Dawson, Delilah S.
About the Author:
Delilah S. Dawson lives in Georgia, USA, with her family.
AVERAGE REVIEWS SCORE:
3 out of 5
(1 book)
Star Wars: Inquisitor - Rise Of The Red Blade
As the Clone Wars errupt on Geonosis, troubled Jedi Padawan Iskat Akaris finds herself Masterless and adrift. She rises to the rank of Jedi Knight but chafes at the restrictive teachings of the Jedi Council, who see her as dangerously impulsive. Believing the Jedi are hiding important details about her past, Iskat begins to feel the temptation of the dark side. When the Republic falls, the new Galactic Empire offers her the chance to finally unshackle her emotions and seek the answers that have been withheld from her for years.
Firstly, I want to say how pleased I was to see this book published at all. Focusing on characters who haven't appeared elsewhere (except for a brief, unnamed debut in the Darth Vader comics by Charles Soule) it felt like the kind of brave publishing decision which used to happen a lot with the old Expanded Universe but which (evil) Disney seem to be carefully avoiding. Well done for this choice then.
Unfortunately, I can't say that this book entirely delivers on its promise. It feels a bit like we're speedrunning Iskat's fall to the dark side as this book goes on, in much the same way that Anakin goes from dedicated Jedi to genocidal lunatic in the space of less than two hours in 'Revenge of the Sith'. Quite quickly it's made clear what factors are going to turn Iskat into a Dark Jedi and from that point on you're just waiting for it to kick in. It was clearly supposed to be a progressive slide into darkness, but that's not what it felt like. Similarly, the Order 66 scene felt rushed and unsatisfying.
The final disappointment, which won't affect those who haven't read the comics, is that Iskat's fate unfolds exactly the same way as it does in those comics, with little to no additional context or depth added to the event. I can cope with already knowing how a character's story ends, but I hoped that in a prose retelling we would at least get a bit more insight, but that didn't feel like the case here.
This certainly isn't a bad book but I definitely felt it could've become much more than the sum of its parts and the fact it didn't disappoints me.
3 out of 5
Collaborations & Anthologies:
Star Wars Adventures: Defend The Republic! (here)
Star Wars Adventures: Driving Force (here)
Star Wars Adventures Omnibus: Volume 1 (here)
Star Wars: Forces Of Destiny (here)
Star Wars: From A Certain Point Of View (here)
Star Wars Insider: The Fiction Collection - Volume 2 (here)
Star Wars: Stories Of Jedi And Sith (here)
Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back - From A Certain Point Of View (here)
Read more...
Star Wars (here)