Customer Reviews

Backlash (Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi, Book 4)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This being the fourth book in the Fate of the Jedi series, I don't have much to add to my thoughts on the series. The main plots are here, Jedis going crazy, political power struggles between the Remnant Empire, the Galactic Alliance, and the Jedi, and Luke and Ben adventuring together. Thankfully, the book is not entirely a clone of the ones before it, which books 2 and 3 pretty much were. The Jedi going crazy plot is given little space and that is to this book's benefit. Luke and Ben have switched from following Jacen Solo's trail to following the Sith Vestara Khai's trail; well, that's a bit different at least. And the political power struggles? Well, if the Star Wars: Legacy comics are part of the Expanded Universe continuity, we know how things end up, so there's not too much tension there. Pros: The second half of the book is more suspenseful than the first, especially with Vestara Khai proving to be an interesting and deceitful foe for Ben. Cons: Luke and Ben are still following somebody and interacting with a weird tribe of people that they must prove themselves to, just like in the former books. The small plot involving Allana/Amelia Solo is just as cutesy and seemingly pointless as the ones in the previous books. (Pro: it received much fewer pages this time.)

Overall, this book continues the Fate of the Jedi series: not enough happens for the price of the hardcover. The entire series is the most blatant money grab yet for the Star Wars books; at least the New Jedi Order books, which also had a lot of pointless filler, were mostly in paperback. These books will continue to be enjoyed by Star Wars enthusiasts and completists, and I count myself among them, but do yourself a favor and check it out from the library or wait until it is in the bargain bin.

20 words or less: Despite some illogical character decisions, Backlash appeals to fans of both the original and prequel trilogies while continuing to build on the groundwork of the series and fix the expanded universe.

My Rating: 3.5/5

Pros: Luke and Ben feature in a worthwhile plot with memorable scenes; Crazed Jedi plotline continues to build slowly but steadily toward an unpredictable conclusion; Fate of the Jedi continues to build a strong groundwork with consistant characterization and few continuity errors;

Cons: Humor doesn't work as well as in previous Allston novels; Although necessary, the youth movement creates frustratingly illogical scenarios;

The Review: The writers and editors of the Fate of the Jedi series might not be Jedi Masters yet but they are getting closer and closer to hitting that wamp rat sized target located in the middle of nostalgia and innovation. Fate of the Jedi is supposed to be a return to the lighter, more escapist fare of the early Star Wars adventures after years of doom and gloom that robbed the galaxy far far aware of its most promising protagonists. While early installments struggled to drive forward the series plotlines and maintain individual narratives, in Backlash, Allston appears to have placed the flailing series on solid ground with the help of the Sith threat introduced in Book 3.

As young Jedi continue to inflicted by an unexplained insanity that makes their fellow Knights appear to be evil doppelgangers in their maladied minds, the Jedi Order struggles to maintain credibility with a government that has been seen Jedi become Sith one time too many. The Order must defend itself from these mentally ill Jedi, the politicians of the Galactic Alliance, and the power hungry moffs of the resurgent Empire. At the same time, Luke, convicted of endangering the galactic population by training these fallen Jedi and failing to control them and subsequently exiled from the Jedi Order, continues to explore the galaxy with his son Ben, hoping to find what caused his nephew Jacen Solo to become the Sith that killed Luke's wife, Mara. After encountering and repelling a Sith ambush in the previous installment, Luke and Ben track the sole survivor to Dathomir, where she attempts to hide herself within the innately force-sensitive, rancor-riding, indigenous population. When they do ultimately catch up to her, all is not as it appears.

Like the previous novels, the main Jedi plotline and the Skywalker plotline are for the most part separate although Han and Leia do jump between threads, providing that nostalgic feeling of reunion previously missing. However, unlike the previous novels, the Skywalker plotline is more substantive, developing the Force witches of Dathomir into a deeper culture than the wasted opportunities represented by the Baran Do Sages of Outcast and the Aing-Tii monks of Omen. As Luke and Ben attempt to capture the rogue Sith warrior, they find themselves in the middle of a clan war between a progressive clan rejecting the matriarchal traditions of the past and the secretive, darkside-wielding NightSisters. Whether it's the inclusion of the Sith element or the depth of the Dathomiri culture, there is a relevance to their actions that surpasses the "after-school special" superficiality of earlier plots. The re-emergence of the Sith as a threat, although a somewhat tamer version than Palpatine's evil incarnate, also raise the stakes of the series overall. It took awhile but Luke and Ben's actions finally matter again.

The second string concerning the political struggles of the Jedi amidst a crisis of crazies is about as strong as it has been all series but rather than being forced to carry the weight of the book, the strength of the Dathomir plotline allows it to slowly ratchet up the tension. While it's strange that major players are still being introduced into the series in the fourth book, the multi-dimensional power struggle appears to reaching a tipping point and it's difficult to predict how it will all play out, something atypical for the average Star Wars novel. After the extended break between books 3 and 4 caused by Allston's unfortunate heart attack, I'm very excited to see the series continue despite some of its flaws which admittedly may be more a result of my departure from the ranks of the targeted demographic than any flaw on Allston's part.

