Rating: 
Summary: Interesting approach but not what you may be expecting
Review: Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed reading the book but I didn't know anyone in the stories. The stories give you an interesting perspective of what "else" was happening in the galaxy while Luke, Han and Leia were doing there thing. I just finsihed it a couple of nights ago and I must admit that I really did enjoy the last story. If you are like me and waiting for next "traditional" Star Wars book, this book isn't a bad way to bide your time.
Rating: 
Summary: The adventures continue in this fine Star Wars anthology....
Review: Even though George Lucas' six-film Star Wars saga focuses intensely on a relatively small group of characters (the Skywalker family and the various Jedi and Sith Lords that tied their personal destiny to that of the rise and fall of the Galactic Empire), its setting ("a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away....") was, and still is, a very huge canvas onto which many other stories can be easily included. Many fans, either by playing with their action figures as children or by writing fan fiction, created their own personal additions to the Star Wars universe and, at least in their own imagination, took part in the noble struggle between good and evil that's one of the building blocks of this modern day mythology.Eventually, as Peter Schweighofer, editor of Tales From the Empire, writes in his introduction to this 1997 anthology of short stories, the action figures were put away and the fan fiction stories stashed away in drawers or file cabinets, but the fans' appetite for new Star Wars stories -- on film and on the printed page -- never really went away. And with the 1991 publication of Timothy Zahn's Heir to the Empire, the fans received a cornucopia of "further adventures" featuring not only the beloved heroes from the movies but a whole new cast of allies and adversaries. Tales From the Empire is a collection of nine short stories that first appeared in West End Games' Star Wars Adventure Journal, plus a short novel (Side Trip) co-written by two of the best writers of Star Wars fiction, Timothy Zahn and Michael A. Stackpole. Most of these brief excursions into Lucas' galaxy are set during the time of the Galactic Civil War and/or the first few years of the post-Endor New Republic era, with entirely original characters -- Darth Vader makes a cameo in the Zahn/Stackpole novel and events that took place in the films (the Death Star's destruction at Yavin) are mentioned in passing -- that inhabit the millions of star systems in the strife-torn vastness of space. Although the stories by Kathy Tyers (The Truce at Bakura), Stackpole (the X-Wing series creator), and Zahn are as well-written as their published Star Wars novels, credit must also be given to lesser known writers as Tony Russo, Laurie Burns, and Angela Phillips, whose tale of a young hacker ("slicer" in Star Wars terminology) who joins the Rebellion in the face of her parents' opposition ("Slaying Dragons") is among the best pieces of short fiction I have read in a while.
Rating: 
Summary: A Collection of Tales, as the Title Suggests.
Review: First of all, I like short stories. I find that because they often focus on little known characters, they are more creative and interesting. This doesn't mean they are unimportant, as new characters that later become well known are introduced. (Mara Jade) As for the book as a whole, well, I won't spoil the stories for you, but I personally thought this book was really food for thought. The stories were not just about glory and adventure and let you see the little things, giving you time to concentrate on the fact that there was war going on, and things aren't always pretty. Do No Harm is a good example of this, and it manages to drive in a point despite that there are no well known characters and the story only focuses on one operation. Don't get me wrong, Corran Horn and Talon Karrde are in this book too, and with stories from both Stackpole and Zahn, this book is a prize for even an experience "EU" (expanded universe) reader. Another appealing aspect of this book as it does not concentrate just on the Empire. Many different points of view, from different sides, are brought into play, so you can really see the whole picture. That is, in war, everyone suffers. Without a doubt, Tales from the Empire is a good read, both for sci fi lovers and Star Wars fans.
Rating:
Summary: A good book that explores lots of minor characters
Review: First of all, this was a good, entertaining book. Not great, but good. Most of the stories tie in some way into the "mainstream" Star Wars universe, and even those that don't still make sense. I would not however, recommend this to someone who is not well versed in the "Expanded Universe" of Star Wars, but if you have read most of the books than this one is certainly a jewel. Though I think the title is somewhat misplaced, (most of the stories take place long after the the Empire has fallen.) besides that I have no real complaints. The stories are: First Contact: My favorite, tells how Mara Jade hooked up with Talon Karrde. Tinnian on Trial: A spoiled rich girl quickly becomes a hardened fighter when her family is murdered by the Empire. The Final Exit: Yet another smuggler's confused encounter with a Jedi Knight of old. Missed Chance: A Corran Horn story taking place before he was in Rogue Squadron. Retreat from Coruscant: During Dark Empire a mail cargo captain is trapped on Coruscant during the Emperial invasion. A Certain Point of View: A young woman with Imperial upbringing meets up with an old love, but has a change of heart when she finds out his true loyalties. Blaze if Glory: A somewhat confusing story about a group of smugglers. Slaying Dragons: An interesting depiction of what it might have been like for an ordinary imperial family, and the effect the war had on them. Do No Harm: A Rebel doctor is forced to break his oath to do no harm in order to save one of his patients. Side Trip:(four parts) This long but fascinating story is a collaboration between the two best Star Wars authors, Timothy Zahn, and Michael Stackpole. Anyway, this book is highly recommendable if you know your Star Wars. Good for fans of any age.
