Best Star Wars Novel?

[Emrakkia]

I am a HUGE fan of both fantasy and to a lesser extent, sci-fi. Having said that, SW has always scratched both of those itches since it is, in effect, a fantasy in space.

 

In that vein, I've tried a few times to read a couple SW novels but they left me completely uninterested. Someone suggested the SW novel where the alien invaders (can't recall their name now) first appear. I think I made it about halfway through before petering out. For whatever reason, YAWN.

 

Loved the KOTOR 1 & 2 stories. Just fantastic.

Really liking the SWTOR stories.

I did really enjoy an Old Republic Dark Horse comic I stumbled upon one time.

 

What I'm looking for is a SW novel that has the same flavor as the things I enjoy above.

 

Suggestions?

[Quiet]

My favorite Star Wars book series is the Thrawn trilogy by Timothy Zhan.

 

Heir to the Empire (1991)

Dark Force Rising (1992)

The Last Command (1993)

 

The books are set 5 years after the end of the movie Episode 6: Return of the Jedi.

Edited February 4, 2012 by Quiet

[ptoss]

Deceived is good

Fatal Alliance is crap

Revan is crap

Bane Trilogy is good

Thrawn Trilogy is good

Republic Commandos is good despite everybody hating the author

Legacy Comics is good

Tales of the Jedi is good

KotoR comics is good

Blood of the Empire is good

Threat of Peace is so so

 

Tell me if you're interested in the ebooks.

Edited February 4, 2012 by ptoss

[Altaere]

My favorite Star Wars book series is the Thrawn trilogy by Timothy Zhan.

 

Heir to the Empire (1991)

Dark Force Rising (1992)

The Last Command (1993)

 

The books are set 5 years after the end of the movie Episode 6: Return of the Jedi.

 

 

Heir to the Empire has been the only novel I've read, whereas every other bit of EU knowledge I have comes from reading wiki articles back before Ep. 3 came out.

 

That being said, that novel bored the hell out of me. Maybe I was too young (I read the novel when I was... 12? 13?), but in any case, I put it down, then picked it up again a few months later and forced myself to read it.

 

To me, it just made the movies very anti-climatic, but then again, maybe I should've read the other 2 novels.

 

All in all, my personal opinion would be that the best novel would be set before Ep 1. because it is mostly unexplored territory that doesn't necessarily interfere with the characters we love from the movies.

[MustrumRidcully]

My favorite Star Wars book series is the Thrawn trilogy by Timothy Zhan.

 

Heir to the Empire (1991)

Dark Force Rising (1992)

The Last Command (1993)

 

The books are set 5 years after the end of the movie Episode 6: Return of the Jedi.

This are my all-time favorites as well. (I generally found out later that I like Timothy Zahn's storytelling - even if they typically feature similar elements.)

 

I was overall disappointed with the Yuzang Vong arc (New Jedi Order). They didn't really give me a ... "Star Wars" feel.

 

The Han Solo books were also pretty neat reads, IMO.

[justcallmetarzan]

You want anything by Timothy Zhan, Kevin Anderson, Michael Stackpole, Troy Denning, or Aaron Allston.

 

The Thrawn Trilogy above is one of the most important pieces of SW Lore post-Return of the Jedi. I would also recommend "The Truce at Bakura" for some information on the startup of the New Republic.

 

"The Courtship of Princess Leia" is also an absolute MUST, as it explains, among other things why there are "force-witches," how Han and Leia got married, and why the heck the Hapans decide to save the day several times (tho they got kinda screwed in a way here...)

 

"Champions of the Force" is also another absolute MUST, detailing Kyp Durron's fall to the dark side.

 

None of the Yuzhang-Vong personnel will make any sense unless you have also read the X-Wing series, and "I, Jedi." They are by Aaron Allston and Michael Stackpole - two other amazing SW authors. Among other things, this series details how the New Republic recaptured Courscant ("Wedge's Gamble"), the destruction of the Lusankya prison and death of Ysanne Isard ("Krytos Trap" and "Bacta War"), how Wedge Antilles became a flippin amazing tactician and commanding officer ("Wraith Squadron" thru "Solo Command"). "Isard's Revenge" is one of the most startling times in all of the SW lore novels that have ever been written IMO.

