Club Jade

We got our first look at the back of Denning’s Fate of the Jedi: Vortex this afternoon, a while new look at Luke’s (temporary) replacement as leader of the Jedi, Kenth Hamner. (A previous version of Kenth resembled William Shatner; Paul Kemp thinks this one looks like Mr. Roeper.) Also along for the ride is a new, extended blurb (highlight to read the spoilery bits:

In a stunning turn of events, Luke Skywalker and his son, Ben, joined forces with members of the Sith armada sent to kill them — and turned their combined might against the monstrous being Abeloth, whose power was causing young Jedi Knights to go seemingly insane. But with Abeloth gone and the Knights sane again, the Sith reverted to form, making a treacherous attempt on Luke’s life.

Luke and Ben have no time for retaliation. A new and even more insidious threat is rising, one that endangers not only the Jedi but the entire Galactic Alliance. Unless the Skywalkers survive to sound the alarm — and to pass along the secrets they have learned about Abeloth and the Sith — the galaxy will suffer as it has never suffered before. But the reinforcements they need remain grounded on Coruscant, where the political battle of wills between the Jedi Council and Galactic Alliance Chief of State Natasi Daala has reached a boiling point.

Now Luke and Ben must go on the run, taking along the inscrutable — and dangerous — Sith apprentice Vestara Khai. With a host of Sith warriors in hot pursuit, the Skywalkers soon find themselves trapped on the moon Pydyr, caught between their former allies and a mob of angry Fallanassi. A new truce may be their only hope. But can a Sith ever be trusted?

With the Jedi’s most famous father-and-son team outnumbered and outgunned, the countdown to galactic disaster has begun — and time is running out!

Vortex is due out in hardcover December 7.

Someone got stabbed with a pen in Hall H this evening; There’s a report from San Diego’s NBC affiliate and Comic Book Resources and Entertainment Weekly are on the case. (Harrison Ford is not a suspect.) The rumors have been flying over Twitter, including allegations that seat-squatting (a common practice) was a factor.

• In the wake of our first glimpse at the cover, StarWars.com has a clearer look and the blurb for John Jackson Miller’s Knight Errant paperback.

• The prequels are safe from Family Guy; Indiana Jones, not so much. Their Return of the Jedi spoof is named… wait for it… “It’s a Trap!” Oh Family Guy, your creativity is boundless.
• Even putting The Clone Wars aside, there were a few EU figures in Hasbro’s presentation – more than I was expecting, anyway. The Comic Packs continue (as Entertainment Earth exclusives) with Legacy’s Deliah Blue/Darth Nihl. Knights of the Old Republic’s Jarael/Rohlan Dyre (image 50,) Jaster Mereel/Montross from Jango Fett: Open Seasons and Rogue Squadron’s Baron Fel/Ysanne Isard (51.) I suppose the Jodo Kast on 35 counts, too.
• Hungry for The Old Republic news? Here’s Pablo’s report from the MMO’s panel.
• Oh, hey, Avengers.

StarWars.com has our first look at the seventh Fate of the Jedi book, Aaron Allston’s Conviction. I guess Tahiri looks like Number 6 now.

On the boards, Sue Rostoni reports that the book has been moved back (from April 19) to a May 24th release.

An audio excerpt of Christie Golden’s Allies – the fifth book of the series, out on the 25th – is up at Random House.

In related news, Sue Rostoni has revealed on the boards that Kenth Hamner, not Saba Sebatyne as previously announced, will get the back cover spot on the sixth book, Denning’s Vortex. (It’s due out in December.) A model has been hired, so presumably he won’t be a dead ringer for William Shatner this time around.

Visions. So I haven’t been unimpressed with the peeks we’ve had of this ‘mystery’ book so far, but I wasn’t really blown away until Raymond Swanland’s ‘Shadows of Tatooine’ appeared today. It may not be ‘The Death of General Wolfe’ pastiche I so greatly desire, but: WANT.

Fate of the Jedi. Why hello there! Get your first look at Lando on the back cover of Allies.

Comics: io9 has the preview for Legacy #46.

Inspired by remarks by @bantamspectra and @brownjawa on Twitter, I’ve been thinking about Star Wars book covers. What works? What doesn’t? Clearly this is subjective, but here’s my take. (more…)

The official site brings us our first look at the cover for Troy Denning’s Vortex, the sixth Fate of the Jedi novel.

The front cover was revealed a while back, but now StarWars.com has the back and flap copy. The book is currently set for a July 20 release.

NJOE was the first to spot the cover art for Karen Miller’s last (for now?) Clone Wars novel. Check it out at in full Random House or below the cut. (more…)

StarWars.com has revealed the back cover of Fate of the Jedi: Backlash, featuring an extremely flattering image of the sixtysomething Admiral Daala. Sue says: “She’s now sporting an artificial eye — her left one. She has been taking excellent care of herself over the years.” Or, this is just a cover, can we please stop overthinking it?

Oh, and there’s a blurb:

Repercussions from the dark side’s fatal seduction of Jacen Solo and the mysterious plague of madness afflicting young Jedi continue to wreak havoc galaxy-wide. Having narrowly escaped the deranged Force worshippers known as the Mind Walkers, and a deadly Sith hit squad, Luke and Ben Skywalker are in pursuit of the now Masterless Sith apprentice Vestara Khai. It is a chase that leads to the forbidding planet Dathomir, where an enclave of powerful dark-side Force-wielders will give Vestara the edge she needs to escape — and where the Skywalkers will be forced into combat for their quarry and their lives.

Meanwhile, Han and Leia Solo are on their own desperate mission, shuttling madness-stricken Jedi from Coruscant to safe haven in the Transitory Mists — and beyond the grasp of Galactic Alliance Chief of State Natasi Daala. But the bold maneuver only intensifies Daala’s fury, and she is determined to shatter Jedi Order resistance once and for all.

Yet, no greater threat exists than that which still waits in the depths of the distant Maw Cluster: A being of pure, ravenous dark-side energy named Abeloth calls out across the stars to Jedi and Sith alike. For some, it may be the ultimate source of answers crucial to their survival. For others, it could be the ultimate weapon of conquest. But for all, it is a game-changing — and life-altering — encounter of untold magnitude, and a tactical gambit with unimaginable consequences.

Backlash is the fourth Fate of the Jedi novel and the second by Aaron Allston. It’s due out in March.