a debris field somewhere in the Outer Rim, and all went well according to their plans. Komari, Eogan--the boy--and Maul have stolen one of Jabba's ships and fled before the destruction (so did Jabba, but we know that already).

All in all, a well-thought-out book that still keeps the suspense Schreiber is known for, as wells acknowledging the EU continuity and Darth Plagueis. This serves to show that any author can use continuity well and still tell a damn good story, and that continuity doesn't have to be tossed out because some people can't handle a unified series.

Book Review: Halo: Kilo Five 3: Mortal Dictata SPOILERS!

A special treat for you patient viewers. Two books came int he mail last week and I spent my time reading them to review. This is one of them.

On 21 January 2014, Karen Traviss, 343 Industries, and Tor Book published the final installment of the acclaimed, gripping, and well-written Kilo Five trilogy. This time, the gloves come off as Staffan Sentzke attempts to recover a Sangheili shpi to glass Earth, but will Kilo Five stop him, or will Naomi-010 be unable to prevent her father from seeking vengeance? Synopsis: Wars end. But hatred, guilt, and devotion can endure beyond the grave. With the Covenant War over, the Office of Naval Intelligence faces old grievances rising again to threaten Earth. The angry, bitter colonies, still with scores to settle from the insurrection put on hold for thirty years, now want justice--and so does a man whose life was torn apart by ONI when his daughter was abducted for the SPARTAN-II program. Black ops squad Kilo-Five find their loyalties tested beyond breaking point when the father of their Spartan comrade, still searching for the truth about her disappearance, prepares to glass Earth's cities to get an answer. How far will Kilo-Five go to stop him? And will he be able to live with the truth when he finds it? The painful answer lies with a man long dead, and a conscience that still survives in the most unlikely, undiscovered place.

The novel opens with Staffan Sentzke ruminating on his life thus far. Then, it shifts to the past to explore what it felt like to have a child kidnapped, then Staffan's reaction to it, the clone-Naomi that died, and how he was convinced that the UNSC did this. Presently: Naomi-010 and Vasily Beloi attempt to situate themselves into Venezia's captial--New Tyne--when Naomi is recalled for fear that someone will link her and Staffan as family, so Malcolm "Mal" Geffen takes her place. Together, Mal and Vaz manage to gain an entry into the local militia. Meanwhile, Avu Med 'Telcam hires Kig-Yar shipmistress Chol Von to track down Sav Fel--the renegade Kig-Yar who stole Pious Inquisitor from the Sangheili rebels during the civil war on Sangheilios months ago--but she has plans to return the Kig-Yar navy and kick some pride back into her people. Sav Fel, however, sold Pious Inquisitor to Staffan and they tested the ventral beam on a collection of Forerunner ruins; this greatly upsets the aging Huragok Sometimes Lists, and Staffan finds other places to test it out on before parking PI in darkness above Venezia. Staffan invites Mal and Vaz aboard because of their expertise as renegade UNSC marines who've flown Covenant vessels. Black Box (BB) and Admiral Serin Osman keep ONI queen--Admiral Margaret O. Parangosky--up to date. However, Mal and Vaz get picked up by Staffan and a couple of his people--plus Staffan's son Edvin--and BB alerts Port Stanely. Mal and Vaz are interrogated, but Vaz loosely tells Staffan that Naomi is alive and fine. Because of this, Staffan wants to keep them alive so he can learn the truth or meet Naomi.

Naomi and Devereaux rescue the two marines and capture Staffan. Meanwhile Chol Von tracks Sav Fel to Venezia and kidnaps him. They attempt to board PI--now called Naomi--but Sometimes Lists engages Slipspace and flees. Port Stanley gives chase and catches up to them. Staffan, having learned everything from Naomi, BB, and the marines about the kidnapping and being brainwashed and indoctrinated by Halsey into the SPARTAN-II program (though Halsey's name is left unsaid), agrees to help his daughter retake the ship. Naomi, Mal, Vaz, and a portion of BB split from Staffan, Sometimes Lists, and rig PI to self destruct. BB lets Staffan and Sometimes Lists go so long as they vanish completely; Staffan agrees to fade and sends Vaz a holographic imagery display that shows the night time sky of Naomi's glassed homeworld. Chol Von and her crew--plus her plans for the Kig-Yar--are destroyed with the ship. In the end, Serin works up the courage to view her files and learns that her mother was a prostitute and that the only person who cared for her was a teacher--one Mrs. Alkmini Leandro--who's still alive on Cascade. Serin decides the crew needs some down time and goes to meet her former teacher, who's overjoyed that Serin survived and made something of herself. During this, Vaz attempts to help Naomi get over reuniting with and losing her father while Evan Phillips and Lian Devereaux go on a date. The novel ends with a letter to Admiral Margaret O. Parangosky detailing how he can't stand to go on and commits suicide because of the SPARTAN-II Project; the letter belongs to Dr. Graham J. Alban who's brain was preserved for Black Box (BBX-8995-1) a.k.a. BB.

