Vaughan Book Reviews - Revision history

RS David: Category:Fun Activities

2009-02-05T19:58:48Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:58, 5 February 2009
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	Yeah, I've been busy with other RS crap and didn't get around to writing this review. I read this short story about . . . oh, just under two months ago, so this will be a very brief review. Especially since I didn't take down any notes. Um . . . where to begin? Overall, I didn't mind this one; it was pretty good. It continued with the theme of 'the New Republic isn't as good as the Rebel Alliance, woe is me' idea that comes up now and then, mostly in short stories. The antagonist in this story — well, not the slavers themselves, but who they're working for, the Pentastar Alignment — were interesting. Basically it's a bunch of ex-Imperial officials and military who want to maintain hold of the Imperial way in their regions, but aren't going about it as foolishly as the main Imperial Remnant and the other splintering parts of the Empire. They've established themselves as a major commercial and political entity, not waging full war against the New Republic (but would be very happy if the New Republic did collapse), playing it smart enough that the New Republic don't gun for them because they have more aggressive Imperial fish to fry. From my understanding via Wookieepedia, the Pentastar Alignment wasn't too evil. Of course, as seen in this story they're more than happy to resort to slavery and extortion to hold on to their constituents, so I think that tarnishes the notion that they're a 'good' part of the splintered Empire. I have to admit it took me a while into the story before I appreciated the characters. I didn't dislike them, they just didn't really mesh with me (or maybe I just didn't understand them and their role in the story) until a fair way in. The mercenary who dies in a blaze of glory; I didn't remember it was him, so I was wondering as I read which of them sacrificed themselves for the good of the mission. Poetic that it was the person who was explaining the 'blaze of glory' premise, obviously. Anyway, can't remember much more of this except for the fact that I wouldn't mind seeing these characters again. I doubt that I will, though, since the short story anthology business was ended a few years ago.		Yeah, I've been busy with other RS crap and didn't get around to writing this review. I read this short story about . . . oh, just under two months ago, so this will be a very brief review. Especially since I didn't take down any notes. Um . . . where to begin? Overall, I didn't mind this one; it was pretty good. It continued with the theme of 'the New Republic isn't as good as the Rebel Alliance, woe is me' idea that comes up now and then, mostly in short stories. The antagonist in this story — well, not the slavers themselves, but who they're working for, the Pentastar Alignment — were interesting. Basically it's a bunch of ex-Imperial officials and military who want to maintain hold of the Imperial way in their regions, but aren't going about it as foolishly as the main Imperial Remnant and the other splintering parts of the Empire. They've established themselves as a major commercial and political entity, not waging full war against the New Republic (but would be very happy if the New Republic did collapse), playing it smart enough that the New Republic don't gun for them because they have more aggressive Imperial fish to fry. From my understanding via Wookieepedia, the Pentastar Alignment wasn't too evil. Of course, as seen in this story they're more than happy to resort to slavery and extortion to hold on to their constituents, so I think that tarnishes the notion that they're a 'good' part of the splintered Empire. I have to admit it took me a while into the story before I appreciated the characters. I didn't dislike them, they just didn't really mesh with me (or maybe I just didn't understand them and their role in the story) until a fair way in. The mercenary who dies in a blaze of glory; I didn't remember it was him, so I was wondering as I read which of them sacrificed themselves for the good of the mission. Poetic that it was the person who was explaining the 'blaze of glory' premise, obviously. Anyway, can't remember much more of this except for the fact that I wouldn't mind seeing these characters again. I doubt that I will, though, since the short story anthology business was ended a few years ago.

			[[Category:Fun Activities]]

David Vaughan: /* Blaze of Glory */

2008-04-25T08:09:45Z

Blaze of Glory

← Older revision		Revision as of 08:09, 25 April 2008
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	'''GOOD''' — A good book, above average.		'''GOOD''' — A good book, above average.

