I've been really busy as of late, so I haven't been around. Over the weekend, I re-read Sacrifice in anticipation of Karen Traviss's next novel in the Legacy of the Force series. WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD FOR SACRIFICE and a couple of other novels.

I decided recently to go back and re-read some of the novels that featured the death of notable Star Wars characters. In that vein, I plan on re-reading Vector Prime (Chewbacca), Star by Star (Anakin Solo), and Sacrifice (Mara Jade Skywalker). As Karen Traviss' next entry in Legacy of the Force, Revelation, was about to be released, I decided to start with Sacrifice.

What I'm writing here really isn't a review. I read Sacrifice for the first time the week it was released. I enjoyed it then, and I enjoyed it again this time, but I think for different reasons. Here are some of my thoughts:

After Mara is killed by Jacen, and Luke has arrived at Hapes and is awaiting the arrival (discovery actually) of Mara's body, Luke contemplates what his last words to Mara were. I went back into the novel to check it out and see if I could figure out the answer. Well, the last words we get between Luke and Mara are exchanged at a meeting of the Jedi counsel. However, given the changes in scenes that follow, I'm certain those weren't his last words to Mara. So, we don't know what his last words were to her either. For some reason, that made me feel bad for Luke--that even though he was a fictional character, I couldn't figure it out either.

The other thing that struck me this time through was how much this novel was about families and relationships between members of a family. Boba Fett was dealing with his relationship with Mirts. Mara spent a great amount of time dealing with Ben. She was either worrying about him, advising him, or consoling him. Furthermore, while the Skywalker/Solo clan, the good guys, continued to fall apart, the Fett family is getting put back together. Part of the reason this probably resonated with me was that I was sitting next to my son reading while he watched TV. I was very aware of his presence. As I read, I constantly had an urge to reach out and mess up his hair, tickle him....whatever.

While most of the reaction to this novel that I have seen has shown it to be well received, I think Traviss' work has been underrated. Sacrifice is a much more complex novel than it appears.

I found many of the scenes with the Mandalorians to be the most engaging. For many, the Mandalorians are overrated. What I like about them though in this novel is the attempt to give them a culture all their own. I like that we have Fett, their leader, yet an outsider, to be our eyes in this novel. After so many years of looking out for himself, he is finally trying to reconnect with "his people." The Mandalorians, in a sense, are another large family. They resent Fett's absence for so many years. However, they welcome him back (granted, not always with open arms) and encourage him to resume his role in the family.

I've moved on to Revelation, and although I'm still early in the novel, I can see some of the family themes have been picked up again by Traviss. It was apparent in the first chapter as Ben Skywalker tries to reach out to his extended family to express his concerns to Leia and Jaina. The Fett clan has additional issues to address as that family continues to be put back together.

I enjoyed my second read of Sacrifice. It has given me a new perspective on many of the characters and the story of Legacy of the Force. I still think Aaron Allston is the best writer in this series, but I've gained a new respect for Traviss' work.