Customer Reviews

Dark Tide II: Ruin (Star Wars: The New Jedi Order, Book 3)

5 star:		(58)
4 star:		(48)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

For those who felt the two most recent books were short on the snap-hiss of lightsabers and personal combat/conflict, you will find all you want in this latest installment.

Shedao Shai leads the Yuuzhan Vong against the New Republic and a somewhat surprising ally, and brings with him all the Vong are known for. This book continues to take place in the very dark abyss R. A. Salvatore dropped this Star Wars experience into with Vector Prime. The sadomasochism of the Vong is more intense this time around, and I am tiring of it. Evil always was portrayed in Star Wars with much left to the imagination; the terror suggested was always magnified by the imagination of the reader. When an interrogation droid hovered into Princess Leia's cell in Episode 4 we were not present for whatever took place. In Episode 5 we only see the very beginning of Han Solo's treatment at the hand of Vader, a scream, and then a scene change.

Now we have the Vong's "Embrace Of Pain" that is pure horror story not science fiction. The level to which it is used stretches credibility. There is nothing clever about it, it's just graphic. I lost track of the number of beheadings and the ways they were described. The other offensive and defensive organic weapons of the Vong continue to fascinate, but there novelty is wearing thin. A new fighter on the side of the Republic is more interesting this time around. And the best part is you will never guess who leads the squadron.

Michael Stackpole continues as one of the best writers in the Star Wars Universe. The story he shares here is very well told, and strikes a balance between the times spent on Jedi Reflection, the Senate Politics, and the action that always has been the heart of Star Wars.

There are more bits of comment that suggest other changes are coming. I am beginning to wonder if when this latest cycle of books has ended will it coincide with the final movie?

George Lucas has said there will be no 3rd trilogy from him and he will not allow someone else to continue the story. These books may be the final trilogy, and they may bring everything full circle. Just a thought.

I do have one personal hope that someone will take a lightsaber to Borsk Fey'lya. I realize I may be slipping to the darker side, but if there in an appropriate place for this sentiment, it is within this series.

A very good read that all fans should enjoy.

Ruin, the third entry of the NEW JEDI ORDER series, isn't as good as the previous two installations.

The primary reason for this is that Siege, which was going to be the middle volume of this would be trilogy, was cancelled, so a lot of ideas and events seemed kind of either forced or unbased at the beginning of this volume. However, a lot of cool stuff did happen in this novel -- more on that later.

The biggest problem with this book, and its predecessor Onslaught, was that they tried to say too much. Though the publication of Siege would have helped, it wouldn't have alleviated this problem. The author crams a ton of events from a bunch of characters' POV into a few chapters, and then the book skips a week until the next big battle, skipping what would have been very interesting character building times. Another problem with this too much being said is that certain smaller plotlines were just dropped.

I found myself not liking the enemies, the Vong, in this book. Vector Prime set them up extremely well, alien and menacing, and, well...alien in thought and deed. In this book, however, they're still theoretically obsessed with pain, but they're too petty. They've gone from a terrifying unified force to political infighting among their own houses, petty acts of revenge, and are just too human in their thought processes.

Most of the characters are in character, but Luke and Corran are still often preachy-speechy, not seemingly able to have a normal conversation, while the Solo kids, for the most part very interesting characters, seem to be mostly just worry-warts in this book. While I wasn't expecting to see Han much, he gets more space than some other characters -- Leia is sadly neglected, as is the new and potentially very good character Danni Quee. However, because it's Stackpole, of course we get our myriad of familiar characters. Good old Kapp Dendo's back, Pelleaon, Chiss, Baron Fel is mentioned. Which leads me to another interesting but completely undeveloped character -- Fel's son, Jag.

The action isn't as good as in the other books -- in fact, most of the big battle isn't seen from the POV of the fighters, but is instead outlined after the fact. While there are a few very neat sequences, such as the destruction of the "grand," and the defoliation, most of the action scenes aren't what we've come to expect from Stackpole either. And he effectively makes it impossible for any other author to use his character Corran also.