	Yeah, I've been busy with other RS crap and didn't get around to writing this review. I read this short story about . . . oh, just under two months ago, so this will be a very brief review. Especially since I didn't take down any notes. Um . . . where to begin? Overall, I didn't mind this one; it was pretty good. It continued with the theme of 'the New Republic isn't as good as the Rebel Alliance, woe is me' idea that comes up now and then, mostly in short stories. The antagonist in this story — well, not the slavers themselves, but who they're working for, the Pentastar ~~Allignment~~ — were interesting. Basically it's a bunch of ex-Imperial officials and military who want to maintain hold of the Imperial way in their regions, but aren't going about it as foolishly as the main Imperial Remnant and the other splintering parts of the Empire. They've established themselves as a major commercial and political entity, not waging full war against the New Republic (but would be very happy if the New Republic did collapse), playing it smart enough that the New Republic don't gun for them because they have more aggressive Imperial fish to fry. From my understanding via Wookieepedia, the Pentastar ~~Allignment~~ wasn't too evil. Of course, as seen in this story they're more than happy to resort to slavery and extortion to hold on to their constituents, so I think that tarnishes the notion that they're a 'good' part of the splintered Empire. I have to admit it took me a while into the story before I ~~appeciated~~ the characters. I didn't dislike them, they just didn't really mesh with me (or maybe I just didn't understand them and their role in the story) until a fair way in. The mercenary who dies in a blaze of glory; I didn't remember it was him, so I was wondering as I read which of them sacrificed themselves for the good of the mission. Poetic that it was the person who was explaining the 'blaze of glory' premise, obviously. Anyway, can't remember much more of this except for the fact that I wouldn't mind seeing these characters again. I doubt that I will, though, since the short story anthology business was ended a few years ago.		Yeah, I've been busy with other RS crap and didn't get around to writing this review. I read this short story about . . . oh, just under two months ago, so this will be a very brief review. Especially since I didn't take down any notes. Um . . . where to begin? Overall, I didn't mind this one; it was pretty good. It continued with the theme of 'the New Republic isn't as good as the Rebel Alliance, woe is me' idea that comes up now and then, mostly in short stories. The antagonist in this story — well, not the slavers themselves, but who they're working for, the Pentastar Alignment — were interesting. Basically it's a bunch of ex-Imperial officials and military who want to maintain hold of the Imperial way in their regions, but aren't going about it as foolishly as the main Imperial Remnant and the other splintering parts of the Empire. They've established themselves as a major commercial and political entity, not waging full war against the New Republic (but would be very happy if the New Republic did collapse), playing it smart enough that the New Republic don't gun for them because they have more aggressive Imperial fish to fry. From my understanding via Wookieepedia, the Pentastar Alignment wasn't too evil. Of course, as seen in this story they're more than happy to resort to slavery and extortion to hold on to their constituents, so I think that tarnishes the notion that they're a 'good' part of the splintered Empire. I have to admit it took me a while into the story before I appreciated the characters. I didn't dislike them, they just didn't really mesh with me (or maybe I just didn't understand them and their role in the story) until a fair way in. The mercenary who dies in a blaze of glory; I didn't remember it was him, so I was wondering as I read which of them sacrificed themselves for the good of the mission. Poetic that it was the person who was explaining the 'blaze of glory' premise, obviously. Anyway, can't remember much more of this except for the fact that I wouldn't mind seeing these characters again. I doubt that I will, though, since the short story anthology business was ended a few years ago.

David Vaughan: Blaze of Glory

2008-04-25T08:07:08Z

Blaze of Glory

← Older revision		Revision as of 08:07, 25 April 2008
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	#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#Dark Force Rising\|Dark Force Rising]]'' (Book II of the ''Thrawn Trilogy'') — '''VERY GOOD'''		#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#Dark Force Rising\|Dark Force Rising]]'' (Book II of the ''Thrawn Trilogy'') — '''VERY GOOD'''
	#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#The Last Command\|The Last Command]]'' (Book III of the ''Thrawn Trilogy'') — '''EXCELLENT'''		#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#The Last Command\|The Last Command]]'' (Book III of the ''Thrawn Trilogy'') — '''EXCELLENT'''
			#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#Blaze of Glory\|Blaze of Glory]]'' (Part VII of ''Tales from the Empire'') — '''GOOD'''


