Star Wars: Ambush at Corellia, book one of the Corellion trilogy, was written by Roger MacBride Allen. This Expanded Universe tale takes place during the New Republic era, 18 ABY(18 years after the battle of Yavin).
SUMMARY
Leia and family are to attend a summit on Corellia, the business trip with double as a vaction for the family. Han is asked by an NRI (New Republic Intelligence) agent to be mindful of odd activity. As it turns out, an organization known as the Human League begins an uprising to overthrow the powers that be.
Lando looks for love! The smooth talker is getting bored and desires action… in a business sort of fashion. He wants to marry rich so he can take financial risks to grow richer. He manages to pull Luke along with him on this bizarre quest. That is until they are made aware of a massive interdiction shield preventing them to enter the Corellian system or have any communications there. They must return to Coruscant and inform New Republic leadership.
The Human League delivers an ultimatum, Corellia secede from the New Republic without pushback… or Star Systems will be destroyed. It’s not an empty threat, The Human League proves it has the ability to do as much.
THOUGHTS
I enjoyed this book! There are a few action moments, but mostly we focus on characters. I really like spending time with the kids, seeing how they interpret the galaxy and how they manage their force abilities. I’m excited to see how they grow, who they become in a new era of Star Wars with the New Jedi Order. This is just book one of a trilogy, so everything can change, but the setup to the conflict taking place in the Corellian system was done well.
Mon Mothma speaks with Luke about the future, she grills him on talents used and possibly abused. She gets a bit aggressive with her tone, she feels the poeple view Leia as someone who’s wasted her talents. [I think the author may have taken some of the fandom complaints or concerns about Leia being a wasted character, like people complain that she isn’t a jedi and just stuck with politics… No one bashes Luke for not going into politics to rule the galaxy. It’s an odd argument that felt really defensive coming from Mothma.] I like that she wants the Jedi to be more involved, a Jedi should be on every planet, not every Jedi on one planet. If they are separated or secluded, they could become dangerous. Luke still doesn’t have a solid plan as to the purpose of the Jedi.
Ha, Lando is money hungry and wants to drag Luke along on a wife shopping tour. That’s right, he’s looking for a wealthy woman. He truly sees women as objects, his true love, credits. He thinks THAT if Luke is with him, it gives him more credibility, to appear more respectable. A jedi, traveling with the smooth talker. He views marriage as sort of a joke, just a business deal.
The book gave me a good chuckle, A droid – Q9 is blabbering on to Han, telling him about its abilities and upgrades. Han responds, “Good for you.” He wonders why every droid feels the need to corner him and go on and on about their capabilities.
I like Han and Leia’s role in the story, Roger MacBride Allen gives them great chemistry, handling them well. However, the Lando and Luke storyline… is just too silly for me. Also, the usage of the phrase “hanky-panky” has completely different context than what probably comes to mind.
RATING
I will give Ambush at Corellia a B+.