Still, while the writing isn't so great, a lot of very interesting and important events occur, and a lot of neat insights and foresights are made. While this book doesn't have that "great book" feeling to it, it is definitely worth reading as one of the more "important" in the Star Wars line. I'll give it 3.5/5 stars.

I tried to leave room for doubt when I read the first DarkTide book. However, this one pretty much hammered in the last nail. I do not like Stackpole's writing at all. I'll give him credit for being able to describe the process of a Star Wars universe space battle in extreme detail, but there is a limit to what is necessary or even believable. (I've got to admit, as much as the New Republic is getting wasted, I'm shocked that no one seems to have even considered the use of atomics. Surely, with such technologies as hyperdrives and repulsorlifts available, they know how!)

Further... his characters are two dimensional. It was clear Stackpole was trying really hard with Jacen to make him a character of some depth, and to some extend he succeded. However, that's about it. Everyone else was too predictable. Mechanical. They all had emotions yes, but you are left with the impression at the end that, "*I* could have written this!"

Many key plot developments take place in these two books, though, so you can't really bypass them. They are not so badly written that it is an endurance test, but I didn't get much joy out of them. Look forward to Luceno's books. He's much much better with character.

I must say, Stackpole is one of the top three writers of Star Wars novels. There were several aspects of the book that I liked, such as his development of the Vong culture. Before, we didn't have a clue what made them tick, but now we know more about them as a people. As usual, the battles will keep you on the edge of your seat. One thing that I didn't like about the storyline is that the Vong seem easier to defeat. In Vector Prime, they were portrayed as a super-race that could beat the Jedi Knights. They were shown as a race in which the individual didn't care about his own political status, but only for the dominance of the galaxy. Now, they are no better than the bureaucrats of the New Republic. And they seen much easier to defeat in battle. The Jedi only lost a few in the last battle, and none in the first. One thing that I didn't expect was the way the story ended. You won't believe the way things turn out. I look forward to the release of Agents of Chaos 1: Hero's Trial this fall.

Stackpole's Dark Tide Duology is fantastic. The ever-present sense of doom that makes the book impossible to put down.

Ruin is a good conclusion to Onslaught. The Jedi storylines are great.The Ganner-Corran rift is handled very well, as is the "soul searching" of Jacen Solo. Even the subplot involving Daeshara'cor was good. But the best parts involve the outcome of Elegos' mission and the ending duel. The duel is great with the expected outcome, but it is the events after the happiness that are the reason this installment is called Ruin.

Stackpole is a master of handling several characters and storylines, and has shown himself to be a credit to the Star Wars universe with this book.

I haven't read a StarWars novel I haven't liked yet and this is no exception. However, this book did seem to have been hurried. They spent all this time looking for something to use against the Vong, when they found it, they didn't use it. The older characters are getting lost. Can you see Han Solo drowning in self-pitty. I don't think so. Leia setting back while her children are knee deep into life and death. Could we please find the cure for Mara? All in all this was a great book, I couldn't put it down. As with any book I read, I would always like to do things a little different. To all StarWars fans this is a must read, but read the other 2 books of the TNJO first, it will make it a lot easier to follow.

All in all, the book is pretty good. Some of the ideas and plots are a little farfetched even for Star Wars but I guess that just adds to the flavor. Michael Stackpole is an aewsome author, so I like pretty much like everything he writes. In the book, you get to know some of the not-as-well-know characters and I think that is waht makes it most interesting. This is definitley a must have if you are a Star Wars fan.