	'''And the list of stories waiting to be reviewed''':		'''And the list of stories waiting to be reviewed''':
	~~#''Blaze of Glory'' (Part VII of ''Tales from the Empire'')~~
	#''Isard's Revenge'' (Book VIII of the ''X-wing'' series)		#''Isard's Revenge'' (Book VIII of the ''X-wing'' series)
	#''Retreat from Coruscant'' (Part V of ''Tales from the Empire'')		#''Retreat from Coruscant'' (Part V of ''Tales from the Empire'')
Line 738:		Line 738:

	Oh crap. It seems in my infinite wisdom, I decided not to record notes about this book when I finished it. Obviously I thought I would get off my ass and get the reviews done quickly enough that I would still remember what happened in this book. Silly me. Um . . . let's see. For some reason I ranked it higher than the previous books in the trilogy, probably because things passed through to their conclusions, so things of permanence happened. The bad guys were defeated. Thrawn was killed — Sad Panda — and the book ends the trilogy on a . . . very optimistic note. I really, really wanted an extra chapter at the end, just to kind of savour the victory and see what life's like for these poor bastards who are always fighting, when they finally get some time off. And by time off, I don't mean they're on holidays, just that shit isn't exploding around them and life going to hell for a few moments. Didn't like C'baoth much, but I think that's intentional. He's really the villain of the trilogy; Thrawn's just doing his job while C'baoth's fucking insane. Can't get over how much the series ends on a positive, hopeful note . . . especially when knowing in advance what kind of crap is about to go down mere months from this point in time. Still, nice for the characters to enjoy a brief reprieve, even if it is too far too brief. Throughout the series, the only pilots you really see first-hand or during battle are Antilles, Hobbie, Janson, and Pash Cracken. That last one surprised me — I didn't realise he was introduced in this series, I thought ''Wedge's Gamble'' was his first appearance. I'm probably just spoiled by the ''X-wing'' series, but the use of the pilots in space battles was kind of weak. Merely had Antilles talking to 'Rogue Two', or whomever, with no more description of who that was than their squadron position. Also, I'm not sure why Antilles is 'Wing Commander'. I'm pretty sure this is the only place in continuity he's given this rank. The rest of the time he's either 'Commander' or 'General'. In fact, I can't even see why he's a wing commander, because he commands only a squadron, nothing more. Erm, kind of struggling for memory now. I really should have written down some notes. Oh, I like Pellaeon, and look forward to seeing him in future works, even if he's penned by the useless Anderson. I'm sure I should have something to say about Bel Iblis and Mothma, or even Organa Solo's Force skills, but I can't really think of anything coherent. Well, that's all from me for this book. I've now over the past few days caught up the last three and a half months of readings. Up until this point in the timeline I've been reading these books and stories while commuting to and from work on the train, but from here on in I'm driving, so I won't be reading every day a few chapters at a time. So, my readings and contribution to the reviewing project will probably be much slower, since I'll only be reading in my free time, but on the bright side I won't let the reviews slip behind my current reading placement. So, here's to the next twenty-odd stories, to the end of the reading project!		Oh crap. It seems in my infinite wisdom, I decided not to record notes about this book when I finished it. Obviously I thought I would get off my ass and get the reviews done quickly enough that I would still remember what happened in this book. Silly me. Um . . . let's see. For some reason I ranked it higher than the previous books in the trilogy, probably because things passed through to their conclusions, so things of permanence happened. The bad guys were defeated. Thrawn was killed — Sad Panda — and the book ends the trilogy on a . . . very optimistic note. I really, really wanted an extra chapter at the end, just to kind of savour the victory and see what life's like for these poor bastards who are always fighting, when they finally get some time off. And by time off, I don't mean they're on holidays, just that shit isn't exploding around them and life going to hell for a few moments. Didn't like C'baoth much, but I think that's intentional. He's really the villain of the trilogy; Thrawn's just doing his job while C'baoth's fucking insane. Can't get over how much the series ends on a positive, hopeful note . . . especially when knowing in advance what kind of crap is about to go down mere months from this point in time. Still, nice for the characters to enjoy a brief reprieve, even if it is too far too brief. Throughout the series, the only pilots you really see first-hand or during battle are Antilles, Hobbie, Janson, and Pash Cracken. That last one surprised me — I didn't realise he was introduced in this series, I thought ''Wedge's Gamble'' was his first appearance. I'm probably just spoiled by the ''X-wing'' series, but the use of the pilots in space battles was kind of weak. Merely had Antilles talking to 'Rogue Two', or whomever, with no more description of who that was than their squadron position. Also, I'm not sure why Antilles is 'Wing Commander'. I'm pretty sure this is the only place in continuity he's given this rank. The rest of the time he's either 'Commander' or 'General'. In fact, I can't even see why he's a wing commander, because he commands only a squadron, nothing more. Erm, kind of struggling for memory now. I really should have written down some notes. Oh, I like Pellaeon, and look forward to seeing him in future works, even if he's penned by the useless Anderson. I'm sure I should have something to say about Bel Iblis and Mothma, or even Organa Solo's Force skills, but I can't really think of anything coherent. Well, that's all from me for this book. I've now over the past few days caught up the last three and a half months of readings. Up until this point in the timeline I've been reading these books and stories while commuting to and from work on the train, but from here on in I'm driving, so I won't be reading every day a few chapters at a time. So, my readings and contribution to the reviewing project will probably be much slower, since I'll only be reading in my free time, but on the bright side I won't let the reviews slip behind my current reading placement. So, here's to the next twenty-odd stories, to the end of the reading project!

