Out this week: Princess Leia #3, Ultimate Star Wars, Lords of the Sith

Princess Leia #3 (crop)It’s the last week of April, and that means Paul Kemp’s Lords of the Sith is out on Tuesday. That’s the same day you’ll be able to pick up Ultimate Star Wars from DK, the first fully canon reference book.

On Wednesday, comic fans will find Princess Leia #3 waiting for them, as well as a second printing of Darth Vader #3.

Our next novel will be Christie Golden’s Dark Disciple, out on July 7. Also dropping that day is William Shakespeare’s The Clone Army Attacketh.

More new Star Wars novels from Del Rey: Tarkin, Heir to the Jedi and Lords of the Sith

hearne-luke-heirEarlier today, we had our first official statement on the Expanded Universe’s place in the light of the new films. Now, we get more on the novels going forward. After John Jackson Miller’s A New Dawn (September 2,) we’re getting Tarkin by James Luceno (November 4) and…

Heir to the Jedi by Kevin Hearne (January) was originally announced as part of the loose Empire and Rebellion trilogy pre-Disney… They dropped the subtitle on Honor Among Thieves, but that and Razor’s Edge both fall under Legends with the rest of the old EU, per Lucasfilm editor Jennifer Heddle. In any case, this book is a first-person Luke Skywalker story. (First person? I’m suddenly a lot less excited, but whatever, I’ll read it.)

Lords of the Sith by Paul S. Kemp (March) features Palpatine and Vader “stranded in the middle of insurgent action on an inhospitable planet, they must rely solely on each other, the Force, and their awesome martial skills to prevail.” And Kemp says the book also features “a character who I’m not allowed to name just yet, but who appeared in The Clone Wars animated series.” Subtle!

These are being announced by both Disney Publishing and Random House… Curious, no?

Kemp’s Star Wars dulogy is on ‘standby’

Paul S. Kemp recently did a Reddit Ask Me Anything, and those of you wondering what’s up with his Star Wars duology… Well, here’s what he had to say when asked for an update:

I wish I could say something.

Here’s the thing: The Disney deal and announcement of the new movies is a big deal. I’m on standby at the moment. That’s about all I can say. :-/

If it’s had an effect on Kemp – who has generally stayed away from movie characters – could it be a factor in why we haven’t heard much about Sword of the Jedi as well? Note that nothing that has been scheduled – aside from next week’s Crucible – is set any later than Empire. We knew this was a possibility, so stay tuned… (via)

Roundup: Star Wars authors consider future movies, Ewan down with a return to the desert

X-Wing: Mercy KillPonders. Christian Blauvelt asks eight Star Wars authors (Drew Karpyshyn, Paul Kemp, Troy Denning, John Jackson Miller, James Luceno, Michael Reaves, Christie Golden and Aaron Allston) what they’d like to see in Episode VII and the other new films. Lots of love for the EU and female characters, naturally, which is more than I can say for most of the other wishlists that have been popping up daily.

Spin-offs. Ewan McGregor continues to voice his willingness to return as Obi-Wan. “I don’t know what he did in the desert,” he tells MTV. “We could make up some stuff.”

Superfans. Kevin Smith is (still) very excited. Though his casting for a young Han Solo is… the worst I’ve seen yet. Hopefully for the LULZ.

Video. J.J. Abrams D.I.C.E keynote speech.

EUbits: Looking ahead to Rebels

Luke, Leia and HanRebels. Austin at Fandom Apocalypse takes a look at what we know about the forthcoming Rebels series that was announced last summer. He reached out the authors Martha Wells and Kevin Hearne, who are handling books on Leia and Luke.

The blogside. Tor’s Ryan Britt explores the differences between A New Hope and its novelization. What’s a duck? And Tosche Station’s Bria continues her EU retrospective after Endor with True at Bakura and Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor. And over at Big Shiny Robot, Bryan lets the darkness take hold wondering if The Clone Wars won’t be coming back at all.

Podcasting. After something of a hiatus, EUCantina’s EUCast is poised to make their return soon. In the meantime, here’s Episode 0. And if you’re interested in podcasting, Tosche Station host Brian wrote at length about the gear you’ll need and what he uses.

Frames gets cheap(er.) TheForce.net spotted an Amazon listing for a paperback edition of the fancy screenshot book Frames. At $150 retail it’s still not pocket change, but seeing as the original would set you back $3000… Amazon being Amazon, we’d wait for official details before pre-ordering, though.

Interviews. Paul S. Kemp talks about Star Wars, Dungeons and Dragons and his non-franchise work with SF Signal. And Timothy Zahn chats Scoundrels on Fictional Frontiers.

NYCC: Del Rey announces Obi-wan Kenobi novel by John Jackson Miller, James S. A. Correy Han Solo novel

Well, here’s the big news out of New York Comic Con: John Jackson Miller is moving up to the big leagues with a post-Revenge of the Sith novel tentatively titled Kenobi. And the Rebels series announced at CVI continues with a Han Solo novel from new-to-the-EU author James S. A. Correy, aka Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck, whose Leviathan Wakes was recently nominated for a Hugo. They’re a big get for Del Rey!

On his blog, Miller describes Kenobi as “part epic western, part high-stakes drama, part romance.” You can get a closer look at Scalf’s preview art on his DA. (via) The book will be a hardcover and is currently scheduled for Fall 2013.

Also revealed: Golden’s Sword the the Jedi series will also feature Jag (well, obviously,) Ben Skywalker, Allana and Tahiri. And there’s still no word on Kemp’s duology, but Frank Parisi promises “It will f’ing blow your minds!” (Riiight.) And, finally, Crucible is not the big 3’s last adventure, it’s just going to “change them forever.” Thanks to @DelReyStarWars and avgoins for the live tweets!