Rating: 
Summary: ACTION PACKED
Review: THIS IS ONE OF THE BEST STAR WARS BOOKS IVE EVER READ SINCE IT FEATURES MY FAVORITE CHARACTOR HAN SOLO, ITS ALSO NON STOP ACTION AND FEATURES FORCE VISIONS OF LEIAS
Rating: 
Summary: Han and Leia
Review: This book is basically Leia coming to terms with her heritage. Luke makes a very small appearence. If you are a Han or Leia fan you would probably enjoy this book. Otherwise you could probably skip it. The only really new information for the reader is to find out how Anakin's mother won her freedom and got married.
Rating:
Summary: An Average Star Wars Novel.
Review: After reading two duds in Force Heretic 1&2, I was very excited to begin reading author Troy Denning's latest contribution to the Star Wars universe. All the reviews I read were extremely positive, and Tatooine Ghost seemed as though it would be one of the best SW books to date. And was I overjoyed when I finally put the book down, did I believe I had just finished reading one of the best... to put it bluntly, No.First let me give you the positives...
Denning does a wonderful job on the dialogue, Han and Leia's speech is, for the most part, right on the mark, "sounding" just like they did in the films. The surrounding cast of characters is also "voiced" expertly; better then some other SW authors. The only stumbling block would have to be C-3PO, who always seemed just a little off (though, no one has really been able to write 3PO dialogue since Zahn), but despite the golden droid, the dialogue is first rate. The writing is also above average; the entire novel flows extremely well, never really seeming to grow boring, or confusing. In this category, Denning also excels. But here's the negative: The plot.
The plot is a very simplistic one - which usually I like - but it is also a very uninteresting one. Throughout the novel, Han, Leia, Chewbacca, C-3PO, and some other interesting creatures, travel around just about all of the deserts of Tatooine in search of an Alderrian (Leia's home planet) painting which holds the key to a secret communications code, the New Republic has been using since the days of the rebellion. Han and Leia must get a hold of this painting before the Imperials do (a never-named Admiral, which is obviously Grand Admiral Thrawn, also wants painting, but for his art collection rather then New Republic code-cracking). Mean while Leia struggles with her father's past, and the hatred she still feels towards him.
Even though it is stated time and time again how important finding painting is, it never really feels like it's important. I kept thinking that Han and Leia, two of the most important people in the galaxy, shouldn't be running around some backwater planet looking for some code. That should be a job for person of lesser importance. While on the other hand, Leia's personal struggles are extremely enjoyable; but sadly, Denning spends too little time on them, lacing them into the other adventure. It really needed a whole novel to cover her feelings, instead, we get half a novel. I felt the book would have been far better if it was the other way around. The "main" adventure is really just downright boring. If it weren't for the excellent writing, I'd probably fall asleep every time I began to read. Denning's book isn't really bad, it's actually quite enjoyable, but in the end all it really delivers is a quaint little adventure, that seems just too small for it's so un-quaint characters.
Rating: 
Summary: Weak overall, but Star Wars Classic fans may enjoy
Review: I have no objection to seeing more SW books put out from the Classic Era, but now that the New Jedi Order has taken over with edgy 'play for keeps' stories, the saying "You can't go home again" rings more true than ever. Think about it: any 'past' SW stories have to fit a rigid framework and meet certain expectations, such as no real bloodshed and dumb stormtroopers. Any new object, idea or character either has to die or disappear by the last page so as not to throw off the timeline.
'Tatooine Ghost' is laborious reading, and worst of all, it deals with characters and elements from 'Phantom Menace'. Let's get something straight, gang: TPM was awful, just awful...I don't want to be reminded of that hovertrain wreck any more than I have to. I got zero thrills reading about how Han or Leia interacted with TPM'ers. Chewie's presence didn't add much. Han flying a pod racer diminishes young Anakin's sole positive achievement.
On its own, ignoring all that I've mentioned previously, 'Tatooine Ghost' just wasn't a very memorable or interesting story. I rented it from the library so I'm not as mad as I seem. Buy it used or borrow it.
Rating:
Summary: Best Star Wars novel in years!