Through the half dozen or so Allston SW novels I've read, the single most notable aspect of his writing is his gift for humor. Despite suffering the aforementioned heart attack, Allston returns to his trademark humor here, albeit with somewhat less impact. Some of the changes that the Del Rey/Lucas Books editors have been introducing into the Fate of the Jedi are storylines that are somewhat lighter in tone. After the genocidal plots of the New Jedi Order icosikaihenilogy (21 books) and the fratricidal plots of the Legacy of the Force enneilogy (9 books), the fans were clamoring for lighter fare. Del Rey delivers this in Fate of the Jedi but unfortunately at the expense of the effectiveness of Allston's humor. In his X-Wing books and his NJO work, the dark comedy stood out in contrast to the bleak situations our characters found themselves in. Like a coping mechanism, the characters seemed to laugh because it was the only way to distract themselves from the death surrounding them. Even the humor of The Empire Strikes Back broke the tension between Imperial assaults and torture sessions. With the lighter tone of FotJ, Allston's writing comes across as almost cutesy, especially in scenes involving the pre-teen Allana Solo and the young adult Ben Skywalker.

This cutesy factor has been one of the largest problems of the series so far and the lack of appropriately aged characters continues in Backlash. Luke, Leia, and Han are considered to be either "too skilled" or "too old" for major action sequences and as a result an unrealistic amount of weight is placed on the shoulders of young protagonists, namely Ben and Allana. In the past the mainstream SW novels have been separated from the YA stories but Fate of the Jedi appears to be catering to both the old guard of the original trilogy and the younger fans of the prequel era. While understandable, this fanboy doesn't like watching his heroes throw their children into danger with terrible parenting decision after decision for the sake of their screen time.

As an example, Han and Leia leave their daughter alone for weeks where she eventually encounters a murderous junker who runs the local chop shop. Ben is given command of a tribe of older, trained warriors whose culture he doesn't understand to defend their redoubt from a rancor siege. And it's not so much the fact that they are put into dangerous situations, it's that they are portrayed as more capable than any of the adults around. It's only a matter of time before Ben is teaching the tribes strategy so basic a Gungan should know them and using his "detective skills" to suss out decades old secrets in days. Under the flimsy pretense of training, the authors marginalize Luke Skywalker to create artificial tension in scenarios where he could easily resolve conflicts with minimum bloodshed. Why would a Jedi let hundreds of people die when he has the power to save them? This illogical youth movement is frustrating at times but unfortunately necessary as the editorial staff has killed off or marginalized the majority of strong appropriately aged characters over the past few years and continually overpowered Luke and Leia.

Regardless of my fanboy criticisms, Backlash is still a worthwhile entry into the Star Wars canon and my favorite of the Fate of the Jedi books thus far. It ends on an enigmatic note that begs for further exploration in Troy Denning's Allies (due out in late May). Despite the younger, lighter tone of the series, Fate of the Jedi continues to present enjoyable Star Wars adventures in an episodic format that allow you to jump back to the galaxy far, far away that you explored in the imagination of your youth for a few hours. It's clear that Star Wars is in a bit of a transition period as LucasBooks attempts to rebuild the universe from catastrophic events of the past few years but I'm hopeful that once the youth movement completes, the character development will be worth it. It should be expected but character continuity has been something that hasn't always made an appearance in Star Wars fiction, so the increased attention in Fate of the Jedi is appreciated even if it creates other smaller problems. If you were a Star Wars fan that has abandoned the series because it lost the escapist elements that made it Star Wars, it might be time to take a second look.

this book series is becoming one of my favorites to read star wars in my honest opinon is way better than that dumb unintelligent twilight saga star wars blows the twilight saga outta the water if you wantr to read a book series thats better than the twilight saga read the new jedi order legacy of the force including the most recent fate of the jedi book series!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I listened to this story with an audio book. I will always wonder if it would have come off as badly if I read it instead. I am not enjoying this "Fate of the Jedi" series. Like others have said, we get the same formula with these books. Luke & son have to go to planet X, they have to learn the culture of the inhabitants (in this book it is a physical competition between tribes, yawn), while scheming is going on & jedi turn crazy in other parts of the galaxy.

Han's grand daughter is quickly becoming my least fav Star Wars character ever and that includes Jar Jar. She is 9 or something but thinks she knows best & gets in lots of bad cheesy "Full House" moments or says some of the worst things. I understand that the prequels had 10 year olds in important roles, but I didn't like it then and I esp. don't like it in this book. In the writer's defense, I may just have had a very bad experience with this because the audio book was torture as a male narrator tried to pretend to have a 9 year old girl voice.

