I was dismayed, but not that shocked, to see the overwhelming number of negative reviews of Barbara Hambly’s novel “Children of the Jedi” on Goodreads. A quick perusal of fan reviews gives one the clear notion that Hambly is NOT well-liked by Star Wars Expanded Universe (SWEU) fans. Indeed, she seems to be much-hated.At first, I wasn’t sure that I understood why. I am, perhaps, alone in thinking that Hambly is more than a competent writer. In fact, I think she seems capable of very beautiful writing, even for a Star Wars book. She also has a keen instinct for character development: her focus on Princess Leia Organa-Solo and her emotional state---as President of the New Republic, mother of three children, husband of Han Solo, and survivor of her destroyed home planet Alderaan---displayed an emotional depth that I have never encountered before or since in another Expanded Universe novel. (To be fair, I have not come close to reading all of them.)There is also an element of darkness within her writing. (I have never read anything else by her, but I imagine that her fantasy and horror fiction are exceptionally creepy and goosebump-inducing.) She utilized it extremely well in “Children of the Jedi”, with her descriptions of abandoned tunnels populated by former miners who had been so driven to insanity that they had become homicidal subterranean creatures, as well as in her setting of a derelict Imperial dreadnaught that was haunted by the spirit of a dead Jedi Knight. At times, one almost forgot one was reading a Star Wars novel, as the tone seemed more appropriate for a Stephen King novel.I realize now, of course, why fans seem to despise Hambly, especially “Children of the Jedi”. There were, at least, two vital elements missing from that book: 1) humor, and a sense that it wasn’t taking itself too seriously. Not that Hambly didn’t attempt some humor, but most of the time, she was writing with a very Gothic seriousness that seemed somewhat inappropriate and, well, off-putting for a Star Wars novel. Part of the appeal of "Star Wars" was that it was a somewhat tongue-in-cheek homage/parody of space operas and the Saturday matinee sci-fi B-movies. The best books in the SWEU series capture this tone perfectly. Hambly doesn't. 2) Space battles. I’m pretty sure that this is one of the very rare few SWEU novels that doesn’t involve a climactic space battle scene, replete with plenty of Tie fighter and X-wing dogfights. Hambly tends to keep most of the action on the ground, which is okay, except that readers kind of expect the space stuff. (It is called "Star Wars", after all.)Aside from all that, I am of the opinion that Hambly is simply too mature of a writer for the SWEU. I don’t mean this as an insult to the countless other writers who have contributed to the series. My whole point is that Hambly seems to write at a different literary level than, say, Kevin J. Anderson or Timothy Zahn, and one that approaches the Star Wars universe from a perspective that is, essentially, too grown-up for Star Wars fans.(I expect to get a lot of shit for that statement.)It would be like Terrence Malick attempting to direct a “Jurassic Park” movie. Yes, the film would be gorgeously filmed, with lots of amazing establishing shots and slow pans, but there probably wouldn’t be a lot of action. On top of that, most of the film would probably be devoted to existentialist diatribes on man’s smallness within the universe and scientific ramblings on the dangers of genetic manipulation. Oh, and Sean Penn would most likely be in it. The film wouldn't necessarily be bad---on the contrary, it would probably be excellent and garner an Oscar nod---but it wouldn't be a "Jurassic Park" film. People going into a "Jurassic Park" film would be greatly, and justifiably, disappointed.Not that Hambly is doing anything close to what Malick does in film. She is still staying within the parameters of genre formula, but her approach is different. It is, however, not necessarily better, nor is it necessarily in the spirit of "Star Wars", which is what I think many SWEU fans are picking up on.“Planet of Twilight” is Hambly’s second and, as far as I know, last book she wrote for the SWEU. It is unfortunate but not all that surprising that she has never been invited back to write more for the series. I happened to like “Planet of Twilight” but not necessarily as a Star Wars novel. “Planet of Twilight” is, at its heart, a vampire novel. It’s a pretty creepy one, too, juxtaposed with the fact that it is set within the Star Wars universe. While it doesn’t succeed fully (read Joe Schreiber’s “Death Troopers” for an extremely successful attempt at bringing horror into the Star Wars universe), it is still an entertaining and engaging horror thriller.The plot: President Leia Organa-Solo has reluctantly agreed to come to Nam Chorios, at the behest of the planet’s ambassador, in order to help settle a growing dispute and prevent a potential civil war between the planet’s inhabitants. A faction comprised of anti-technology cult members is threatening the livelihood of the mostly poor farmers on the planet. Before she can even make a decision, however, she is abducted.Unaware of Leia’s kidnapping, Luke arrives on Nam Chorios to investigate a lead in the disappearance of Callista, the former Jedi Knight and Luke’s ex-girlfriend. Going in undercover as a mechanic, Luke finds temporary shelter with some friendly farmers.Meanwhile, an inexplicable plague has been sweeping through nearby planets and passing spaceships within Nam Chorios’s space. Scientists are at a loss to explain it.Leia, struggling with fears about her newfound powers of the Force, discovers that she has been kidnapped by a hideous vampiric creature bent on taking over the galaxy. Fearing that the creature has already wiped out most of the inhabitants in this system, Leia takes it upon herself to attempt to destroy the creature before its evil spreads.