Review: Ever since the First Trilogy started coming out, I knew there would eventually be a novel where characters from the one series would come into contact somehow with characters from the other. It was inevitable, especially with the way fan tastes run, that somehow the two would cross. The only question was, how was it going to be arranged? Tatooine Ghost is the first real attempt to forge such a bridge, and I have to say, it is not only one of the best SW novels around, but one of the best novels of its kind I have ever read. The focus here is on Leia, and her relationship to her father (her _real_ father, namely Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader) and that side of her family history. She's just recently married to Han, but is skittish about having kids, fearing that she'll produce another Darth Vader. But a mission of importance for the newly resurrected Republic leads her back to Tatooine, and subsequently to a chance encounter with her father's past -- and most importantly of all, to a battered electronic diary containing the recorded words and musings of one Shmi Skywalker. OK, there's also a lot of gun play and intrigue going around, involving a piece of Alderaanian art long thought lost, and the action part of the story does take up a hefty percentage of the page count. But in reality, all of the action is merely a backdrop to a more important story, namely Leia coming to grips with her father and who he was. Along the way she is forced to re-examine him in a different light, to see the universe from the grim realities of Anakin's upbringing and not from the vaunted heights from which he later attained. It's a sobering transition, a realization that maybe her father wasn't as completely evil as she had thought, and that there were very sound reasons for his choices. And through it all there's Shmi, who never learns of what her son becomes, but instead continues to miss her little boy... There's a fair degree of heartbreak, and a lot of genuine emotion, something rare for an official media tie-in book. But Denning is not afraid to tug at an emotional level, and his success in doing so makes Tatooine Ghost so much better than your average Star Wars novel. It has enough action and adventure to keep a causal reader interested, while providing enough characterization and pathos for more thoughtful readers to appreciate. And above all, it is very, _very_ well written. This is the kind of Star Wars novel that you can hand to your friends who don't read media tie-in books, tell them that it is worth their effort, and have them come back to you both moved and impressed. It is highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Star Wars Story Telling the Way it Was Meant to Be Told
Review: Troy Denning's 'Tatooine Ghost' goes where no Star Wars novel has dared to go over the last three years: the pre-Timothy Zahn trilogy, post original trilogy era. In recent years, all the Star Wars novels have been set in the Prequel era, or in 'The New Jedi Order' series depicting the war against the Yuuzhan Vong. Denning wrote one of the most memorable novels in 'The New Jedi Order' series with 'Star by Star,' and 'Tatooine Ghost' is his second entry in the Star Wars universe. 'Tatooine Ghost' takes place in the fledgling years of the New Republic. Han Solo and Princess Leia Organa are newly weds, and find themselves on the way to Tatooine approximately six months after their wedding, which occurred at the end of Dave Wolverton's 'The Courtship of Princess Leia.' This story occurs before the events depicted in Timothy Zahn's famous 'Thrawn Trilogy.' Leia has learned that a piece of art she grew up with survived the destruction of Alderaan and is being auctioned on Tatooine. The recovery of the artwork is critical because a code crucial to the New Republic's spy network is hidden within. As she, Han, Chewbacca, and C-3P0 approach Tatooine, Leia begins experiencing visions in the force that she cannot understant. To compound her confusion, she soon starts discovering information about her father and grandmother that she did not expect to encounter. The novel mainly focuses on Leia as she discovers and deals with her emotions about her deceased father, Anakin Skywalker, better known in time period as the notorious Darth Vader. In addition, she must resolve an issue with her husband, Han, regarding having children. Leia fears the Dark Side of the Force is too tempting for those of the Skywalker bloodline, and feels it would be irresponsible of her to bring anymore Skywalker progeny into the galaxy that could potentially cause as much destruction as Vader. This novel has some incredible strengths. First of all, the enemy is the Empire. Although the New Jedi Order has been a good series, the Vong are just too different an enemy to adequately capture the feel of the Star Wars movies on a regular basis. 'Tatooine Ghost' brings the out the flavor of the Star Wars movies by placing Han and Leia against Storm Troopers and Tusken Raiders. In addition, Chewbacca is back. Many fans have missed him deeply since his well publicized death in R.A. Salvatore's 'Vector Prime.' His presence helps to bring out many of the qualities that make Han Solo, well, Han Solo. Another plus for this novel is that Denning limitted the cast of major characters. By doing so, the characters that are present get the treatment they deserve and more closely resemble the characters the reader knows from the movies. C-3P0 is the fussy, proper, and fidgety droid everyone expects him to be, Han is the wise cracking scoundrel, and Leia is the tough but compassionate Princess. The relationships between the characters are dead on. My one complaint about the novel might be viewed as a strength by others. I got tired of the desert in Tatooine. The characters struggle mightily to deal with the desert. At points, the reader feels like they are dying of thirst and dehyrdation alongside Han and Leia. Denning puts a lot of detail into this. Some I could have done without, but like I said, he did it well. I recommend this novel to all Star Wars fans. Those that are familiar with the Prequels and expanded universe will enjoy this book the most. However, those that are new to the expanded universe will find this an easy novel to follow and appreciate.