			==Blaze of Glory==
			Part VII of ''Tales from the Empire''

			'''GOOD''' — A good book, above average.

			Yeah, I've been busy with other RS crap and didn't get around to writing this review. I read this short story about . . . oh, just under two months ago, so this will be a very brief review. Especially since I didn't take down any notes. Um . . . where to begin? Overall, I didn't mind this one; it was pretty good. It continued with the theme of 'the New Republic isn't as good as the Rebel Alliance, woe is me' idea that comes up now and then, mostly in short stories. The antagonist in this story — well, not the slavers themselves, but who they're working for, the Pentastar Allignment — were interesting. Basically it's a bunch of ex-Imperial officials and military who want to maintain hold of the Imperial way in their regions, but aren't going about it as foolishly as the main Imperial Remnant and the other splintering parts of the Empire. They've established themselves as a major commercial and political entity, not waging full war against the New Republic (but would be very happy if the New Republic did collapse), playing it smart enough that the New Republic don't gun for them because they have more aggressive Imperial fish to fry. From my understanding via Wookieepedia, the Pentastar Allignment wasn't too evil. Of course, as seen in this story they're more than happy to resort to slavery and extortion to hold on to their constituents, so I think that tarnishes the notion that they're a 'good' part of the splintered Empire. I have to admit it took me a while into the story before I appeciated the characters. I didn't dislike them, they just didn't really mesh with me (or maybe I just didn't understand them and their role in the story) until a fair way in. The mercenary who dies in a blaze of glory; I didn't remember it was him, so I was wondering as I read which of them sacrificed themselves for the good of the mission. Poetic that it was the person who was explaining the 'blaze of glory' premise, obviously. Anyway, can't remember much more of this except for the fact that I wouldn't mind seeing these characters again. I doubt that I will, though, since the short story anthology business was ended a few years ago.