 

 

 

Yes, I think it's up there with Chewbacca, Mara Jade, and Anakin's deaths.

 

 

 

You can actually skip "Starfighters of Adumar" but it gives some good reference points, and is generally hilarious.

 

You CANNOT skip "I, Jedi" - it's the entire story of Corran Horn becoming a Jedi.

 

The Young Jedi Knights series is actually pretty good background information on many of the characters. It's not really written for adults, but it's still good.

 

Last but not least, you MUST read the ENTIRE "New Jedi Order" series - it's absolutely pivotal to understand anything written after it.

 

In short, you ABSOLUTELY MUST, MUST READ:

(in chronological order)

 

Wedge's Gamble (Michael Stackpole)

Isard's Revenge (Stackpole)

Courtship of Princess Leia (Dave Wolverton)

Heir to the Empire / Dark Force Rising / The Last Command (Timothy Zahn)

Champions of the Force (Kevin J. Anderson) [Also, Jedi Search and Dark Apprentice]

I, Jedi (Stackpole)

Scepter of the Past / Vision of the Future (Zahn)

 

Entire "New Jedi Order" Series - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_New_Jedi_Order

Entire "Legacy of the Force" Series - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legacy_of_the_Force

 

Note that both of those series will feel much more complete if you read the "Young Jedi Knights" series.

[CaesarSteiner]

That is the first time I've ever heard anyone recommend Kevin J Anderson. Even as a kid I could tell he was pretty terrible. Kept going back to these three things.

 

1: One-up every other author! If people liked a Death Star, they'll like a spaceship that blows up stars AND is completely invincible. Introduce his OWN master strategist who is ALSO an imperial woman! Introduce his OWN Jedi who is super-powerful (way more powerful than Luke!)

 

2: Something's going to happen, like Han escaping from jail? Better cut away to someone else, and then when we come back, just have the characters talk about what happened.

 

3: Rely on informed characteristics. Tell us that Daala, your Imperial admiral, is a super-genius, but have her be so laughably inept that a ten-year-old could outsmart her. Tell us about how the Jedi classmates are getting to be so close, but don't ever write them interacting with each other. TELL, DON'T SHOW!

 

If you can do those three things you could write a KJA novel with ease.

[psychogobstopper]

I think the best two SW novels I've read were Shatterpoint and Traitor, both written by Matthew Stover. The former takes place during the Clone Wars and focuses on Mace Windu; the latter is part of the New Jedi Order series, and cannot make sense outside the context of that series.

 

Here's a list of recommendations, where the "New Republic Era" section focuses primarily on recommendations for a reader who intends to get caught up "chronologically" on the EU:

 

Old Republic Era

* The Old Republic: Revan

* The Old Republic: Deceived

 

 

Rise of the Empire Era

* Rogue Planet (if you plan to read The New Jedi Order; I don't recall liking this book all that much back when it was released)

* Republic Commando series (you better like Mandalorians, though - also, Imperial Commando 501st is the last novel featuring these characters)

* Shatterpoint

* Labyrinth of Evil

* Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader

* The Han Solo Trilogy

* The Adventures of Lando Calrissian

* The Han Solo Adventures (Brian Daley's works, which I recall as being fun as hell, though I haven't read them since my early teens - there's also, if I recall correctly, a point in A.C. Crispin's Han Solo Trilogy where its story takes a sort of "break" where one could then easily read these books)

 

 

Rebellion Era

* Splinter of the Mind's Eye (the first non-novelization SW novel; originally intended as the basis for a low-budget Star Wars)

* Shadows of the Empire (takes place between The Empire Strikes Back & Return of the Jedi)

 

 

New Republic Era

* X-Wing series (keeping in mind that the last two books - Isard's Revenge and Starfighters of Adumar - take place following books outside this series)

* The Courtship of Princess Leia (I don't recall much about the quality of this one, but it is pretty important as far as the future of the EU goes from this point on)

* The Thrawn Trilogy (pretty much a must - the first post-ROTJ novels published, though some time has passed since ROTJ)

