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3.62 AVERAGE
3.62 AVERAGE
Enjoyed this one quite a bit. Gives some nice lore into how the construction of the Death Star was justified by the Republic and how that transitioned into the Empire. Reading it before Rogue One was a nice bonus, knowing the relationship between Krennic and Erso and what happened there.
"They call it the Death Star... There is no better name."
-Galen Erso, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
This book is a slow burn, so if you are looking for constant action, you won't find it here. This book is more focused on the nuances and dynamics between characters. As the Death Star, the Galactic Empire's new super weapon, becomes a reality, there is plotting, betrayal and turmoil among those involved with its creation.
The book is divided into the perspectives of Galen Erso, an Imperial scientist who aspires to create a better source for renewable energy in the galaxy; Lyra Erso, Galen's wife and just wants to be happy with her scientist hubby and their adorable baby bean, Jyn Erso; and Orson Krennic, director in the Galactic Empire who aspires to make a name for himself among the leaders in the Empire.
Also, it's important to remember that this book takes place behind the scenes during Episode II: Attack of the Clones, the Clone Wars, Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, and about 15 years before Episode IV: A New Hope. It shows the development of the Death Star and shows just how insane the Empire will be to achieve its ultimate goal, which is the creation of the Death Star.
The characters definitely drive this novel. I especially loved Director Orson Krennic and his relationship with Grand Moff Tarkin. They have an amazing power dynamic. Tarkin sees Krennic as reckless and will do whatever it takes to stop Krennic from succeeding, while Krennic just wants his chance to shine and will do whatever it takes to get it, even if that means manipulating his friends and destroying people's lives. I was obsessed with learning more about them.
I also appreciated that Galen and Lyra's relationship was highlighted in this novel because they are precious cinnamon rolls and I want them to live happily ever after.
You can definitely pick up the Rogue One novel right after completing this, and I highly recommend you do that. Check out my review here: https://wp.me/p8MRY8-yC
The two novels blend really well into one another. If you don’t want to read the Rogue One novelization, you could even just watch the movie version after reading this because it works well with both the novel and the movie versions.
If you love Star Wars as much as I do, I would highly recommend reading this.
-Galen Erso, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
This book is a slow burn, so if you are looking for constant action, you won't find it here. This book is more focused on the nuances and dynamics between characters. As the Death Star, the Galactic Empire's new super weapon, becomes a reality, there is plotting, betrayal and turmoil among those involved with its creation.
The book is divided into the perspectives of Galen Erso, an Imperial scientist who aspires to create a better source for renewable energy in the galaxy; Lyra Erso, Galen's wife and just wants to be happy with her scientist hubby and their adorable baby bean, Jyn Erso; and Orson Krennic, director in the Galactic Empire who aspires to make a name for himself among the leaders in the Empire.
Also, it's important to remember that this book takes place behind the scenes during Episode II: Attack of the Clones, the Clone Wars, Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, and about 15 years before Episode IV: A New Hope. It shows the development of the Death Star and shows just how insane the Empire will be to achieve its ultimate goal, which is the creation of the Death Star.
The characters definitely drive this novel. I especially loved Director Orson Krennic and his relationship with Grand Moff Tarkin. They have an amazing power dynamic. Tarkin sees Krennic as reckless and will do whatever it takes to stop Krennic from succeeding, while Krennic just wants his chance to shine and will do whatever it takes to get it, even if that means manipulating his friends and destroying people's lives. I was obsessed with learning more about them.
I also appreciated that Galen and Lyra's relationship was highlighted in this novel because they are precious cinnamon rolls and I want them to live happily ever after.
You can definitely pick up the Rogue One novel right after completing this, and I highly recommend you do that. Check out my review here: https://wp.me/p8MRY8-yC
The two novels blend really well into one another. If you don’t want to read the Rogue One novelization, you could even just watch the movie version after reading this because it works well with both the novel and the movie versions.
If you love Star Wars as much as I do, I would highly recommend reading this.
Good intro into the movie Star Wars: Rogue One. This book takes place during Episode III and for about the next 5-6 years or so. No prerequisite books are needed to understand this one.
In terms of what the book has to offer for the movie, it gives a lot of background information into Krennic. We learn that not only is he the foil to the Erso family but is ruthless in manipulating people for his rise in power.
Spoiler predictions based off the book:
At one point, Has, has a conversation with a human about standing up for what is right on a world that is currently being attacked by the Empire. It doesn't state any other information about this human, but I am predicting that it was Mon Mothma, who goes on to become the leader of the Rebellion.
In terms of what the book has to offer for the movie, it gives a lot of background information into Krennic. We learn that not only is he the foil to the Erso family but is ruthless in manipulating people for his rise in power.
Spoiler predictions based off the book:
At one point, Has, has a conversation with a human about standing up for what is right on a world that is currently being attacked by the Empire. It doesn't state any other information about this human, but I am predicting that it was Mon Mothma, who goes on to become the leader of the Rebellion.
I don't think I've ever read a book based off a movie, rather than the other way around. I can't tell if it's because I had slightly different expectations, but the writing felt very clinical to me, like it was just literally filling in the gaps to a script rather than adding anything meaningful to it. It felt like it could have been stated in half the words used without losing anything. To me, Lyra was the best part of this book, and felt the most real as a character, maybe because she had such a short appearance in the movie. All in all, not terrible, but just fairly boring.
dark
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
First book of the year! Got it for my birthday, and managed to finish it between my two viewings of Rogue One so that I'd have more background for the second viewing. I think it was well worth it, even if its primary achievement was making me hate Krennic 99999% more. So. Manipulative. You definitely get to see a lot more of Galen and Lyra's personalities, and I learned a lot more about how the Death Star was created.
Well worth it if you're a Star Wars fan.
Well worth it if you're a Star Wars fan.
Tough to rate this. I don't think I've really ever read/listened to many prequel novels, but it didn't feel like there was much of a plot beyond the high-level Death Star construction, and the characters were all a little vague. Could definitely be that I wasn't paying a ton of attention at the beginning, but I guess it served its purpose in introducing the characters of Rogue One.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Audiobook format. 3.5/5. As is usually the case with these books that fill in the gaps or lead up to what we've seen in the movies, I appreciated the additional context. I did find some of the scheming, counter-scheming, and double-crossing to be a bit confusing and tedious. I also unexpectedly hated Galen Erso for most of the book. However, I liked that we got to learn so much more about Lyra, whose entire role in Rogue One is (*spoiler for the Rogue One movie*) being killed to spur the progress of the movie's plot.