Rating: 
Summary: Tale of intrigue and twists
Review: I wasn't sure what to expect when I purchased this book, but after reading it, I was not disappointed. First of all, it is not adventure! Very few battles and although the Jedi are involved, very few lightsaber duels. It is, however, the lack of adventure that make this novel intriguing. It moves with a fairly quick pace, and has more twists than a spy novel. It was a joy to read, just trying to figure out what would happen next. This novel also is the perfect set up to Episode I. It describes why the trade federation does what it does, what was the problem with Valorum's leadership, and why Palpatine just happened to be chosen as Supreme Chancellor. I must recommend this novel because it is indeed different from the other SW novels. That difference is refreshing and hopefully we'll see more novels driven by character rather than sheer adrenaline.
Rating: 
Summary: Cloak of Deception-Excellent Title
Review: This has to be the worst star wars book I have read other than the young jedi knights. This book is slow, boring, very little action, poor hero development, Oh yes did I mention BORING! A real waste of $... dollars. Even in paperback it would be to expensive. Back to stackpole for a good read.
Rating: 
Summary: THIS should have been Episode I!
Review: The review titles says it all. Finally, a prequel novel that isn't awful. Cloak of Deception not only makes sense of the political maneuvering that pervaded "Phantom Menace," but ties together Expanded Universe and prequel characters and plotlines. This is also the first prequel book where I felt truly chilled on reading segments from Palpatine's point of view. I'll say it again: Lucas should have made Cloak of Deception the plot for Episode I. It's loaded with action, intrigue and suspense: you never know what it's all about until the end. If anyone from Lucasbooks is reading this, the likes of Luceano and Greg Keyes should have the oppurtunity to write many more Star Wars novels, whatever the timeline.
Rating:
Summary: Not a "must-read" but definitely a "should read"
Review: Cloak of Deception has the most political intrigue of any the recent Star Wars books dealing with the time around Episode 1. The most enjoyable parts of this story deal with the maneuvering of Senator Palpatine/Darth Siduous. The numerous plot twists that are orchestrated by the Senator could only be accomplished by someone as steeped in the Dark Side as Siduous. From time to time the story drags when detailing some of the exploits of the terrorist Nebula Front. I would have preferred a little less of the 'action' surrounding them and had a story more focused on the political machinations of the Senate. In the end, though, there is a generally good balance to please many readers. I would have given 5 stars, if I hadn't lost interest during some of the non-political sequence, but that's just me. If you are a fan of the Star Wars universe you will enjoy this novel.
Rating:
Summary: cloak of deception
Review: This is an excellent book, if you like star wars you will LOVE this. I thought it would be jus about the political issues behind epsisode 1 but not so! It does go a long way to explaining the taxation issue in TPM and palpatines manipulations of people, but it is such an action packed and well written book, i think it may be one of the best SW books i have read. It especially goes into details of the jedi council and how it works and it also explores how the senate works... it is an excellent book and a great read, well worth forking out your hard earned dosh for!
Rating:
Summary: The Master at Work
Review: Political intrigue, action, mystery, suspense, this book has it all. James Luceno is fast becoming one of the top writers in the SW universe. Palpatine simpley shines in this novel as he subtly influnces everyone to do his bidding even though no one suspects him of doing so. Even the Jedi council is at a loss on who is truly behind all the political upheavl. This book clearly explains the reason behind the taxation in Ep, 1 and gives much needed backround developments. It was refreshing to read or in this case listen to a SW book that didn't focus so much on the shoot-em-ups but on plot and character development. Being a palpatine fan, i devoured this book and hope more in this style will be written. The early years are truly worth reading about. It was also exciting to see the members of the Jedi council get off their lazy behinds for once and take part in the action, though i didn't much care for a female version of Yoda. This book is a must read if one is to fully grasp the events of Ep, 1 and the upcoming Ep, 2. On a personal note however, this book demonstrates how flawed Return of the Jedi was even though I've seen it about 500 times. Palpatine is such a master not just of power but of manipulation and strategy that it was hard to swallow the empires defeat, though the ending of the film is great. Random house audio once again did a superb production and Alexander Adams read the book nicely, even doing better with it then the previous one Edge of Victory 1, Conquest. I can't wait to see more of Palpatine in action but alas I will have to settle for enjoying the next installment in the equally brillaint New Jedi Order series which is the next one up. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: An Awsome political thriller
Review: A great book based on the slow breakdown of the republic, from the behind the scenes, by Palpatine. Takes place right before the events of Episode One. It can be slow in parts but it has a few twists and a good ending that makes this book great. Read it if you like Star Wars and want a little backstory going in to The Phantom Menace.
Rating: 
Summary: More plot than people
Review: I have admired James Luceno's work on the Robotech novels and he sets up the situation well, but it just declines gradually from there, becoming needlessly convoluted, melodramatic and predictible in the end. There is not alot of personal investment of the characters in their story. The story does not advance the mythology referring to the main characters--Obi-wan, Qui-Gonn, Anakin, or Amidala--even though they all make appearences. It is just the standard sword-fighting stuff. It could have been better if they would have just focused the main conflict down to Qui-Gonn and Obi-wan vs the antagonist--Cohl and his terrorist cell--to the bitter end. Perhaps they could have thrown in a Fallen Jedi or two on Cohl's side to make things really dramatic with a battle royale at the end. Rogue Planet is the best of the Star Wars, with Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter coming in second. This one is a distant third. Basically, it was more political plot than people.
Rating:
Summary: lots of discussion, but still a good read
Review: While this book delved deeply into the Republic's political situation, I still found it a very interesting and thought-provoking novel. I think that most people will pick up on some not-so-subtle clues about Ep. 2, and reading this book will also make Episode 1 a lot more interesting. So, read the book, watch the movie again... and again... and again.
Rating:
Summary: Good novel, not a knockout, but does everything pretty well
Review: I was happy with James Luceno's novel. What I think are the strong points is that it gives a lot of interesting backstory and background on the events leading up to The Phantom Menace (TPM). The issues of the taxation of the trade routes, for example, is much clearer when you read this book. As is the Trade Federation and Chancellor Valorum, who you also get to learn about. Valorum only had a few lines in TPM, but he was important in the scheme of things nonetheless. What's nice about the Star Wars novels is that they can develop characters you only see on the screen for a few minutes. The characters are written well. This is important for any Star Wars book and Luceno clearly has a grasp of them. The dialogue rings true, particuarly with Qui-Gon, who has a pretty good role. Palpatine was also a highlight. Regarding Episode 2 spoilers: the thought had entered my mind while reading, but I don't think it could spoil anything. I'm a big anti-spoiler fanatic, so I would be upset if that were the case. I highly doubt Lucas gave Luceno his EP2 script. I would also think Lucasfilm would want to minimize spoilers. But because this novel takes place pre-TPM, and there will be a good sized gap in time between TPM and EP2, I can't see there being major spoilers in this book. I sure hope there isn't. The writing style is clear and well done. Luceno uses a vocabularly word here or there but it never ever becomes excessive. It is very light on techno-jargon as well. The action scenes are written clearly enough, which is not always the case with books. The pacing was good. I read through this book fairly quickly. It starts off pretty good and then gets better. I always looked forward to reading it. Compared with the recent DARTH MAUL novel by Michael Greaves, I would say they're both comparable in quality, with the MAUL book slighting this one by a hair. I recommend both novels. The MAUL book takes place before this one but it doesn't make much of a difference which one you read first. Both are highly worthwhile.
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