Book Review: Star Wars: Dark Forces: Rebel Agent SPOILERS!

On March 11, 1998, William C. Deitz returned to the Star Wars Expanded Universe to compose the second novella of the Dark Forces trilogy, Star Wars Dark Forces: Rebel Agent, part one of two of a story about the hit Kyle Katarn game Star Wars: Dark Forces II: Jedi Knight. Published by Dark Horse Comics and Boulevard. This time, Dietz takes us to the opening of the game to finding the coordinates for a lost planet of the Jedi, in a race against time and several Dark Jedi to determine the fate of the fabled Valley of the Jedi. Synopsis: Secret Rebel Agent Kyle Katarn will do anything to avenge his father's untimely death at the hands of the Empire. When Kyle is threatened by 8t88 in a Nar Shaddaa bar, he tracks down the droid and secures a mysterious disk that could put him on the path to learning why his father was killed. Kyle soon finds that the disk contains information about a map to the Valley of the Jedi, a place his father had stumbled upon and kept secret. Now it's a race between Kyle and the Empire to see who can get to the map—and the Valley—first. Based on the popular Star Wars: DARK FORCES and Star Wars: JEDI KNIGHT interactive games, Rebel Agent is part two of a trilogy written by acclaimed author William C. Dietz (The Final Battle) and illustrated by the award-winning artist Ezra Tucker (the Adventures of Little Nettie Windship children's book series).

The novella opens with Morgan Katarn taking a few citizens and farmers to a smuggler's haven on the remote and forgotten planet of Ruusan, home to telepathic beings called bouncers. Morgan, after helping oversee the settlers settle in "Fort Nowhere", Morgan heads for the badlands, where he encounters a couple of bouncers. They tell him about the Poem of Ages: "A Knight shall come, a battle will be fought, and the Prisoners will go free." Despite his misgivings, the bouncers believe he is the one who will free the trapped Jedi and Sith spirits. Morgan, after seeing the Valley, flees in terror. Back on Sulon, Morgan tells Jedi Master Qu Rahn about the Valley, but Rahn refuses to be told the location and that Morgan should leave the coordinates for Kyle. The book then references Morgan being killed by Jerec a few months later. Five years later, Rahn, pilot Duno Dree, professor Nij Por Ral, technologist Rolanda Gron, and weapons expert Cee Norley are hunted on Dorlo by Dark Jedi Sariss, her son and friend Yun, and Maw--a former Jedi Knight. The Dark Jedi trio manage to kill Norley and Boc Aseca manages to capture the others. On the bridge of the Super Star Destroyer Vengeance, Gorc and Picaroon C. Boodle--a.k.a. Pic--kill Rolanda, Yun kills Nij Por Ral, Boc kills Duno Dree (this is the part where the games starts, with Bock killing Duno Dree). Rahn, after Jerec pries the location of the coordinates from his mind, slices Maw in half, but Maw survives, and Jerec kills Rahn.

On Nar Shaddaa--the Smuggler's Moon/Vertical City--8t88 attempts to hire Boba Fett to shake information out of Kyle, but Fett, having had a prior experience with Kyle, declines. Kyle meets with 8t88; the droid reveals Morgan's disk, but Kyle refuses to help '88. 8t88 orders his goons to kill Kyle, but he gets the drop on them and chases 8t88 through the streets and finally corners him, blowing off an arm with the disk, but the droid escapes on a shuttle. Meanwhile, Jan, having arrived, blows a TIE/sa bomber about to kill Kyle. Kyle tells Jan that the disk has fallen to the undercity and goes racing off after it. After a fight through the lower levels of Nar Shaddaa, Kyle manages to retrieve the disc before he becomes badly wounded. Jan finishes off the rest of the scum and hauls Kyle back onto the Moldy Crow. On the hospital ship Mercy, Jan steals Kyle's disc and shows the information to Mon Mothma, Leia Organa, and Luke Skywalker, but Luke, despite Mon Mothma's assurance that Kyle might fall, knows this is part of Kyle's journey. He also states that Yoda related the Seven Battles of Ruusan during the New Sith Wars years ago. Jan puts the disk back, and Kyle, when he wakes up, leaves for the Katarn homestead on Sulon. It turns out that Boc, Sariss, and Yun have already arrived and taken a few stone slabs and left for Barons Hed. Kyle sneaks his way into the house and finds the family droid WeeGee. he reactivates him and plays the disk. Morgan appears and states that he embedded the coordinates for Ruusan in the ceiling of the work room--where WeeGee is and where the stone slabs came from--and left Rahn's lightsaber behind for Kyle to use for good.

