Category: Sci Fi/fantasy - Alyce Caswell - Author

Alyce Caswell - Author

Fool Me Twice

11/12/2025

The Last Order (Star Wars Disney)
by Kwame Mbalia

The First Order has lost, but its terrible deeds are still causing pain in the galaxy. The past has a strong influence on the present. Finn and Jannah, with the help of tea farmer Coy and orphan Niila, are on the way to intercept Major Gohl, who was once in charge of First Order propaganda. Finn and Jannah both have reasons to make sure he never causes trouble again.

If you're looking forward to this because it's the first post-TROS book, then stow the excitement. That era is only used as a framing device for exploring the pasts of Finn and Jannah and how they became disillusioned with the First Order, which I did enjoy, but I'd rather get the ACTUAL book that is being marketed to me (this is becoming quite the problem with Star Wars books...). I was able to put aside this personal gripe because Mbalia writes excellent prose that immediately draws you in and never gets dull, not even in slower moments. I really need to check out his other stuff.

In a nutshell: the look into Finn's and Jannah's pasts is brilliantly done, but the plot in the later timeline is thin and receives a very rushed resolution.

Master of None

15/11/2025

Master of Evil (Star Wars Disney)
by Adam Christopher

The Empire has risen and Colonel Halland Goth of the Imperial Royal Guards has welcomed it. But he is dying and may not enjoy galactic peace for long. When he is sent to spy on Darth Vader during the Dark Lord's search for a vergence in the Force, he realises there may be a way to survive - because Darth Vader survive and he used to be someone else. Time is running out. For more than one man.

Oh. Oh no. This was not good. I was so excited for this book based on the cover and title alone, but I was duped. So few authors get Darth Vader right and Christopher is not one of them (and I am so sad to write this review after his excellent book Shadow of the Sith). Various new characters are introduced to fill out the pages but they hardly seemed relevant to me, even Goth - and it's tiresome when yet another character discovers the Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader link. I've had my fill of this, from both canons. Please stop!

The novel owes a lot to the Charles Soule Darth Vader comics. It even rehashes a scene from that run - and fails to make it any better (actually makes it worse...). The plot is also clearly inspired by events in the comics and...why would you bother to read this book when said comics exist? They are excellent! Christopher seems to have gone for a comic book feel but it just didn't work here, in a novel.

I am disappointed and annoyed.

What's in a name?

31/10/2025

The Crystal Crown (Star Wars: The Acolyte - Disney)
by Tessa Gratton

Padawan Jecki Lon is pleased to discover that Master Sol is taking her on a mission to another world - but she's less pleased about Padawan Yord Fandar and his master going along with them. Jecki and Yord soon find themselves signed up in a competition that will force them to work together - and perhaps Yord will even be forced to have fun! However, the competition is the least of their concerns...

So this is basically "Star Wars does Hunger Games" - and maybe I'm just in a good mood or something, but this didn't bother me at all. I mean...it was obvious and a tad cringey, yet it was still fun. Gratton also managed to make me grow very attached to Jecki and Yord. They definitely deserved better than what The Acolyte did with their characters and this prequel did them justice. I kind of wish there was a whole Jedi Apprentice-esque series about them!

This isn't a perfect book. There are issues. There were many awkward turns of phrase... the villain was revealed way too early... and a Twi'lek was named "Darren", which was so completely jarring (it's a very prevalent name here in Australia lol - it's not suitable for a Twi'lek!). But all that aside, I found it enjoyable.

Into the Disappointment

29/10/2025

Into the Light (Star Wars: High Republic)
by Claudia Gray

The lush world of Kashyyyk is under threat from the blight and a team of Jedi (and other assorted randoms) led by Reath Silas is hastily despatched in response. But there is a more immediate danger - the Drengir have arrived and are ready to violently break their truce with the Jedi. Reath and his companions are in a battle of darkness against light...and not all of them will win.

I was ecstatic to see my boy Geode again and he really stole the show here. Reath is usually my favourite but honestly, Reath who? His characterisation seemed to contain less depth compared to his outing in Tears of the Nameless, and I wish the shorter page length was wholly to blame. It also doesn't help that each book in the High Republic project seems to have a rule not to give away too much of what happened in other books preceding them, but it makes the whole reading experience feel very disjointed. Especially when key character and plot developments don't translate across titles!

I'm actually a huge Claudia Gray fan, so this book was a tad disappointing when compared to previous titles of hers I've read. There's still some enjoyable stuff, though. I LOVE the Drengir. Way more than I should. Ha! I'm pleased they've finally had a proper ending.

Flaws of the Named

26/10/2025

Tears of the Nameless (Star Wars: High Republic)
by George Mann

Jedi Knight Reath Silas has thrown himself into the task of finding a solution to the Nameless and Blight problems. He'll use any resource, even the dark sider Azlin Rell, who is not be trusted...especially around a Jedi so isolated from his peers. The arrival of Padawan Amadeo Azzazzo into Reath's lab sparks new ideas - and dangerous new missions that might shed light on everything.

The YA novels have always contained the far more interesting aspects of the High Republic project - at least for me, anyway. Tears of the Nameless certainly delivers. I love it when characters in any medium get to navigate ruins and investigate lost civilisations in attempt to save the present. I was a VERY happy camper. For the most part.

Now I know why the Jedi, in the associated adult novel, believed that their bizarre scheme of returning Nameless (which felt like it came out of nowhere) would work. I really could've used some spoilers about it in the adult novel, frankly, instead of having to backtrack - this happened because no one is publishing the YA/MG Star Wars novels as ebooks in my country right now, so I eventually caved and ordered in expensive US hardcovers. I shouldn't have go to these lengths for the High Republic project to make any damn sense. The adult novels suffered so much from not carrying the main plot at times (which they should have done). But I digress.

