Customer Reviews

Patterns of Force (Star Wars: Coruscant Nights III)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

...but was simply too ridiculous to pull it off.
Another reviewer on here wrote about the "silly" things in this series and I agree with that review. Reaves, who did so well with the MedStar books, should have stayed out of Jedi lore and delivered more Star Wars through another perspective. Much like Traviss really shines when she deals with non-Jedi (the Clones and Mandalorians) Reaves' medical personnel and media hounds were truly interesting to read. Some people just shouldn't be allowed to muck about with lightsabers and Force-religion.
The Coruscant Nights Trilogy tries too hard. I appreciate the attempt at having a noir feel - in fact, I think it's a great idea. I don't think that having a Jedi play Private Eye is such a good idea. It comes off completely silly, trite, and campy. Were the character of Jax Pavan a normal citizen, or perhaps a law enforcement agent, a reporter, or even a person with just a slight affinity for the Force, these books could have been fantastic. The conflict could have existed on a level of a lone do-gooder against a corrupt system. We could have seen the bad guy be an Imperial agent, an Imperial enforcer - something. However, since he's a full-fledged Jedi Knight, we get such ridiculous things thrown in here for "excitement" (enter, the Inquisitors, and the "Inquisitorius"- an entire legion of Dark Side users) that this turns into a complete turn-off. The Inquisitors were one of the worst additions to Star Wars lore that I have ever come across. Suddenly we have Vader training dozens (perhaps even hundreds?) of Force-users in the Dark Side to hunt down other Force-users and rogue Jedi. I mean, there's the whole "Rule of Two" thing, plus one would think that any Force-users would be seen as a threat to the Palpatine/Vader regime. Plus, the idea of an Inquisitorius is such a big one that it makes a strange gap in continuity that we've never heard about it at any point until now.
And one character's use of the Force is so beyond a level we've ever seen before and he's not even fully trained? This kid, who's never had any instruction, mind you, is vaporizing people with the Force. How many Masters of the Force have we seen or heard of doing this? And some teenage kid is pulling it off with "just instinct."
Light sculptures shielding the Force from detection? Ugh. Don't get me started.
And Vader going on a "bad trip" (an actual quote from the book) when he takes some bota? Good God, the last thing I want to see is the Dark Lord himself having some drug freak out.
Plus, Reaves' characterization of Vader is just awful. His dialogue is never right, his motives and actions are so un-Vader-ish that I had to keep reminding myself that it was the same character. At one point, he asks if his display of an imprisoned character's post-torture state is too disturbing and distracting, and so he removes the character from view with a very sarcastic sense of "is that better, now? insert-evil-laughter-here." It was much too Bond-villain for me. He tortured Han and Leia and let the reverberations in the Force be enough punishment/lure for Luke. Why the petty display through hologram for Jax? It's just lame.
And Reaves is apparently in love with his own grasp of vocabulary. The sentences are often long, clunky, and way too wordy to even be enjoyable to read. At times I had to put the book down and stop reading simply because I felt as if I were reading a thesaurus.
This series isn't the worst Star Wars I've ever read, but it's fairly close. I would recommend this to people who are die-hard only since anyone who doesn't have an extremely strong sense of love for the Star Wars franchise will see that love extinguished by this trilogy.

Jedi Jax Pavan, a survivor of Order 66, now dwells in Coruscant's lower levels where he and a motley group of friends aid the fledgling resistance movement. Encountering a powerful Force adept named Kajim Savaros, Jax begins to train him--even though he know the Inquisitors are hunting the boy. As if his life weren't complicating enough, Jax is also approached to join in a plot to assassinate Emperor Palpatine.

Having enjoyed the previous two installments in the Coruscant Nights series, I was looking forward to an exciting finale. Sadly, the big showdown between Jax and Vader never materialized.

