Customer Reviews

Yoda: Dark Rendezvous (Star Wars: Clone Wars)

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(25)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I'm an unabashed Stover groupie. And while I recognize that he's not the best writer out there, he's certainly my favorite - there's just something about the way he writes that I find incredibly appealing. He writes what I want to read. But as I said, favorite is not necessarily best, and while Stover's Star Wars novels are among the best out there, Sean Stewart's novel is easily the best Clone Wars novel yet and one of the best Star Wars novels ever written.

Anyone who's been reading my reviews will know that one of my complaints about some recent Star Wars novels is that the prose itself is boring, regardless of the actions and characters it is describing. Not so here. Unlike a good number of Star Wars writers, Sean Stewart has style. His language is often nearly poetic (sometimes a little too self-consciously so, but thankfully not often) - as one Amazon reviewer put it, "at once fluid and precise, impressionistic and razor-fine." Which makes it a pleasure to read this book even during the more sedate moments.

Aside from the language itself, Stewart has many other assets. He's got a wonderful grasp of character, showing for the first time in the novels the character dynamics between Ventress and Dooku, between Dooku and Sidious, between Yoda and Dooku, between Yoda and the rest of the Jedi, etc. He gets into Dooku's and Yoda's heads in a powerful way - Dooku becomes a more sympathetic character while remaining true to the bad guy we know he is, and Yoda in particular is handled fantastically. I was truly worried despite my faith in Stewart that he wouldn't be able to do Yoda justice, but my fears were unfounded. Stewart drew as much from the impish, wise Yoda of ESB as from the more somber, obnoxious Yoda of the prequels, to wonderful effect and more than a few laughs (all of them appropriate - no potty humor here). I particularly enjoyed an exchange about how the Jedi Temple should relocate off of Coruscant, to a more living planet. Finally too we get a little more explanation of the concept between lingering "Force spirits," and the exchange between a certain character and Yoda, especially when it comes to that character's estimation of Dooku, is awesome. Oh, and Padmé finally also gets an appearance in a novel, however brief. There are a couple problems, though. Every once in a while, for example, Stewart seems to have a little trouble with Yoda's syntax.

Continuity gurus should mostly be pleased (I think; I don't really count myself among their number anymore, so there could've been mistakes I missed), as Stewart refers appropriately to other Clone Wars events without being heavy-handed, and his GFFA name-dropping rarely seems inappropriate or out of place. Stewart also manages to convey the pathos in the Jedi Temple very well, as it is so emptied in the months since Geonosis, with so many Padawans without masters, masters having lost friends, and so forth. There are a couple problems though. For example, I found it hard to swallow that the Ithorians would have such a heavily fortified moon - which is particularly annoying considering that the fact that it's the Ithorian system is not relevant to the story, and it could as easily have been any other system.

Also in this book you will find some of the best lightsaber fights ever committed to the page. Including one involving my own personal favorite fencing cheat - which works, against all expectations, because that particular fight is between Padawans using lightsabers dialed down to training-settings. Plus some good heroics, a pretty good dogfight, some wonderful musings on loyalty and the light and dark sides of the Force.

Overall, a brilliant Star Wars novel, and one it's hard to believe will be topped anytime soon (though I have high hopes for Stover's adaptation of Revenge of the Sith). I doubt they'll manage to bring Stewart back for more SW novels, but I sincerely hope they will. Despite a very few minor quibbles, this is a tremendous effort.

If you like this book, I also highly recommend Sean Stewart's novel Nobody's Son.

This book may or may not be the greatest Star Wars book ever written. It's difficult to make such a judgement, there being such a wide variety of books that bear the label of "Star Wars," and so many of them being so incredibly good. Cloak of Deception, Shatterpoint, The Cestus Deception, The Lando Calrissian Adventures, Return of the Jedi, Tales from Jabba's Palace, Tales of the Bounty Hunters, Traitor, The Unifying Force . . . The list goes on. Yoda: Dark Rendezvous is certainly worthy of ranking among these and their fellows as the crown jewels of the Expanded Universe, but, as a Star Wars book, I cannot say if it is any better than the best of those. As a simple novel, however, it surpasses them all.

It would be impossible for me to describe, in the time I have, just what makes this book so good. The prose is a large part of it; Mr. Stewart has a very intriguing writing style. Several passages are simply breathtaking. The characters are astounding, even the minor ones who had no major impact on the plot. The humor is the best and most abundant in recent memory, and manages to be such without detracting from the overall somber tone of the novel. And, most important of all, I think, we finally get inside Dooku's head, learn what makes him tick, and see him as the tragic character he truly is.

