Star Wars: Shatterpoint Book Review

Star Wars: Shatterpoint was written by New York Times Bestselling Author, Matthew Stover. Shatterpoint takes place during the Rise of the Empire Era, it is the 27th book on the Expanded Universe timeline . The tale takes place 22 years before the events of A New Hope.

SUMMARY

Mace Windu is irritated with himself, he had the opportunity to rid the galaxy of Count Dooku, but failed to execute the Separatist leader. Windu is living with that failure daily, his living nightmare, as the galaxy is now in a full scale war. Master Yoda and Mace Windu meet with Chancellor Palpatine to discuss some disturbing evidence that was discovered involving Master Windu’s former Padawan, Council Member Depa Billaba.

Depa Billaba is on Haruun Kal (WIndu’s homeworld) to train natives how to fight as a guerrilla resistance force against the Separatists. An audio file was found at a massacre on Haruun Kal with Depa’s voice. It appears, that she has turned potentially turned to the dark side. Mace will take it upon himself to go to Haruun Kal to investigate matters on the planet, to find out if this is true.

The planet is an absolute warzone, Windu is met by violence and betrayl. He’s captured by militiamen, but let go, in order to find the “Jedi problem in the wilderness” Windu has a lot to learn about Haruun Kal, not just about the war taking place between the Republic and the Separatists, but the war that’s taking place between the Haruun Kal people, the Balawaii and Korunnai. This war, is known as the Summertime War.

Will Mace Windu find Depa Billaba? Has his former Padawan, a member on the Jedi Council, turned to the dark side? Well the book has been reprinted and is now available in an unabridged audiobook, I suggest you give it a read or listen to find out!

CHARACTER

Mace Windu, Jedi Master on the High Council, is guided by the force to see shatter points. He’s able to see weaknesses/breaking points of people or events, and how they can effect everything around them. (for example, Dooku is a shatter-point for the civil war. If he could be broken, the war could potentially crumble away.) Windu is lean, intense, intellectual, and very strong willed. It’s why he had become a council member before the age of 30. The Jedi Master had been on the council for more than 20 years before the battle of Geonosis. He’s tempted many times to go against what is right, he’s even got a temper, but he does have excellent self control.

Kar Vaster: He’s the leader of the Upland Liberation Front. The man is a creepy mystery. He’s got an aura about him that’s shrouded in darkness. In his youth, he witnessed the death of his family, which changed him for the worse. As a child, he had to survive on his own in the jungle. He’s now a witch doctor, a fierce warrior, and a manipulator. People fear him. When he walks through the jungle, it’s as though the trees and brush move aside.

OVERALL THOUGHTS

I enjoyed this book, mostly. The first half was very strong, Stover was clear in all that was happening. I found the characters interesting and true to how I’ve seen them on screen and how I imaged they would be in another story. I felt that the second half of the story was weighed down heavily with far too much action. Yes, I know – Star WARS, but it was just too much at times. That said, I was still fully engaged in the story, even if some details escaped me.

Mace Windu is basically dropped in the Vietnam War of the Star Wars universe. His birth planet, Haruun Kal is such a brutal place with constant war and lush jungle full of danger. Militiamen, nasty insects, a dark force, a rogue Jedi… it’s not a fun place to be. Mace has a full arc that was satisfying in the end. He had to fight not just the enemies around him, but he had to fight the darkness creeping within.

There are sections in the book labeled, “From the Private Journal of Mace WIndu” I think it’s an interesting way of getting in Mace’s head, to know what he’s thinking. I enjoyed the entries – Mace giving his thoughts and recording facts about what he’s witnessing and experiencing. These journal entries are encrypted immediately, and uploaded to the Jedi archives, so they can’t be altered or deleted. A cool touch.

There is one thing I found a bit too silly, it’s implied that Mace Windu flips up the middle finger to a couple bad dudes. It was humorous, but it wasn’t that funny.

The ending of this book without spoiling anything, is one of my favorite types of endings in a book. I’ll just say, I love a good tragedy. That’s not a spoiler… because you don’t know what I find tragic. The outcome of the characters and the results of what plays out on Haruun Kal, is fantastic.

Do I recommend Star Wars: Shatterpoint? The answer, is yes. I like Mace Windu, and I’m glad we have novel with him as the main character.

RATING

I will give Shatterpoint by Matthew Stover, a B+