Instead of concentrating on tying up loose ends, the author introduces new characters who muddy the overall story arc. There isn't time to really develop these characters either, which is a pity because both Kajim and Inquisitor Probus Tesla had potential.

The book seems unfocused with dueling subplots that serve little purpose. The big revelations aren't much of a surprise and when Jax finally comes face to face with Vader the action sort of fizzles.

I did enjoy the smackdown between Kajim and the Inquisitors, and as always, supporting character Dun Dhur, a wise-cracking ex-journalist, I-5YQ, a sentient droid, and Laranth Tarak, a Grey Paladin, were fascinating. I'd love to see the Gary Paladins, offshoots of the Jedi tradition, explored further.

Bottom line, Patterns of Force has a lot of great concepts and characters, but failed to deliver on the epic battle the cover promises.

2.75 stars.

OK, I have read alot of the different Star Wars books, and overall I find them fanatastic. Coruscant Nights III is no exception to a long line of great Star Wars novels. The introduction of a I-5 unit that can be sensed in the force is a fantastic premis. The appearance of more Jedi is great.

But I will say I am sick of all the Jedi being shown as weaker then the Sith/other non Jedi force users. It is about time that one of the Star Wars books shows a Jedi to be the stronger force user. Why are all of Vader's henchmen alway shown as real strong and the Jedi are confused and weak.

That aside I like the fact that this book has weird romance, some decent fighting and a few twists and turns that make this book just plan fun.
I hope that the next series continues the fun.

I hadn't been particularly impressed with the first two books of the Coruscant Nights trilogy and therefore went into the third and final installation with relatively low expectations. Having finished it, I have to say that Patterns of the Force (as well as the rest of the trilogy) had potential, but suffered in execution. Specifically, the author uses too many "silly" ideas in this novel for it to be taken seriously. Spoilers follow.

The story begins pretty much where the last book left off: Jax, Den Dhur, Dejah, Rhinnan, and I-Five are aiding Whiplash and living off of Dejah's money while Laranth is working on her own to help Whiplash. Tuden Sal, a character from I-Five's past comes knocking with a proposition for I-Five: assassinate the emperor and rid the galaxy of his tyranny. This causes great debate amongst the group for the obvious reason of the risks involved. During this, Jax finds a boy with great, uncontrollable, and practically undefeatable Force abilities named Kajin, who is being hunted by Probus Tesla, an Inquisitor. This ends up playing a big role in the book. Laranth enters the picture again and some discoveries about the late Ves Volette's sculptures are made. Rhinnan continues to pursue his obsession with possessing the Force while Den seriously contemplates leaving Coruscant to return to his home planet. Things eventually come together to produce the discovery of a traitor in the group, an interesting revelation about I-Five, and a final battle with Vader.

My first complaint comes in the form of Kajin, the insanely powerful, but untrained, Force sensitive boy. He's simply unbelievable. I find that a lot of Star Wars books include this concept of a new, powerful, Force sensitive being, and it's getting rather old. This attempt in particular was very unbelievable. As a reader, I just had a really hard time believing that a fourteen-year-old boy could be that powerful. Not to mention, he was a rather shallow character overall that just didn't do much for the story. The book would have been better off without him.

I actually really liked the idea of the light sculptures acting as a Force shield. It doesn't seem to have settled well with other readers, but I thought it was a good attempt on Reaves's behalf to add something unique to the Star Wars universe. I doubt any other authors will pick it up, but for this trilogy, it worked well enough.

I know that the idea of Inquisitors has been used before Patterns of the Force, but I still find the concept to be a bit ridiculous. The "Rule of Two" has already been well established in the Star Wars continuity, and I fail to see how this college of Dark Side users (supposedly trained by Darth Vader himself) fits into that rule. Probus Tesla himself was an interesting character whom I wouldn't mind seeing more of, but the Inquisitor school that Darth Vader somehow finds time to oversee was just silly.

