Star Wars Young Jedi Knights: Shards of Alderaan by Kevin J. Anderson and Rebecca Moesta

About/Summary

The seventh book in the Young Jedi Knights series by Kevin J. Anderson and Rebecca Moesta. After the battle against the Shadow Academy, it is time for the Jedi Academy to rebuild. Which is the perfect time for Jacen and Jaina Solo and their friends to go off on their own adventure. Meanwhile, Zekk is off to find himself.

 

Content/Trigger Warnings

minor character death

Characters

The usual gang of Baby Jedi - Jacen and Jaina Solo (Han and Leia's twin children), Lowbacca (Chewbacca's nephew) and Tenel Ka (the daughter of Teneniel Djo and Prince Isolder of Hapes).

Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Chewbacca also show up for a bit.

Oh yeah, and Boba Fett shows up. But he does not have enough screen time to warrant that big of a picture on the cover.
 

Writing

Same as the other books. Writing is good, but it is a book for children, so don't expect exceptional literature.
 

Plot

Raynar Thul (another Baby Jedi)'s father has gone missing. But, who cares about that? Jacen, Jaina and their friends are going to the asteroid field that used to be Alderaan to get their mom a present for her birthday. As one does...

 

How diverse is it?

Does Boba Fett count as a person of color? If not, just a bunch of white people doing... white people things in space, I guess.
 

Overall Thoughts

Boba Fett shows up! And is somehow outsmarted by a bunch of teenagers. Best bounty hunter in the galaxy over here.

Zekk goes back to his home planet, which that place pretty much destroys itself every eight years. And it is time for death and destruction when Zekk gets there. I'm with Zekk... Why keep living there?

This book begins the second arc in the Young Jedi Knights series. First arc dealt with the Shadow Academy. this arc is the Diversity Alliance arc. Which, we don't learn much about them in this book, just that Raynar's (a fellow Jedi trainee who has had a small role in the previous books) father, Bornan Thul, was supposed to meet the leader of the Diversity Alliance and no one has heard from him. Most suspicious.

Good book overall.

That's all for this one.

 

 

Stephy Read Star Wars Young Jedi Knights: Jedi Under Siege

 

Hawke is not amused. And my book is looking haggard... And yes... That is tape covering it. As a child that was how I repaired books.

 

Spoilers ahead

Because I refuse to shut up about things sometimes.

 About/Summary

The final entry in the Second Imperium arc in the Young Jedi Knights series. 

The Second Imperium attacks the Jedi academy on Yavin 4. To... stomp out the Rebellion or something. Fucking Empire is godsdamn stupid. Y'all lost, get over it.

 

Content/Trigger Warnings

Major Character Death (but it's just some of the villains so 🤷🏻‍♀️)

violence

 

Characters

Same bunch of characters as usual. A couple new very minor characters show up. Most don't get names. One did. He died.

 

Atmosphere/Setting

Book mostly takes place on Yavin 4. During a battle. So the atmosphere is a bit tense. And we get a bit more description of Yavin 4. Which, might have happened in previous books, but I can't remember. Do y'all know how many Star Wars books there are? I have been buying them since I was 10 and I am no where near close to having them all. Which makes me sad. Please send me money so I can buy Star Wars books. 

Writing

As with the other books in this series, the writing is good. A bit simplistic at times, but still good. 

Overall Thoughts

Great ending to this arc of the series. Tied up all those loose ends. Killed off some villains. Left plenty of openings for more to happen with the characters.

I do question including a Fake Emperor plot... Which I cannot remember if I mentioned before, but a couple books back, it is revealed that Palpatine is still alive. Supposedly. And when he goes to the Shadow Academy he refuses to see anyone. And then Brakiss discovers it was all a lie. I mean, it works in the books. The bad guys think the ultimate bad guy is still alive and they're gonna be back in power in no time at all. But, even as a kid I remember thinking it was a bit suspicious when no one was allowed to see him aside from his personal guards. Eh, I guess the bad guys were just looking for any bit of hope or whatever.

 

That's all for this one. Sorry it's a bit half-assed, but I told myself I couldn't start reading the next book until I got this wrote up. And I was super excited to start the next book.

Stephy Read Star Wars Young Jedi Knights: Darkest Knight

Hawke is not amused. Not amused at all.