David Vaughan at 09:01, 2 March 2008

2008-03-02T09:01:07Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:01, 2 March 2008
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	#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#The Empire Strikes Back\|The Empire Strikes Back]]'' (Episode V of the ''Star Wars'' film saga) — '''GOOD'''		#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#The Empire Strikes Back\|The Empire Strikes Back]]'' (Episode V of the ''Star Wars'' film saga) — '''GOOD'''
	#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#The Prize Pelt: The Tale of Bossk\|The Prize Pelt: The Tale of Bossk]]'' (Part III of ''Tales of the Bounty Hunters'') — '''EXCELLENT'''		#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#The Prize Pelt: The Tale of Bossk\|The Prize Pelt: The Tale of Bossk]]'' (Part III of ''Tales of the Bounty Hunters'') — '''EXCELLENT'''
	#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#Of Possible Futures: The Tale of Zuckuss and 4-LOM\|Of Possible Futures: The Tale of Zuckuss and 4-LOM]]'' (Part IV of ''Tales of the Bounty Hunters'')		#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#Of Possible Futures: The Tale of Zuckuss and 4-LOM\|Of Possible Futures: The Tale of Zuckuss and 4-LOM]]'' (Part IV of ''Tales of the Bounty Hunters'') — '''EXCELLENT'''
	#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#Slaying Dragons\|Slaying Dragons]]'' (Part VIII of ''Tales from the Empire'') — '''GOOD'''		#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#Slaying Dragons\|Slaying Dragons]]'' (Part VIII of ''Tales from the Empire'') — '''GOOD'''
	#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#Shadows of the Empire\|Shadows of the Empire]]'' — '''EXCELLENT'''		#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#Shadows of the Empire\|Shadows of the Empire]]'' — '''EXCELLENT'''

David Vaughan at 08:59, 2 March 2008

2008-03-02T08:59:47Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 08:59, 2 March 2008
Line 117:		Line 117:
	#''Isard's Revenge'' (Book VIII of the ''X-wing'' series)		#''Isard's Revenge'' (Book VIII of the ''X-wing'' series)
	#''Retreat from Coruscant'' (Part V of ''Tales from the Empire'')		#''Retreat from Coruscant'' (Part V of ''Tales from the Empire'')
	#''Dark Empire'' (~~Book~~ I of the ''Dark Empire'' series)		#''Dark Empire'' (Part I of the ''Dark Empire'' series)
	#''Dark Empire II'' (~~Book~~ II of the ''Dark Empire'' series)		#''Dark Empire II'' (Part II of the ''Dark Empire'' series)
	#''Empire's End'' (~~Book~~ III of the ''Dark Empire'' series)		#''Empire's End'' (Part III of the ''Dark Empire'' series)
	#''Jedi Search'' (Book I of the ''Jedi Academy Trilogy'')		#''Jedi Search'' (Book I of the ''Jedi Academy Trilogy'')
	#''Dark Apprentice'' (Book II of the ''Jedi Academy Trilogy'')		#''Dark Apprentice'' (Book II of the ''Jedi Academy Trilogy'')

David Vaughan: /* The Last Command */

2008-03-02T08:12:39Z

The Last Command

← Older revision		Revision as of 08:12, 2 March 2008
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	'''EXCELLENT''' — Wow! This was pretty damned good. This is one I'll definitely be re-reading at some point.		'''EXCELLENT''' — Wow! This was pretty damned good. This is one I'll definitely be re-reading at some point.

	~~text~~		Oh crap. It seems in my infinite wisdom, I decided not to record notes about this book when I finished it. Obviously I thought I would get off my ass and get the reviews done quickly enough that I would still remember what happened in this book. Silly me. Um . . . let's see. For some reason I ranked it higher than the previous books in the trilogy, probably because things passed through to their conclusions, so things of permanence happened. The bad guys were defeated. Thrawn was killed — Sad Panda — and the book ends the trilogy on a . . . very optimistic note. I really, really wanted an extra chapter at the end, just to kind of savour the victory and see what life's like for these poor bastards who are always fighting, when they finally get some time off. And by time off, I don't mean they're on holidays, just that shit isn't exploding around them and life going to hell for a few moments. Didn't like C'baoth much, but I think that's intentional. He's really the villain of the trilogy; Thrawn's just doing his job while C'baoth's fucking insane. Can't get over how much the series ends on a positive, hopeful note . . . especially when knowing in advance what kind of crap is about to go down mere months from this point in time. Still, nice for the characters to enjoy a brief reprieve, even if it is too far too brief. Throughout the series, the only pilots you really see first-hand or during battle are Antilles, Hobbie, Janson, and Pash Cracken. That last one surprised me — I didn't realise he was introduced in this series, I thought ''Wedge's Gamble'' was his first appearance. I'm probably just spoiled by the ''X-wing'' series, but the use of the pilots in space battles was kind of weak. Merely had Antilles talking to 'Rogue Two', or whomever, with no more description of who that was than their squadron position. Also, I'm not sure why Antilles is 'Wing Commander'. I'm pretty sure this is the only place in continuity he's given this rank. The rest of the time he's either 'Commander' or 'General'. In fact, I can't even see why he's a wing commander, because he commands only a squadron, nothing more. Erm, kind of struggling for memory now. I really should have written down some notes. Oh, I like Pellaeon, and look forward to seeing him in future works, even if he's penned by the useless Anderson. I'm sure I should have something to say about Bel Iblis and Mothma, or even Organa Solo's Force skills, but I can't really think of anything coherent. Well, that's all from me for this book. I've now over the past few days caught up the last three and a half months of readings. Up until this point in the timeline I've been reading these books and stories while commuting to and from work on the train, but from here on in I'm driving, so I won't be reading every day a few chapters at a time. So, my readings and contribution to the reviewing project will probably be much slower, since I'll only be reading in my free time, but on the bright side I won't let the reviews slip behind my current reading placement. So, here's to the next twenty-odd stories, to the end of the reading project!

