Rating: 
Summary: Here come the Vong, hang on to your ships!!!
Review: It was with a bit of trepidation that I started the first book in the Star Wars: The New Jedi Order series, Vector Prime. It's been a long while since I've read a Star Wars book, and the ones I had read before weren't the greatest. However, I've heard good things about this series, so I decided to pick the first one up. And I am glad I did. While it's not an outstanding book, it is a very good one. It's well-written with lots of action scenes, and brought back a bit of a feeling of the movies.There are many good things about this book. The Empire no longer exists, but the Yuuzhan Vong seem like they will be a formidable enemy for Luke and his friends. They have that seemingly unstoppable quality about them that brings to mind the Empire, but they are different enough that they don't seem like retreads. The Vong are a very organic species. They use living things as their ships as well as many of their weapons. Insects that are bred to cut through the metal of ships or that cut through flesh with the slightest touch. I found them a very interesting species, and I think they will be an intriguing enemy for the New Republic to fight. I look forward to reading more about them in subsequent books. The main characters are well done. They are the same characters we know and love from the movies, but they have changed enough to acknowledge that they are older and wiser now. They seem a little bit more resigned to their battles, not glorying in them as they used to. Han and Leia, with teenage children now who want to be in the thick of the action, realize that their kids are becoming what they were all those years ago. Luke and his wife, Mara Jade, are also very interesting. Luke's dilemma about the Jedi Council seems like something that will come up in later books, as he doesn't have a lot of time to think about the idea in this one. It adds to the feeling of a series, as the reader gets the idea that more is happening than just what is going on in the story itself. Mara is fighting off a mysterious illness that seems to be infecting some people sensitive to the Force, and while she continues to battle hard, it's a battle that it looks like she may lose. The main characters are given interesting problems to deal with and it makes them people you want to read about. The death of a major character is stunning (unless, of course, you've heard all about it already), and it bodes well for this series. You will never know whether or not a character who is in danger will actually die. This really sets the tone for the entire series, one that will be dark and where anything can happen. But don't worry. There are numerous light moments in this book as well, despite the foreboding feel of the plot. The good-natured competition between the three Solo children is great, and the interplay between Lando and the others is quite good as well. One of the major problems with this book is Danni Quee and the other characters who are at the edge of the galaxy, monitoring. They are the first ones to notice the Vong coming, though they think at first it's just an asteroid or something. However, the problem is that these are some of the most uninteresting characters I've read about in awhile. They go through the motions of what they are supposed to do, fulfilling their functions happily but not engaging the reader's interest at all. Whenever they appear on the stage, the story grinds to a halt. They don't even register much when they meet their inevitable fate. Danni gets off better than the rest, but that's because she has more of a function. It's almost like Salvatore needed some characters to have Danni play off of, but otherwise didn't want to expend much effort in them. Another problem is that the book is overwritten a bit. One thing I hate is when exclamation marks are used by the narrator. I think that it's an attempt to add false tension and excitement to a book, and it really turns me off. Salvatore does that a few times in this book, and it brought me up short each time. It's annoying, and I wish authors would stop doing that. The book was exciting enough without this. Salvatore really has a good sense of the action scene, and it seems he went to the Michael Stackpole school of writing about space battles. Ships are flying all over the place, some blowing up, some not. The pace is fluid and never dull. It's hard to do something like this in prose, but Salvatore does a good job. The tension never lets up during these scenes, a sign of a good action writer. I was very impressed. The battle at the end of the book is especially breathtaking. All in all, though, this is a great start to the New Jedi Order series. It sets the scene very well, sets the mood, and introduces all of the characters. A lot of the main characters were introduced in previous books, but Salvatore presents everything you need to know about them. Their histories are not told completely, so there are some subtle nuances that long-time readers will see that newcomers won't, but it doesn't hurt the book at all. A large part of the plot is dependent on coincidences, but that's par for the course in the Star Wars universe, so it didn't bug me that much. If it bugs you, then you may find a few too many "yeah, right" moments. But for me, it's a good start, and I can't wait to read more.
Rating: 
Summary: Amazing !
Review: Well, I just started reading thise series now after it got reccomended by my friends. And if there is one thing you can be sure of, this book won't let you down.
The beggining of the book is a bit slow, but then, all first books in all series are.
Salvatore did a wonderful job in explaining how the Yuuzhan Vong infiltrated the galaxy without the notice of the New Republic.
You are introduced to thier deadly ships and weapons, some of which even a lightsaber cannot brake. They set up a base and you are introduced to a whole new culture.
The Vong base is set up, and Han, devestated by Chewie's death, heads to battle with the rest of our heroes - only to find a strong resistance which destroy all the Republic ships except a few that managed to escape. In a last, desperate manuver, Luke, Liea, Han and the rest try a desperate manuver to destroy the feared alien creatures.
How did our heroes stumble on them? Did they defeat them? If so how? I wont give the answer to those spoliers...so go read the book if you have not done so already.
A great book beautifully written. I couldnt stop reading until the end. Cant wait to start the 2nd book.
