Rating: Summary: A great idea, but c'mon! Review: I gave this book such a low review based on three issues. First, the author lacked creativity when he followed the plot for the Jedi Search trilogy. The plot he came up with, X-wing pilot whose wife is captured, goes to the Jedi Acadamy to develop latent Jedi skills so he can fight her kidnappers, was great. Would have been wonderful, but he was stuck following the plot for another trilogy which had nothing to do with the plot he was telling, not to mention introducing a character that was never mentioned in the original trilogy, and placing him in a central position.. Second, he presents Skywalker as an idiot. Now, Skywalker was no Han Solo, and had, at times, an unreasonable hope in "the good will always win", he was never as weak minded, or as flaky, as portrayed here. Third, in a complete shift from every other Star Wars novel, he writes this one in first person. I would not consider this such a problem as a fan of first person, but he damages his story telling by doing this. By such a departure from the mainstream, he sets himself so far away from the rest of the series that one can almost consider it a seperate piece of work, not even related to the rest. I am pleased to see a book not solely set around "established" characters, but please, give us something to work with.
Rating: Summary: I literally put this one down to read a better SW book Review: I haven't finished reading this book. I've read the basic synopsis, other reviews, other books written by Michael A. Stackpole, and somwhere between 80-100 pages of this book.It's purely boring. Because the book is written in the first person ("I was shocked and went to shoot myself when Wedge stoppped me") Corran is displayed the way my jackass friend portrays Kyle Katarn (although I've played Jedi Outcast). The perfect. The 'badass'. The hero whos weaknesses are overcome with little or no effort and crushes the entire empire. Well, not literally for Corran Horn. Corran is not a very interesting character like Luke or Mara Jade or Thrawn. He has no internal conflict, he has nothing he wants to lose except his wife, and he's quite plain in his the way he thinks. And amazingly, he's grandson of one of the most POWERFUL JEDI EVER!!! Maybe in a new Clone War novel, his grandfather will be stronger than even Anakin. And he seems to be all over the Jedi Academy during the Jedi Academy trilogy. No mention of Corran Horn or even a nod to a certain person hanging around them who could be passed off as Corran is displayed in any of the books (obviously, since it was written 5 years before I,Jedi) though Stackpole seems to enjoy Corran as quite important during this period.
Rating: Summary: I literally put this one down to read a better SW book Review: I haven't finished reading this book. I've read the basic synopsis, other reviews, other books written by Michael A. Stackpole, and somwhere between 80-100 pages of this book. It's purely boring. Because the book is written in the first person ("I was shocked and went to shoot myself when Wedge stoppped me") Corran is displayed the way my jackass friend portrays Kyle Katarn (although I've played Jedi Outcast). The perfect. The 'badass'. The hero whos weaknesses are overcome with little or no effort and crushes the entire empire. Well, not literally for Corran Horn. Corran is not a very interesting character like Luke or Mara Jade or Thrawn. He has no internal conflict, he has nothing he wants to lose except his wife, and he's quite plain in his the way he thinks. And amazingly, he's grandson of one of the most POWERFUL JEDI EVER!!! Maybe in a new Clone War novel, his grandfather will be stronger than even Anakin. And he seems to be all over the Jedi Academy during the Jedi Academy trilogy. No mention of Corran Horn or even a nod to a certain person hanging around them who could be passed off as Corran is displayed in any of the books (obviously, since it was written 5 years before I,Jedi) though Stackpole seems to enjoy Corran as quite important during this period.
Rating: Summary: I, Jedi Review: I think that I, Jedi is probably the best of all the Star Wars books that I have read to date. Michael Stackpole is able to impart a sense of wonder into his character, Corran Horn, while still making him very human. That is not an easy task to do for some writers. I wish that there were more books about the Jedi along the line of I, Jedi. Part of being a Jedi is the discovery of oneself and abilities, as well as what is possible through the use of the force. The dialogue is sharp and pointed toward moving the plot along at a steady pace. At the same time it is intelligent, the action is fast and the book zips along like an X-Wing through hyperspace. Very few of the Rogue Squadron characters show up in the story, however, this does not detract from the strength of the book in any way. On the whole, a very good, highly enjoyable, leave you smiling for no apparent reason book!
Rating: Summary: Stackpole needs to get over Corran... Review: I was iffy about reading this book in the first place since it wasn't about the original Star Wars characters, and I think those worries were justified. It really did get annoying having Corran pop up everywhere in the Jedi Academy plotline when he wasn't mentioned at all in the actual Jedi Academy books, especially how he seemed to assume leadership of the other students all the time. Stackpole's approach to the Corellian Jedi (giving them all kinds of special traits and weaknesses and so on that other Jedi don't have and that readers have never seen before) got annoying as well. Mr. Stackpole seems like some daydreaming fanboy in this respect, and just wants to take this concept someone else made up (the Force) and change pretty much all of its rules for his specific character just to make it cooler. I have also read the New Jedi Order books by Mr. Stackpole, and I cringed when Corran popped up again as one of the primary characters in the storyline of the Dark Tide books. Stackpole just can't stay away from Corran. Corran is conveyed as the perfect hero, which drove me crazy. It seems to me as though Stackpole thinks Corran is the greatest thing to happen to Star Wars since lightsabers. Corran just isn't that great of a character, and Stackpole isn't that great of an author when working with Corran.