David Vaughan: /* Dark Force Rising */

2008-03-02T07:59:05Z

Dark Force Rising

← Older revision		Revision as of 07:59, 2 March 2008
Line 730:		Line 730:
	'''VERY GOOD''' — A solid read that I would recommend to others.		'''VERY GOOD''' — A solid read that I would recommend to others.

	I'm pretty sure that my reviews for this book and the next will be very similar to the previous one, but here goes anyway. I can't think of anything specific to demonstrate this, but I think I enjoyed this book more than ''Heir to the Empire''. Maybe it's because things start properly happening, rather than being set up and established? Or maybe I've just adjusted to the author's writing style, and got myself more into the series and become more invested with it? As said, despite enjoying this book more than the previous, this entire trilogy seems very homogenous. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it just means it's harder to remember exactly when certain events transpired, because it's hard to remember which book they happened in as the writing style is all very similar. Again, that's not a criticism. It helps gel everything together as one consistent story. Another Zahnism that pushed my buttons in: whenever a character 'mentally crossed their fingers', which happened a hell of a lot. Some interesting public knowledge points, that being the name "Thrawn" was not known until the middle-end part of this book. Before that it's "the Grand Admiral". And before that it's simply "the new Imperial commander". Glad that I read this before we got into too many news articles; good to know not to use the name "Thrawn" for a while yet. And it was good to see some Skywalker action in this one. And I don't mean he got laid, just that there were lots of cool Jedi Skywalker kicking ass moments.		I'm pretty sure that my reviews for this book and the next will be very similar to the previous one, but here goes anyway. I can't think of anything specific to demonstrate this, but I think I enjoyed this book more than ''Heir to the Empire''. Maybe it's because things start properly happening, rather than being set up and established? Or maybe I've just adjusted to the author's writing style, and got myself more into the series and become more invested with it? As said, despite enjoying this book more than the previous, this entire trilogy seems very homogenous. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it just means it's harder to remember exactly when certain events transpired, because it's hard to remember which book they happened in as the writing style is all very similar. Again, that's not a criticism. It helps gel everything together as one consistent story. Another Zahnism that pushed my buttons is: whenever a character 'mentally crossed their fingers', which happened a hell of a lot. Some interesting public knowledge points, that being the name "Thrawn" was not known until the middle-end part of this book. Before that it's "the Grand Admiral". And before that it's simply "the new Imperial commander". Glad that I read this before we got into too many news articles; good to know not to use the name "Thrawn" for a while yet. And it was good to see some Skywalker action in this one. And I don't mean he got laid, just that there were lots of cool Jedi Skywalker kicking ass moments.

	==The Last Command==		==The Last Command==

David Vaughan: /* Dark Force Rising */

2008-03-02T07:57:58Z

Dark Force Rising

← Older revision		Revision as of 07:57, 2 March 2008
Line 730:		Line 730:
	'''VERY GOOD''' — A solid read that I would recommend to others.		'''VERY GOOD''' — A solid read that I would recommend to others.