Rating:
Summary: Stars Wars lives on
Review: I found this storyline/plot quite interesting -- New characters / new twists.
I picked this up without reading any reviews about it -- It is Star Wars after all and I haven't read a Star Wars novel I didn't enjoy!
I am looking forward to the story continuing and a main character found alive !...
Rating:
Summary: Excellent story
Review: At first I was'nt really into reading this book.
Starts off kind of slow, but the author is setting up the scenery. At one point I was ready to give up the book, but I decided to give it a chance and read further. Well I'm glad I did. The Jedi have met their match with these Yuz Vong warriors.
This book is worthy lol. I still don't know why the author decided to get rid of a long time Star Wars character. I am still mourning. I plan on purchasing Onslaught next and hope to see that character miraculously brought back to life.
Once the story gets going, you will not want to put it down.
Overall I do give this book 5 stars.
Rating:
Summary: Great
Review: If you love Star Wars this is for you!
Rating:
Summary: Good plot & characterization; sometimes boring and annoying
Review: The story is good, the characterization is decent, but the writing is sometimes slow and sometimes annoying. As far as plot goes, because this is the first book of a spectacular new series, it can hardly be described as anything short of groundbreaking. I have read many Star Wars novels and never has anything like what happens in Vector Prime happened in any of them. This is a great relief, since Star Wars books often seem to repeat themselves (how many times can the Solo children really get kidnapped or threatened with kidnap?!). It's invigorating to read something so fresh and new. This is good, non-formulaic sci-fi. The chararacters are written pretty well. They are consistent and show some depth. On the whole, I would compare Salvatore's scheme of building up characters through consistent behavior and speech patterns with little recourse to omnicience that reveals inner thoughts to Timothy Zahn's writing. I think Salvatore does a particularly good job of showing us Solo children who are a little more grown up than we've seen them in the past, and of elaborating on Kyp Durron, who has likewise grown up. I hope to see more of this Kyp in the future, because he will make a great foil to Luke Skywalker. The book is not without flaws. The plot is exciting because it is new, but sometimes Salvatore really drags it out and it gets a bit boring. Also, he has a hard time expressing feelings of affection or nostalgia without getting too cutsie or annoying. This shows up a lot in the women--Mara going on about wanting a baby doesn't sound like Mara at all (I'm sure Zahn could make her want a child without compromising her character), and Leia similarly comes across as too weak. But where it is maybe the most obnoxious is in Salvatore's need to use some epithet like "dear wife" or "precious wife" every time he talks about Mara. Okay, she's sick and Luke loves her and is worried. But really...there are other ways to express it. In sum, then, this is a pretty good book. It has a few quirks that some editing could have fixed, but they're no big deal. It's not the best in the NJO series, but it's also far from the worst. Vector Prime is definitely worth a read, though I should add that the very momentous event that takes place at the end has offended a lot of people, perhaps in part because if it was going to happen, it deserved to be in a better book by a more trusted Star Wars author like Zahn.
Rating: 
Summary: Star Wars, New Jedi Order
Review: This is the first book in the New Jedi Order series. It is an intereresting book and it breathed new life into the Star Wars Universe. This is also the book where Chewie died.
Rating:
Summary: New tack
Review: As Star Wars books go, this one is a breath of fresh air. A NEW enemy, NEW allies, NEW planets, NEW weapons (for both sides... nice to know that the New Republic does advance after 20 something years). Long-time character's death (sorry if that's a shocker, but if you haven't figured it out by now....) is apt and sets up for a whole slew of new character developments. All-in-all, a nice beginning, which should leave you interested in all of its continuation.
Rating:
Summary: Tolerable
Review: I found this book hard to follow. The best parts of the book were the beginning and the end. The book does have a good set up for following books, but other Star Wars books in the New Jedi Order Series are much better. So read this book as fast as you can and look forward to the following books.
Rating:
Summary: What do you do when there are no more Sith to fight...
Review: ...and some of your jedi, some walking the line of good and evil, are not bad enough to tag as your next nemisis? What do you do? You introduce a race of alien so bad that even the emporors ideals begin to seem rational. Vader seems merciful. Maul is a pretty boy. Dooku, well, just plain pansy next to the new terror striking the universe. The book dares to change the rules. We love our core cast of characters. Chewbacca has been there since the start. And this book takes the chance to remove him from the Star Wars universe forever. I quite frankly do not have a problem with this, Chewbacca was never an interesting subject for the star wars novelists (with the exception of Zahn who gave us new insight to Chewy's home world and his fierce fighting ability) but from then, he's been lost along with R2-D2. Let's face it Beeps and growls are great on film but ... on paper. But the author braves the criticism from Chewbacca fans and I am one reader who is glad he did. Not because I dislike the mighty Wookie, but it hammers home the point about the Vong...none of your heroes are safe, no planet is off limits, all rules are off. The Yuzhan Vong are here. And as a reader, I can't wait to see how the
Jedi (and the rest of the universe) deal with these evil foes.
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