About/Summary

First published in 1996 (which means I was 11 when I first read this book. I was a baby. A little bitty baby nerd), Darkest Knight is the fifth book in the Young Jedi Knights series. In this book, the Baby Jedi (Jacen, Jaina, Tenel Ka, and Lowbacca) are going to Kashyyyk with Chewbacca to visit Lowie's family. But, of course, the Second Imperium is going to cause some problems.

Content/Trigger Warnings

Minor character death

Tropes

Okay. So the tvtropes page is for the entire series. So... I'm gonna hold off on the trope talk until the last book. For reasons that barely make sense to me, so I will not be explaining.

Characters

Once again the main characters are Jacen and Jaina Solo, Tenel Ka and Lowbacca. Oh, and Em-Teedee. This time we get to meet Lowie's sister and parents. 

We also got Brakiss (still think that is a stupid name...), Zekk, Tamith Kai and her Nightsister underlings. 

Characters are good. Lowie's sister, Sirra, was fun. 

Atmosphere/Setting

Main setting is Kashyyyk. The Kashyyyk I grew up with. Which means, the cities are built on treetops and wookiees rarely go into the lower levels that are full of predators and the like. I much prefer this version. Not a beach in sight.

Writing

This is a children's book. Yes, older children, but still for children. The writing is simple and easy to follow. Which is fine. It is a children's book. 

Plot

The main plot is basically the Baby Jedi just chilling on Kashyyyk. Then there is the secondary plot of the Second Imperium stealing computer components from Kashyyyk (ya see, back in the times of the Expanded Universe, Wookiees are great with tech, so a lot of computer things that the New Republic used came from Kashyyyk). Secondary plot also includes Zekk "taking care of" the young Jedi. And then we have the third plot (or maybe the second subplot?) of Lowie's sister, Sirra, preparing to go through the rite of passage that all Wookiee youths go through. And finally, we have the last bit (not really even a plot really) where the Emperor shows up on the Shadow Academy but is acting a bit shady.

That seems like a lot, right? And it is. But things are very well done. And none of the subplots... side plots... Whatever... None were left unfinished. Aside from that Emperor one, but it's fine, it'll be resolved in the next book. 

How diverse is it?

Well... It's just a bunch of white people causing problems for a bunch of furry people... 

Overall Thoughts

I got some thoughts.

The Solo twins decided as of this book to learn the Wookiee language. They have known Chewbacca their entire life. He is a constant feature of their lives. And at age 14 they were like "huh. Maybe we should learn what that guy is actually saying to Dad..." I am disappointed in them. I have had this issue since book one by the way.

Second thought. There are banthas on Kashyyyk. Was that always a thing in the Expanded Universe that I blocked out? Why are there banthas on Kashyyyk? How did they get there? I have so many questions. 

Third thought, why is Chewie not spending time with his wife and son? Which, yeah, he had a wife and son in the Expanded Universe, but he owed Han a life debt, which are super important in wookiee culture so his wife and son stayed on Kashyyyk while Chewie kept Han from dying. I don't remember them even being mentioned in this book. I hope Chewie was visiting them while the Baby Jedi were off doing things without him.

But overall, I enjoyed this one. Did take me a while to read it but I'm easily distracted.

That's all for this one. See y'all on Saturday. 

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Star Wars Young Jedi Knights: Lightsabers by Kevin J. Anderson and Rebecca Moesta

Hello there!

So... This one is a bit messy. Sorry about that. I'm still cranky after my kiddo's eye doctor appointment. Glasses are fucking expensive. Why are glasses so expensive? Oh, hey, you need these things to see? 900 dollars!

Ugh. Anyway.

Today I'm rambling about Lightsabers. The fourth book in the Young Jedi Knights series by Kevin J. Anderson and Rebecca Moesta.

 

Wicket is not amused

Trigger Warnings:

Very brief mention of suicide.

Assassination attempts

Minor character deaths

Spoilers ahead! 

The four Jedi are tasked with building their lightsabers. Jaina has enough random power sources laying around so that part is covered. But they need crystals.  

This is the old Legends Canon so, kyber crystals that were only found in certain places throughout the galaxy weren't a thing. Instead, they can use random crystals or jewels. Luke does mention kaiburr crystals. Which I need to look up. (update from when I took notes: This is what Wookieepedia says on kaiburr crystals: 

The Kaiburr crystal was an ancient Force relic, initially located on the planet Circarpous V, locally known as Mimban. When in its natural location in the Temple of Pomojema on Mimban, the crystal increased a Force-sensitive's power one thousand times over. Among its magnification of abilities were the ability to heal, to further augment a Force-user's connection to the Force, to project Force lightning by those typically unable, and to empower and energize a tired being close in proximity to the crystal. If cut properly, the Kaiburr crystal also worked as a lightsaber crystal.