	I'm pretty sure that my reviews for this book and the next will be very similar to the previous one, but here goes anyway. I can't think of anything specific to demonstrate this, but I think I enjoyed this book more than ''Heir to the Empire''. Maybe it's because things start properly ~~happenings~~, rather than being set up and established? Or maybe I've just adjusted to the author's writing style, and got myself more into the series and become more invested with it? As said, despite enjoying this book more than the previous, this entire trilogy seems very homogenous. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it just means it's harder to remember exactly when certain events transpired, because it's hard to remember which book they happened in as the writing style is all very similar. Again, that's not a criticism. It helps gel everything together as one consistent story. Another Zahnism that pushed my buttons in: whenever a character 'mentally crossed their fingers', which happened a hell of a lot. Some interesting public knowledge points, that being the name "Thrawn" was not known until the middle-end part of this book. Before that it's "the Grand Admiral". And before that it's simply "the new Imperial commander". Glad that I read this before we got into too many news articles; good to know not to use the name "Thrawn" for a while yet. And it was good to see some Skywalker action in this one. And I don't mean he got laid, just that there were lots of cool Jedi Skywalker kicking ass moments.		I'm pretty sure that my reviews for this book and the next will be very similar to the previous one, but here goes anyway. I can't think of anything specific to demonstrate this, but I think I enjoyed this book more than ''Heir to the Empire''. Maybe it's because things start properly happening, rather than being set up and established? Or maybe I've just adjusted to the author's writing style, and got myself more into the series and become more invested with it? As said, despite enjoying this book more than the previous, this entire trilogy seems very homogenous. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it just means it's harder to remember exactly when certain events transpired, because it's hard to remember which book they happened in as the writing style is all very similar. Again, that's not a criticism. It helps gel everything together as one consistent story. Another Zahnism that pushed my buttons in: whenever a character 'mentally crossed their fingers', which happened a hell of a lot. Some interesting public knowledge points, that being the name "Thrawn" was not known until the middle-end part of this book. Before that it's "the Grand Admiral". And before that it's simply "the new Imperial commander". Glad that I read this before we got into too many news articles; good to know not to use the name "Thrawn" for a while yet. And it was good to see some Skywalker action in this one. And I don't mean he got laid, just that there were lots of cool Jedi Skywalker kicking ass moments.

	==The Last Command==		==The Last Command==

David Vaughan: /* Dark Force Rising */

2008-03-02T07:56:05Z

Dark Force Rising

← Older revision		Revision as of 07:56, 2 March 2008
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	'''VERY GOOD''' — A solid read that I would recommend to others.		'''VERY GOOD''' — A solid read that I would recommend to others.

	I'm pretty sure that my reviews for this book and the next will be very similar to the previous one, but here goes anyway. I can't think of anything specific to demonstrate this, but I think I enjoyed this book more than ''Heir to the Empire''. Maybe it's because things start properly happenings, rather than being set up and established? Or maybe I've just adjusted to the author's writing style, and got myself more into the series and become more invested with it? As said, despite enjoying this book more than the previous, this entire trilogy seems very homogenous. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it just means it's harder to remember exactly when certain events transpired, because it's hard to remember which book they happened in as the writing style is all very similar. Again, that's not a criticism. It helps gel everything together as one consistent story. Another Zahnism that pushed my buttons in: whenever a character 'mentally crossed their fingers', which happened a hell of a lot. Some interesting public knowledge points, that being the name "Thrawn" was not known until the middle-end part of this book. Before that it's "the Grand Admiral". And before that it's simply "the new Imperial commander". Glad that I read this before we got into too many news articles; good to know not to use the name "Thrawn" for a while yet. And it was good to see some Skywalker action in this one. And I don't mean he got laid, just that there were lots of cool Jedi Skywalker kicking ass ~~with~~ moments.		I'm pretty sure that my reviews for this book and the next will be very similar to the previous one, but here goes anyway. I can't think of anything specific to demonstrate this, but I think I enjoyed this book more than ''Heir to the Empire''. Maybe it's because things start properly happenings, rather than being set up and established? Or maybe I've just adjusted to the author's writing style, and got myself more into the series and become more invested with it? As said, despite enjoying this book more than the previous, this entire trilogy seems very homogenous. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it just means it's harder to remember exactly when certain events transpired, because it's hard to remember which book they happened in as the writing style is all very similar. Again, that's not a criticism. It helps gel everything together as one consistent story. Another Zahnism that pushed my buttons in: whenever a character 'mentally crossed their fingers', which happened a hell of a lot. Some interesting public knowledge points, that being the name "Thrawn" was not known until the middle-end part of this book. Before that it's "the Grand Admiral". And before that it's simply "the new Imperial commander". Glad that I read this before we got into too many news articles; good to know not to use the name "Thrawn" for a while yet. And it was good to see some Skywalker action in this one. And I don't mean he got laid, just that there were lots of cool Jedi Skywalker kicking ass moments.