Only two elements come to mind which detracted from this novel's magnificence: the references to the Rendili Fleet Crisis, which had not yet occurred as of Dark Rendezvous's placement in the timeline, and the number of ships Obi-Wan had cost Asajj Ventress (he didn't steal a ship from her on Queyta).

The title of this book is perhaps misleading. This is not a book about Yoda. Not solely, at least. It's about Count Dooku and two Padawans as well, in addition to several other characters who make Yoda: Dark Rendezvous the masterpiece it is. Even the Chosen One has a part to play. But most of all, it's a book about family, and acceptance, and coming home at the end of the day to people who love you, and the fact that even those who never come home again will always be waited for.

It seems that with Episode III coming up in the next year that the expanded universe is exploding with new books. Ironically, its the paperback books that are the better stories as opposed to the hardcover. While I was disappointed with the book about Mace Windu, Yoda's Dark Rendevous is really an excellent story. It presents Yoda as a teacher not as an all knowing master of the force. Stewart also has a way of writing other characters that is both realistic and interesting. The people and aliens he brings into the book seem to be real people. This book could have been just a Yoda versus Dooku and it was not and for that I am grateful. We see much more of the Jedi Temple and much more of the Padawans, and we see that it's not just Anakin Skywalker who is strong in the force. Anakin's dark side does come out a little and he is more closely aligned with the Anakin in the movies than with the disappointing Jedi Trial. I rate this book very highly and is among the best of the Star Wars prequal era books.

After seeing Episode 3 last weekend, I found myself wanting more Star Wars so I bought this book...

I started reading it, and finished it the next day. Very rarely in my busy schedule does this ever happen, so it is a testament to just how good this book is.

From my experience, many Star Wars books are either very deep and have little action, or are very shallow filled with tons of action. Thankfully, this book is right smack in the middle. After reading this book I understand the light and dark sides of the force a little better, and I was also very appreciative of some of the more "philosophical" areas of this text as well. Many conversations and insights in this book really "make you think". "Depth" wise, this book shines.

As for "Action" wise, this book was terrific as well. I've read a few books recently that had so much action, it was simply getting boring to read it. Thankfully, the action sequences in this book are spaced nicely at certain intervals, and each scene is represented in a way that leaves little to the imagination. Very well detailed action scenes, such as detailed step by step lightsaber dueling, details of different types of weapons being used, etc.

Philosophy, humor, action, seeing opinions from both "evil" and "good" sides of view, terrific writing style, and even a twist or two earns this book a solid 5 out of 5 stars.

Having read over 300 fantasy and science fiction novels I sometimes have difficulty finding something worth reading that I haven't already read, this book also did another great thing for me.... it introduced me to an author worth reading again, so I will check into other books written by Sean Stewart.

YODA, DARK RENDEZVOUS is a valuable read providing a link in the STAR WARS saga of the separation of Dooku and Yoda. Sean Stewart's story timeframe is thirty-plus months after Geonosis, and the continuation of the Clone Wars. This is one story more dedicated (than others) to one of my favorite characters Yoda... 'Mmm'! Yoda's wisdom is expressed by the author: "But other things, inside you there are. The Force is inside you. A true Jedi lives in the Force. Touches the Force. It surrounds him: and it reaches up from inside him to touch that which surrounds. ... Not a pile of permacrete, home is. Not a palace or a hut, ship or shack. Wherever a Jedi is, there must the Force be, too. Wherever we are, is home."

Read and follow Sean Stewart's journey of Grand Master Yoda and Count Dooku of Serenno. The Count is a most-gifted Padawan and prime Jedi Knight in training with Master Yoda. The time has come for Dooku to go out on his own. Yoda tells him, "A candle will I light, for you to find your way home." They are joined as Master and Padawan, yet they end on separate paths, in different parts of the galaxy - respectively, the Jedi Temple and Chateau Malreaux on Vjun. Delight in the tournaments of young apprentices and come to know the places in the Jedi Temple -- the Combat Training Center, the Star Room, the Council Chamber, and the Room of a Thousand Fountains. Join Padawan Whie in finding out his connection to the Chateau Malreaux in which Dooku resides on Vjun (where the presence of the Force is powerfully strong). Enjoy the antics and character of Padawan Tallisibeth Enwandung-Esterhazy, her name shortened to 'Scout'. Scout is not strong in the Force, but she has wit, perseverance, determination, and dedication. Meet the 'Gran' beings, a deeply social, community-oriented folk. They have six fingers, are three-eyed with shaggy brows, goat-headed, and their faces are most suited to express worry -- her name is Maks Leem, a Master Knight in the Jedi Temple, and a favorite of the younger acolytes. The evil Asajj Ventress -- the scourge of the Jedi, her mission: to kill Jedi, and she keeps a tally, while begging for Dooku to train her in the 'dark side', but no, he says. Meet Fidelis ('the gentleman's personal gentlething'), and Solis, who are suspicious droids, as well as bad and good heroes.

