During the reign of Emperor Palpatine, the planet Farsalt has become a refuge for the war-torn, the oppressed, and the survivors of every previous act of the empire's cruelty. Home to one of the oldest royal families in the galaxy, it claims to maintain its loyalty to that empire, and yet rumor has it that the impoverished refugee camps are doubling as recruitment centers for the rebel alliance. Imperial Star Destroyer Captain Pina has been sent on a mission to restore order and uncover everything the royal family is keeping secret, but he has more surprises in store than he ever could have bargained for, from within Farsalt's ruling family itself to the command transmissions he's about to receive. The battle of Endor is taking place, its results are far more tumultuous than you have ever seen on screen.
The prologue of this book does an excellent job of setting the scene in the context of the greater Star Wars universe. Every good Star Wars movie starts off with that signature look of text flying through the stars, accompanied by dramatic fanfare that ramps up your excitement and anticipation, and the prologue of this book features a trailer that does the same. Every time I see that scene play out, it's like a promise of good things to come, and, luckily, this story did not disappoint.
The first thing I'd like to mention is that it was very well written. Any typos or technical errors were few and far between, and the author was very quick to correct every one I pointed out. The sentences are cleanly written, the dialogue is crisp, and the style and pacing work together to create some of the best page-turning tension that I've seen on Wattpad.
Every character has a clear personality that shines through in every detail of every scene in which zie is mentioned and every word of dialogue zie says. Even more minor characters are given some shining moments of insight. One of my favorites was in chapter one, where the admiral overseeing POV character Pina receives several paragraphs of dialogue and action that build a clear picture of his attitude and personality. And it is only after he has been talking to Pina for this amount of time that it is revealed that the Admiral's face is horribly disfigured. It comes as a complete shock to the reader because none of the other characters have been treating him in a way that would suggest this. They haven't been doing anything except show him the utmost respect due to a superior officer, and the fact that the Admiral is able to command such a high level of respect that his subordinates all but ignore his deformities says even more about who he is as a character.
The characters also maintain an excellent balance of consistency while also experiencing change and development as events unfold around them. The early part of the book is a great example of this for Captain Pina, who is presented with some enormous challenges that left me on the edge of my seat as I wondered how he as a character was going to respond to them.
Even apart from that, there were many chapters that left me on the edge of my seat, from cliffhangers that made me click immediately to the next chapter to twists and plot progressions within the chapters that kept me speeding all the way through. If I hadn't been carefully analyzing this book in order to write a good review, I can easily believe that I might have binged all the way through it.
The only time this flow of interest and excitement was interrupted was when the perspective switched away from Captain Pina and into the lives of Ella and Tayre, two characters who had barely been mentioned since the description of the book itself. I found it jarring to be taken so far away from a character I'd grown attached to without receiving any indication of why these other characters were important to the plot. This wasn't helped by the fact that we remain in this new point of view for several chapters in which the young women go through what seems to be a completely irrelevant adventure. Was it action packed? Certainly. Did it provide a good introduction to their personalities? Sure. But, apart from basic human decency, I had no idea why I should care about who they were or what happened to them.
At least in this portion of the book, the plot seemed to be a bit unfocused. Luckily, it made a good recovery. Ella definitely grew on me over time, and I was very invested in her by the end of the book. I just wish she had been introduced in a way that made me care about her sooner.
Speaking of action, though, there was definitely plenty of it, and plenty in the classic Star Wars style. From high stakes starship flying to exchanges of blaster fire to force users duking it out, this book has got it all. I also thought it struck a good balance between familiar call backs and new twists that kept it fresh and exciting while staying true to the spirit of the canon.
There was also some really great depth to the story. There were many times when I was reminded of real historical tragedies and found myself considering all over again what they have to say about human nature and the systems of power that we create. It was doubly interesting to see the characters wrestle with huge issues and heart-wrenching moral dilemmas. I couldn't wait to see what they would choose to do, and the book left me with many thoughts of my own that went far beyond the page.
Honestly, my biggest criticism is how the story is presented. Firstly, I thought that much of the story's depth and complexity was slightly undercut by author's notes at the end of the chapters that simplified big concepts and stated conclusions that I would have preferred to just have in my own head as a result of reading. It felt a bit like being put back into a high school English classroom, which wouldn't necessarily be bad if it wasn't for the fact that I've advanced far beyond that level. Perhaps a teenage reader (as much of Wattpad's audience is), would have a different experience, though.
My second presentation issue is the book's description. While it worked on me, that had much more to do with the fact that it was grammatically correct (completely grammatically correct, such delightful rarity!) than what the sentences accomplished. The first paragraph of it doesn't say anything about the book at all; it's about the updating schedule, which isn't even relevant now that the book has been completed. Even while it was being published, that shows a lack of understanding of the Wattpad platform on the part of the author. I always say that the first sentence or two is the single most important part of the description for a Wattpad book because that is sometimes the only thing that a prospective reader sees. If I'm browsing through the author's profile, for instance, I only see the update schedule and the first half of the real first sentence. Depending on where on the site or app someone comes across the book, a reader might see even less than that.
Besides that, the description does a lot of name dropping. It reminded me of the first chapter of War and Peace, where I felt like I needed to open up a notepad just to keep track of who was who. It probably didn't help that I'm not a big enough Star Wars fan to know off the top of my head what a Star Destroyer is, but there are no less than five original characters who are name dropped in three brief paragraphs. Not only that, but the description switches focus halfway through and then switches for a second time. First it talks about Captain Pina, but then it's about Jish/Tayre/Ella, and then it's about Assayer Neerada. Basically, it fails to deliver one clear message about the book, and it confuses to the point that a reader might not see a reason to click into it. And that would be a shame because the book is secretly excellent.
That being said, if this review is your introduction to the book, I definitely recommend that you give it a read. Skip over the description, read to the end of chapter three, and then tell me if you're hooked. Because I'm willing to bet you will be. In fact, I bet that you'll be so busy reading that you'll forget to come back and tell me about it at all until you've finished.
YOU ARE READING
d_s_t_e's Wattpad Reviews
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