All in all, a wonderful ending to a great trilogy that captures the very real feeling of post-war turmoils and skeletons-coming-out-of-the-closet scenarios. Props to Karen Traviss for braving the Halo universe. A must read for every fan. 

Book Review: Honor Harrington: The Shadow of Saganami SPOILERS!

In November 2004, David Weber published the first of a second spin-off to the Honor Harrington series: the Saganami Island series. In it, the next generation of young men and women of the HMS Hexapuma must stop the terrorism striking in the heart of the newly connected Talbott Cluster as their leaders vote to allow the cluster to join the Star Empire of Manticore. The events of this novel occur at the same time as At All Costs. Synopsis: The Star Kingdom of Manticore is once again at war with the Republic of Haven after a stunning sneak attack. The graduating class from Saganami Island, the Royal Manticoran Navy's academy, are going straight from the classroom to the blazing reality of all-out war. Except for the midshipmen assigned to the heavy cruiser HMS Hexapuma, that is. They're being assigned to the Talbott Cluster, an out of the way backwater, far from the battle front. The most they can look forward to is the capture of the occasional pirate cruiser and the boring duty of supporting the Cluster's peaceful integration with the Star Kingdom at the freely expressed will of eighty percent of the Cluster's citizens. With a captain who may have seen too much of war and a station commander who isn't precisely noted for his brilliant and insightful command style, it isn't exactly what the students of Honor Harrington, the "Salamander", expected. But things aren't as simple--or tranquil--as they appear. The "pirates" they encounter aren't what they seem, and the "peaceful integration" they expected turns into something very different. A powerful alliance of corrupt Solarian League bureaucrats and ruthless interstellar corporations is determined to prevent the Cluster's annexation by the Star Kingdom . . . by any means necessary. Pirates, terrorists, genetic slavers, smuggled weapons, long-standing personal hatreds, and a vicious alliance of corporate greed, bureaucratic arrogance, and a corrupt local star nation with a powerful fleet are all coming together, and only Hexapuma, her war-weary captain, and Honor Harrington's students stand in the path. They have only one thing to support and guide them: the tradition of Saganami. The tradition that sometimes a Queen's officer's duty is to face impossible odds . . . and die fighting.

The novel opens with Captain Aivars Terekhov waking up from that nightmare to find he's being assigned HMS Hexapuma with new orders for the quiet Talbott Cluster; he's being asked to ease the annexation through by helping the Manticoran ambassador, Rear Admiral Augustus Khumalo. Midshipwomen and midshipmen on their "snotty cruise"--Helen Zilwicki, Aikawa Kagiyama, Ragnhild Pavletic, Paulo d'Arezzo, Leopold Stottmeister--and Lieutenant Abigail Hearnes, with Commander Ginger Lewis, and Senior Chief Petty Officer Aubrey Wanderman board and head off for the Talbott Cluster. Once they get there, they find the situation unlike anything the reports hinted at. Meanwhile, Mesa's spokesperson for the Talbott Cluster, the illusive Aldona Anisimovna, helps set up--via discreet people--the terrorism network; she also helps Commissioner Lorcan Verrochio of the Solarian League's Office of Frontier Security sabotage the Manticoran talks. Agnes Nordbrandt heads one cell on Kornati, and Stephen Westman leads the Montana Independence Movement. Founder and ex-chairman of the Remembrandt Trade Union Bernardus Van Dort comes back from retirement to play politics, but ends up--in a fury--removing chariwoman Ineka Vaandrager as she helps drag the annexation talks out just for profit. Khumalo would just as soon remove Terekhov from the Talbott Cluster than have a war-weary man help; he demands that Terekhov just patrol and do nothing else. Nordbrandt takes a more aggressive terrorism approach and eliminates people whereas Westman just demolishes vacant and abandoned buildings. Eventually, Van Dort crosses paths with Terekhov and company. He helps Terekhov plead with Westman to bring about a resolution, but Steve won't have it; he uses more aggressive means. Westman also meets Helen and remarks how much she looks like Susanne--the deceased wife of Van Dort and friend to Westman. In the course of Hexapuma's cruises, evidence begins to pile up indicating that the local terrorists are actually (unwitting) pawns of foreign interests, and that the terrorist actions are merely the first step of a larger plan for the Cluster.