Speaking of Darth Vader, Reaves still didn't manage to portray the Dark Lord correctly. It almost seems as if his characterization has gotten worse with each book. His conclusion in this novel was one of the most disappointing, out of character actions I've read in any Star Wars book (and I've read a lot). For whatever reason, I have a difficult time picturing Vader basically getting high off a Force drug and falling out the window. Again, this actually did start as a relatively interesting idea and was then turned into stupidity.

I did, however, like the idea of a traitor in the group, and much like in one of the Medstar books, I was completely shocked by who it turned out to be. Even though I doubt it'll have much of an impact on the overall Star Wars series, it was a fun twist in this trilogy.

Finally, there's the little revelation with I-Five. Some people seem to have enjoyed this addition to the book, but I think it ruined what was so great about I-Five. He was a droid who acted very human-like, even down to thinking and reasoning beyond the limits of a typical droid. Making him sentient and giving him a presence in the Force cheapened the character's appeal, in my opinion. Plus, I found it to be silly and unrealistic, even by Star Wars standards.

Where Reaves really excelled was the characterization and relationships between the characters. He seems to be very good at this when it comes to his own characters. By the end of the novel, I felt like I really knew Jax, Den, I-Five, Laranth, and even Probus Tesla. I didn't particularly care for Kajin, but I believe I've already said that. Laranth, in particular, was a favourite of mine. However, while the author did a fantastic job with his own characters, his portrayal of already established characters fell a bit short.

As for the entire Coruscant Nights trilogy, I wasn't impressed. Another reviewer commented that Reaves should stay out of Jedi lore, and I'm inclined to agree. I loved the Medstar duology and Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter, but this trilogy just didn't appeal to me. Reaves seems to work best when he's working with non-Jedi characters of his own creation...and that's what he should stick to. I commend him for attempting to put a new spin on the Jedi, but it didn't work and came off as being a bit silly. Not to mention, the portrayal and use of Darth Vader was pathetic.

The focus for the trilogy seemed to be characterization of Reaves's characters, and it succeeded in that aspect. Reaves fully developed his characters and made most of them very believable. I appreciated that as a reader.

However, the overall plot was weak...very weak. The author had the tendency to keep introducing shallow, new characters and halfhearted subplots instead of developing a strong main plot. I rather enjoyed the noir feel the books had, but it was lost without a strong plot to compliment it.

Overall, Patterns of the Force was a very weak book, especially as the finale to a trilogy. It came off as silly, rushed, and, frankly, not really thought out. It, and the rest of the trilogy, had great characterization of Reaves's own characters, but failed to portray Vader accurately. This is hardly the worst book or trilogy in the Star Wars series, but it's far from being one of them best.

Patterns of Force is the final entry in the Coruscant Nights trilogy by frequent Star Wars contributor Michael Reaves. It picks up threads both from the first two books in the series along with elements from his earlier novels Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter and the Medstar duology. The story takes place shortly after Revenge of the Sith, although it is evident from multiple date problems it was originally intended to be later in the timeline, right before A New Hope. Over the course of these novels, Reaves has created his own enjoyable stable of recurring characters and utilizes them well.

My personal favorite of his creations is the sarcastic droid-with-a-soul I-5YQ. I-5 has lent himself to some fascinating explorations of the thin line between sentient artificial life and traditional organic beings and that journey reaches a peak in Patterns of Force. I-5 has developed a capacity to experience actual emotion and doing so makes him visible in the Force. I-5's continued evolution to a higher state raises questions both about his right to self-determination and, specific to the plot of this book, the risk that if he participates in a plot to assassinate Emperor Palpatine, he might be foiled in the attempt by his Force emanations.

I-5's closest friends Jax Pavan and Den Dhur also play significant parts in Patterns of Force, along with several characters introduced in the prior two books. Most welcome to me was the return and deft handling of Gray Paladin Laranth Tarak. Somewhat of a 2-D character previously, her relationship with Pavan matures here and she becomes more fully realized. Den plays his usual wise-cracking, loyal despite himself role, but is mostly on the sidelines.