The Empire Strikes back is one of Fans favorite movies, as it takes the characters we loved from Star Wars, and in ways that forced them to grow and change, beat them up. Luke lost his innocence and his hand, Han was betrayed and Frozen, and the Rebellion was delt a serious defeat at Hoth. Dark Tide:Ruin draws on this formula to create a very powerful and actionpacked story, that socks it too the characters in a Galaxy Far Far Away. Ruin is a very accurate description, as there is a lot of destruction, on both sides. The LS makes some early victories, but find that the threat is much worse than they have seen before. The Vong are now breeding Humans into warriors, have built a warship that is equivelent in size to a Super Star Destroyer, and have the power to decimate an entire planet in just hours. It is not entirely hopeless however, as the Republic has new allies and stratagies against the Vong. Pelleaon and the Remnent help out, and Jagged Fel, son of Baron Fel arrives with a group of Chiss fighters to assist against the ruthless enemy. There are battles and thrills aplenty, with new characthers, and old ones fighting side by side. Anakin gets some more development to his character, as he comes to grips with his feelings about the death of Chewbacca. Jaina also grows a lot. I for one like books that make you care even more about the characters than you did, and Ruin accomplishes that. Also, one of the people I least expected to die, well, died. This level of care for characters, and genuine threat to the characters and their univere and cause has not been seen since Empire Strikes Back. This is a book that people will enjoy. Another welcome addition is a look at the Vong, their social structure, aims, desires, beliefs, things we have wanted to know for the past two novels are revealed at last. The only thing I did not like was the length, it could have used another 50 pages. I would however rather have a book that left you wanting more than one that overstayed its welcome (Tom Clancy *cough*). All together, a wonderful book that broadens the Star Wars Universe, and makes it a more enjoyable place for the fan. 4/5 stars.

This is a much better book than the first two. Luke on Mara/"How like her to watch. Assessing who is with me and who is not". Daeshara`cor/Chalco: Great story. Shedao/Elegos: Two sides to every arguement. Pellaeon`s motive`s. Alot going on in this book with clear fight scenes, deeper plot lines and excellent character`s with smooth running dialoge. Downside?:Again this guy Stackpole goes with the "shoulder scenes". Page 43/47/86/87/111/113(2)/114/154/198(3)/201/210/225/233/234/246 and 251. Second?: Daeshara`cor`s motive never explained and when we see her again with Luke everything is all well and good, which doesn`t make much sense because she was so commited before. An enjoyable read. I`d like to say I`ll continue with the series, but a number of idiots and or morons insist on putting spoilers in their reviews so while I already knew about Chewbacca ("THEY KILLED CHEWIE!") Ive also found out another tid-bit which has ruined the series for me.

The excellent New Jedi Order series continues with the second of Michael Stackpole's Dark Tide books. The Yuuzhan Vong have begun overrunning New Republic worlds on the edge of the galaxy, although the bureaucrats who run the Republic have finally acknowledged the threat. An infiltration mission led by the Jedi Corran Horn uncovers a possible weakness (fortunately not some stupid all-powerful deus ex machina) of the invaders, which leads to a massive battle over the planet Ithor. Meanwhile, Leia Organa Solo negociates with the remnants of the old Empire to bring them into the war on the Republic's side and a rogue Jedi seeks an alternative, forbidden method of striking back.

I was most impressed with many aspects of the book. Stackpole continues to brilliantly portray both space and ground combat, while at the same time not sacrificing character interest. Special tribute should definitely be paid to Elegos A'Kla, the alien senator who goes to try to negociate peace with the Yuuzhan Vong, even though he knows it may well mean his death. The characterisation of the Solo kids remains excellent as well, particularly Jaina (mainly because she seems more self-assured than her brothers and therefore is less annoying). Admiral Pellaeon of Timothy Zahn fame makes a welcome return, as pragmatic as ever. Of the new characters that appear in Ruin, I thought Jagged Fel (son of Stackpole's Baron Soontir Fel) was a good addition to the cast - I particularly liked his standing up to the New Republic politicians. Too bad he seems to have vanished in more recent books. The subplot with Daeshara'cor may seem superfluous, but it does actually have a point - how far should the New Republic go to protect itself? Would the Empire, less fettered by bureaucracy and grey-area ethics, do better against the Yuuzhan Vong?

The ending (as mentioned by another reviewer) was indeed downbeat, but it fit well with the generally gritty and realistic tone of the New Jedi Order series, reminding the reader that in real life, sometimes all the Boy's Own heroics in the world (or galaxy, in this case) can't save the day.