I have loved Reath right from the very start in Into the Dark. Mann does him justice - and delivers some of the best prose of the project, in my opinion. Excellent writing. Which is even more impressive given his personal situation. But this is not a perfect book. There are unnecessary passages and Vernestra may as well not even be in it (any character could have replaced her!).

Perhaps I should stop being so harsh on the High Republic novels... in any case, I loved nearly everything about this one.

Awesome the Hutt

23/10/2025

Beware the Nameless (Star Wars: High Republic)
by Zoraida Córdova

Zenny Graylark is desperate to find her sister, so she sneaks aboard the Innovator. She isn't the only stowaway - she's joined by Jedi younglings Tep Tep, Kildo and Jamil. A transmission from Palagosal has Zenny convinced her sister is there. She and the younglings get the go-ahead to search. But first they find Churo, an unHutt-like Hutt with a secret - and then something terrifying and dangerous.

Due to a postage delay, I accidentally read the book set after this first and I quickly became a fan of Churo. I'm still a fan. I love this guy - er, Hutt. So I was pretty happy to meet him properly this time. And the other characters are so easily likeable (even Tep Tep - I think I'm slowly recovering from the subpar narration in those Drengir audiobooks).

The story was pretty good as well; I was mostly engaged. I was, however, constantly distracted by Ram's absence. He's been a big presence in other books, so I was expecting a bit more for him. His concurrent mission is quickly wrapped up in a few paragraphs towards the end. I might not have been a Ram fan but that was weird. Surely he deserved a better sendoff in his own books! I know we see him in the comics after this... it's just not the same.

The Ram weirdness aside, this is a really solid MG instalment..

Passing Storms

10/10/2025

A Valiant Vow (Star Wars: The High Republic)
by Justina Ireland

The Stormwall is down! For Jedi Knights Imri Cantaros and Yacek Sparkburn, this doesn't mean much at first - they are still supporting the refugees on Aricho. But then scav droids start bringing down ships, Churo the Hutt's vessel among them, and the government's shadiness soon comes to light. The threat of the Nihil may only be tempered by the arrival of Zenny Greylark and Tep Tep!

So... from the above, you can see that's a lot of things going wrong all at once, but it works. This book never feels rushed. In fact, the pacing is excellent - and I was quickly invested in every character's journey. I know this is written for kids, but it was so much tighter and much more interesting than the adult novel of this wave. I couldn't help but feel a bit annoyed about that. Not every aspect of this large multimedia project has been good, so I wonder if I rate stories that have all the best aspects much higher than I should. Hmm... in any case, Ireland is a great writer with more hits than misses.

Side note - Tep Tep is forever ruined for me by the terrible voice the narrator gave her in the audiobooks. She does briefly reference those adventures here.

Great Batch

27/9/2025

Sanctuary: A Bad Batch Novel (Star Wars Disney)
by Lamar Giles

Pabu has survived, but has a long way to go to rebuild and credits are desperately needed. Phee Genoa hooks Clone Force 99 up with two different jobs - and there's no way that both jobs will go horribly wrong, right? Soon, the crew of the Marauder are being chased by the ISB and a wannabe governor with delusions of grandeur. Can they help Pabu, much less keep the world safe?

I had reservations about a Bad Batch book, since I figured it'd be hard to capture the spirit of the show, but Giles completely nailed it. Every clone has spot-on characterisation and the theme of brotherhood and family is carried strongly throughout. I was throughly invested in the story, so much so that I felt anxiety while reading the climax! A great piece of tie-in media.

The Cosiest House in Town

10/9/2025

The Only Purple House in Town (Fix-It Witches #4)
by Ann Aguirre

Iris Collins has never fit in, not even in her own family - they're all successful, they're all vampires, and she's none of those things. But then she inherits a house in St Claire. To pay her bills, she rents out the rooms to an eclectic mix of people. One of them is Eli Reese, a shifter who agreed to move in...but not because he needed a place to stay. His motive might ruin everything. But he can't seem to stay away.

This is one of the most charming books I've ever read. The rest of the series was great, but this is something else entirely (probably because the romance takes more of a backseat - it's primarily a found family book!). It's truly enchanting. I didn't get much done today, because I was busy finishing this lovely tale. I'd love to inhabit Iris' world - and her house in particular. I have a suspicion that The Only Purple House in Town is going to become a favoured comfort read.

One Dollar Too Much

8/9/2025

Lightning Game (GhostWalker #17)
by Christine Feehan

Rubin Campo is a GhostWalker and psychic surgeon. Though his childhood was rough, he still occasionally returns to his childhood home - but this time someone else has made it their home. Jonquille is a failed GhostWalker experiment and can't be near people because of her unstable lightning gift. This same gift is why she's being hunted. Rubin is determined to keep her safe.

This was... wow. So bad. I like to pick up ex-library books at $1 a piece, but I wish I hadn't chosen this one. The series premise is actually pretty cool. It's very reminiscent of the TV series Dark Angel, which I suspect - given the timing of the first book of this series - did in fact inspire Feehan. Despite being released in 2021, Lightning Game is a relic of the early 2000s. I wasn't wild about the baked-in misogyny or the general outdated feel of it (don't get my autistic self started on the fact that a character is said to have Asperger's lol).

As for the book itself, the pacing is way off (a huge chunk of the first 100 pages is essentially one conversation!). This is supposedly a romance and I never saw the characters actually fall in love. It was basically "oh we're bonded so she's my woman now". So I just couldn't care about Rubin or Jonquille or their supposed relationship.

Maybe other folks will like this sort of thing, but I don't and I will now actively avoid Feehan's books.