It is invigorating for avid readers to be introduced to a 'new' writer, i.e., debut or one not read before. This is my first exposure to author Sean Stewart, and it is a pleasant one, prompting me to read more of his writings. Stewart is proficient in language, both technical and descriptive ('xeno-ethnologists', and 'sociolinguistical slovenliness') and maintains excellent dialog technique. The last few chapters are written with a masterly exchange between Yoda and Dooku, philosophically, with tender memories, yet the presence of the light and dark sides, and a physical battle. There are times that it appears to the reader's mind that the author veers off the path of the intended story line, i.e., Yoda and Dooku. But, surprisingly, it is enticement added to the suspense of the final meeting in YODA DARK RENDEZVOUS.

I'm from the younger generation that didn't grow up with the original films, and really don't see what all the hoopla is about. Star Wars is pretty good but more so (or at least in my day) a marketing machine that incessantly seems to bleed into more crevices of creative expression (e.g. books, cartoons, cereal, Pez dispensers, etc.).

However, I thought it would be fun to paint the Star Wars universe according to my imagination through a novel rather than having one of the films do it for me. Essentially, I decided to give this book a try based on subjective reasoning: I like Yoda (who doesn't like the wise, ugly little elfin-man who sports a graying hair cul-de-sac?); I like Count Dooku (he's very evil); and I thought the story described on the book's back cover sounded enticing. Basically, the `Star Wars' logo had no effect in persuading me to purchase and read this novel - I still would have read it without the `Star Wars' logo gracing the front cover.

Amidst the exceptional reviews the book received, I was expecting it to be just an average novel, especially considering that although I had never read a Star Wars novel before, I did know from reading around that the lot of the novels rank from below average to literary garbage collected between two covers. (This is probably due to the fact that nowadays, Star Wars is less a movie (series) and more a cash-cow and marketing "empire" - pun intended.) I was surprised: Dark Rendezvous was actually a very good book, and not because it's Star Wars but because Sean Stewart is an excellent writer whose detail and depth are nothing short of superb quality. In Stewart's hands, the militaristic and overly technological nature of science fiction staples (weapons, armies, training, defense techniques, jets, speeders, piloting aircraft, military tactics, etc.) come to life, and glow with a richness and depth that is left to be seen in many books of the same genre.

I found this novel to be particularly enticing to myself because, as readers are aware, having the chance to imagine everything in the book for yourself is a joy that you simply can't mimic in films (although I'm not knocking film adaptations either - they're just different mediums, that's all). To have your mind hear the laser blade ripping out of the lightsaber's hilt; having your brain make it hum; and imagining oversized aircraft zipping through outer space makes this novel really etch itself into your mind while you make the trek to the final pages.

The actual story is pretty good as well: essentially, Count Dooku (under the auspices of his master Sidious) uses a young padawan at the Jedi Temple as a gateway to lure his former teacher, Master Yoda, into what appears to be a gesture of peace but turns out to be a trap. As in the films, Count Dooku's character here is pretty menacing, as is his equally dark and vile potential apprentice Asajj Ventris. In one chapter in the midst of an entire ship and a couple Jedi masters she has laid to waste, Ventris expounds her philosophy of the dark side to two young Jedi padawans who must maintain their allegiance to the Jedi way in the face of her killing two masters - she relates that the dark side is akin to the vastness of space, and the only light there is are the tiny specks of light (stars) that blink over the blanketing darkness.

We revisit the memories of an aging Dooku when he was a younger padawan under the tutelage of Master Yoda, when his master relieves him saying, "Dooku, when you fall, catch you I will." In the middle of the storyline, Yoda travels with two padawans and two Jedi masters to take Dooku up on a potential gesture to claim peace and end the current war, and Yoda is disguised as a very likeable and familiar robot that everyone loves...the parts with Yoda in disguise are simply hilarious!

My only complaint is that the teenage Anakin Skywalker makes a few cameos in the novel. Although his character does add to the story to move it along, I don't particularly like pre-Darth Anakin: he's an arrogant, whiny brat (which is further exemplified in the horrible first two prequels) who suffers from a supreme case of chutzpah, and although there are a couple more Star Wars novels I plan on reading, they do not involve Anakin as the main character at all. However, this is not really a complaint because again, Anakin's character adds to the storyline (probably more so because his annoying ways are balanced out by Obi-Wan's levelheaded manner).