The storyline of this book was on the thin side; most of the focus is on developing the characters. As I mentioned, there is a plot brewing to assassinate the Emperor and Jax and his friends get involved. While the idea is tremendously exciting, I didn't find much payoff. The other plot element I couldn't wait to see was the inevitable confrontation between Jax and Darth Vader, and while that comes, I also thought there would be more to it. However, that's a delicate line to walk for Reaves. Obviously Vader shouldn't be in any mortal danger in a duel during the Dark Times, and many fans would react negatively to a fight which featured anything but Vader handing Jax's rear to him on a platter. That said, I can see how Reaves came up with the climax. It does balance handling Vader in a realistic way while still having some sort of physical action between him and Jax.

I'm always interested in Star Wars novels that mainly utilize peripheral or brand-new characters, such as the Republic Commando or X-wing series, and in that context the Coruscant Nights trilogy is a welcome expansion of the timeline. Overall, I enjoyed the characters more than the storylines, which dragged in places, but I recommend the books to anyone interested in learning more about the Dark Times era, a part of Star Wars history that still has plenty of room to grow.

I've read about 98% of all star wars books published, so take that into account as you read this.

Patterns of the Force is an intriguing addition to the star wars line. It covers recently made Jedi Knight (right before the temple is destroyed by Anakin) Jax Pavan's adentures in trying to survive the new regime and even damage it.

The main outstanding attribute of this series is the character development. We are introduced to a half dozen new characters with extremely in depth development in their characters. This is rare for a Star Wars book, which is usually more focused on action and the big picture. It's nice to see new characters done so nicely. You really get a feel for their motivations and get inside their heads and learn why they are acting the way they are.

The second great point is the plot itself, that of a Jedi Knight trying to survive in Imperial Center (Coruscant). This was a great idea and there's a lot of good material overall in the plot itself.

However, there's a lot of things in this series that are just completely silly. There are statements that proclaim to judge on the entire star wars universe that frankly are just trying to give a minor story extra gravity that it doesn't need.

For example:

1. Michael Reaves makes the claim that the Jedi Order's official position before its fall was that it was a "heresy" for Jedi to say that "there was no Dark Side of the Force, that the darkness existed within the individual" (pg 14) He has Jax Pavan go on to ask himself where the potential for darkness lay, "in the Force itself or in the wielder of the Force." Unfortunately this is just completely silly, Master Yoda and all the masters in the movies constantly warn about the person themself succumbing through passion, anger etc. to the dark side. I really don't know where he was going with this entire thing, it really seems to be just a little addin to the book to add some interest rather than a serious look at something.

Unfortunately Michael Reeves' use of endless completely novel things related to the Jedi persist in this book.

2. The Gray Paladin Laranth. The gray paladins are supposedly Jedi who took an interest in using other weapons and so were kicked out of the official order. They continue their quest of being Jedi without "official approval" from the Temple Masters apparently. Unfortunately the only member of this so called sect we meet is this Twilek. She uses blasters as her weapon of choice. It's really strange to see Michael Reeves come up with such twists to Jedi lore. There is no indication whatsoever that a Jedi using other weapons besides a lightsaber is a reason for being kicked out of the order, even exclusively so once they were trained. Obiwan uses a blaster to kill Grievous. Anakin and obiwan use starfighters to kill things. It just really feels like these things are being made up as the story goes along with no basis in reality of the SW universe.

3. The Inquisitors, members of the "Inquisitorius." Another example of Michael Reeves' obsession with "heresy." These are so called dark siders underneath Vader. Unfortunately these are just totally implausible. Right after milennia of "The Rule of Two," all of a sudden there are tons of dark side wielding "Inquisitors" around with their own temple to boot? Give me a break Michael. The entire purpose for these to be created out of thin air is for Jax to have someone to fight that is supposedly at his level. Too bad it is just a totally make believe scenario. Right after the purge Vader and the Emperor are going to start training Dark side apprentices? Sorry, no.