They then stumble across the Silesian privateer Marianne, which is in the process of delivering weapons to Westman. About to be boarded, and realizing that the penalty for piracy is death, one of the privateers panics and destroys the boarding pinnace, killing seventeen of Terekhov's crew, including Midshipwoman Pavletic. The surviving crew of the privateer, after being decimated by the Manticorans' deadly response, throws themselves on their mercy, and gives up the majority of the OFS's plan to occupy the Cluster. Helen withdraws from helping out with Westman; Van Dort, and the local president and marshal convince Westman to give up; he does when he learns that Mesa was helping his operation and disbands his group under amnesty. After dealing with the local terrorist groups by either force or reason, Captain Terekhov and Hexapuma assemble an ad hoc "squadron" with other Manticoran ships in a mission to prevent the next step of the conspirators' plan: the service entry of a fleet of powerful ex-Solarian battlecruisers which have been transferred to Monica, a Frontier Security proxy system, to be used against Manticore. After dropping into the system, Terekhov demands the surrender of the local fleet until Manticore can validate the cruisers' authenticity, and that they're sovereign of Monica and not the OFS. Playing for time, the Monican Navy manages to lure the Manticoran squadron into weapons range. In the following Battle of Monica, half of Terekhov's squadron is destroyed or crippled, though the Monican Navy is almost completely wiped out. Terekhov then threatens to nuke the remaining Monican military infrastructure, thus buying enough time for relief forces led by Rear Admiral Augustus Khumalo to arrive. After being relieved, and with the formal annexation of the Cluster well under way, Terekhov and Hexapuma return to the Manticore System, and are given a heroes welcome by the Home Fleet and Queen Elizabeth III.

 All in all, a great addition to the saga that sets up the next generation of heroes before Honor's child takes the mantle. Worth reading for the saga. Great characterization, fantastic plotting, and wonderful world-building create yet another stunning piece to the Honor Harrington series.

Book Review: Star Wars: X-Wing: Wraith Squadron SPOILERS!

In February 1998, writer Aaron Allston joined the Bantam Spectra ring of Expanded Universe authors to bring you the first of many one-dimensional books, and surprisingly remains a fan favorite among certain fans. Synopsis: It is Wedge Antille's boldest creation: a covert-action unit of X-Wing fighters, its pilots drawn from the dregs of other units, castoffs, and rejects given one last chance. But before the new pilots can complete their training, the squadron's base is attacked by former Imperial Admiral Trigit, and Wraith Squadron is forced to swing into action--taking over an Imperial warship and impersonating its crew. The mission: to gain vital intelligence about Trigit's secret weapons, to sabotage the admiral's plans, and to lure him into an Alliance trap. But the high-stakes gamble pits Wraith Squadron's ragtag renegades against the Empire's most brilliant master of guile and deception. Are they up to the challenge? If not, the penalty is instant death.

The novel opens with Rogue Squadron returning from the Battle of Thyferra and heralded as heroes on Coruscant. Above Gravan Seven, Lieutenant Myn Donos becomes the lone survivor of Talon Squadron during the battle. Days later, Wedge proposes starting a new X-Wing unit to Admiral Ackbar; Ackbar refuses, but strikes a bet with Wedge--if Antilles can get the squadron up and running, he can stay a commander, but if he loses, he becomes a general. Wedge actively seeks to stop this, but seeing that Ackbar's serious, he agrees. After weeks of selection and training, the new squadron is formed; it consists of Commander Wedge Antilles, Lieutenant Wes Janson, Lieutenant Myn Donos, holo-actor Garik "Face" Loran, demolitions expert and former Katarn Commando Kell Tainer, gifted mathematical Gammorrean Voort "Piggy" saBinring, Antarian Ranger Tyria Sarkin, Hohass "Runt" Ekwesh, Falynn Sandskimmer, Eurrsk "Grinder" Thri'ag, Jesmin Ackbar, and doctor Ton Phanan. It turns out that General Han Solo is given the command of the teams that will hunt for Warlord Zsinj, but Wraith Squadron isn't fully active yet.

