Category: Space Opera - Alyce Caswell - Author

Alyce Caswell - Author

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.

Averageness Masked as Greatness

8/6/2025

Reign of the Empire: The Mask of Fear (Star Wars Disney)
by Alexander Freed

The war has been won. The Empire has ascended and with it an Emperor. But it is early days and perhaps there is still a chance to reveal atrocities, compromise, or fight back. Mon Mothma seeks to hinder Palpatine with a bill, Bail Organa seeks to prove that the evidence damning the Jedi is false, and for Saw Gerrera the war never actually ended. But is it too late to do anything? Anything at all?

It's always frustrating to read a story in which none of the characters know they are doomed to failure in particular quests. Because we know. I really had hoped to be won over by Freed, whose writing has become elevated to excellence over the years and whose video game background is evident in his (I'm assuming) creation of Eyo-Dajuritz - which is now one of my favourite locations in Disney canon. Unfortunately, I wasn't completely impressed by this book.

Bail Organa did not act like the Bail I know. Maybe I've been overly influenced by the Legends canon or my own headcanon. But it... just wasn't him. Other characters did sound like themselves, but then there were the OCs who didn't feel necessary or relevant (even Soujen, I'm afraid to say). So many pages and so little said!

This is presented as a political thriller, but its inferiority to Andor is glaringly obvious. And how can we not make comparisons between them? This book was obviously meant to cash in on the show's popularity. Ah well. But at least there were some genuinely good bits.

Seeking but Not Quite Finding

1/6/2025

Wayseeker (Star Wars: The Acolyte)
by Justina Ireland

Jedi Master Vernestra Rwoh has spent years as a Wayseeker, going where the Force guides her and avoiding the Jedi Temple on Coruscant as much as possible. But now she is needed. Jedi Knight Indara has been chosen to retrieve her. Indara has been hiding in the archives and is reluctant to do so. The Force has a way of ensuring that certain paths meet...especially when the fate of the galaxy is at stake.

When I was watching The Acolyte, I thought "this is not Vernestra, not the one from the books", but why would she be the same a century or so later? Still, it was so jarring. Wayseeker fills some of the gaps in her characterisation (although greater gaps are notably left alone, presumably because the show was expected to continue...oops). Vernestra's portrayal makes a little more sense to me now and I admit to enjoying her interactions with Indara (who got such a raw deal on the show - one reason I nearly quit at the first episode).

I'm trying to decide if the shorter length of this book is a good or a bad thing. On the one hand, too many recent Star Wars novels have been unnecessarily bloated - but on the other hand, the plot and the ending don't feel particularly satisfying. Perhaps because the book is more of a glorified epilogue to the High Republic project? An old plot thread. Name dropping. Descendants with familiar surnames. And so on.

Ultimately, I think I'll hang onto this paperback copy (many High Republic books are on my "to donate" pile) because it's an interesting book set in a time that hasn't been covered by lots of other media. For now, anyway.

Return of the Novelisations

24/4/2025

Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (novelisation)
by James Kahn

Han Solo is still in carbonite and now in the clutches of Jabba the Hutt, a grotesque gangster who keeps his base on Tatooine. But there is a plan to rescue him. A gambler, a Wookiee, a princess, two droids and a Jedi enter Jabba's palace. Hopefully they'll return. Because the Rebel Alliance is going to need every body it can get - the Empire has built another Death Star. The time to strike is now.

Most movie novelisations from last century are pretty ordinary. Run of the mill. Authors are pretty much dressing the skeleton that is the script. This novelisation on the other hand... Kahn did not have to make it so damn good, but I definitely appreciate his efforts. His prose draws you in, pauses and dwells in all the right places, and yet it still moves fluidly. Characters feel like themselves, even when there's no script dialogue for Kahn to use. All the little extra insights in the text ring true.

There are some canon issues of note (eg. Owen Lars is Obi-Wan's brother for some reason), but they don't spoil the experience. Or at least, they didn't for me. Such a short adaptation can't really be compared with the beefier prequel novelisations that came later... but this is excellent for what it is.

EDIT: Before I forget... I loved the dig at "jaded critics". Still relevant.

The Bad Guys Fight Each Other

19/4/2025

Shadows of the Empire (Star Wars Legends)
by Steve Perry

Content warning: sexual assault

Han Solo has been frozen in carbonite and is the prisoner of Boba Fett. His Rebel friends won't let that stand - but this won't be an easy rescue. Darth Vader wants Luke Skywalker alive. Therefore, Prince Xizor, current head of the criminal organisation Black Sun, wants him dead. Only one of them will prevail. Fortunately, Luke has friends - and a new companion by the name of Dash Rendar.

How do I review this? Just as a book - or the entire multimedia campaign? Well, I suppose this isn't the place to exalt about the accompanying soundtrack (go find it on Spotify!) - or to lament my inability to progress through the game without cheats. But it's worth mentioning the sheer excitement I had for Shadows of the Empire at the time, which ramped up a LOT after I saw the ads on TV.

I remember this book being muuuuch better when I was a kid. But in 1996, I only had the junior novelisation (I was restricted by my meagre pocket money and the meagre offerings at the local K-Mart) and that was a tight story. As an adult novel, which I think I've only read a handful of times, it's not tight enough and wanders all over the place. I now understand the general complaints about Dash Rendar - and have just realised that the version of this character I loved only existed in the adventures I created with his action figure (yes, there were action figures!). Perhaps Perry's over-reliance on cringeworthy comedy was also more palatable when I was younger.

Xizor could have been a really interesting villain. Unfortunately, in order to make him Totally Super Bad We Swear, he was written as a sexual predator who sexually assaults (and no doubt rapes) his conquests. There's no discussion about consent...I mean, this was a different time, but it's reaaaaally not great to read in 2025. The junior novelisation was the best option for me as a child, so I'm thankful I happened upon that first. I wish I still owned a copy.

Also, why was Leia given nothing to do? Arrghhhh. And don't get me started on the almost complete absence of the actual Rebel Alliance in the storyline.

In short, I no longer love this book. But it did evoke some pleasant childhood memories.

EDIT 25/04/25: I do feel I need to add, given recent canonical events in the IP, that I don't necessarily object to sexual assault and rape being on the page/screen in Star Wars, but I do object to it not being named for what it is. This book failed to do that.