	==The Last Command==		==The Last Command==

David Vaughan: /* Dark Force Rising */

2008-03-02T07:54:54Z

Dark Force Rising

← Older revision		Revision as of 07:54, 2 March 2008
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	'''VERY GOOD''' — A solid read that I would recommend to others.		'''VERY GOOD''' — A solid read that I would recommend to others.

	~~text~~		I'm pretty sure that my reviews for this book and the next will be very similar to the previous one, but here goes anyway. I can't think of anything specific to demonstrate this, but I think I enjoyed this book more than ''Heir to the Empire''. Maybe it's because things start properly happenings, rather than being set up and established? Or maybe I've just adjusted to the author's writing style, and got myself more into the series and become more invested with it? As said, despite enjoying this book more than the previous, this entire trilogy seems very homogenous. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it just means it's harder to remember exactly when certain events transpired, because it's hard to remember which book they happened in as the writing style is all very similar. Again, that's not a criticism. It helps gel everything together as one consistent story. Another Zahnism that pushed my buttons in: whenever a character 'mentally crossed their fingers', which happened a hell of a lot. Some interesting public knowledge points, that being the name "Thrawn" was not known until the middle-end part of this book. Before that it's "the Grand Admiral". And before that it's simply "the new Imperial commander". Glad that I read this before we got into too many news articles; good to know not to use the name "Thrawn" for a while yet. And it was good to see some Skywalker action in this one. And I don't mean he got laid, just that there were lots of cool Jedi Skywalker kicking ass with moments.

	==The Last Command==		==The Last Command==

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:01, 2 March 2008
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	#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#The Empire Strikes Back\|The Empire Strikes Back]]'' (Episode V of the ''Star Wars'' film saga) — '''GOOD'''		#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#The Empire Strikes Back\|The Empire Strikes Back]]'' (Episode V of the ''Star Wars'' film saga) — '''GOOD'''
	#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#The Prize Pelt: The Tale of Bossk\|The Prize Pelt: The Tale of Bossk]]'' (Part III of ''Tales of the Bounty Hunters'') — '''EXCELLENT'''		#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#The Prize Pelt: The Tale of Bossk\|The Prize Pelt: The Tale of Bossk]]'' (Part III of ''Tales of the Bounty Hunters'') — '''EXCELLENT'''
	#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#Of Possible Futures: The Tale of Zuckuss and 4-LOM\|Of Possible Futures: The Tale of Zuckuss and 4-LOM]]'' (Part IV of ''Tales of the Bounty Hunters'')		#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#Of Possible Futures: The Tale of Zuckuss and 4-LOM\|Of Possible Futures: The Tale of Zuckuss and 4-LOM]]'' (Part IV of ''Tales of the Bounty Hunters'') — '''EXCELLENT'''
	#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#Slaying Dragons\|Slaying Dragons]]'' (Part VIII of ''Tales from the Empire'') — '''GOOD'''		#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#Slaying Dragons\|Slaying Dragons]]'' (Part VIII of ''Tales from the Empire'') — '''GOOD'''
	#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#Shadows of the Empire\|Shadows of the Empire]]'' — '''EXCELLENT'''		#''[[Vaughan Book Reviews#Shadows of the Empire\|Shadows of the Empire]]'' — '''EXCELLENT'''