Although I wouldn't recommend any other Star Wars novels (mainly because the only other one's I plan on reading are Shatterpoint with Mace Windu and Triple Zero with the clone soldiers), I do highly recommend this one - whether you're a Star Wars fan or not, I think you'll love it as the story is replete with familiar and memorable characters, some cool new additions, Star Wars staples (Jedi philosophy, lightsabers, speak of the dark side, etc.), and Stewart's capable writing style. Have a blast with this one, you will.

Dark Rendezvous was one of a couple Clone Wars era novels I'd been putting off reading. Recently, however, I read Shatterpoint (by Matthew Stover) and loved it, so I decided to give this novel a chance with the hopes that I would enjoy it just as much. It ended up being a mixed bag. While there were aspects of the book I really appreciated, there were also things that left me frustrated and ultimately unsatisfied. Spoilers follow.

While the Clone Wars continue to rage and spread the Jedi thinly over the galaxy, Count Dooku (through Asajj Ventress and a Jedi-Master victim/messenger) commands the attention of Master Yoda. Two Padawans and two Masters (one of which being the aforementioned victim) accompany Yoda to the dreary, dark planet of Vjun to confront the Jedi-turned-Sith. Along the way, they struggle to hide the diminutive Jedi Master, meet two droids, make discoveries about themselves and (in one case) their pasts, and have a devastating run-in with Ventress herself. This particular plotline ends with the group's survivors arriving at Vjun to confront the Dark Side with the ultimate showdown being a long anticipated battle between Dooku and Yoda. Unfortunately, while the action is good, the ending is somewhat disappointing. That's the first storyline.

The second deals with the relationship between Dooku and Yoda. This story is told mostly through internal conversations, thoughts, and flashbacks. In many ways, it's more interesting than the first plot. We finally get some insight to Dooku and Yoda, two very important yet mysterious characters. They struggle with their former Master-Apprentice relationship through the entire of the book. Stewart's use of flashbacks is highly effective here as they show (rather than tell) how the two characters once interacted and why it continues to affect them. While this story eventually connects to the first one and has an unsatisfactory ending, it's still highly intriguing and becomes the highlight of the novel.

In some places the plot is predictable and in others it's exciting. Overall, most of it is pretty average for a Star Wars book. The real gem, as mentioned before, is seeing Dooku and Yoda interact both in the past and present. I found the ending to be extremely anticlimactic. Most of the readers have seen the Prequel Trilogy, so it's no surprise that both Dooku and Yoda survive their encounter; however, I expected something a little more exciting and well thought out. The action builds and builds, but instead of culminating into a satisfying ending, it just sort of fizzles out and everyone decides to go home. It reads as if Stewart either had too many ideas and didn't know how to tie them up or that he didn't want to make the book any longer than it was.

The writing is very fluid, almost to the point of being poetic. Sometimes it gets a bit too prosy, but it serves the book well and moves the story along nicely. Stewart really excels with his dialogue (both internal and external). A lot of meaningful conversation takes place between the characters. One that particularly stood was Asajj's description of the Dark Side and what it means when one decides to use it. The real excitement is in the dialogue; the novel is more about a battle of words than a battle of sabers. In the beginning of the book, we get a fantastic description of what life in the Jedi Temple is like with so many Jedi away dealing with the war. The emptiness and resulting sorrow can practically be felt. This seems to be overlooked in a lot of other Star Wars novels, so I liked that Seward chose to include it.

Stewart has his characterization down pretty well. Yoda was mostly believable and true to his character. At times, he becomes a bit too much of a caricature of himself (particularly his squabbles with and Artoo droid and some overly immature behaviour), but overall, I appreciated that the author wove the impish Yoda we see in The Empire Strikes Back into the stoic and series Yoda portrayed in the Prequel Trilogy. Stewart really shined in his characterization of Dooku. The Count's internal struggles and flashbacks actually make him likeable. I found myself sympathizing with him, the villain of the novel, on numerous occasions; I can appreciate it when an author makes the reader feel for the bad guy. Asajj Ventress was also enjoyable to read. Before now, I saw her as a more passive character; here, however, she stepped into the limelight, so to speak, and really gave the reader a feel for her persona.