At least that's the basics. So it's a Legends thing. Not a new canon thing.)

 So, Jaina builds her crystal. Jacen uses the Corusca gem he picked up on Lando's GemDiver Station during the events of the second book (read my ramblings about that here ). Lowbacca finds his gem/crystal in the bits and pieces the Rebels left on Yavin 4. Tenel Ka makes her lightsaber casing from a rancor tooth, which I always thought was super cool. And just some random crystal she found in a volcano. 

Luke had the four train against remotes together. Like how Obi-Wan trained him on the Falcon. Glad Luke didn't take away the kids' sight completely but still… seems unwise… Seemed unwise when Obi-Wan did it with Luke. Maybe I'm just projecting since I have seen my kid turn on a flashlight and blind themselves multiple times. These kids know how to turn on a lightsaber. It'll be fine. 

Narrator Voice: It was not fine.

Tenel Ka destroyed her remote. Because of course she did. And she didn't need the Force to do so. That is a big part of her character. She only uses the Force as a last resort. 

I feel like Luke rushed this training. I know he needs to get them advanced a bit thanks to Brakiss and the Second Imperium but fuck dude. These kids just turned on their lightsabers for the first time and, like, five pages later he is having them spar each other. Just seems a little rushed. Patience, Luke. 

"She switched the lightsaber to her left hand to prove she could fight just as well with either arm. She had practiced equally with her left and right hands, knowing it might prove a useful skill sometime." 

Well, that sounds like some foreshadowing.

Yep. Tenel Ka's lightsaber shorted out during her spar with Jacen and off with her arm. 

Tenel Ka's family comes to get her so she can recover with them. But, Jaina notices that the ship had the markings of the Royal House of Hapes. Uh-oh. Looks like that secret is out. 

By the way, this book is about Tenel Ka. The POV alternates as it has in previous books so you still get just as much Jacen and Jaina and Lowie, but this is Tenel Ka's story. 

Tenel Ka is on Hapes with only her grandmother and Ambassador Yfra. Which is not good. Ta'a Chume is manipulative and does not approve of Tenel Ka's decisions. 

Luke, realizing that Tenel Ka's parents are not with her on Hapes, decides he is going to take Jacen, Jaina, and Lowie to join Tenel Ka so they can all heal their mental wounds. Power of friendship, y'all. 

I hope Luke told someone that he took three students with him… I know there is only one other teacher at the academy, and she is gonna panic if she goes to find the Solo twins and Lowie to see they're missing. Again… 

Meanwhile, at the shadow academy, Qorl (the TIE fighter pilot from book one) is training Norys (gang leader from book three).

Luke and the Baby Jedi arrive at Hapes to an angry Ta'a Chume. Which, she's always angry. And Luke is not making her any less angry. Good for him. 

The Baby Jedi are spending a month with Tenel Ka on Hapes. At the… lake palace… fountain palace… there was water and a Palace. But yeah. A month. A month for Tenel Ka to decide if she is going to continue her training as a Jedi. 

Jacen made Tenel Ka laugh! Goal achieved. 

Oh no! A bomb! I would be more shocked about this if I hadn't read this book a lot. I can't remember who is causing trouble (I have an idea) but I remember the trouble. 

The Baby Jedi are sent to the Reef Fortress to hide out. Tenel Ka picked out their rooms, which were perfect for her friends. 

Ambassador Yfra sends them out on a speeder to explore the ocean. She mentions a few times that she programmed it herself. Suspicious. 

The wavespeeder was programmed to take them into the middle of some killer seaweed with no return course. Most suspicious. 

Meanwhile, back at the Shadow Academy. Zekk must fight Vilas, Tamith Kai's apprentice from Dathomir.

Zekk wins the fight but feels bad for killing Vilas.

Tenel Ka wakes up to a sound that might have been an explosion. 

It was an explosion! The shield generator is down!

Not just the shield generator. All the power is out!

