Dark Journey (Star Wars: The New Jedi Order, Book 10)

Rating:
Summary: GREAT COMEBACK
Review: Star by Star created a low-point for Star Wars and the NJO. Dark Journey turned the overwhelmingly dark and depressing story around and gave hope to those readers who may have lost it after the last novel. Dark Journey is much lighter than the previous, even though it still contains dark themes, as menioned in the title. Jaina struggles with the dark side of the force, trying to find meaning for her two brother's apparent deaths, shunns her friends and family, schemes a lot, so on. The story also takes place in the Hapes Cluster, an isolated and anti-jedi area filled with political infighting and court intrigue, and the only safe place after the Vong won the war. This story could have been joined with Star by Star, because one begins the minute the other ends. D.J. finally focuses on characters who have had minor positions in the series (Jag Fel, Kyp, everyone in the Hapes Cluster)while at the same time ignoring or giving cameos to other major characters, particularly from the previous generatiom (Han, Leia, Luke, Mara, Lando, C-3PO, R2, Wedge, Gavin, Corran, Nom Anor, Vergere, Danni, Viqi Shesh, Tsavong Lah, Jacen...should I continue?)

Rating:
Summary: Whats going on?
Review: I don't understand the direction this series is going. First they kill Chewy, and then Anakin who was the biggest character. Now this book deals with Jania leaning to the dark side. Thats it, for 301 pages all it's about is Jania's struggle with the dark side. It's nice to see Kyp do some good for a change but we will see if that lasts. I really expected more form this one. One last note. I thought a jedi knight was suppose to dissapeer when they died? They did'nt even get that right. Save your money and lets hope the next one is a little better.

Rating:
Summary: Star by Star
Review: Elaine Cunningham does a good job of continuing the New Jedi Order. It keeps your attention and makes it hard to put down.

Rating:
Summary: The journey may be dark, but it's the same old one.
Review: Star by star, the last book in the New Jedi Order series, reached a climax by killing off Anakin and let the Vongs conquer the repblican capital. One would hope to see some new lights or new direction in the follow up, unfortunately, this didn't happen in Dark Journey. Elaine Cunningham may be a good writer but she doesn't have the firm understanding of the starwar history or the imagination needed to carry on the legacy. Instead, many old friends/foes are brought out again and the story rovolves on the same old journey. There is nothing new added to the New Jedi Series, it has became stagnent, just like many of the Jedis in the book. It used to be fun to read the starwar books and see the Jedi face the chanlleges and beat the odds; now I actually wish some of the Jedis turn to the darkside just to add some energy to the whole book.

Rating:
Summary: sith lord jaina
Review: What can I say? It was an ok book. Not great, but not bad. The author did an ok job with everything, but was sometimes a bit confusing at times...like almost not quite clear on the points she was trying to make. But it was a good read overall. I don't mean to give anything away, so if you're afraid of that, stop reading now. :) I was rooting for Jaina to fully slip to the Dark Side...I think that it would make the remaining books in this series quite a bit more interesting. And I also think that it will take a Dark Jedi to finally finish of the Vong, with the Dark Side of the Force fully at their disposal. Perhaps that isn't the only path to victory here, but it would certainly be an interesting one.... So, I once again URGE the authors of the following books to PLEASE speed up the process...having to wait 3 months inbetween books is TORTURE. Thank you for your time, and good reading....

Rating:
Summary: Just Okay!
Review: I liked a book about Jaina, merely because female heroes in Star Wars are as always fewer. There were some parts which just didn't work, like for example why would any parents just leave behind their only remaining child. Also Jag Fel needs to be written by someone else, I don't want him to be so sacharrin. But most important for any Star Wars novel - there just wasn't enough action.

Rating:
Summary: A Journey Worth Taking!
Review: The brilliance of "Dark Journey" does not fully reveal itself until the last sentence has been read. By then, it has created a cliffhanger, or has it? I guess it depends on which characters you want to believe, because in this cliffhanger, it is the conviction of one character versus the convictions of nearly all the others. And, what makes this disagreement so compelling, is who that one lone person turns out to be.

"Dark Journey" is a book full of clues with no answers. In that regard, it can be a very frustrating read, but to not take this journey would be a loss to any fan of Star Wars fiction. The character development and interaction is sharp, sarcastic, witty, and introspective. Character relationships, developed throughout the entire series of Star Wars books set after "Return of the Jedi", come into play in this book. After "Vector Prime" and "Star by Star", anything can happen.

I have given away as much as I intend to. I hope I have created a little mystery for those who are thinking of reading the book. I highly recommend it. BTW, I hope that one lone person turns out to be correct, because they deserve the respect.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: This book is poorly written. Dialog is hokey, the plot is too sensationalistic, and the narrative is very, very poorly constructed. The narrative voice focuses in and then zooms out in a haphazard manner, often passing over important events, and certainly inconsistent.
It has been sad to see the good writing at the beginning of this series dip more and more toward the quality of the pulpy older Kevin J Anderson Star Wars novels. I hope that some of the better writers from the earlier run come back.

Rating:
Summary: Great Book!!
Review: I loved this book. The thing I like the best about the New Jedi Order series is that the Solo children are really being explored. I never particularily cared about Anakin until "Edge of Victory I: Conquest," likewise, I never cared about Jaina until this book. Jaina has probably been the least explored character in the books (exluding the Young Jedi Knight books). It was interesting how she delt with her brother's death (I don't beleive that Jacen is dead.) She came up with some wonderful technology that was great against the Yuuzhan Vong. I also found myself really enjoying Kyp Durron. I always liked him, but this book just made me fall in love him. There was a lot of irony in his dealings with Jaina which I found amusing. I also liked the relationship that developed between the two.
It was also good to see old characters reemerge. I loved the whole story with Ta'a Chume, Teneniel Djo, and Isolder. The only reason I gave this book a four, was because of Jag Fel. It just seemed to me that he was just thrown in for no real reason. Also, I wished that there was more of Luke, Mara, Han, and Leia. Other than that, this book was extrememly pleasurable and I just couldn't put it down!

Rating:
Summary: Dark Journey
Review: I really enjoyed this book. i like Jaina alot, and this was her book.The author really left out Jacen, Luke and Mara, and centered on Jag(YES!he's back!!), Jaina ,Tenel Ka and Kyp, which was cool.It had quite a few interesting conflicts with her, Kyp and Jag and she struggles with using the dark side. She's not quite as bad as the title suggests, though. You are left wondering about several things(cough*Jacen!*cough). It's a well told story, all around.I can't wait for the next one to come out!! :D