Rating: 
Summary: Return of the Classic era
Review: Now that the aweful NJO is coming to an end, it was a real joy to have Troy Denning, how ironic, do a story written for the long time fans of the SW Expanded Universe. This is Han and Leia and chewy on an adventure, never mind what the excuse is... something about an alderaanian item. Lets hope that more of this is planned.
Rating:
Summary: Hes Baaaaaack! Wow, what a pleasant surprise.
Review: Chewy is Back! Wow, what a pleasant surprise. This is a review of the abridged Audio CD which is 5 CD's and 6 ¼ hours long. First let me applaud Random House. Their typical Abridgement for a single novel is 2 cassettes or 2 CD's that run from 2 to 2 ½ hours long. This is what I call abridgement! 6 plus hours of listening pleasure. I drive a lot and have every SW audio book, even the ones for the comics. I love these longer versions. The longer versions make up for the fact that there are virtually no unabridged audio books in the Star Wars universe. TG takes place at 8.2 After NH on my timeline shortly after the Courtship of Princess Leia, but before Heir to the Empire. This is an excellent new addition to the classic ERA (vs the "prequel" and NJO era's). One could even argue that it is an important book, because it ties the classic era to the prequel era because Leia reads a journal. The story here is the journal and not the alderaanian art. Relive an adventure before Chewy and Anakin Solo are killed. Denning brings us away from the darkness that is the NJO, just at a time when darkness is necessarily descending upon the Prequel era. There are some nitpicky complaints that I have where the story drags or continuity errors but they don't really harm one enjoyment, that is why 4 stars, not 5 stars. If you are a big fan of Han, Leia and Chewy I am sure you will love this book!
Rating:
Summary: A big uplift after the NJO stuff
Review: Chewy is Back! Wow, what a pleasant surprise. To me the NJO ended the timeline for me at SBS. Then we started getting the prequel trilogy books, and man, what a tremendous job they are doing those books, interfacing the movies with books and comics. Then along comes this book, a new addition to what i call the EU period. EU starts with the Han Solo trilogy and concludes for me with Zahns Vision of the Future. This is a review of the abridged Audio CD which is 5 CD's and 6 ¼ hours long. First let me applaud Random House. Their typical Abridgement for a single novel is 2 cassettes or 2 CD's that run from 2 to 2 ½ hours long. This is what I call abridgement! 6 plus hours of listening pleasure. I drive a lot and have every SW audio book, even the ones for the comics. I love these longer versions. The longer versions make up for the fact that there are virtually no unabridged audio books in the Star Wars universe. TG takes place at 8.2 After NH on my timeline shortly after the Courtship of Princess Leia, but before Heir to the Empire. This is an excellent new addition to the classic ERA (vs the "prequel" and NJO era's). One could even argue that it is an important book, because it ties the classic era to the prequel era because Leia reads a journal. The story here is the journal and not the alderaanian art. Relive an adventure before Chewy and Anakin Solo are killed. Denning brings us away from the darkness that is the NJO, just at a time when darkness is necessarily descending upon the Prequel era. There are some nitpicky complaints that I have where the story drags or continuity errors but they don't really harm one enjoyment, that is why 4 stars, not 5 stars. If you are a big fan of Han, Leia and Chewy I am sure you will love this book!
Rating:
Summary: Leia's Scrapbook Adventure
Review: I'd actually rate this 3.5. I won't go into the plot, the chasing of the artwork with the codechip is really just a pretense for the real story. Leia learns of her family past, unwillingly at first, through meeting the friends of young Anakin, and then through a video diary created by Anakin's mother. She comes to some terms with her father's past and her future by doing so, becoming fond of her grandmother through the video diary. Denning does his usual workmanlike job, no real flair, no real disappointments. Her beginnings of an acceptance of her heritage though causes some minor continuity problems in my opinion. Such as her reaction in the Thrawn trilogy to being Lady Vader, and the whole White Current being her destiny as laid out in the Black Fleet Crisis. All in all, a laid back adventure that serves the purpose of a decent book about Leia. Solid, slightly above average Star Wars fiction.
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