One particular flaw is that the title and cover are both deceptive. They lead the reader to believe that Dark Rendezvous will be focused largely on Yoda and Dooku, and while they do hold some important parts (and often the best parts of the book), this simply isn't so. A bulk of the novel centres around two Padawans: Scout and Whie. It's perfectly acceptable for an author to want to add his own creations to the GFFA, but a lot of them tend to make their characters the main protagonists (rather than the canon characters). Stewart is very guilty of this. It wouldn't even be a problem if these figures appeared in later books. We know they likely won't. It becomes fairly frustrating that so much of the book is about these random Padawans when it could have focused more on the interesting canon characters. My feelings about the two apprentices themselves are mixed.

First, there's Scout. She's actually a fairly interesting and unique character: a Jedi who lacks a strong Force sense and has to compensate for it using her wits. It's refreshing to see a Force sensitive figure that isn't amazingly gifted beyond belief (this comes later). She also grows as a character from an annoying, immature girl with a chip on her shoulder to...well, a still annoying girl with a more mature outlook on the galaxy. I think the reader is supposed to really like her, but she's often too annoying to like. And does the EU honestly need any more red-haired, green-eyed females? Scout simply isn't significant enough to warrant as large a portion of the book as she is given.

The second Padawan is Whie. Like Scout, he could have been cut entirely from the novel and it wouldn't have made much of a difference in the broad scope of things. Unlike Scout, he's not that interesting. Yet again, an author creates a Force sensitive character that's super strong in the Force and has prophetic dreams about the dark future (though, the foreshadowing to being killed by Anakin's blade was a nice touch). Sound familiar? It should. Whie is exactly like Anakin and a tonne of other EU characters. The idea of a very strong Force sensitive character pops up again and again in books and, frankly, it got old long ago. Much like Scout, Whie becomes very annoying very quickly and, again, I fail to see why so much of the story focused on him. He also gets a past connected with Vjun and its history. It could be interesting, but instead comes off as just another way to make him special; it doesn't really add to the plot.

Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Padme all make cameo appearances. They all could have been left out as none of their parts were particularly special to their characters. Anakin and Obi-Wan felt out of character to me. It felt as though Stewart was trying to toss a few more established characters in to compensate for focusing on his own so much.

All in all, Dark Rendezvous contains some fantastic insights to the Dark Side, Dooku, Yoda, the Master-Apprentice relationship, and the Jedi Temple. However, it also focuses too much on unimportant characters (to the point of frustration), has a very unsatisfying ending, and seems to randomly toss in other canon characters for no reason beyond saying they were there. It's worth reading for the insights, but is hardly one of the best books. Three and half stars.

This is a review of the Audio CD version. This is one of the better Abridged versions of the Star Wars Universe. Instead of the usual 2 1/2 hours, this one is 4 CD's and 5 hours in length. As usual, the studio production and reading by Jonathan Davis is outstanding. Jonathan does a great imitation of Yoda, Dooku, Palpatine-Sidious and the other voices.

The book centers on two story lines. One is the life in the Temple of the padawans in their early teens, just before a Master takes one as their apprentice. The second story is the complicated relationship of Dooku and Yoda.

I really enjoyed this book. The real focus is found in two padawans and their interaction with Yoda. It builds up the tension until the attack of Asajj Ventress. Then the air seems to go out of the story, developed characters disappear to no purpose, and the ending, while having some nice scenes, lacks coherence. Obi-wan and Anakin appear and disappear for no good reason. All the foreshadowing fails to pan out much and the bad guys run away for no good reason- they were winning and just quit. It is like the author had this great build up, then did not know what to do with it when he got to the goal of the story- just "OK lets go home". No resolution for the main characters. The saber duels are first rate, the philosophical contrast between the light and dark side is laid out better than any other place except ESB. Some of the best foreshadowing is reserved for the events of RotS. Its sad that these characters are developed just to later be slaughtered in the Jedi Purge 3 months later- the constant foreshadowing of this lends an air of futility to it all. Except for the incoherent ending, I felt like I had been to the Star Wars Universe. I read portions to my family and they loved the vignettes with Yoda and Asajj.

An all around excellent book. The story is about Yoda travelling to meet with his former padawan, Count Dooku, and the four Jedi that accompany him on the way.

Every new character is memorable and great to see in action. The padawan/master relationship is really put in the spotlight in this book. One of the more memorable characters is Scout, who lacks skill, but makes up for it with spirit and sheer determination.

The Best part of this book is the confrontation between Dooku and Yoda. Yoda has always been one of the more mysterious characters, and while he still isn't completely revealed, you learn about him on a more personal level. His conversations with Dooku, and his flashbacks make for intriguing reading.

Very highly recommended to all Star Wars fans!!