Review: Star Wars- Aftermath

Quick Summary

Pros: The main narrative is exciting and fun to see play out. The entire book expands concepts with the Star Wars universe. The storyline builds anticipation for the next book.

Cons: The majority of the book’s characters are not that interesting. Some of the book’s subplots are disappointing.

Overall: This is a book with some potential but that ends up being just average. The main storyline is fun, it introduces some interesting material, and generally provides a solid foundation for a series. However, these factors are somewhat undercut by underwhelming characters and disappointing subplots. Ultimately, this book may appeal to fans looking for excitement in a time between Star Wars movies but is not the best example of what a Star Wars book can do.

Story

Star Wars: Aftermath, by Chuck Wendig, is a pretty middle-of-the-road Star Wars book. It offers some thrills and expands the Star Wars universe but underwhelms in a few places.

The best part of Aftermath is the thrilling main storyline. This is a twisting and turning narrative that involves daring heroics and a highly enjoyable confrontation between forces from the Empire and the New Republic.

The other highlight here is the way in which Aftermath expands upon the post-Return of the Jedi universe. It is interesting to see the general populace’s reaction to the fall of the Empire, witness the Imperial forces squabble for power, and learn about what is happening in the development of the New Republic. In this way, the book helps further bridge the gap between The Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens.

Unfortunately, the characters within this storyline underwhelm. The protagonists are mostly unlikable and their interactions with each other feel forced, which takes away the emotional impact of a few scenes. The only characters who really stand out are a few Imperial leaders, who are easily the most interesting characters within the book. There is some potential within these characters that I am looking forward to seeing in the next book but, within this book, they are alright at best.

This main storyline is also held back by several intrusive interludes. The entire novel features interludes that depict what is going on elsewhere in the galaxy while the events of this book play out. A few of these interludes are interesting and I’m looking forward to seeing them expanded upon in the next book. However, many of them are just alright and end up only serving to disrupt the flow of the book.

Continuity

Star Wars: Aftermath takes place after the events of Episode VI- The Return of the Jedi and references the events of the entire Original Trilogy. It also takes place before the events of Episode VII- The Force Awakens and helps set up a few plotlines for the Sequel Trilogy in general.

The storyline here directly continues in Star Wars: Aftermath: Life Debt.

This book also makes a few references to other Star Wars works:

• The quick reference to an operative known as “Fulcrum” is a reference to a character from the Star Wars: Rebels animated series. Fulcrum’s identity was eventually revealed in the finale of the first season of Rebels.
• The story surrounding Cobb Vanth is continued in other books from the Aftermath series but is also continued in “Chapter 9: The Marshal” from The Mandalorian TV series.