“Planet of Twilight” works best when one reads it as a horror novel. The description of Dzim, the vampiric creature that is modeled loosely on Bram Stoker’s “Dracula”, is thoroughly nightmarish. Besides a somewhat ridiculous and (perhaps unintentionally) humorous origin story, Dzim is a creepy and disgusting villain. The creepiness factor is cranked up, too, with his “children of the night”: telekinetically controlled rat-like creatures that live abundantly on the surface of Nam Chorios.Hambly weaves in several other storylines, including a related subplot involving a weapons manufacturer trying to foment war to make a profit, and also includes some fun cameos of other characters from previous SWEU books.Overall, I liked “Planet of Twilight”. I still think Hambly is a writer of great talent, although it appears that her talent may be suited more for the fantasy and horror novels that she is best known for and not necessarily for the SWEU.
"Cruel in places" - Better lines never described such a bookSeti Ashgad of Nom Chorios has set up a meeting with Chief of State Leia Organa to try to convince her to throw Republic support to open trade on his planet. Trade that the native Therans have opposed with weapons. But things go amiss with Leia is kidnapped. Meanwhile, a message from Callista warning of dire events on Nom Chorios sends Luke Skywalker in pursuit his lost love.NOTE: I read this book years ago and listened to the audio version most recently.I Liked:After reading the brutal description of Callista in Darksaber, reading Barbara Hambly write Callista was a breath of fresh air. Despite her odd return (and how it feels decidedly un-Star Wars), Callista isn't a half bad character and had promised to bring such a new perspective on the Jedi, from the viewpoint of the Old Republic. Hambly's Callista is still upset about losing her Force powers and still insists on being away from Luke to get them back, but she is nowhere near as whiny and immature as Anderon's Callista. Furthermore, Hambly closes off the Luke and Callista relationship well, leaving no dangling threads and giving a slice of hope that maybe Callista can return (I wouldn't be opposed to seeing her in later books, honestly).I also commend Hambly for having Callista finally train Leia. In fact, I enjoyed this aspect so much, I wish that Callista would have returned, not to be Luke's lover, but to be Leia's master, she is that good.Although small, I want to make sure it doesn't go unnoticed that Hambly bucked the stereotype and made the first Hutt Jedi. Kudos to her! Yes, Beldorian is still "bad", but I appreciate how she made him a Jedi instead of leaning on the Wookiees, the Mon Calamari or the Bothans.I Didn't Like:I don't know if it's me, the circumstances surrounding when I listened to this audio version or what, but this book seems almost worse than Children of the Jedi.My first complaint is that Luke is still pining after her enough to leave and search her out. Hasn't it been a year since she left? Why is he still so absorbed with her? A year is a long time and a lot of things have probably happened to Luke in that time. So why is he still easily able to drop everything and try to seek her out? I understand why the author did it (to tie off the Luke/Callista relationship loose end), but it doesn't seem appropriate for Luke, Jedi Master, to be pining so long afterwards. In fact, it almost makes him more of a hormonal teenager than a grown adult who has been through war.Secondly, Leia spends much of this book doing nothing more than being drugged. This makes for incredibly boring reading, as she lies around, listening to convenient exposition and getting dehydrated. Not to mention, Leia's room is a normal room with a window and a balcony. Sure, the door is locked, but the Leia from the movies would have been attempting to leave. Of course, the Leia from the movies wasn't harping on wearing "thick, red" ceremonial robes and "gold" boots. I wouldn't have been surprised if she were wearing a nice bull horn hairdo like her mother in The Phantom Menace. I am not sure why Leia decides to even leave, it almost feels like the author finally needed Leia to be elsewhere to get the plot moving so decided, "Yup, let's have her escape now." Then, having Leia's lightsaber remain with her is completely insane. Seti Ashgad was very aware of the weapon, why would he basically just ASK her to leave by letting her keep it? Insane!The plot dive bombs into ridiculous and non-Star Wars once it is revealed that Dzym is a genetically manipulated droch created by a chef for a meal. What...I can't tell you how my brain shut down and refused to accept this once I heard it. How does this happen? Is this Star Wars or Star Trek or some other crazy scifi franchise (especially with a name of a city being "Ruby Gulch"!)