It's been a long time since I've actually reviewed something Star Wars related! And truth be told, my Star Wars hype kinda faded after the release of Episode III. The blitz of reading and watching and waiting and all that surrounding the film definitely drained me going into the summer months.

Coupled with the aftermath of Episode III were the releases of new books and stories to expand a universe that, for George and Co., was seen as finished. The first installment of Troy Denning's Dark Nest trilogy failed to strike resounding chords with me (though I've since picked it up again and enjoyed it), and the new Visual Guides and Complete Locations books haven't particularly sparked my interest.

Nope, I was in a post-Revenge dulldrom, and I kept looking at my less-frequently-updated Release Calendar hoping for a respite from the mundane.

And lo, in early Autumn my heart beat fast again, for the long-awaited Dark Lord had been pushed up in schedule, swapping places with Timothy Zahn's equally long-awaited Outbound Flight novel.

James Luceno has always been one of my favorite Star Wars authors. Of course Zahn and Michael Stackpole and Aaron Allston are the holy triumvirate of Star Wars, but Mr. Luceno, along with other newer authors such as Matthew Stover, Karen Traviss, and Greg Keyes, have definitely earned their keep in my book. But James Luceno's works have always been appreciated by me, Mr. Continuity Geek.

(I can't call myself just "Mr. Continuity" since I hold that title for folks like Dan Wallace, Chris McElroy, Mike Potts, Nathan Butler, Pablo Hidalgo, Leland Chee and the like. I'm nowhere near their equal in knowledge or contextual prowess. I definitely bow before their superior wisdom.)

Now, all of Mr. Luceno's previous works have been so wonderfully wrapped in continuity, even a guy like me can get lost in the history. Cloak of Deception, while not as critically successful as his more recent books, has always been a favorite of mine, and one of the more underrated Prequel novels. His first two New Jedi Order books, Hero's Trial and Jedi Eclipse, weren't his best books, but they're not the horrible trash that some fans like to say they are. The Unifying Force was a very satisfying conclusion to the NJO. And Labyrinth of Evil is up there as one of my Top 5 Star Wars novels.

Needless to say, I was very glad to pick this book up in November. I grabbed the book from my local Barnes & Noble on the Tuesday it was released, right when the store opened at 9 am. I couldn't start reading until after work, which, during the fall semester, lasted till around 5. Then it was off to class, where I had to wait another hour or so before finally diving into the book in the campus library during my thirty minute break between classes. Thank God for small favors.

So, it was around 9 pm before I finally got around to beginning my read of this book. 12 hours from purchase to perusal. I don't think I've been more anxious to get started on something since I had to wait for a Saturday to pick up the Episode III novel by Stover (granted, it was released that Saturday, but I'd been looking for an advance copy for over a week!), but ultimately I got right down into the book.

Admittedly, the book started out a little slowly. Yeah, it's a good idea to get to know the characters early on, and I'm glad it picked up right before Order 66 was issued. But it seemed to stretch on for a little bit longer than it should have. I'm never one to question an author's work, but Mr. Luceno could have cut a little bit of their escape down to include a little more description of who they are, what they look like, and how they're different.

Yeah, that was my only other complaint about the book. What did Shyrne look like? How did Olee dress? What color was their hair, their eyes, their skin? I knew more about what Olee's master looked like just because I knew what most people of her species generally looked like; Olee and Shyrne, on the other hand, could look like just about anybody. Someone did say somewhere that Olee was most likely a darker skin tone, what we would consider of African descent, but I don't recall exactly where in the book such a description may have come from, or how the message board poster came to that conclusion. Perhaps I glossed over that fact. But the fact that I need to question such a thing makes me wonder why Luceno didn't take the time to define the physical traits of his primary protagonists.

I liked the transitional quality of Darth Vader in this book. Throughout the Prequels, people have complained that he's a lot like his offspring, a whiny brat who gets angry when things go wrong. Luceno used that to his advantage in the beginning of the book, having Vader's thoughts betray his feelings. He doesn't like his armor, his Force abilities are diminished, he's lost favor with the Emperor, wah wah wah, boo hoo hoo. As the book progresses, we finally get to see him becoming more confident, crushing more windpipes, and finally slaughtering some unworthy Jedi. When you can use a trait that a lot of people resented in the previous character and turn that around and make it interesting, and watch the character grow and evolve beyond those trappings, that's when you're writing well.

All in all, this was a quality read. Billed as the final part of the "trilogy" which included Labyrinth and the Revenge novelization, this book starts off a little slow, but for the characterization and evolution of Vader, the fate of Kashyyyk, and the appearance of Obi-Wan at the end, I give this a good rating. It's not my favorite offering from Luceno, but it's right up there, and it's definitely worth a re-read sometime in the future.

~James T. Skywalker