During the next set of training, the squadron gets a name: Wraith Squadron from one of the commando-pilots. Shortly afterward, the training base at Folor is attacked by Admiral Apwar Trigit. All squadrons flee, but Wraith Squadron, though fleeing, decides to strike back. During this, it turns out that Wes killed Kell's father early on in the Rebellion because Kell's father was going to give away their position to the Empire via his panicking. Kell bears a grudge against Wes for that, but Wedge attempts to defuse it. Though Kell works well with the squadron, he still harbors anger at Wes. On the shuttle Narra, Kell and squadron mechanic Cubber Daine, send out a distress signal to Imperial Captain Darillian's ship, Night Crawler. Aboard the jury-rigged ship Lunatic, Piggy boards Night Crawler and neutralizes the hangar bay, which allows Wraith Squadron to board it. Piggy captures the bridge; Grinder takes a look and happily announces to Wedge that the Imperials left everything intact and didn't get a signal off; Piggy also killed Darillian. After visiting a number of worlds, Night Crawler faces off against more Imperials and Myn's droid Shiner and Jesmin Ackbar die--Jesmin because Kell's unable to reach her in time.

Myn goes into a near coma. When Wes covers for Myn, Kell finally realizes that Wes isn't a monster and forgives him for the imaginations of a child. Face, Kell, Tyria, and Falynn help Myn recover from his coma and convince him that the failure at Garvan Seven wasn't his fault and that his former squadron would want him to live. Wedge asks New Republic Captain Choday Hrakness to help them out by filling out Night Crawler with a complete crew, commanded by Hrakness himself, but under direct command of Wedge; Hrakness agrees and Night Crawler appears to work for Zsinj while secretly having some of Zsinj's borderline worlds unknowingly joining the New Republic. Wraith Squadron gets a holocom from Trigit who demands to know what they've been up to--he believes them to still be Imperial officers under the complete command of the deceased Captain Darillian--but Face manages to convince him to drop the subject. Trigit says he can't wait to see them at the rendezvous point. At the rendezvous point, Trigit points out that Night Crawler has been upgraded and has picked up a shuttle.

Imperial Lieutenant Gara Petothel warns Trigit that their secret weapon has been neutralized by the New Republic at Talasea and Trigit orders a change of course. Hrakness catches on and orders the crew to open fire on Provocateur and  Constrictor's engines, leaving the ships unable to escape. Implacable gets a shot off to the bridge of Night Crawler and Hrakness ends up spaced. Implacable gets away, much to Rogue Squadron, General Edor Crispin, and Wraith Squadron's disappointment. Face, Tyria, and Kell get promotions while the sole surviving member of Night Crawler's crew, Imperial Lieutenant Atril Tabanne is promoted to Captain in the New Republic Fleet. Kell receives the Kalidor Crescent for excellent piloting skills and bravery; Kell doesn't want it because he failed to save Jesmin's life, but Tyria berates him for being an idiot. Later, Night Crawler rendezvous with Trigit and Zsinj; Zsinj sends them out to eliminate Rogue Squadron--Trigit boasts that he'll do to Rogue Squadron what he did to Talon Squadron: annihilation. At Ession, the climax comes to a head between Wraith Squadron and Night Crawler.

Gara warns Trigit that it might be a Rogue Squadron trap. The Katarn Commandos, led by Lieutenant Judder Page, sabotage the Imperial reinforcements from Ession, and because of this Trigit tells Gara that if they (Trigit, Gara, and Implacable) survive, they're going renegade. During the fight, Kell loses it and attempts to flee, but he sees Tyria getting swarmed by TIE Fighters and rushes back to rescue her. Falynn and Grinder enter the Star Destroy to blow out its reactor as well as to severely cripple Implacable from the inside. General Crispin, commanding the A-Wing group Blue Squadron, arrives to lend a hand, as does Rogue Squadron. Trigit arms the Star Destroyer for self destruction, but Gara stops it just to save 35,000 people's lives, then she orders the crew to abandon ship. Grinder's X-Wing explodes during the attempt to escape the falling Implacable. Falynn dies as Impacable crashes into Ession's moon. Baron Soontir Fel--former Imperial ace pilot of the 181st Imperial Fighter Group, and Rogue Squadron pilot--orders the rest of the crew of Implacable to surrender, including the pilots; Wedge wonders when Fel went back to the Empire and why he's only an observer to Trigit. Crespin eliminates Trigit's wingmen while Myn blows Trigit up. Days later, Admiral Ackbar tells Kell that he's grateful that Kell attempted to save his niece's life. Ackbar finds Wedge and reminds him that the three month bet isn't up and despite Wraith Squadron's first victory, Wedge might have to accept that promotion.

