Star Wars: The Cestus Deception was written by bestselling author,Steven Barnes. This Expanded Universe tale takes place during the Clone Wars in the Rise of the Empire era, 22 BBY (22 years before the Battle of Yavin).
SUMMARY & THOUGHTS
Kenobi & Kit Fisto are summoned by the Chancellor to see first hand a new battle droid in action, it contains bio-engineering from a force sensitive creature – A battle droid with force sensitivity is extremely dangerous.
Clone training exercises are extreme! We follow arc trooper Nate on one exercise, the drill is deadly, claiming the lives of many clones, which some consider cheap and expendable.
I highly enjoyed the first half of this book, witnessing the deep dive of Clone training and the perspectives that people have of the clones was great. The book does say something I disagree with, Kit Fisto is a superior fighter than Kenobi… ha!
I love that Jango’s death is a mystery, the truth has been twisted. Some clones believe that Fett was loyal and heroic, that he was betrayed, that it took 11 jedi to take him down.
It’s like a better quality episode of the Clone Wars. The story starts off strong but gradually gets less captivating.
I don’t care for the characters, I don’t care for the plot, I just… don’t care about this book and I’m ready to move on from it.
RATING
For the rating, I give this book a D. The strong intro kept the book from failing all together.
This massive book was published by Titan Books. It’s loaded with fantastic concept art; including story boards, character bios, commentary, and more. If you’re a fan of The Avengers, you’ll love this book.
Batman Resurrection was written by bestselling author, John Jackson Miller. The book was published by Random House Worlds, October 15, 2024. This Novel is a direct sequel to Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman film.
This novel is hard to summarize while keeping it spoiler free… Yet, I’ve gotta say, I did a pretty fine job keeping this review spoiler free. There is so much I’d like to talk about, but I really want you all to experience this book for yourselves.
SUMMARY
Months after the Joker’s death, the streets of Gotham are still in recovery after Smylex, the solution the Joker and his goons used to terrorize the city, was unleashed. Many were killed by the chemical concoction that deformed faces, twisting cheeks upward into a heinous smile, and forced victims to laugh themselves to death. A man named Auslander, may hold the key to curing many victims.
Bruce Wayne is loosing sleep over his last encounter with The Joker. Something the Joker said to Batman before his fall from the Gotham City Cathedral is eating away at Bruce’s mind. It seems that more and more questions arise as he recalls specific details leading up to the final fight.
A resurrection stuns Gotham City and Batman! The Joker’s reign of terror continues, but how? Batman is pushed to his limit while fighting crime and doing his best to solve a great mystery that plagues the city and his own mind! Who will have the last laugh in Gotham City?!
OVERALL THOUGHTS
Batman Resurrection is an absolute blast of a sequel story that ties up loose ends! The book is a satisfying read from start to finish! I recommend this novel for anyone who was a fan of the 1989 film, Batman. John Jackson Miller does a fine job keeping the tone of the story consistent with the vision of Tim Burton’s heroic vigilante. This tale is dark and mysterious, yet fun and heroic.
I love that characters from the original film are present in this book. The author did such a good job keeping them true to how they were represented in the film, nailing their personalities and dialogue nearly perfectly. The new characters that are introduced are also very well written and move the story along in a thrilling direction.
Batman Resurrection is fun, fast paced, packed with action, and full of mystery! This novel is a must read for anyone who calls themselves a Batman fan, especially a fan of the Batman 1989 film! I highly – highly recommend this book.
I’ve never been excited to read a super hero novel, but because Batman (1989) is my favorite hero film… I got excited for Batman Resurrection. I was thrilled to get direct sequel novel to that story. John Jackson Miller delivered an excellent Batman tale that had me burning through the pages. I’m also thrilled that this expanded material is not the last of Tim Burton/John Jackson Miller Batman “canon,” as there is more to come soon!
I’ve mentioned the characters already, but I can’t stress enough just how well John Jackson Miller wrote these characters. Bruce Wayne is a wealthy man, he’s got many toys for Batman, and it’s cool that we get to see him test out his new equipment on street thugs. For a 400 plus page book, it felt like 200.
Some may say this review is hyping the book up way too much… but I don’t think so, this book didn’t focus on some real world political agenda or squeeze in any sort of “woke” nonsense. It’s just good old fashion fun with the greatest caped hero of all time, who drives the coolest vehicle to ever grace the big screen (second to Ghostbusters Ecto 1).