Kyle and WeeGee escape the farm, but end up chased by a band of Tusken Raiders; WeeGee pulls Kyle to safety into the Moldy Crow while the Tuskens fall off a cliff. In the Governor's House, in Barons Hed, 8t88 kills a majordomo for being rude, and uploads the coordinates to Jerec. Kyle arrives, and so does Yun; 8t88 escapes with his Hornagaunt pet while Yun and Kyle duel. Kyle defeats Yun and spares him, then escapes as stormtroopers enter the room. Kyle tracks 8t88 to Fuel City and Jan drops him off. Kyle sneaks aboard the Sulon Star and finds 8t88, but the droid is dead, killed by Gorc and Pic. Dimwitted Gorc leaps out at Kyle and the Jedi shoots him in the head (very different from the game), then knocks Pic unconscious. Kyle kills the Hornagaunt--which has eaten 8t88's head--and retrieves the droid's head, figuring out that the coordinates are stored in them, but Pic wakes up. Kyle bashes Pic with 8t88's head, then flees the Star. A firefight ensues and Fuel City is destroyed, but a couple of TIE/LN fighters chase Jan and Kyle through the Nefra Canyons where one impacts with a cliff face, and the other is shot down by Kyle's Bryar blaster pistol. Back at the Katarn estate, Jan hooks 8t88's head into WeeGee, and all three of them see the coordinates for Ruusan. Luke arrives, and Kyle finds out that Jan told Luke, Leia, and Mon Mothma about his trip, but Luke talks him into a temporary apprenticeship. The four of them leave for the Valley.

All in all, a well crafted novella that perfectly captures the first half of the game, but Deitz's changes are great: Boba Fett's appearance, Morgan and the Ruusan scenes, a different trek through Nar Shaddaa than the game, a longer version of the hospital ship scene, faster action getting into and out of the Katarn estate, a different look at Barons Hed, a chase through the Nefra canyons, and Luke teaming up with Kyle and Jan to hunt for the Valley of the Jedi. Wonderful, absolutely wonderful.

Next time, Star Wars: Dark Forces: Jedi Knight by William C. Deitz, with art by famed artist Dave Dorman, in the epic conclusion to the novella trilogy and the second half of the game.

Book Review: Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy Volume II: Dark Force Rising SPOILERS!

In June 1992, Timothy Zahn published the bestselling sequel to the New York Times Bestselling Star Wars: Heir to the Empire. The novel fully explores the Star Wars galaxy, adding many new species, people, and technology. Synopsis: The number-one New York Times bestselling Heir to the Empire was the publishing event of the year, the first novel to continue the adventures of Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, and Han Solo, beyond the events of the most popular trilogy in movie history. Now comes Dark Force Rising, the second volume of a three-book cycle authorized by Lucasfilm Ltd. and written by Hugo Award-winning author Timothy Zahn. Five years after the events of Return of the Jedi, the fragile Republic that was born with the defeat of Darth Vader, the Emperor, and the infamous Death Star stands threatened from within and without. The dying Empire's most cunning and ruthless warlord—Grand Admiral Thrawn—has taken command of the remnants of the Imperial fleet and launched a massive campaign aimed at the Republic's destruction. With the aid of unimaginable weapons long hidden away by the Emperor on a backwater planet, Thrawn plans to turn the tide of the battle, overwhelm the New Republic, and impose his iron rule throughout the galaxy. Meanwhile, dissension and personal ambition threaten to tear the Republic apart. As Princess Leia—pregnant with Jedi twins—risks her life to bring a proud and lethal alien race into alliance with the Republic, Han and Lando Calrissian race against time to find proof of treason inside the highest Republic Council—only to discover instead a ghostly fleet of warships that could bring doom to their friends and victory to their enemies. But most dangerous of all is a new Dark Jedi, risen from the ashes of a shrouded past, consumed by bitterness…and thoroughly, utterly insane. Now he schemes to use his awesome mastery of the Force to summon young Skywalker, allay his misgivings, cunningly enthrall him, and ultimately corrupt him to the Dark Side. A tale of brilliant spectacle, startling revelations, and tumultuous action, Dark Force Rising moves with the speed of light across a dazzling epic landscape of galactic proportions, from world to world, from adventure to adventure, as Good and Evil clash across the vastness of space "a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...."


