Today I finished reading the fifth book in The New Jedi Order series I wrote about before. This is one of the books I had to order from the bookstore with the polite gentleman, not salvaged from the antique mall. Originally published in 2000, this is a later edition with LEGENDS emblazoned along the top. As we discussed before, this is the real canon for me.
On the cover we have an artist's great renditions of Han and Leia, the best I've seen so far in terms of cover art. The artist in question is Cliff Nielsen. Before reading the book, I thought the silhouetted figure might be a depiction of Luke Skywalker. I quickly realized it was Jacen Solo, eldest son of the couple on the cover. He has an ominous Force vision of the galaxy on a balance point, very close to tipping towards darkness. This causes him to abstain from using the Force as a feeble example to others but also believing that he might be the hair contributing to the galaxy falling into ruin. Since the first novel, it is clear he has a different view of the Force. He sees it as deeply personal and something not to be institutionalized while constantly asking himself and his master, Luke, "Is this what being a Jedi is all about?" He is on a journey struggling to find his place in the galaxy and his place in the Force.
I'm not much of a critic, first of all. I'm the type of person who will watch a film and call it "awesome" without being able to articulate much else, unless I hated it. So far, the four authors I've read who have contributed to these first five books have done a stellar job, pun intended. I know James Luceno, the author of the last two books, is a decorated writer even within the Star Wars expanded universe alone. Off the top of my head, I know he wrote the Darth Plagueis novel which is about Darth Sidious' master and takes place before and during the events of the Phantom Menace. There was one small quirk, which ultimately amounted to nothing, but still bothered me. Luceno would always write things like "dimly lighted" instead of "dimly lit". How did this get past the editors? Is "lighted" a correct and acceptable word? He must have written it at least five times in the last novel. As someone who has been called a grammar nazi, it was extremely annoying for me. Kathy Tyers, the author of Balance Point, did no such thing.
In this novel, the Yuuzhan Vong, those inexorable intergalactic invaders bent on domination, have secretly targeted another world. That world is Duro and it is serves as the setting for this entire installment of the story. Duro is an uninhabited, hazy, swamp world that was polluted by the Empire's old factories. The air is barely breathable for most species and the only cities float along the equator high in the atmosphere above the corrosive fog. With many worlds now under Vong control, there is a staggering number of refugees looking for asylum. The Duros reluctantly agreed to take many in, though not in their precious airborne cities. Instead, Han and Leia administer makeshift refugee cities in habitable domes down on the polluted service while also trying to reclaim the planet through various bioremediation projects. If they succeed, Duro could house millions, even billions, of displaced peoples on its surface.
Some aspects of Duros society have been infiltrated. Some seedy individuals think that by handing over refugees as sacrificial slaves or by playing appeasement they can save themselves. They are mistaken. The Yuuzhan Vong are simply manipulating their enemies into fighting amongst themselves. They view all who are outside of their race as unclean heathens who make a mockery of life with their technological machines. The Duros, however, cannot see past their own personal desires and fears.
While reading a passage about Leia, a question formed in my head. Why was her lightsaber described as "ruby red"? Everyone knows that only dark side users wielded sabers with crimson blades. Like always, I consulted the trusty Wookiepedia but found no answers. I only learned that Luke had made it from scratch before offering it to his twin sister as a gift in another, older book series. I couldn't find an answer elsewhere, either. It remains a mystery.
To enhance the imagery in my head I like to know what mentioned species look like. Do you know what the Duros look like? A notable Duros was the bounty hunter Cad Bane, to give you an idea. He is prevalent in Star Wars The Clone Wars animated series and also in The Book of Boba Fett series. He is known for his quick draw.
Duros don't normally need a breathing apparatus like the one this bounty hunter employs, but it did help him survive being Force-choked. Cad Bane was the fiercest bounty hunter in the galaxy after Jango Fett was killed. He even mentored his son, Boba, though they never really liked each other. He is also the one who put that iconic dent in Boba's beskar alloy helmet. I never really liked Cad Bane. He is too ruthless. He will take any job...for the right price. He was often employed by the Separatists and Darth Sidious, himself.
Anyways, now I'm starting book six, which is ominously called Conquest. It is the first part of a duology within the series. I am relieved to be breathing in the air of other planets now. Balance Point was not boring but I was beginning to be bored by being stuck on planet Duro. I felt trapped there just like the myriad refugees (including one Hutt) who had nowhere else to go. The only times we left the surface of the planet was when some characters lifted off to dock at one of the twenty-two floating cities. They never left the Duro system. I suspected that this might be the novel when Luke learns a mysterious new Force ability I once read about in passing. Spoiler alert: it's not. It might not be until much later. I own three more books from the series but there are quite a but more to go. These three should hold me for a while. Then it's off to the book store once more.