All in all, a flat, stale, one-dimensional novel with gratuitous overused "humor" that's hardly worth reading. Believe me, it's worse than Piers Anthony's puns.

Up next: Honor Harrington: Shadow of Saganami by David Weber.

Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy III: The Last Command SPOILERS!

As an apology for lack of book reviews, I send this out today: 1st January 2014, American Pacific Time

On May 1993, Timothy Zahn finished the final book of the best-selling Star Wars saga: The Last Command. This time, Thrawn and the Empire press the advantage, but can Luke and company stop insane Jedi Master C'baoth and Thrawn before the New Republic is doomed? Synopsis: The embattled Republic reels from the attacks of Grand Admiral Thrawn, who has marshaled the remnants of the Imperial forces and driven the Rebels back with an abominable technology recovered from the Emperor's secret fortress: clone soldiers. As Thrawn mounts his final siege, Han and Chewbacca struggle to form a coalition of smugglers for a last-ditch attack against the Empire, while Leia holds the Alliance together and prepares for the birth of her Jedi twins. Overwhelmed by the ships and clones at Thrawn's command, the Republic has one last hope--sending a small force, led by Luke Skywalker, into the very stronghold that houses Thrawn's terrible cloning machines. There a final danger awats, as the Dark Jedi C'baoth directs the battle against the Rebels and builds his strength to finish what he had already started: the destruction of Luke Skywalker.

The novel opens with Thrawn's fleet, under the Force-precise timing of C'baoth, launches attacks on dozens of worlds, but this plan goes wrong when C'baoth recalls forces to capture and pursue Leia. Thrawn is angered by this; C'baoth uses the Force to force Captain Gilad Pellaeon to prepare the Mount Tantiss facility for his arrival. Luke finds Talon Karrde and informs him that Mara is recovering well and asks for help in the fight against Thrawn; Talon again states that he intends to remain neutral. Mara recovers and is placed in house arrest in the Imperial Palace, but when Imperials attack Coruscant, Mara breaks out and prevents Leia's newly born children--Jacen and Jaina--from being taken captive. Thrawn has thrown asteroids into the orbit of Coruscant, preventing anyone from leaving or entering the planet. However, Ghent figures out that most of the asteroids are holograms and the Republic is able to remove the correct ones without further incident. General Garm bel Iblis leads the attack against Thrawn and the entire outcome rests on the shipyards of Bilbringi. Meanwhile, Talon gathers all the head smugglers and attempts to form an alliance, but set backs occur that are blamed on Talon. Nigel Ferris, eventually and by accident, reveals that he was working for Thrawn and the smugglers join together to help the fledgling New Republic fight Thrawn. Luke, Han, Chewie, Leia, and Mara--with a company of Noghri commandos--infiltrate the planet Wayland and sneak into Mount Tantiss. Delta Source, the illusive informant of Thrawn's, is uncovered by Ghent and is revealed to be a set of trees that record everything its holocams pick up. During the Battle of Bilbringi, Thrawn starts to overpower the New Republic, but the Smuggler's Alliance comes in and helps stave off the impending assault. Lando, Han, and Chewie destroy the Spaarti cloning tanks while the others fight C'baoth. Thrawn's bodyguard, Rukh, kills Thrawn for crimes against the Noghro people and flees. Pellaeon orders a full retreat. During the duel with C'baoth, Luke and Leia are separated from Mara as she battles Luuke, a clone of Luke. She defeats him and kills C'baoth, then they all escape on board the Millennium Falcon as Mount Tantiss explodes. Back on Coruscant, Luke and Mara talk about the future.

All in all, a decent novel that finished the much-beloved EU trilogy by Timothy Zahn. Also, sorry for the late post. Thought I'd programmed this to submit earlier, but you tend to forget things during the busy holiday season. I will hyperlink later.