4. We are introduced all of a sudden to two new objects that can block the force. The taozin amulet of the dark siders, and the light sculptures. Unfortunately these are both just contrived things to make the story a bit better. We have the ysalimiri, we don't need two more. These things are just completely silly and add nothing to the story except confusion to the general SW story.

5. Instead of using Aurra Sing as Jax's nemesis we barely see her and she just gets killed. Too bad. There is absolutely zero reason why she could not have been made the major threat in this series. One of the best bounty hunters in the galaxy is more than a match for a brand new Jedi Knight. There is zero reason to add fake "Inquisitors" to these books.

6. The ending with Darth Vader going wild after taking the bota is also silly. Is that all the author could think of? It really feels like you hit 300 pages and the author realizes the book needs to end, so there's a quick final "showdown" with Darth Vader.

On the other hand, the story of the Naboo Captain pursuing Vader and uttering Padme's name to him at his death was simply outstanding. This line could have been developed a bit more, but really a superb side story.

All in all, an enjoyable read if you can ignore the random inconsistencies with the general star wars story.

This series was good, not great and that's the reason for 3 stars: for the series not the book. It was engaging, with good charecters,action, and adventure. Reaves tied all his pervious books in with the series, adding some different elements that helped and,also,hinder the story. My biggest disappointment with the total story was the end. This series kept building and building for final battle with Darth Vader that didn't deliver.
I liked the way Vader was portrayed until the end. I expected some finality to the series with Jax demise in order to save his friends,but Vader goes crazy and falls(or pushed,doesn't matter) out a window. That's the end? Your kidding me Reaves! Some finality would be good.

Having a desideratum for Star Wars books I can enjoy other than the dreadful Legacy of the Force series, I reluctantly read the Coruscant Nights series. Unexpectedly I enjoyed every page of the trilogy. I am saddened the series is seemingly over, but the alternative would be to have Michael Reaves write about the death of our heroic characters. That is a proposition I am uncomfortable with. The characters are all unique, interesting, and have compelling motivations. What more can readers ask for? This has a true post-Jedi downfall romantic feel to it and Jax Pavan is the type of hero that Han Solo and Luke Skywalker are except with his own unique flair that he grows into nicely as the series progresses. Read all three, but if you must choose one Coruscant Nights III is probably the finest chapter in the series. Thanks for a wonderful experience Michael Reaves!

This book wasn't the pot boiler that Jedi Twilight or Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter was. It was markably better than Street of Shadows so that is something. The timeline and canon flubs didn't bother me as much as pages and pages of 'Bota Bota Who's got the Bota??' Or Jax wondering which girl he likes more. Or which girl is bewitching him the most.
The book was set up to be riveting. It could have been but it wasn't. It was kinda boring actually. I did like the Death Eaters-I mean Ring Wraiths-I mean Inquisitors. But they just never felt like any real threat. And the book was sadly, mostly Vader free.

It wasn't bad but it just didn't make the most of the fairly good premise Reaves set up here.

"If Jax commits himself and his team to Palpatine's assassination, then what distinguishes him from those who represent the dark side?"
So I was really impressed by number 1, disappointed by number 2, and ready to see how the series would end. So I embarked on the third and final chapter!
Jax Pavan, Den Dhur, I-Five, and Rhinann return in our final installment with the lovely Dejah Duare on what could be their final mission. A rogue Force adept roams the underworld, threatening to blow their operation to the Inquisitors, Force users trained by Darth Vader himself. Furthermore, someone from I-Five's past returns with a plan...a plan to kill Emperor Palpatine! What will our band do, to fight injustice in the galaxy?

