Star Wars with occasional sarcasm
Because this week brings Force Friday and the first wave of The Last Jedi tie-ins, we have three release days this week instead of the usual two – as well as a lot of product. There’s a lot going on, basically.
Continue reading “Star Wars out this week: Force Friday fiction, Rebels S3 Blu-ray”
The mass market paperback edition of Chuck Wendig’s Aftermath: Life Debt drops Tuesday. I gave it a B back when the hardcover came out.
Rogue One is out in digital now; next Tuesday brings the Blu-ray and DVD versions, plus a new Star Wars Visual Encyclopedia.
Empire’s End finishes off the Aftermath trilogy with a satisfying conclusion for some, and even more questions for others! In other words, it’s a Star Wars novel in the year 2017.
I’ve found myself cooling a bit on the trilogy as time goes on. Not enough that I won’t still recommend it, but simply as a function of the timing involved. When Aftermath was released, we were months away from The Force Awakens, and in the fever-pitch of anticipation. Anything was a possible hint! Life Debt came out months after, and we had a better idea of what to expect. And now, Empire’s End, when we’re just barely starting to ramp up to The Last Jedi. And I’m finding my old intertrilogy/original character apathy begin to creep in, a little.
Which is not to say Empire’s End is a bad read, mind.
A continued lack of spoilers beneath the cut. Continue reading “Review: Empire’s End (mostly) crushes the empire, finishes off Aftermath trilogy”
Out Tuesday is Chuck Wendig’s Aftermath: Empire’s End, the final book in the new canon’s first trilogy. The Norra Wexley and Rae Sloane double-sided poster are exclusive to the Barnes & Noble hardcover.
Already out and about are two excerpts and a reveal, while Lucasfilm editor Jennifer Heddle offers six reasons to be excited about the book. Look for my review tomorrow.
StarWars.com has our second excerpt from Chuck Wendig’s Aftermath: Empire’s End, featuring Han and a very pregnant Leia. (The first was our check-in with Lando.)
Empire’s End will be out next Tuesday (February 21) in hardcover and eBook.
As revealed on this week’s Star Wars Show, the Barnes & Noble edition of Aftermath: Empire’s End will come with posters featuring Norra Wexley and Grand Admiral Rae Sloane. Also, more Rogue One behind-the-scenes action with Pablo Hidalgo, and Ando chats with the film’s co-producer, John Swartz.
io9 has our first excerpt from Chuck Wendig’s upcoming Aftermath: Empire’s End, the last book in the trilogy. It features Lando Calrissian and sheds some light on what he’s been up to since Endor.
The book will be out in hardcover and eBook on February 21.
Tuesday brings Claudia Gray’s Bloodline in paperback. The book gives us some insight into the state of the galaxy not so long before The Force Awakens and was one of the best-reviewed Star Wars novels in years. (I gave it an A-.) Wel worth reading, if you haven’t already.
On Wednesday the comic shops will have Star Wars #28 and Darth Maul #1, the start of Marvel’s latest mini-series.
Our next novel is Chuck Wendig’s Aftermath: Empire’s End, out on February 21. Star Wars Books has recently been sharing images of the jacket and finished hardcover. Check out the full schedule on our book release calendar.
Chuck Wendig’s Aftermath: Empire’s End, the third and final book in the post-Return of the Jedi trilogy, now has a blurb:
As the final showdown between the New Republic and the Empire draws near, all eyes turn to a once-isolated planet: Jakku.
The Battle of Endor shattered the Empire, scattering its remaining forces across the galaxy. But the months following the Rebellion’s victory have not been easy. The fledgling New Republic has suffered a devastating attack from the Imperial remnant, forcing the new democracy to escalate their hunt for the hidden enemy.
For her role in the deadly ambush, Grand Admiral Rae Sloane is the most wanted Imperial war criminal—and one-time rebel pilot Norra Wexley, back in service at Leia’s urgent request, is leading the hunt. But more than just loyalty to the New Republic drives Norra forward: Her husband was turned into a murderous pawn in Sloane’s assassination plot, and now she wants vengeance as much as justice.
But Sloane, too, is on a furious quest: pursuing the treacherous Gallius Rax to the barren planet Jakku. As the true mastermind behind the Empire’s devastating attack, Rax has led the Empire to its defining moment. The cunning strategist has gathered the powerful remnants of the Empire’s war machine, preparing to execute the late Emperor Palpatine’s final plan. As the Imperial fleet orbits Jakku, an armada of Republic fighters closes in to finish what began at Endor. Norra and her crew soar into the heart of an apocalyptic clash that will leave land and sky alike scorched. And the future of the galaxy will finally be decided.
We saw part of the Battle of Jakku in 2015’s Lost Stars. Empire’s End is due out in hardcover and eBook on February 21.
We’ve already covered the news out of Friday’s Star Wars writers roundtable at NYCC, but there was a decent lineup of current writers: Novelists Timothy Zahn, Chuck Wendig, James Luceno, E.K. Johnston, comic writers Kieron Gillen, Charles Soule, plus Lucasfilm editor Jennifer Heddle. Tor.com has a nice roundup of their comments.
Zahn reassured fans that the Thrawn on Rebels is not too far removed from the Thrawn of Legends. Johnston revealed that Ahsoka begins “about ten minutes—slight exaggeration—after Order 66 comes down.” And Wendig had some wise words about what makes Star Wars so appealing. (He also joked about Jar Jar being in Empire’s End, of course. But is it really that far-fetched? Really?)
Here’s the panel video: