Star Wars: The Living Force, a novel written by bestselling author, John Jackson Miller. This story takes place before the events of Episode I: The Phantom Menace.
SUMMARY
Jedi outposts are being shut down across the Republic, opening up many regions to a rise in criminal activity. With the urging of Qui-Gon Jinn, the Jedi Council will make a trip off coruscant to celebrate a Jedi Outpost scheduled to close, this outpost is special to many on the council, many were present at its opening centuries before.
This celebration will also be interrupted with violence from a pirate group that Depa Billaba had recently infiltrated, the Riftwalkers. The head of the Riftwalkers, Zilastra, is bitter toward the Jedi and the Republic and will stop at nothing to burn them to the ground.
OVERALL THOUGHTS
I said I wasn’t going to review another canon novel, but when I see something as interesting as this, written by an author that’s written pretty solid books in the Expanded Universe, I just had to give it a read.
John Jackson Miller did a fine job in the opening chapters, capturing the feel and flow of the prequel films. There was a sense of familiarity with the scenario taking place, and the characters read true to who they were in the prequel films; such as Qui-Gon’s confidence and Kenobi’s curiosity and dry humor.
It was neat having the full Jedi Council out of the Jedi Temple to be servants of the the people. However, when the action starts and lives of the people and Jedi are in danger, we know from the films that these council members are fine, so there wasn’t anything in this book that really felt like a real risk when it came to the characters. My favorite character in this story has to Qui-Gon Jinn and I wish we focused a lot more on him; he truly has a servant’s heart, wanting to help the innocent lives in the galaxy.
What stuck out to me, was how easy it was for the Empire to take control after the Republic had fallen. The citizens throughout the galaxy were pretty needy, unable to really take care of themselves, too dependent on the Republic and the Jedi. However, I think the Republic failed the people when it came to planetary security and preservation; crime is just way too rampant.
The message I feel this book is delivering, is that the people are suffering, not just in this fictional world, but the one we live in. Suffering with physical, financial, and identity issues. The Jedi, the Star Wars equivalent of spiritual leaders, have grown distant from their purpose as servants. Through Qui-Gon, a Jedi who seeks the will of the Living Force (the Star Wars version of the Holy Spirit) is the one who brings the Jedi back to their roots, waking them up from a sort of spiritual sleep.
To conclude, I honestly felt the story to be a little weak. I felt this one was pretty similar to a previous canon book I read, maybe a High Republic novel. While I think John Jackson Miller did well with the characters, bringing in good humor at times (especially with Ki Adi Mundi) and really pivoting from several different characters and their actions to others; The plot was a bit of a dull one. I did not hate this book, I don’t think it was bad, in fact this book delivers a better message than a lot that I have read in canon.
RATING
I give Star Wars: The Living Force by John Jackson Miller, a B-plus.