I Liked:
In book two, I felt that the character of Rhinann had gone off the deep end. In Book 3, Reaves brings Rhinann back to what he had been at the end of Book 1. He does it well enough, that I can either gloss over the disparities in Book 2 or believe that he changed from Book 2 to 3. I appreciated the "mending" and surprisingly found myself liking the character.
Also, I enjoyed seeing Jax Pavan realize his feelings for Laranth, how much he misses her. When Laranth was first introduced in the series, I was so sure she would be a Mary Sue: you know, tough woman, highly attractive and able to bed men in a single bound. Ha! Reaves must be laughing in his recliner at me. He deftly creates this woman, so real and emotional and...wonderful! Then he broke her and Jax up in Book 2, tearing out my heart in the process (darn you, Reaves!). And now, in 3, he starts to weave Jax and Laranth back together in a most beautiful way. And, not to spoil anything, their resolution is absolutely perfect.
I never liked Dejah Duare, but I love what Reaves does to her. Perfect justice!
Besides the characters (my favorites being Laranth, of course, I-Five, and Den Dhur), which are, for the most part, amazing as usual, Reaves also ties in all the details he has been bringing up in his previous books, not only the Coruscant Nights ones, but also the Darth Maul book and the MedStar Duology. Very nicely done, and always neat to see stuff reused.
The ending!! So fast paced, so much happens in so little time! In this regard, I feel like Reaves looked back at Book 1, how he made it so edge of your seat there and repeated that idea here. It is wonderful, a perfect combination for a Star Wars novel.
Lastly, I liked how this novel touched on so many important concepts, but namely this one: what distinguishes the good guys from the bad guys? It isn't a HUGE part of the novel, but it is sly, tricky, and makes you think. I mean, if the bad guys are bad just because they kill, that means any time the good guys kill (even if it is bad guys), then they have become that which they fight. A very challenging idea, and very important still. Reaves handles it particularly well.

I Didn't Like:
I've already complained about how Rhinann's character has skipped all over the place in this trilogy, but since Reaves "fixed" him in Book 3, he goes off my nit-pick list.
Dejah Duare remains on my list, for being the Mary Sue of this series. I despise her overly done-up sexuality, even if she does rely on pheromones to get her way (or maybe because she does).
I was not very fond of Kajin Savaros. I have a hard time believing that this boy is so powerful (able to blast tall buildings in a single breath); he feels like a Marty Stu. Plus, he is a rather bland character, almost like eating vanilla ice cream, but not even good vanilla ice cream. He really is much less a character than a tool, just to move the plot. And his conclusion makes me wonder if I should even have cared about him in the first place.
The beginning felt very, incredibly slow to me. It took me weeks to actually get into the book. It feels like nothing important is happening, that I can't engage in the story. Thank God Reaves picks it up halfway through!
SPOILER:
My last great complaint is that Jax still lives. Yes, I love how he and Laranth get together at the end, but I really tire of seeing all these Jedi that somehow are able to elude Vader and Order 66. I would have preferred to see him die at the end, like how his father died at the end of Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter. In this way, I feel that this trilogy is a little too "open-ended". Yes, Jax had his face-off with Vader, but it is obvious that, since neither died, it is only the first face-off. Vader won't just give up on Jax; Jax still lives on Coruscant. And since Jax isn't my favorite character to begin with, I wouldn't have been upset to see him die.
END OF SPOILER

Dialogue/Sexual Situations/Violence:
Star Wars language only.
Dejah Duare pretty much embodies the biggest sexual blips in this novel.
A man is scarred pretty badly in a Force battle. Two people are kidnapped. Other Star Wars fare battles.

Overall:
To be honest, after a few pages, I dreaded this book. I wanted to put it down and forget about it forever. Reaves had kinda lost me after 2, and I didn't think he could bring it around.
Well, Reaves, you proved me wrong yet again! He finished off the trilogy nicely, though I felt that it was still a little more open-ended than I would have liked. So despite a very slow beginning, I give this book a 4.5 stars, rounded to 5.

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