Star Wars Book Club: Most Wanted Review

Impossible as it may seem, it's time for another Star Wars book review. It's been an eternity since we've had two of these in such close proximity but I told you all I'd buckle down and catch up. Now here we are with a fairly new novel that ties into an overlooked portion of the series, we're talking about Solo prelude, Most Wanted. Does this Dickensian tale of a youthful Han Solo help to rekindle my interest in these novels? Or is it a flabby disappointment? Come along and find out. Given how the film wasn't insanely successful there's a good chance some of you didn't watch it which means there could be some potential spoilers. Just letting that be known.

Most Wanted begins an unspecified amount of time before Solo though clearly pretty close, let's say months. As you can see from the cover this one focuses on both Han and his future heart-breaker Qi'ra. When we first meet them however their relationship is far more distant as they're part of a group of four urchins in competition for a head position among the white worm gang. The other two potentials are a rodian named Tsuulo and some turd called Rebolt. Life is pretty terrible for these kids so the prospect of gaining just a slightly better position is all they have to look forward to.

One night the gang leader, Mother Proxima offers both Han and Qi'ra their own extra special tasks. Each of them hopes this could be the very thing to earn them the head position so they gleefully accept even if something seems off about the whole affair. While the girl is granted some fresh cloths and sent off to a high-end hotel, Han is directed to a massive factory where he luckily has a contact of his own. Little do the pair realize how interconnected each of their tasks are as she is meant to deliver a bid for an illegal auction and he is meant to pick-up in the item in case of a win. Everything soon goes wrong and the pair find themselves pursued by pirates, police, stormtroopers, and their own gang.

What we have here is a classic “on the run” story like a teenage sci-fi version of The Fugitive. Thankfully there's a strong sense of pacing which help tremendously given the unpleasant setting. Corellia is a fairly gross place to read about for three-hundred pages so a nice and focused adventure really helps to keep the reader moving forward. I know pacing is brought up a lot in my reviews for this franchise but it really is an important issue. Too many entries are weighed down by glacial pace which makes it all the more difficult to ignore other issues. A title like Most Wanted can rise above the pack simply by keeping the story moving.

One thing any reader should know before diving into this book is that while it may be a Solo tie-in this is definitely more Qi'ra's journey. The narrative does an excellent job of shining a light on her upbringing, beliefs, and thoughts which makes her actions in the film much easier to understand. Her counterpart receives far less development though we gain a deeper understanding of Han's reluctance to believe in religion and causes. During this adventure he learns of them as something closer to excuses and cheap comforts.

As for the supporting cast, they're a colorful bunch but only a few carry much weight or meaning. Tsuulo gets the most attention as he's drawn into the adventure. The Rodian offers a mixture of technical skills and a surprisingly deep dedication to his friends. Other than him the most important character is easily a later addition who has a deep effect on Qi'ra that we can see influencing her actions in the film.

Sadly there are some issues with dialogue and characterization. Obviously these are younger versions of these characters, even more so than we've seen on film. That being said, they're behavior and attitudes seemed more in line with someone around 13 rather than the 17 or 18 year-old's we're supposed to be reading about. This seems all the more unbelievable when you consider the harsh realities of their day-to-day existence. Not helping matters is the bland and sort of stilted dialogue that rarely feels natural. It's nothing as egregious as that found in Cobalt Squadron but it suppresses the urgency of the tale and lessons emotional impact overall. The weak dialogue also damages Han's characterization as he doesn't even match up to his younger film persona.

An item that I found oddly missing from this adventure are Han's golden dice. Given their resurgence in The Last Jedi everyone assume they'd receive some sort of additional meaning in Solo. He already had them in that film with no explanation given to their value. Unless I simply glossed over it there was zero mention of the little charm during this whole novel. Likewise we hardly gain any Intel on his parents beyond what was on screen. His dad was a drunk factory worker and he doesn't talk about his mom. These remain as two strangely mysterious elements to the franchise that I assume would have been covered in a sequel film, who knows where they might end up now.

Not unlike our last review there's some uncertainty on where this title falls in the overall rankings. Most Wanted is better than most of the books we've reviewed so far yet it definitely doesn't reach the heights of the absolute best novels. Beyond that is the generally fascinating nature of anything related to Solo. Being the newest film in the franchise coupled with it's relative lack of financial success or hype makes everything around into a sort of enigma. This story aids in fleshing out the motivations of Qi'ra along with Han's past but we've little idea where these elements are headed or if they really matter in the long run. Taken on its own merits it lacks the depth and character moments of Tarkin yet it has the edge on pacing and insight over Thrawn.

1. Lost Stars by Claudia Gray

2. New Dawn by John Jackson Miller

3. Bloodline by Claudia Gray

4. Guardians of the Whills by Greg Rucka

5. Ashoka by E.K. Johnston

6. Battlefront II: Inferno Squad by Christie Golden

7. Tarkin by James Luceno

8. Most Wanted by Rae Carson

9. Thrawn by Timothy Zahn

10. Battlefront: Twilight Company by Alexander Freed

11. Moving Target by Cecil Castelluci and Jason Fry

12. Before the Awakening by Greg Rucka

13. The Legends of Luke Skywalker by Ken Liu

14. Catalyst by James Luceno

15. Aftermath: Life Debt by Chuck Wendig

16. Smuggler's Run by Greg Rucka

17. Heir to the Jedi by Kevin Hearne

18. Lords of the Sith by Paul S. Kemp

19. Cobalt Squadron by Elizabeth Wein

20. Aftermath by Chuck Wendig

21.The Weapon of a Jedi by Jason Fry

Apologies for the slow start to August, folks. I've been caught in a web of college busywork, game-design, and seasonal allergies. Fairly confident I'm past most of the hurdles by now so we should be able to get through the remainder of the month in fine form. I've even found a little time to prepare some items for the September/October Halloween coverage so I won't get behind during tests and term papers. For any of you Star Wars junkies I'm gonna try and get another review in before the month is out. Fingers crossed.