After nearly five hours of constant reading - on the couch, during class, while driving - I've finished it, and it was a rollercoaster ride.

But before I get into anything else let me give lots and lots of kudos to Karen for adding Kyp! Okay, so it was only a couple of lines - after two books of nothing I was starting to worry that Mara or Leia had finally decided to space him...

And back to the review... Again, Spoilers Beware...

For me, the whole book was a rollercoaster ride of emotions: I was seething at Sal-Solo, unsure of Lumiya, grateful that Mara had a relatively small role, wanting to smack Jacen for his stupidity, thankful that Luke's finally unsure of himself, protesting with the Corellians, suggesting a coup d'etat against Cal Omas, laughing at Han wearing Mando armor, and crying with Fett...

Yep, one of the most sad parts for me was the whole relationship with Fett and his pseudo-family. To finally learn that Ailyn was alive and to want to find her and make amends only to have her taken away permanently must have been heart-breaking even for a man with ice water in his veins. We're finally allowed to see that he can actually feel something. I'm grateful to Karen for giving us this insight into the Mando family from a person who is supposed to be Mand'alor yet in another sense in dar'manda. Because, like it or not, Fett is not a traditional Mando in any sense. I see another blog entry coming out of that...

Anyway... Somebody seriously needs to smack Jacen - and I really don't see Luke as being the one who does it. He's supposed to be this Jedi Master with powers rivaling Luke's, yet he doesn't see that he's allowing himself to be swayed by the mere power of suggestion. He may see it as keeping an open mind to all Force-philosophies, yet his mind is so easily clouded by the idea that the Force will guide him to his destiny. He's blind to the fact that - even though he tries to avoid it - he's taking the same road as Vader...

My favorite part had to be the implications regarding Skirata and the Nulls... Not only is it implied that Ko Sai was eventually returned to Kamino in pieces as revenge, but there're rumors flying of a clone who faught at Geonosis and carries a three-sided knife - not to mention claiming the clan name of Skirata. Now I can't wait to see where Republic Commando 3 & 4 take us...

I'll stop now before I go into too much detail - It's a great book all around!