Rating:
Summary: A good book that explores lots of minor characters
Review: First of all, this was a good, entertaining book. Not great, but good. Most of the stories tie in some way into the "mainstream" Star Wars universe, and even those that don't still make sense. I would not however, recommend this to someone who is not well versed in the "Expanded Universe" of Star Wars, but if you have read most of the books than this one is certainly a jewel. Though I think the title is somewhat misplaced, (most of the stories take place long after the the Empire has fallen.) besides that I have no real complaints. The stories are: First Contact: My favorite, tells how Mara Jade hooked up with Talon Karrde. Tinnian on Trial: A spoiled rich girl quickly becomes a hardened fighter when her family is murdered by the Empire. The Final Exit: Yet another smuggler's confused encounter with a Jedi Knight of old. Missed Chance: A Corran Horn story taking place before he was in Rogue Squadron. Retreat from Coruscant: During Dark Empire a mail cargo captain is trapped on Coruscant during the Emperial invasion. A Certain Point of View: A young woman with Imperial upbringing meets up with an old love, but has a change of heart when she finds out his true loyalties. Blaze if Glory: A somewhat confusing story about a group of smugglers. Slaying Dragons: An interesting depiction of what it might have been like for an ordinary imperial family, and the effect the war had on them. Do No Harm: A Rebel doctor is forced to break his oath to do no harm in order to save one of his patients. Side Trip:(four parts) This long but fascinating story is a collaboration between the two best Star Wars authors, Timothy Zahn, and Michael Stackpole. Anyway, this book is highly recommendable if you know your Star Wars. Good for fans of any age.
Rating:
Summary: It's good because it's Star Wars
Review: First, don't think that Boba Fett is anywhere in the book, even though a Mandalorian armored individual is on the cover. A good deal of the stories are pretty good. Some of them drag a little, but overall it is a decent compilation. Don't expect any major characters to be directly involved, though Vader makes a brief appearance.
Rating: 
Summary: From One of the Little People
Review: I guess bad reviews are a part of any artist's life; but some of the bad reviews of this book are tremendously unfair. First of all, you are dealing with authors who worked under great duress, wrestling with rules of 'you can't do that, you can't write about that person, and don't mention that...it might refer to a timeline.' Most of the BIG name authors did not have to work under such constraints. But for all the restrictions and the weight of so many rules, I believe the Star Wars Adventure Journal turned out a fine stable of up-and-coming writers. Many of these writers had a dream, inspired by Lucas, and saw it through to its completion in the Journal and finally to the pages of 'Tales.' The plots and the characters will not appeal to all; but the majority of the stories are universal and thought-provoking. They are an undercurrent to the framework Lucas created, adding to (not detracting from) the fullness of this timeless epic.
Rating: 
Summary: How can Lucas let his franchise go like this?
Review: I have only read a couple of the other Star Wars books, both short story collections, and they were both pretty good. The use of the universe we all know so well, but filling it out with new characters and more fascinating detail. This one, however, was a huge disappointment. The stories had a strangely incomplete feel, as though the writer got bored after a while and quit. When you consider the one-dimensional characters, the laughable plots, and the generally pathetic level of writing displayed, the incompleteness is a blessing. Instead of using the brilliant richness of the Star Wars universe as a starting point, these authors use it as a wheelchair, to cart around writing that wouldn't make it in a sophmore level creative writing course. I have never read the Star Wars Adventure Journal, where these stories are from, but after this rip-off, I really don't want to. I would think that with a franchise as lucrative as the Star Wars one has become, George Lucas would be a little more careful about protecting it from trash like this. I feel ripped off after buying it, and will certainly think twice before buying any other Star Wars books in the future.
Rating:
Summary: More Dark Jedi Please!
Review: I have to say that for once an author was able to capture the grandeur and seductive polish of a dark Jedi without tired cliches or mind-controlling phermones. Patricia Jackson can only be described as a master craftsman. Her story "The Final Exit" was thought-provoking, riveting, and well written. Why isn't this lady writing more in the Star Wars vein? If you like classy dark Jedi without all of that 'come into the light salvation crap,' read this story!
Rating:
Summary: Liked the book a lot
Review: I just recently started reading the Star Wars books and this was the first one I read. I enjoyed all the stories in it, especially the one's with Talon Karde and Corran Horn. The stories were taken from the Star Wars Journal published by West End Games and they are all pretty good. The only thing I didn't like was the lack of any time references showing where each story falls in relation to the movies and other novels.
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