Rating: Summary: MADE NO SENSE!! Boring, Too-Perfect Hero, Unbelievable. Review: If you want this book to make the slightest bit of sense, read the "Jedi Academy Trilogy" by Kevin Anderson FIRST. I stopped in the middle of "I, Jedi" because the storyline confused me. Once I read Mr Anderson's three books, this was easier to follow. I think the only reason it was written in First Person is copyright issues. To write in Third Person would be to risk plagiarizing the original story. Anyway, this particular story is about a Rogue Squadron pilot named Corran Horn, who happens to be heir to strong familial ties to Jedi Knights. When his wife disappears, he decides to search for her (duh). However, he must first go to the Jedi Academy on Yavin 4 to work on his Jedi skills. This is supposed to help him in his search. WHAT?!?!? This character was a Security Officer at CorSec. He knows how to investigate and seems to be a good detective. Yet, he decides to spend weeks at Yavin 4 instead of looking for his wife. Doesn't exactly qualify him for Husband-Of-The-Year, does it? The biggest problem I had with this book is that it was a spin-off of the above trilogy. Corran Horn was not even mentioned in the original series. A lot of his activities were behind-the-scenes, or totally independent of the background story. In fact, while some of the major plotpoints from the trilogy were going on, Corran is away from the Academy doing something completely different. Yet, he turns out to be one of the strongest Jedi students present. Later, he is one of the FIRST to become a Master. WHAT?!?!? I would only recommend this book if someone HAS read the Academy Trilogy, likes first-person stories, and like over-the-top heroes. Personally, it is one of the more boring Star Wasrs books I've read (right next to "Rogue Planet").
Rating: Summary: This is one of the five best Star Wars books. Review: Michael Stackpole definately knows what he's doing. This book is an excellent example of how effective first person writing can be when done well. Before you read this, read the Jedi academy series (also superb), and the first five X-Wing books if you like. Having read those eight, the book will be read as it was meant to, and he meant it to be great. The first half describes Corran's time on Yavin at the academy. It really tightens up the original academy books and adds an extra perspective. It is refreshing to have Luke taking second seat. Skywalker's behavior is more that of a wise novice who is more interested in success than always being right. That was also good to see. The second half has enough action and plotting/strategy to stand next to Timothy Zahn's works. Also, there is no such thing as too much lightsaber use in a book or movie. Corran is a very interesting and complex charachter. The first person aspect gives a good feel about how he thinks. There is also some insightful speculation into use of the force and jedi training. Stackpole is unquestionably one of the best writers in the Star Wars series. Never mind the negative prattling, read this book.
Rating: Summary: Amazing! Review: Michael Stackpole perfectly meshes the science fiction and fantasy aspects of the Star Wars universe with romance and mystery. His first person perspective tale of Corran Horn's quest to find his wife is incredible, and easily one of the best books I have ever read.
Rating: Summary: A Fine Adventure Review: Michael Stackpole's "I, Jedi" is one of his finest achievements. Set in the Star Wars universe, the book is narrated in first person by the enigmatic pilot, Corran Horn, the lead protagonist in his earlier series of Star Wars novels, "x-wing." Apart from giving the universe a fresh perspective, the first person narration provides a welcome return to the tale of Corran Horn. For those that have read the "x-wing" series, I,Jedi is set three years after the final book. While certainly of interest to fans who have read these previous novels, "I,Jedi" stands alone as a rollicking good read!Undoubtedly many fans were disappointed when the "x-wing" series ended that Corran Horn never fully realised his jedi heritage. The book details Corran Horn's development of his latent abilities. Without going too far into the plot, suffice to state that the development of these abilities are a hoot! Though the novel does have a few inaccuracies such as Corran Horn's impossiblly fast uptake on the ways of the force (he transforms into an ace pilot to a skilled jedi in less than a year), "I,Jedi" is a fantastic addition to the canon of Star Wars inspired literature and an entertaining adventure!
Rating: Summary: It was alright... Review: Okay, This book was alright. It had plenty of cons, but one major pro. First the cons. 1) Corran Horn is way to good with a lightsaber and way to weak with the Force! 2) Luke Skywalker is made to look like just an average Jedi at best. 3) Corran Horn is full of himself. 4) Jedi can now "absorb" energy from lightsabers, blaster bolts, etc. and channell it to use the Force better. WHAT?!?!?! When did that happen? 5) When his wife is captured he just sits around for a while. 6) He barely gets any training and is off on big adventures using the Force way better than he should be able to. 7) This guy has no moral code what so ever. He talks about how he doesn't mind sleeping with a bunch of women out of wedlock but thinks you need to warn attacking Stormtroopers to get out of the way, I'm coming to defeat your operation, step down. On top of all those cons there is one major pro that is the only thing that earns this book three stars. You get a look into the life of a Jedi from a first person view. I am a huge fan of Jedi so if your not this would probably drop to one star for you.
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