The Approaching Storm (Star Wars)

Rating:
Summary: Should have been released after the movie...
Review: This story takes place just before the opening of "Episode II", but after reading it, I felt it would probably make more sense after seeing the new movie. The political climate is easy enough to understand; it was the characterizations I had problems with. New characters like Luminara Unduli and Bariss Offee are introduced, but the author doesn't give us any background information or develop their personalities very well. Also suffering are familiar characters, such as Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker, who are portrayed completely different here than they were in "Episode I". Yes, ten years have supposedly passed, but I want to know WHY Anakin is suddenly so arrogant, blood-thirsty and self-centered. Count Dooku is supposedly pulling all the strings and causing all the grief in this story, but since he is only mentioned a couple of times in the whole book, his involvement here leaves me scratching my head. Most of the problems the Jedi encountered had little to do with what was happening in the plot. Birds and tumbleweeds--well, you'll see. There was very little action or excitement and too much political setup. Even the book's cover is deceiving. Obi-Wan and Anakin are secondary characters. The story actually centers around Luminara and Bariss. Disappointing, all around.