Because of how the Battle of Sluis Van went, Grand Admiral Thrawn and Captain Gilad Pellaeon search the planet Myrkr for smuggler Talon Karrde. Karrde, at the edge of the system, flees with his crew, including Mara Jade--a former Emperor's Hand. On Sluis Van, Han Solo and Lando Calrissian, and Luke Skywalker try to find evidence of the mysterious Delta Source at the planet New Cov. At New Cov, it is believed that one of Senator Borsk Fey'lya's advisers is a traitor to the New Republic for Thrawn, and is thus a primary suspect for Delta Source. But before Han, Lando and Luke can find any real evidence to whether or not Fey'lya's adviser is a traitor, the three of them soon find out that Thrawn's forces have arrived on the planet. They manage to escape, and Han and Lando are saved by a third party, which takes them to an unknown location where they meet the legendary General Garm bel Iblis, one of the initial members of the Alliance to Restore the Republic. Bel Iblis disagrees to help the New Republic defeat Thrawn on account of personal problems with Chief of State Mon Mothma.

Luke heads to Jomark and meets the insane Dark Jedi Joruus C'baoth--a clone of Jedi Master Jorus C'baoth--who beings to complete Luke's training. Luke notices that C'baoth's version of what a Jedi should be--C'baoth believes that all living beings are meant to serve Jedi and that the Jedi can impose their will on the people--differs vastly from what Obi-Wan and Yoda taught him. Meanwhile, Karrde gets captured by Thrawn and Mara, despite her longing to kill Luke, goes to Jomark to get Luke to help her rescue Karrde. C'baoth is furious that Luke is leaving and tries to attack. Thanks to an ysalamiri that she brought with her, Mara and Luke defeat C'baoth and they infiltrate Chimaera to rescue Karrde. Despite encountering armed stormtroopers, they manage to escape. Leia Solo, meanwhile, keeps her promise to Khabarakh and she, Khabarakh, Chewbacca, and C-3PO head to Honoghr. Once there, Leia manages to get the entire Noghri race to side with the New Republic against Thrawn by exposing the fact that it was the Empire that devastated Honoghr, not the Alliance. (In the actual timeline and chronology of events, it was General Grievous who did this atrocity during the Clone Wars.)

After a race against time, the New Republic finds out via Karrde that he exposed the secret of the legendary Katana fleet to Thrawn under torture. This fleet can supposedly grant Thrawn total infallible military power that will ultimately cripple the New Republic. Borsk and Leia take a New Republic task force whose crew members are loyal to Fey'la to the location of the Katana Fleet. Once they get there, they find Luke, Karrde, Lando, and Han trying to stave off Thrwan's forces form taking the last ten ships. Wedge Antilles leads Rogue Squadron to lend them a hand while the heroes secure the rest of the ships. Karrde tricks Fey'lya into admitting that he only agreed to come out here for political reasons and that "honor is outdated." The crew hears this and locks Fey'lya up; Mara brings in Karrde's forces and, after a battle, manage to destroy a couple of the ships Thrawn was taking, but ultimately, Thrawn ends up with the majority of the Katana fleet. Mara is rendered unconscious during the fight and the heroes take her to Coruscant where Karrde leaves her in the care of Leia; his best slicer, Zakarisz Ghent stays behind too.

All in all, a wonderful novel crafted by Timothy Zahn in the glory days of the Bantam Spectra decade. Timothy Zahn brought a sense of wonder and excitement back to Star Wars. Great pacing, wonderful characters, thrilling action scenes, this novel is must read for all fans of Star Wars.