Top critical review
1.0 out of 5 starsCardboard Characters, Shallow Plot, Inconsistent Writing
Reviewed in the United States on July 13, 2019
Like most, if not all, readers of this book, I picked it up because I enjoy Maul's character. I enjoy the period of time just before the prequels. In terms of Star Wars books in general, I was spoiled by Jude Watson's Jedi Apprentice series, Luceno's Darth Plagueis, Stover's novelization of Revenge of the Sith, and the Bane trilogy. As it relates to Maul--especially Plagueis. Although Maul isn't a main character by any stretch of the imagination, there's enough interaction between him and Sidious to get a feel for him--and that's what I was hoping to find here.
So let's start with the characters: I-Five is great. He reminds me a bit of a mix between 3PO and Data from Star Trek: The Next Generation, if you'll excuse my cross-pollination. Lorn Pavan, meanwhile, feels like a generic "good-bad guy" cutout--not Han Solo, but, you know, someone of that ilk. Skilled in the arts of the underbelly of society--in this case, information brokering--with a haunted past who's called upon reluctantly to give information to the Jedi that will set in motion the events of The Phantom Menace. Then there's Darsha Assant, who likewise fails to impress on the character development front. She struck me as remarkably incompetent for a Padawan supposedly on the brink of becoming a full-fledged Knight. She's not unlikable, but I struggled to suspend my disbelief at her mission being what it is, for the reason it is: implicitly, the last of her Trials. Make this, say, her first solo mission without her Master? Much better. I'd have bought into it with no reservations.
There's also the really awkward hint of a romance between Lorn and Darsha shoved in, just for kicks, I guess.
Then there's Maul, and Maul . . . is frankly pretty pathetic here. He comes across as nothing more than a mindless drone seeking to carry out the orders of his Master. He's a Sith, for goodness' sake. Yes, loyalty to Sidious is fine, but he can't be some blindly obedient creature who would willingly lay down his life for his Master if Sidious were to order it. Isn't he supposed to be coveting that mantle of power Sidious possesses? Instead we get him either grumbling about how this mission is beneath him or drooling over his Master's greatness and exulting in his servitude.
Otherwise, there's not much to report. I didn't find myself rooting for the protagonists. The Neimoidians all felt like the same character with different names, which is an issue, although Nute Gunray was okay. There are a few extra characters who pop up--a secondary bounty hunter, working towards a similar goal as Maul (although with a less lethal outcome)--and Darsha's Master. There are a few cameos by Yoda, Qui-Gon, Mace and Obi-Wan--so let me pause there to say that Obi-Wan's written really poorly here. And his quest in the book is . . . well. It could have been given to anyone else and it wouldn't have made a difference.
For one, Reaves writes that Obi-Wan wouldn't have been hard-pressed to admit that Darsha "was pleasant to look at," during the course of extrapolating why he thinks she'll make a fine Jedi Knight (which the novel had thus far not impressed upon me). I'm not saying Obi-Wan has to be an asexual character, but this comment felt particularly crass and crude when put into the head of the 25-year-old Padawan we meet in TPM, a la: "Oh, she'll be great at her job--and she's not bad-looking, either!" . . . All while he's on a mission to find out if she's even still alive.
Second, Obi-Wan outright threatens someone for information with no provocation whatsoever . . . which suggests, to me, that Reaves doesn't understand the Jedi. They don't threaten. The point is made in the movies, the EU, and the video games. "Tell me the information I need, or else . . ."--and his hand drops to his lightsaber. Does that sound like a Jedi--let alone Obi-Wan--to you? Nope. Didn't sound like him to me, either.
And yet Reaves packs in references to creatures and places in the Star Wars universe that are ridiculously trivial as if they're commonplace knowledge. I personally found it annoying, simply because with the similes, he's attempting to make a point--and if you don't get the reference, you might extrapolate the point but the nuance is lost. His writing swings from short, stunted sentences and a plethora of repeated phrases to showcasing a remarkable vocabulary that seemed wholly unnecessary. Many passages of the book read as if he was simply playing a looped track of thoughts and emotions in his characters' heads. It's like he struck a note with them and then couldn't think of another melody, so he kept playing that note.
All-in-all . . . The plot could have been better-developed, the characters fleshed out, the cameos done right, and this could have been a fine Star Wars book indeed. Unfortunately, I don't think it's worth a read.