* The Jedi Academy Trilogy (not great stuff, but pretty important for the establishment of Luke's new Jedi Order)

* I, Jedi (just fantastic, and a great companion piece to both the X-Wing series and the Jedi Academy Trilogy)

* Darksaber (again, no recollection on quality, but some important characterizations here for later works - at one point, I had a copy signed by Kevin J. Anderson but no clue where it's at these days)

* The Corellian Trilogy (I do recall enjoy these books, and some events here are important in later books as well)

* The Hand of Thrawn Duology (more Zahn work, based on his earlier Thrawn Trilogy - good stuff, as I recall, plus important in later books)

* Young Jedi Knights series (surprisingly good for YA books, though I've only read the first six; also, they introduce and flesh out many characters who are important in the NJO and beyond)

 

 

New Jedi Order Era

* The New Jedi Order series (some of it is average, some is good / very good, some is great; my favorite SW novel period - Traitor - is in this series)

* The Dark Nest Trilogy (I enjoyed it well enough, plus some events are very important in LOTF)

 

 

Legacy Era

* Legacy of the Force (I enjoyed most of it, but I do agree with some criticisms that I've seen that parts of it feel as if the series was too long, too drawn out)

* Crosscurrent (pretty fun; worth noting that it focuses on a Jedi introduced in the Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy video game, and features none of the original and/or other popular EU characters)

* Millennium Falcon (pretty fun, plus worth it to spend some time "alone" with Han & Leia following the tragic events in LOTF)

* Fate of the Jedi (read the eight published so far, and mostly enjoying it; worth noting that one might want to consider reading the "Lost Tribe of the Sith" eBooks either prior to or in conjunction with this, as they spell out some of the history of the Sith in this series)

 

 

If I haven't mentioned a post-ROTJ book above, then odds are it wasn't worth reading (if published back in the Bantam days) or it was published after I wasn't reading SW novels quite as voraciously as I once did (i.e., some of Zahn's newer stuff, Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor*, etc.). As for books set during the Clone Wars, I haven't read most of those; same with the Old Republic Era.

 

For some examples of those that I consider not worth reading: Children of the Jedi; Planet of Twilight; The Crystal Star; The Black Fleet Crisis Trilogy; and The New Rebellion. Unfortunately, there is a rather important mention during the FOTJ series of one character who is in a few of those books, but one would probably be okay to still skip those. Of course, she also appears in Darksaber, so it could be odd to have her show up in that one without the context of her first appearance and the ones after Darksaber.

 

 

For comic recommendations (out of the many comics series that have been published, I have unfortunately read very few, so I'm not going to bother separating these into eras):

 

* Tales of the Jedi (nicely collected in two Dark Horse Omnibus editions)

* X-Wing Rogue Squadron (chronologically take place prior to the X-Wing novels, and introduce some characters important in those novels - collected in three DH Omnibus editions)

* Dark Empire Trilogy (Dark Empire, Dark Empire II, Empire's End)

* Legacy (great stuff, 140 years or so after A New Hope)

 

 

Mattew Stover wrote Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor, so I would expect that to be a strong read (and I've heard from other people that it is).

[Emrakkia]

Wow, some really divergent opinions here. I was hoping there would be consensus to make my life easy, but...nope! lol To assist with some of the points/questions raised:

 

I, seriously, have zero interest in reading about the expanded universe or expanded storylines of canon characters. It's OK if a book has some of that, but I have no interest in reading a book just on the basis of those things. If a recommendation is based on "well you should read this because it provides insight into..." then that is a clue that I will not like that story. Books that I love are stand alone stories that are good yarns in of themselves.

 

If the book is anything at all like "Truce At Bakura" (that's the one novel I did try to force myself to read), then I will not like it.

 

Alien invasion books put me to sleep. That's been done SO MANY TIMES it's a trope. If the core theme of a story is based on alien invasion, then I probably will not like it.

 

I am definitely interested in ebooks. Have been doing quite a bit of reading on my tablet lately.

 

With the New Jedi Order series, is it anything like a Hogwarts in Space? Because if it is, that sounds like a winner.

 

Having said all that...please continue with the suggestions and feel free to refine your recommendations based on the above clarifications. I truly appreciate all the input!