And Ben Skywalker, yikes this guy has a bad sense of humor but thinks he is just too funny. His character can be summed up like this "son of Luke Skywalker, young jedi, part time detective with military training, aspires to be a stand up comic." Want an example of his humor? He says something like "what's red, hairy, and 3 feet tall?" I can't remember what he had said but it was a bunch of random adjectives and the punch line was "an ewok with a lunch box" or something like that. It was supposed to be funny because it was an ewok and something unexpected. He provides lot of "roll your eye" moments.

The book does get good towards the end, but it was too little too late. Maybe the only thing going for this book (and this series) is the sith girl. I didn't need to read about the Dathomir olympics or Allana Solo's antics. I find Daala to become more and more boring. We also have some lame schemers that play dress up at meetings where they scheme. They come off like 60s Batman & Robin foes. Like they are making trouble just to make trouble.

Aside from Daala (which doesn't feel right in anyone's hands) Allston creates what I think may be the perfect "filler" novel. It's escapism from the escapism. Oh if he'd just gotten the Daala stuff right because the rest of the novel is just perfect adventurous fun. It's miles above Outcast and stands on it's own better than any of the FOTJ or LOTF books.

Everything on Dathomir was sheer joy for me. The way the Sith plot is playing out is working for me. The book had everything (In a filler novel which I knew this was going to be.) And we've moved on with Jag and Jaina. And we thankfully didn't have much to do with the Jedi madness. Frankly, I don't want to have to deal with it again until Cilgal is ready to do something about it. And Vestara. She still reminds me of Nen Yim for some reason. I hope she sticks around. She's definitely the most interesting character to come along in a while.

The Daala stuff was really odd. Mando's attacking the Temple then that's somehow forgotten. Cut to the Jedi and Daala suddenly brokering deals through Han and Leia? See, I don't think the Daala character has been really defined by any one author. (actually I think Anderson is the only man who got her) In FOTJ she changes from book to book and in some cases within the same book. She's all over the place.

Backlash is the strongest FOTJ novel to date. It may not have had the most "important" information but I think it was a better Star Wars novel than Abyss. Abyss was trippy and cool. I loved it. But Backlash felt like good old fashioned Star Wars. Bantam on a double caf!

I only collect Star Wars hardcover books now that I have a Kindle and purchased this one and it was quickly received and in excellent condtion. The story line is good and moves you through... well I leave out any give away info, it is good. Fabulous and thanks!!!!

After finishing the book my only thought was I paid too much for it. The story didn't really advance much and the book was at times boring. This is from someone who marks on his calendar when the next Star Wars book is due out so it has to be really bad for me not to like it.

There's still a fair amount of mystery despite having the cause of the madness being revealed and why they were affected by it (Abeloth's release is linked to the destruction of Centerpoint Station during LotF series). It certainly leaves it open to question as to whether or not Ben will inexplicably start acting as the others have since he was in the Maw as an infant. Likewise he apparently has earned the interest of Vestara, but his interest in her appears to be purely based on figuring out what her superiors are up to now.

As for Vestara herself, she is now without a Master thanks to Luke slicing Rhea into pieces during their duel in Abyss. She can certainly play parts, it seems sincere with her and the Dathomiri, but it appears it was all a scheme to nab a Nightsister. This doesn't pan out, but the Lost Tribe has tracked Vestara to Dathomir.

A showdown is inevitable though once again Luke comes out on the top more or less.

However the Force Psychosis is spreading as now seven Jedi have contracted it. Daala tries to strong arm the Order again to turn over the most recent case to her for carbonite freezing just as was done with the Horns.

Jag Fel survives two designed to fail assassination attempts likely led by the Moffs, but it is someone not of the Moff Council that prefers that Fel not remain Imperial Head of State. Likewise it looks as if the individual intends to drive a wedge between the Alliance and the Imperials by way of putting Daala in the hot seat.

The political intrigues often have touches of personal whims in them as there's a distinct prejudice against anyone who associated with the Chiss since the days of Thrawn.

Some unspoken questions have been answered, but other mysteries remain such as will the maddened Jedi ever recover, how many more will succumb, what twists will this encounter with the Lost Tribe take. Furthermore what if anything will happen between Ben and Vestara as it looks likely that Tahiri may end up executed for killing Pellaeon in the final weeks of the Second Galactic Civil War.

In lighter moments, the subplot of Allana rescuing R2 is sweet. It is touching to see the Solo-Skywalker bond with R2 continuing into a new generation. This undoubtedly would explain how he manages to survive many more decades in their service. Similarly she also possesses her father's affinity for animal companions, at least back when he was closer to her age. Allana looks to have an interesting future ahead of her provided she lives to see it.

Being Solo or Skywalker doesn't get less daunting with age, but with the Solo-Skywalker family around her, I believe she'll be just fine.

Once more Aaron Allston proves to be a consistently exceptional writer for Star Wars. If you have read Allston, you'll know you have got a good read in your hands.

As a Star Wars fan I am excited by any new book, and this series has been very good for the most part.

Another quality addition to the Fate of the Jedi series, and as with all of them, definitely leaves you wanting to pick up the next one right away. It was unfortunate that this book had to be delayed so long due to Allston's health problems, but I look forward to getting the next book soon.