Oh no! A Bartokk assassin squad! 😱

So, Bartokks are insectoids and they have a hive mind. And there is a scene where one gets their head chopped off but the body keeps trying to complete the mission. The mission being kill Tenel Ka's grandmother. 

They all escape out the window and grab a wavespeeder to escape.

Jacen: You're not actually going into that seaweed field, are you? 

Jaina: They'd be crazy to follow us, wouldn't they? 

They are their parents' children.

The monster seaweed takes out the assassins and the group goes back to the palace to find the ambassador taking control since Ta'a Chume and Tenel Ka were dead. But wait. How could she have known that there was any danger? The assassins took down the communications? Ah! She is a traitor! 

And after the adventure, Tenel Ka decides she will continue her Jedi training. She makes herself a new lightsaber using a rancor tooth and a gem from her tiara from Hapes, cause symbology. 

Jacen and Tenel Ka have another lightsaber spar. And the whole book ends with a rather cheesy scene about friendship and the four of them light their lightsabers… 

Good book. Again, these are books for children so... But still a fun read. Now onto the next book. For some reason it is taking me forever to get through these lately. I keep getting distracted. Oh well. I'll get through them all. It will just take me a while.

That's all for this week. See y'all next week.

“I haven’t slept for ten days, because that would be too long.”

-Mitch Hedberg

Star Wars Young Jedi Knights: The Lost Ones by Kevin J. Anderson and Rebecca Moesta

Up to the third book in the Young Jedi Knights series.

Jacen, Jaina, Tenel Ka, and Lowbacca go to Coruscant. While there they introduce Tenel Ka and Lowbacca to Zekk, an old friend. Zekk is an orphan from Ennth. He had made his way to Coruscant and survived by finding bits and pieces in the undercity that he could sell. He lived with Peckhum, the guy that delivers supplies to the Jedi Academy. 

They have a little adventure with Zekk, and the twins invite him to some diplomatic dinner one evening. Which, this doesn't go great. In the end, Zekk feels embarrassed and leaves. And while he's walking around feeling sorry for himself, Tamith Kai shows up. She tells Zekk he's force sensitive and that he could be a dark Jedi. And Zekk agrees. Sort of. He doesn't agree right away, but in the end, he does. 

And that's basically it. They go back to Yavin 4 and Luke tries to give them some realistic hope about their friend. The end. Time for the next book.

Okay. So, when I was a kid, Zekk quickly became one of my favorite characters. I don't really know why, but I fell in love with him. And I still fully enjoy his character. And as a kid, this was my least favorite book in the series because I was so angry at Jacen and Jaina for not knowing their friend was force sensitive. I'm still a little angry about it, but less so. I get why they didn't know. And I understand why Zekk felt that going to the Shadow Academy and becoming a dark Jedi was a good idea. Though, I gotta say, if I was in Jaina's situation where I had this good friend, I would beg Luke to test him for force sensitivity. Even if he showed no signs. But... I'm a little clingy with people I care about. 

This is still not a favorite book of mine from this series. I enjoyed the family bits with the Solos. But the book still leaves me feeling kind of sad. Even though I know what happens in the later books.

It is not a bad book. Great plot. Characters are great. I just have some weird childhood anger towards it.

That's all for this week. Follow me on the socials. 

“I believe that one defines oneself by reinvention. To not be like your parents. To not be like your friends. To be yourself. To cut yourself out of stone.” 

~ Henry Rollins

Star Wars Young Jedi Knights: Shadow Academy by Kevin J. Anderson and Rebecca Moesta

 

Star Wars Young Jedi Knights: Shadow Academy by Kevin J. Anderson and Rebecca Moesta

Second book in the Young Jedi Knights series. 

Warnings: 

Mentions of slavery

violence

Jaina, Jacen, Lowbacca, and Lowbacca's translation Droid, Em-Teedee are off to visit Lando Calrissian's newest venture. Corusca gem mining at Yavin. Meanwhile, Tenel Ka is unhappily waiting for a visit from a Hapes ambassador sent by her grandmother.

While on the mining station, a group of Imperials bust in and kidnap the Young Jedi. When Lando notifies Luke of the news, Luke and Tenel Ka are off on a rescue mission.

Jaina, Jacen and Lowie are taken to the Shadow Academy. A dark Jedi training academy ran by Brakiss, someone from Luke's past, and Tamith Kai, a nightsister from Dathomir. Qorl, the TIE pilot from the last book is also there. 