? I heaped quite a bit of insult on Children of the Jedi, but at least that book had Jedi and an attempt to feel from the world of Star Wars. Here, it's as if Hambly didn't even try.Another peeve I had was the stereotypically "bad" engineering firms. Excuse me, but these places are just there to create money. Quit trying to make them all look bad, like Captain Planet and the Planeteers, just because they are trying to make a profit. Governments aren't good just because they make wild promises to people for peace and a bunch of other pie crust promises; businesses aren't bad because they are trying to increase profits (not to say they are good, mostly that they are indifferent). Furthermore, I am sure the "good" New Republic has weapons and didn't get all of them from the "peaceful" Mon Calamari.Also, in this book, it becomes abundantly clear the mistake of making Leia Organa Chief of State. Once you make her such a powerful position, you have to come up with crazier and crazier ways to include her in the story and get her to DO things instead of sitting on the sidelines like most rulers. At first, I thought it would be cool, but now I see how it has hurt Leia's character (making her more of a cushy politician instead of the fighter from the movies). I mean, it's been over 10 years since she found out she was Luke's sister and can use the Force and she still hasn't become a Jedi.Dialogue/Sexual Situations/Violence:Sparse.I don't recall anything.Leia finally lightsaber duels. Using the Force has bad consequences on Nom Chorios. Luke gets shot out of the sky.Overall:Another sub-standard Star Wars book. I had thought it was slow, boring, and bad when I was younger, and I can just confirm that time hasn't changed my view of it, other than to include the adjective "weird" to the bunch. Admiral Daala says it best about the book: "Cruel in places". Avoid.
What do You think about Planet Of Twilight (1998)?
I'm not a fan of Barbara Hambly's Star Wars book. This one read better than Children of the Jedi, but not by much. It is another novel involving Callista. Hopefully I won't have to read about her much after this...I am definitely not a fan of that storyline.There is another Leia kidnapping, the 2nd in the last 3 books. It's a tad ridiculous at how easily the head of the New Republic can be kidnapped. She's a Jedi, has a Jedi Master for a brother, is guarded by the Noghri and a huge Wookie, not to mention the troops that guard here, and she commands millions of troops, yet she is kidnapped every other book. As far as the Star Wars books have gone so far, "kidnapping" seems to be a popular theme. I'm hoping the trend dies down, but I know there is more kidnapping in the next book awaiting me (The Crystal Star).This book also introduces a Jedi Hutt named Beldorion, which is just as ridiculous as it sounds.Planet of Twilight was a bit of a disappointment. On to the next book...
—Bret
I thought this was one of the better Star Wars books. Why? Because it was different. Unable to rely on the Force. A different kind of tale. So many of the books around that time were about someone being kidnapped or another Dark Jedi no one knew about. And not organic things, but these random items designed to fuel the plot of a single book. This novel went back to character story telling. The characters drive the story, the story is not there just to show off the characters. Definitely one of my favorites and a pleasure to re-read.
—Arthur Gibson
From reading reviews of this novel and 'Children of the Jedi', Barbara Hambly's first Star Wars novel, it seems that readers are polarized towards her writings. Hambly successfully brings elements of romance and humor to the Extended Universe, giving the main characters greater depth of character and fleshing out genuinely interesting characters like Admiral Daala, almost as if she is taking two-dimensional stock characters and making them three-dimensional. Whether adding romance and depth to the EU is a good thing is a matter of taste. Out of this and 'Children', this is the better book, adding believable romance and nightmarish horror to the series while moving the plot line along quicker. I wish that she could have written this as a complete Callista Ming trilogy by one author, replacing Kevin Anderson's forgettable 'Darksabre' novel. Tighter editing may have helped, too, as most reviewers note Hambly's writing is wordy and complex. I ended up having to read several passages twice so I could understand what exactly was happening. Where other series authors tend to do quicker, motion-picture-like cuts between scenes, anchoring the scene, characters, and action immediately and progressing the storyline, Hambly tends to ramble on and on. Overall, I enjoyed this book.
—Stephen Shores
