Rating: Summary: Another Winner we have here Review: I just finished this book and I thought it was great. If you have ever wondered why Mace Windu is the head of the Jedi counsil, read this book and wonder no more. I have read a lot of reviews that say this book is mis-named as a clone wars novel because the wars serve very little point in the story. I disagree, keep in mind that wars don't revolve around soldiers, they revolve around people. This book is good enough to make a stand alone Star Wars movie. In very simple terms thie books plot seems to take a lot of elements from the film Apocalypes Now. Mace gets a mission from the Chacellor involving his one time padawan, Depa Bilba. Once he arrive on Harun Kal, it is a non-stop trip to hell and back, if he can make it back. I have enjoyed all of the Clone Wars novels, except Jedi Trail. Shatterpoint is no different, it is deffinetly worth the read.
Rating: Summary: I'm in a minority Review: I really looked forward to reading this book. It got so much hype and I thought it would be great. For reasons unknown to me, Stover's style is very difficult to read for me. I found the same to be true in Traitor. In theory, I like his style but to read it was a chore. However, got to love an Akk Dog!
Rating: Summary: Nearly perfect! Give us more from Stover! Review: I really want to rate this book 5 stars (like most people have so far), but find that there are imperfections that I am forced to acknowledge, and 5 stars is reserved for perfection. One thing is certain, Matt Stover is my absolute favorite Star Wars author since Zahn. In many ways he is even better. I only hope he is given the opportunity to write more Star Wars novels! (Please let him write the novelization for EPISODE III!!!) Mace Windu is fleshed out very well here, but I find some of the "Private Journals" that he is supposed to be "speaking" into a com recorder to be a bit out of character for Mace. I just can't imagine the character saying some of the things we read in the Journals. Granted, there is no good alternative way of moving the story along at the same pace. Still, I would have preferred a little more realism in these. For example, I would have liked to be able to invision Sam Jackson's voice speaking these lines while we picture in our minds the experiences he refers to. Instead they're often written in very much the same style as the rest of the book, which is not in a "spoken" narrative way. That said, this is still the best Star Wars novel I have read in years! It is extremely well written and entertaining. There are some more interesting takes on the nature of the force - which we got a small taste of in Stover's last Star Wars effort, Traitor (from the New Jedi Order series). The descriptive scenes of war may be too much for young readers, though 16+ should have no problem with them. This is war, so these scenes are important to make it more realistic.
Rating: Summary: "Star Wars" meets "Heart of Darkness" - AWESOME COOL! Review: I stumbled across this book quite by accident - my 8 year old son (who is falling in love with Star Wars as much as his old man did) brought it home from the library. he didn't read it - said it was "boring". I read it.....and LOVED it! Finally - a star wars novel for someone older than 12! Nice job on the writing, Matthew! Lots of literary references (including the horror of the heart of darkness). A small point, but i found some of the cultural anachronisms that crept into the dialog...........but this IS fantasy, after all. I really appreciated the humor that the author put into the book. This book would make a TERRIFIC movie, IMHO! I hope Hollywood picks up on this one......or else George Lucas should hire Matthew to write the screenplays for other star wars movies.
Rating: Summary: This book will live in the Jedi Archives for millenia! Review: I very enjoyed the book. It does give you a big does of "Mace" - Jedi Master who we know little about. I found certain aspects of the book to be out of character with what we know or are told about the Jedi in general. His use of Jedi powers at times seemed to be weak at some points, but explosive and 'all powerful yoda like' at other times? I don't feel they explain why Depa did what she did? I definately found this to be a very dark book and one of the more graphically violent of the ones I have read. While I did enjoy it, I can only give it a 3 rating in my mind. The ending of the book seemed hurried and unbelievable? May the force be with you!
Rating: Summary: Stover puts the WAR in Star Wars! Review: If the Star Wars universe has a "Vietnam", it must be Haruun Kal. In SHATTERPOINT, Matthew Stover takes the Star Wars saga "up river" in search of a jedi master gone mad. Through the eyes of Mace Windu, the reader is given a ringside seat to the insanity of a no-win war. In this action packed descent into darkness, Master Windu attempts to hunt down his former apprentice who has possibly fallen to the darkside. This is the most violent and depressing Star Wars story I have ever read. It is also one of the best.
