A number of notable fiction announcements came out of today’s Lucasfilm Publishing panel at New York Comic-Con: An author you’ll probably recognize has nabbed the next novelization, Timothy Zahn is writing a new trilogy that will feature Thrawn, and Marvel is indeed relaunching their main Star Wars title to pick up after ESB.
Alexander Freed’s Alphabet Squadron is out in just under weeks. The cover features Yrica Quell, “X-wing pilot and leader,” but now Del Rey has revealed the remaining members of the squadron. Check out their pics and bios in the gallery.
Alphabet Squadron is out June 11 in hardcover and eBook.
There have been two book-based publishing panels here at Celebration so far, and luckily I managed to attend both! They’ve been low on major news, but they did still contain a few revelations about upcoming fiction.
The first, Lucasfilm Publishing, was Friday, not long after The Rise of Skywalker panel, which is pretty much why you’re getting this post on Saturday. (Fan! Blogging!) We did get a cover reveal for Zoraida Córdova’s Galaxy’s Edge YA novel, A Crash of Fate, which was compared to Lost Stars and features two old friends who reconnect.
Delilah Dawson confirmed that Cardinal will be joining Vi Moradi in her Galaxy’s Edge novel, Black Spire. It will have a very different feel from Phasma – she name-dropped the sitcom Brooklyn Nine-Nine as an inspiration at both panels.
Meanwhile, Christian Blauvelt’s Be More Yoda and Be More Vader are getting two new companion volumes in the fall: Be More Leia and Be More Lando. And Jeffrey Brown returns to the GFFA with Rey and Pals. Check StarWars.com for some of the highlights (and decent images!), and my Twitter thread has a few other bits. (Yes, there will be a Journey to Episode IX. No other details, but it will happen.)
The second panel was Del Rey Behind the Scenes, and it featured Claudia Gray, Delilah S. Dawson, Alexander Freed, Tim Zahn and Cavan Scott with Marc Thompson moderating.
We did learn a few things about Gray’s Master & Apprentice and Scott’s audio drama Dooku: Jedi Lost. Scott was such a fan of a new character in M&A, Rael Averross – Dooku’s previous padawan and another mentor to Qui-Gon Jinn – that he became a big part of Jedi Lost.
As for Thrawn: Treason, we got a few more details – Thrawn gets drawn into the power games of Tarkin and Orson Krennic and “it doesn’t end how anyone expects.” Eli Vanto returns, as does Admiral Ar’alani and the Grysk.
There will be an author roundtable here on Monday, which seems like it will be the hotbed for announcements. I plan to attend that but wasn’t able to get a panel reservation, so… We’ll see. (Ahh, Reed.)
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Among today’s batch of Celebration exclusive reveals is our first look at the con editions of E.K. Johnston’s Queen’s Shadow and Claudia Gray’s Master & Apprentice. Del Rey has some details how to get M&A – you’ll need wristbands and it comes with an enamel pin – but we’re still waiting to hear on Queen’s Shadow. (Though I suspect that one will just be on sale at a booth.)
The standard edition of Queen’s Shadow was released earlier this month, but Master & Apprentice won’t be out until April 16 – meaning fans who pick it up at Celebration (April 11-15) will get it at most few days early.
The Alexander Freed novel Alphabet Squadron is the first of a trilogy, Lucasfilm announced today, alongside a cover reveal. And it’s also getting a comic tie-in from Marvel. The TIE Fighter miniseries will be written by Jody Houser (Thrawn, Rogue Oneadpatations) with art by Rogê Antônio and covers by Darth Vader’s Giuseppe Camuncoli and Elia Bonetti.
Del Rey had identified the Alphabet cover character as Yrica Quell, an Imperial defector who flies an X-wing… And who the squadron gets their orders from:Rebels‘ Hera Syndulla.
Both are set after Return of the Jedi. The comic will feature Shadow Wing, “an elite squadron of TIE fighter pilots,” with a mission to “protect Imperial interests.”
The comic begins in April, while Alphabet Squadron is due out June 4.
On the verge of victory in what seemed an endless war, five former rebel pilots transform from hunted to hunters as they strike out against the vestiges of Empire. Set after Return of the Jedi, Alphabet Squadron follows a unique team, each flying a different class of starfighter as they struggle to end their war once and for all.
It’ll be out in hardcover, eBook and audio on June 4.
There were only a handful of Star Wars fiction reveals at NYCC this afternoon, but they’re pretty sizable ones! We get the final cover for Claudia Gray’s Master & Apprentice. The art is by Alice X. Zhang. We also have a brand-new book announcement: Alphabet Squadron, by Alexander M. Freed, will feature “Rebel pilots hunting down Imperials,” apparently set post-ROTJ. Master & Apprentice is due in April, and StarWars.com says that Alphabet Squadron is due in June.
Well, there’s a movie out this week. Whether you see it first thing Thursday night or wait for the weekend, know one thing: The Rogue One books are out on Friday. Namely, the novelization by Alexander Freed (eBook only,) the Rogue One Ultimate Visual Guide by Pablo Hidalgo and The Art of Rogue One. I haven’t seen any of them yet, but based on prior experience I say get the Visual Guide first.
For those looking for a different sort of prequel, there’s Poe Dameron #9 on Wednesday.
A new behind-the-scenes Rogue One featurette appeared today. It features director Gareth Edwards, stars Felicity Jones and Diego Luna, plus several new pieces of footage.
It also appears to be the first to reveal that the film is rated PG-13 for “extended sequences of sci-fi violence and action.” Well, it is a war movie! Rogue One is the third PG-13 Star Wars film, after Revenge of the Sith and The Force Awakens.
→ Alexander Freed’s Rogue One novelization is moving up! The hardcover version will now be in stores on December 20, instead of January 3. The eBook release date hasn’t changed – it’ll still be out on December 16, same as the film. (Also, I think this got lost in the shuffle for me, but we did finally see the novelization cover last week. Surprise! It’s basically the poster.)