 

Thanks!

Edited February 4, 2012 by Emrakkia

[psychogobstopper]

With the New Jedi Order series, is it anything like a Hogwarts in Space? Because if it is, that sounds like a winner.

Not even remotely. The closest you might come to that is the Young Jedi Knights series, which follows teenaged Jaina and Jacen Solo and their friends while training at the Jedi Praxeum on Yavin IV. I was in the target "young adult" demographic when I first read these books, but I do believe they are a surprisingly decent read for older individuals. The Junior Jedi Knights series might fit this sort of "Hogwars in Space" idea (following Anakin Solo and his friends while he trains at the Praxeum), but I haven't read them.

 

Recommendations, without any of the "this will be useful to understanding later works" notations from my previous list:

• Tales of the Jedi comic series
  
• The Old Republic: Revan
  
• The Old Republic: Deceived
  
• Republic Commando series
  
• Shatterpoint
  
• Yoda: Dark Rendezvous
  
• Labyrinth of Evil
  
• Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader
  
• The Han Solo Trilogy
  
• The Adventures of Lando Calrissian
  
• The Han Solo Adventures
  
• Shadows of the Empire
  
• X-Wing: Rogue Squadron comic series
  
• X-Wing series
  
• Thrawn Trilogy
  
• Dark Empire Trilogy (comics)
  
• I, Jedi
  
• The Corellian Trilogy
  
• The Hand of Thrawn Duology
  
• Young Jedi Knights series
  
• The New Jedi Order series
  
• Legacy of the Force series
  
• Millennium Falcon
  
• Fate of the Jedi series
  
• Legacy comic series

 

I was a big fan of the NJO series while it was being published, and I still consider myself to be one. I don't deny, however, that it does have some issues, as it is 19 books long. I've also mostly enjoyed both LOTF and FOTJ, though both of those have many issues (more so, in my opinion, than NJO). The list that I posted in my previous thread was formed mostly as a recommendation on another board for individuals who were seeking to get up to speed for the most recent novel series, and I've kept it as an easy go-to list whenever recommendations are asked, hence posting that list earlier.

[redhotllama]

Star by Star is a fantastic book. In the middle of the YV series but still awesome.

[RoadtoArkham]

Anything with Thrawn.

Anything with Wedge.

The Darth Bane Trilogy.

 

And my personal favorite, Darth Plaguseis. I enjoyed it immensely.

[psychogobstopper]

The Darth Bane Trilogy.

Ah, yes. These often come up in these recommendation threads. I need to get my act together and finally read them, so I can start suggesting them too!

[justcallmetarzan]

In KJA's defense... though I will say it's probably a good thing he didn't write a LOT of SW books. That said, the Jedi Academy Trilogy is very much pivotal to character interaction and the lore background of characters that show up in the NJO books.

 

 

1: One-up every other author! If people liked a Death Star, they'll like a spaceship that blows up stars AND is completely invincible. Introduce his OWN master strategist who is ALSO an imperial woman! Introduce his OWN Jedi who is super-powerful (way more powerful than Luke!)

 

Kyp Durron was already a very powerful Jedi, and when he defeated Luke, he had the help of Exar Kun, one of the more powerful Sith Lords whose Force potential was still lingering around on Yavin.

 

And as for the Sun Crusher, I don't see that as too much different from Shatterpoint Station... and the ship's power is more important to the character development of Kyp than it is to the canon - remember, he didn't just leave it out there floating around, it's in the Maw.

 

2: Something's going to happen, like Han escaping from jail? Better cut away to someone else, and then when we come back, just have the characters talk about what happened.

 

What? He spent like half of Jedi Search detailing Han and Leia's journey through, and escape from the mines. Pretty detailed about the destruction of Cardia as I recall as well...

 

3: Rely on informed characteristics. Tell us that Daala, your Imperial admiral, is a super-genius, but have her be so laughably inept that a ten-year-old could outsmart her. Tell us about how the Jedi classmates are getting to be so close, but don't ever write them interacting with each other. TELL, DON'T SHOW!