Rating: Summary: Sick of Dreadfully Violent and Depressing Star Wars Books Review: If you like the implacable enemy, bloody violence and lots of it, Jedi are weak saps that can barely escape the "dark side", this is the book for you. Not that Stover does not have talent, but I am sick of the excessive violent (NC-17 if on the screen) claptrap that Star Wars books have been marked by since "New Jedi Order". I know that "Clone Wars" is about the disintegration of the Republic and murder of the Jedi, but do all the books have to be written by authors from the DARK SIDE?
Rating: Summary: Action-Packed! Worthy Addition to the SW Expanded Universe Review: Jedi Master Mace Windu is one of the most intriguing characters of the new Star Wars prequel trilogy, and so I jumped at the chance of reading a novel focusing upon him. I was pleased with the treatment he receives in "Shatterpoint" and I recommend this book to Star Wars fans.
Matthew Stover is a solid author, and I am glad he has joined the group of authors writing for the Star Wars Expanded Universe. He clearly understands the Star Wars galaxy (unlike some authors) but at the same time does not act like a groupie or kid in the candy store like other (like other authors). His writing is good and I look forward to seeing more from him. (And if you had not noticed, the book has an awesome cover.)
While I won't offer any spoilers, this novel is full of action-including lightsaber combat, which is almost a prerequisite for a solid Star Wars story, as far as I am concerned. The story can be characterized as dark and intense, as well as violent. After all, the primary setting for the story is in the wild on a planet undergoing a civil war. As a result, little is done to further the overall story about the Clone Wars (it is, after all "A Clone Wars Novel"), but the novel stands on its own and makes for great reading.
With plenty of new creatures, ships, fighting and insight into the powerful Master Windu, Stover succeeds in writing an awesome Star Wars novel. A cool character deserves a cool book. (As a bonus, the paperback edition includes a short story plus a special introduction by George Lucas.)
This book clearly belongs in the upper tier of Star Wars novels that have been published to date, and is well worth the read if you dig Star Wars.
Rating: Summary: Wow, what a ride! Review: Just finished the Force Heretic trilogy and Shatterpoint. What a contrast! SP is a tremendous journey where an often flawed Windu makes big mistakes and is also a brilliant tactician. FH is full of fill that we didn't need or care about. Recommendation? Savor SP. Savor Tatooine Ghost. Fly through FH.
Rating: Summary: More like 4.5 -- after abysmal NJO series, this was great! Review: Like many, I felt that the NJO series began promising, but ultimately was just not UP to the standards the serious Star Wars reader is looking for. Sure, some of the authors made valliant efforts to reign in the growing mess that it had become, but it wasn't long before it was simply beyond help. Now we see a story that takes us back to the Clone Wars which we saw a minor glimpse of at the end of Episode II, and gives us an even deeper view into a truly great Star Wars character, Mace Windu. Matthew Stover handles this particular Star Wars entry in fine form, as though he knew exactly what needed to be told for us readers who have been thirsting for a novel based in a Galaxy Far, Far Away that just doesn't suck -- which is ultimately what we want, a book that doesn't waste out time. 'Shatterpoint' DOESN'T suck at all. In fact, it is an above-average tale that (thanks to Episode I & II) helps us to better understand events we have already seen, and in part, to understand events yet-to-come in the later movies. I wouldn't put Stover's writing on a level equal to Timothy Zahn, who is without a doubt the best living Star Wars author writing today, but Mr. Stover really IS good at what he does. Some have noted the grim darkness of this tale in other reviews, and I re-emphasize that there are some aspects of this novel which entirely took me by surprise -- mostly due to the graphic depiction of some of the scenes. NOT what you expect from your typical Star Wars story. I was (at times) even shocked that some was allowed in print -- and that isn't to mean it DOESN'T belong, but just more than I have seen in ANY previous novel (to date). Now that I have said this, let me also say that once you are past the more gruesome portions, you can relax and appreciate why they were included. All in all, after some of the drivel of the NJO, despite the best of intentions by Del Rey and some well meaning authors, 'Shatterpoint' is a fantastic addition to the Star Wars Universe that deserves a very large audience and if Mr. Stover ever re-enters this particular Universe again, he can count on an instant best-seller based entirely upon the success of this story. Well done.
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