RATING
Batman Resurrection by John Jackson Miller earns a solid A+ rating.
The X-Files Origins: Agent of Chaos was written by Kami Garcia, published in January 2017. This is book one of the Origins series.
SUMMARY
After Samantha, Fox Mulder’s little sister was abducted by …someone or something… a wedge was driven into the family. His parents’ marriage fell apart and the couple separated, with Fox having to split his time between the two. He and his father don’t have a solid relationship, it’s more business that father/son. In this tale, we spend time with Fox while he has to stay at his father’s home.
Fox is watching the news when a story breaks that a child was kidnapped. He takes a special interest in the story, he believes it could be related to the disappearance of his sister. He comes across a crime scene when the body of another boy is found, and what he witnesses fuels his determination to find the abductor/killer. When he brings information to the police, they shove him out of the department, brushing off his information.
He’s got two friends, Phoebe and Gary Winchester, aka, Gimble. Gimble’s father is the one who really began to peak Mulder’s interest in conspiracies, government cover-ups, and the possibility of extra-terrestrials and UFOs.
In this book we follow Mulder and his friends as they attempt to uncover who is kidnapping and killing children. Mulder holds onto hope that it will uncover the mystery of who or what took his sister.
OVERALL THOUGHTS
This is was an excellent read. Diving into Fox Mulder’s past, with his desire to learn the truth about his sister was an excellent way to tell a prequel story focused on the character. Getting into the young mind of Mulder was both sad and enlightening. A boy, mostly lonely with a scarred past, who blames himself for the loss of his sister. He’s determined to find out the truth, to find out what happened to Samantha. He’s a smart kid with strong will and knack for solving mystery.
The author did an excellent job laying out different aspects of the story; the mystery, the romance, the friendships, and thrills. The novel has the perfect amount of humor, that wasn’t over the top or cheesy. Many moments in the story were intense, driven by excellent dialogue.
This X-Files prequel is well worth the time to read. It was fun picking up on little bits that would have deeper meaning in the show. Kami Garcia wrote an exciting book and did a wonderful job with the characterization of a young Fox Mulder.
The ESV (English Standard Version) Bible with Creeds & Confessions was published by Crossway. The Bible is available in various bindings. Thank you Crossway for sending this copy for review!
Star Wars: Empire & Rebellion: Razor’s Edge was written by Martha Wells. This Expanded Universe tale takes place during the Rebellion era, 2 ABY (2 years after the Battle of Yavin).
SUMMARY
The Gamble, an alliance ship is thrown into a tough situation right off the bat. The ship, which contains a small crew including Leia and Han, drop out of hyperspace and are immediately attacked. The crew were on a mission to acquire materials for Echo-Base. The attack raises the big question… how did the Empire know where The Gamble was dropping out of hyperspace? It appears that there is a deep cover Imperial Agent within the rebel group.
The Gamble is now in need of repair after successfully fleeing the Imperial attack. Contact is made with a pirate ship which turns out to be full of former Alderaanians!
The story is all about building trust, relationships, and a fight of survival.
OVERALL THOUGHTS
This book was fine. It starts off really strong and exciting, throwing Leia, Han, and a few others into a dangerous situation. I found this story to be okay overall. It has filler vibes, just a blip on the timeline, but written well. I wasn’t bored with the story, but not excited either.
I think the greatest thing about this book is the characterization of our leads, Han and Leia. In the films we get to see the friction between the two, this book dives deeper into the frustration these characters feel toward each other. Han really does come across as a difficult man to work with, hard headed and prefers to go rogue instead of following orders. I like that we get into Leia’s mind and her thoughts toward Han. She understands his distrust for others. I do think that Leia comes across a bit too harsh at times with a lot of attitude.
The banter between Leia and Han was great. However, the characters use air quotes with fingers to be sarcastic, which I thought was a dumb thing to put in the book
The story takes a route that made me think of a YA storyline. When Leia meets with the other Alderaanians they get hooked into meeting up with some other Pirates. It turns into a fight for survival game, it made me think of Hunger Games or Ender’s Game… that sort of thing. I am thankful though that the game they play wasn’t through the entire book. For me though, it went on a bit too long.
I’d say this book will be forgettable, the only takeaway is the stuff between Leia and Han; maybe the interaction with the Alderaanian pirates.
Do I recommend you read this story? Eh… sure. It wasn’t bad.