Plot is good. Characters are great. Luke is a bit of a troll and I love him. Villains are villainous. Though… I cannot take Brakiss seriously. I know (or at least hope) I am pronouncing his name wrong but I refuse to look up how to actually pronounce it. His name is fucking stupid. Sorry to whoever named this character, but his name sounds like something a character in a romance novel would do before kissing nipples. 

There was a bit in the beginning of the book where Jacen is telling Luke that he is ready to learn to use a lightsaber and he mentions that he is tall enough. Did Luke put height restrictions on lightsabers? Rude, Luke. 

Also, there was a bit that had me fucking laughing so hard. Brakiss hurt Jaina, so Lowie starts throwing benches, as one does. A group of Stormtroopers arrive. Lowie hits them with a bench, they fall down. Another group arrives behind that group and trips over the first group. Third group arrives at another door. Lowie hits them with a bench. First group gets back up, tries to hit Lowie with some stun bolts, hits the bench Lowie is holding. He throws that. They're down again. The third group gets back to their feet, fires at Lowie, but he's bent over to get another bench, so the blaster bolts go over him and hit the second group of Stormtroopers. There were little dark Jedi wannabes running around in terror and Brakiss was telling everyone to calm down. And no one was calming down. It was fucking great. Five star fight scene. 

Great book. Sadly, I had to repair my copy multiple times while I was reading. Starting to think it is more tape than book at this point. But, it is still readable so I'm good. Which I hope it holds together for a bit longer.

“Books are no more threatened by Kindle than stairs by elevators.” 

– Stephen Fry

Star Wars Young Jedi Knights: Heirs of the Force by Kevin J. Anderson and Rebecca Moesta

 

Star Wars Young Jedi Knights: Heirs of the Force by Kevin J. Anderson and Rebecca Moesta

This book is the first in a series that focuses on Jaina and Jacen, Han and Leia's twin children. And their friends Tenel Ka and Lowbacca. And their adventures.

In this book, Jaina, Jacen, and Tenel Ka are all friends attending Luke's Jedi Academy on Yavin 4. One day, Han and Chewie show up with a new student, Lowbacca, Chewie's nephew. For some reason, Chewie gives his nephew a T-23 skyhopper (a little speeder... Remember the model ship that Luke was playing with at the beginning of A New Hope? Kind of like that).

While Lowie was out in the T-23, he spotted something in the forest surrounding the Academy. The next day he took the twins and Tenel Ka out to see what it was. It was a crashed TIE Fighter. And Jaina decides she's going to fix it. As the group works to repair the old ship, the pilot is watching them. It ends up he was a survivor of the Battle of Yavin and has been hiding out in the forests for the past 20 years. He also thinks there is still a rebel base on the moon. 

Everything works out and the book ends with a lovely little scene of Luke talking to the kids about how he used to bullseye womp-rats in his T-16 back on Tatooine.

My only real issue with this book is that Jacen and Jaina have been around Chewbacca since birth, but they need a translator to understand him. Which, the need of a translator means that Lowie comes with Em-Teedee, a little translator droid with a lot of C-3PO's personality. But... In my head, Jacen and Jaina should be able to at least partly understand Chewie and Lowie. And Em-Teedee would still be needed for Lowie to communicate with others. But, oh well, a small issue of mine.

Aside from that, the book is great. It's a kids' book so it's just a fun read about kids having adventures. And each of them have solid personalities (and catchphrases). There were plenty of nods to the original trilogy of movies and previous books. It was a solid first book of the series. It gave each of the main characters enough focus that you really got to know each one. Jacen and Jaina did appear in previous books, but I don't think their personalities got fleshed out much. But with these books, you learn that Jacen loves bad jokes and animals. Jaina is a mechanic. You also learn about Tenel Ka (a very serious Princess of Hapes who prefers her Dathomir heritage) and Lowbacca (a loyal and smart Wookiee). 

I think this series was the first Star Wars books I read. I remember them being released around the same time my brother introduced me to Star Wars. And I remember buying them as they came out up until the last three or four. Just got those a few years ago. I fell in love with these books and the characters as a kid. And I still love them. I have a lot of good feelings about these books. 

“An escalator can never break: It can only become stairs. You should never see an ‘Escalator Temporarily Out Of Order’ sign, just ‘Escalator Temporarily Stairs. Sorry for the convenience.'”

-Mitch Hedberg