Death Star: Beach Ball of Death

Here’s another quick beach read, Star Wars: Death Star, by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry. While this wasn't the best Star Wars novel I had ever read, it did spark a conversation among my friends about the engineering and technological challenges to building a Death Star in real life.

Star Wars: Death Star tells the story of the original Death Star, mostly from the perspective of the soldiers and employees aboard the massive space station. (I can't help but wonder if the authors were influenced by that scene in Clerks) There are a whole bunch of characters such as, a Tie fighter pilot, a storm trooper, a gunner in command of the Death Star's super laser, some cantina workers, and a station design engineer. Unfortunately there were too many for me to keep track of and most of them I just didn't care about. (Nova, a storm trooper with a conscience, was the only exception.)

This book was pretty average to me. Nothing special,but not complete garbage either. While reading it, I felt like I was reading the script for some deleted scenes in A New Hope. However, it did serve its purpose for me as a beach read. It fit in well between swimming and arguing over which Jedi is the "best".

If you're a diehard Star Wars fan then you should read Death Star. Others should skip it. I'm just glad to know how that thermal exhaust port was left unshielded!

Stop by the library and pick up a copy.

Thanks for reading. Leave questions and comments below.

-Adam Delaura

Deceived

For me, the summer is all about sitting on the beach and reading a book. In my next few posts I'm going to highlight a handful of books I tackled while soaking up some sun.

Star Wars: The Old Republic: Deceived, by Paul S. Kemp, takes place at a dark time. The Sith Empire and the Galactic Republic have been engaged in a long, costly war. Neither side is capable of defeating the other. It seems like a stalemate, until a daring surprise attack on the Republic capital of Coruscant, led by the cunning Sith lord, Darth Malgus.

The attack takes even the Jedi by surprise. As a reult, many Jedi are killed, including Jedi Master Zallow. Coruscant is quickly subdued and the Jedi Temple is destroyed. Darth Malgus hopes that this will hasten end of the Republic and the Jedi.

Malgus is furious when he learns that the Sith Emperor is engaging in peace talks with the Republic. He believes that only through conflict can one achieve a greater understanding of the dark side of the Force. Darth Malgus feels the Sith will weaken themselves if they make peace.

The destruction of the Jedi Temple does more than just give the Sith a bargaining chip at the negotiating table. It ignites a fire of vengeance within the Jedi, Aryn Leneer. She believes the Jedi are failing to respond appropriately to the destruction of the Temple.   She decides to leave the Jedi Order intent on hunting down the Sith lord who killed her master, the fallen Master Zallow. 

The one person Aryn knows who can get her through the Sith blockade of Coruscant is her old friend Zeerid, a smuggler who is in debt to a group of criminals. As fate would have it, Aryn runs into Zeerid shortly after he is forced to accept a job smuggling spice, a highly addictive narcotic, to Coruscant.

This book is full of edge-of-your-seat action and suspense. A rival criminal gang is trying to stop Zeerid's smuggling run, Darth Malgus is unsure of why the Jedi have sent a clandestine operative to Coruscant, and Aryn doesn't know exactly who killed her master. There are shoot-outs, space battles, and epic light saber fights. There's even a shuttle that crashes into the Jedi Temple, filled with dark Jedi, who leap out and start kicking Jedi-butt. What's not to like about that? ... As a bonus, Darth Malgus is an interesting villain, not your average two-dimensional bad guy.

I would recommend Deceived to anyone interested in SciFi, even if you're not a Star Wars fan.

Stop by the library and pick up a copy.

As always, thanks for reading. Leave questions and comments below.

-Adam Delaura

Star Wars Fatal Alliance

“Star Wars The Old Republic: Fatal Alliance” by Sean Williams is a must read for fans of the Star Wars franchise. It contains all the necessary ingredients of a great Star Wars novel: a Hutt crime lord, an evil Sith Lord and his apprentice, an insecure Jedi Padawan, and a mysterious Mandalorian.


In this novel, a Hutt crime syndicate comes into possession of a wrecked starship that contains a mysterious cargo. The Hutts attempt to auction the secret contents of the ship to the highest bidder. The Sith Empire and the Republic send representatives to negotiate for the Ship.

Tensions rise as the true value of the wrecked starship is revealed; its contents could influence the ongoing war between the Sith and the Republic. Both sides resort to clandestine attempts to steal the starship from a high-security vault. Nothing is as it seems in this tale from the Old Republic Era.

If you’re a fan of the Star Wars saga or if you’re looking for a quick read, click here to place it on hold now.



Check out Sean William’s other novels below:

Star Wars The Force Unleashed

Force Heretic 1: Remnant
Force Heretic 2: Refugee
Force Heretic 3: Reunion