Okay, anyone who's read this blog when I've gone off on my EU rants knows how intensely picky I am about which Star Wars books I say GOOD things about. Even in the LOTF series, I've had issues with several things despite it being a very compelling story that has me glowering at my empty mailbox until the next book comes out.

So, in all seriousness, Aaron Allston, I've fallen in love with you all over again. Well, not love. I'm definitely Attached to you again.

I got addicted to the Wraith Squadron books as a teenager who needed something to read on the subways. I liked them because it was fun to find books about pilots that had really funny characters. And, I confess, I had a crush on Ton Phanan. He and I have a kind of accident-prone understanding.

The thing that made me put Aaron Allston on the list of authors that I would immediately buy was Solo Command. It was not because it was hilariously funny. It was because it had depth of character that was complex on so many levels that you weren't sure who to cheer for. It had a believable not-quite-love story going on. It had some darned cool space battles and we even got to see the context of that really dumb "Kiss my Wookiee" crack from Courtship of Princess Leia.

Rebel Stand and Rebel Dream are still among the only books I still like in the New Jedi Order series. So, like I said, I really liked Allston's stuff. Even as an adult, I still go back and reread Solo Command on a regular basis because I can't ever stop loving it.

Legacy of the Force: Betrayal, sadly, is not something that I could say that about. I have read and reread it, but the reread was to reinforce my anger at it. Yes, there were some really good points, but I have a principle that I live by: "Genocide does not have a sense of humor." Or in the immortal words of Wes Janson: "You can't look dignified when you're having fun." Frankly, that's the point. I felt that the subject matter put forth in Betrayal had the power to pack a major punch and it fell short. It was trying too hard to be funny and when you try to have that much snark in something that is that potentially drastic, it kind of ruins it. Betrayal was setting the tone for the entire series and thankfully, the next two authors didn't pick up where that wise-cracking left off.

So, with a bit of apprehension, I got Exile in the mail two days ago. I was so apprehensive that I finished another book that I wasn't even really interested in first and then I worked on two separate fanfics. THEN I sat down and opened up my new Legacy of the Force book. It's not that I expected it to be bad. I just expected it to be another thing that would make me wish that Aaron Allston would go back to the tone of Solo Command.

Well, apparently, Solo Command's muse was still lurking around there because I couldn't put the new book down. Well, I had to because I fell asleep in the middle of reading it and I then had to move my bed so I could get it out and bring it to work. When I was half-asleep and worrying about missing my bus, I still wanted to read more. I even forgot my bus pass to read this.

The Han/Leia/Lando dynamics were awesome. General Celchu finally smacking down Jacen Solo made me cheer for Tycho again because he is my all-time favorite pilot and he is the exact person you need to do that sort of thing (if you have any doubt, read him threatening to blow up Myn Donos in Solo Command). Jag Fel was still Commodore Norrington and he made me cheer when he blew off Jaina Solo instead of wanting to snog her uncontrollably.

My only complaints? First of all, NEXT TIME, DON'T CUT THE LIGHTSABER DUELS SHORT! And b? Include Kyp Durron in the next shirtless chin-up competition you hold!

With much mushy love,
Ish