 

As I recall, she led a fairly successful campaign against several NR planets. I think the first of her ships was destroyed by a captain that wouldn't follow orders, and the rest were destroyed by Rogue Squadron, but she managed to escape, though I can't recall if the Gorgon was destroyed as well. And after all, her skills were prolly a bit rusty after guarding the Maw for a long time.

 

I will admit the Jedi interaction at the academy is told MUCH better in I, Jedi than in the Jedi Academy Trilogy...

[Kelticfury]

I am a HUGE fan of both fantasy and to a lesser extent, sci-fi. Having said that, SW has always scratched both of those itches since it is, in effect, a fantasy in space.

 

In that vein, I've tried a few times to read a couple SW novels but they left me completely uninterested. Someone suggested the SW novel where the alien invaders (can't recall their name now) first appear. I think I made it about halfway through before petering out. For whatever reason, YAWN.

 

Loved the KOTOR 1 & 2 stories. Just fantastic.

Really liking the SWTOR stories.

I did really enjoy an Old Republic Dark Horse comic I stumbled upon one time.

 

What I'm looking for is a SW novel that has the same flavor as the things I enjoy above.

 

Suggestions?

 

I haven't read alot of star wars books, but the one I remember most was called "Splinter of the Mind's Eye". I bought the revan ebook, but haven't had a chance to read it yet.

[bountysav]

Ah, yes. These often come up in these recommendation threads. I need to get my act together and finally read them, so I can start suggesting them too!

 

I'll add my vote to the Bane trilogy too. I'm halfway through the last one and have enjoyed this series over any of the others i've read.

[jaguarclaw]

I would wholeheartedly recommend the Thrawn trilogy, and the Rogue Squadron/Wraith Squadron series. You don't really need any massive amounts of SW background to put any of them in context (provided you start at the start of course), and they're all excellent books. I especially favor the Rogue/Wraith series, because it was the first SW book series to focus on characters OTHER than the movie main characters, and it did it very, very well.

[psychogobstopper]

I haven't read alot of star wars books, but the one I remember most was called "Splinter of the Mind's Eye".

Splinter isn't a particularly great book, but it is definitely an interesting look at how the SW series might have continued if A New Hope hadn't turned out to be a blockbuster success. It was the very first tie-in novel, and was originally published to provide some basis for a low-budget sequel to ANH. It also has a scene that is a little disturbing, looking at with the benefit of hindsight knowledge that Luke and Leia are siblings.

[MajinEddie]

The Revan book is good. It just might make you mad if you are a revan fan.

[Valscorn]

Darth bane series has been a great read. pretty much explains why there is only 1 master and 1 apprentice ( rule of 2 does not exist yet at this time in game)

[Khryn]

The Revan book is good. It just might make you mad if you are a revan fan.

 

 

 

LOL You are right. I thought Revan should have been titled "Lord Scourge with enough Revan to make you buy the book."

 

 

My two cents: Thrawn Trilogy and Darth Bane trilogy. Can't go wrong with those sets.

[Dreeb]

Many others already said it already, but the Thrawn Trilogy by Timothy Zahn is a good start.

Those books really gave me a Star Wars feeling.

 

• Heir to the Empire
  
• Dark Force Rising
  
• The Last Command
  

[Camilladilla]

Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor

The Thrawn Trilogy

Legacy comics

KotOR comics

 

I'm actually a very, very picky reader with high standards for amazing prose/characterizations so the books really come highly recommended. The Thrawn trilogy by Timothy Zahn really captured the spirit of the original trilogy while and he's created many of the better known characters of the EU (Thrawn himself, Mara Jade and Kaarde). And of course Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor is written by Stover and I love everything he writes.

 

Also throwing in both the two comic series since they both really surpass a lot of the EU in terms of plot and characterizations. The setting for both comics are also really removed enough from the movies that everything is fresh yet still familiar.

[Josnas]

Continues the story after Return of the Jedi, and tells back story. Those books were in the early 90's and in em you learned how Anakin became Darth Vader.

[Tetarean]

If you are looking for something entretaining and really "light" to read... then I would recommend Death Troopers.

It´s like watching a terrible B rated horror movie.

 

Also, as it has been written in this thread before the Thrawn trillogy is a must!