LOTR: Two Towers: Book vs. Movie

Over on Hamlette's blog, The Edge of the Precipice, I wrote a guest post comparing the Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers book to the film focusing on The One Ring, Faramir, and the events that take place on the Stairs of Cirith Ungol. To go read and comment on the post, you can click here. Please let me know what you think of it, and please check back tomorrow for my first reaction to a series named Log Horizon.

Also, Hamlette is hosting a giveaway over on her blog, which you can check out by clicking here.

If you want to contact us or have any questions please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

Book Review: Star Wars: Dark Force Rising.

Star Wars: Dark Force Rising, the second installment in arguably the best Star Wars book series. Because Dark Force Rising is a direct sequel to Heir to the Empire, any plot details would ruin the both books, therefore is no spoilers of any kind will be revealed in this review. As I had said in my review for Heir to the Empire, it was a fantastic book and my favorite book until I read the Lord of the Rings. One of the many things that Heir to the Empire captured perfectly about Star Wars is how the characters Han, Luke, Leia, Lando and Chewie are portrayed and Dark Force Rising is no exception. Also the new characters that were introduced in the previous are further developed like Grand Admiral Thrawn, Mara Jade and Talon Karrde, all of whom are expertly written characters.

There was a surprising amount of suspense and tension during many parts of the book, were I found myself mentally "On the edge of my seat" needing to know what happened next. If you are a Star Wars fan, you need to read the Thrawn trilogy, especially if you are an Original Trilogy fan like me. In many ways it is superior to the Prequel Trilogy, since the characters are written very well and story so involving. This comes closest to finally giving the fans the true original Star Wars that I have been wanting. While Dark Force Rising is not the Empire Strikes Back of sequels, it serves to advance the story and be a solid middle chapter in the larger story.

There are some continuity changes that Lucas screwed up when he created the Attack of the Clones about who the Clones were but the Clone Wars is never explained in detail.

The character Grand Admiral Thrawn is officially in my Top 15 Star Wars characters and Mara Jade at least in my Top 25 because they are such great characters, it is hard not to like them.

Plot: 9.9/10- While there were very few small plot missteps, the story as a whole is absolutely brilliant. Being the middle chapter of one story, similar to the Two Towers in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, it does end on a cliffhanger of sorts. However, there are many twists and turns throughout the plot; I never knew what was coming next. There were many references to the original trilogy in terms of story and some of the character's dialogue, which as a major Star Wars geek was awesome.

Audiobook: 10/10- Because I had to wait for the unabridged by Marc Thompson to be released for Dark Force Rising, it has been around 8 months since I listened to Heir to the Empire. I have forgotten how much better he is than anyone else at making audiobooks and copying the character's voices. He gives distinct voices to the main character, making it easy to distinguish between characters. The only problem is when he is reading dialogue from a female character but he does an admirable job and it does not take long to get used to it. Thompson's impressions of Han and Lando are most impressive, he sounds almost exactly like the characters, except they have aged 5 years since Return of the Jedi. The use of sounds effects and music is perfect. John Williams’ amazing score highlights key points of the book to bone chilling effect and adds the classic Star Wars feel to the book. Also his voice for Grand Admiral Thrawn is exactly as I would imagine

Overall: 9.9/10- While one would have to be a Star Wars fan to truly appreciate it, Dark Force Rising and Heir to the Empire are the perfect sequels to the original Star Wars trilogy; an absolute must read for any Star Wars fan.

If you want to contact us or have any question please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

Two Towers: Book Vs Movie Part 2.

 Here is part two of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Book Vs Movie analysis. Although I found many changes from the book to movie in the Fellowship of the Ring unnecessary, many of the changes in the Two Towers I found to almost be better in the movie or just not really negative. This part is mostly about the Battle of Helm's Deep and obviously has complete spoilers for the movie.

Helm's Deep

I found the chapter "Helm's Deep" to be a little difficult to follow, not exactly sure why, however for this post I revisited the chapter to grasp a better understanding of it. There are many changes from the book to movie in this chapter, however most of the changes really did not have a negative effect on the story and some changes actually improved it. Because there were a good deal of changes I have made some sub-categories to talk about.

 

 

Rohirrim Arrive Before Orcs

In the book, Saruman's army are hot-on-the-heels of the Rohirrim heading into Helm's Deep. However, the Rohirrim arrive well before the Orcs, which serves to give a build-up to the big fight. This is another good change because it gives weight to the battle and builds anticipation.

 

 

 

 

Elves at Helm's Deep

Before the battle of Helm's Deep an army of Elven archers from Lothlórien arrives to help the Rohirrim in the movie. Conversely there were no Elves at Helm's Deep, or at least there were no more than three including Legolas but not a small army. I have to admit it was a very cool scene in the movie when the Elves arrived to help Rohirrim and the way they were used in the battle was inventive. However, there might be a slight geographical problem of the Elves actually making the journey to Helms Deep in time. Since I am no expert in Middle Earth geoaphy I am not certin if this is the case.

 

 

 

 

You'll Have to Toss Me



 Although some might dislike this scene because nothing that resembles it in the book, I really do not care. It was awesome scene! "You'll have to toss me", "I cannot jump the distance you'll have to toss me." It was a brilliant use of comic relief, probably the best change made by Peter Jackson.

 

  

 

Erkenbrand Not Eomer Arrives

In a way this also relates to the previous chapter "The King of the Golden Hall" in that Eomer was arrested not banished. Since Eomer is more of an important character than Erkenbrand, and he had basically nothing to do at the Battle of Helm's Deep in the book, it does make sense why he replaced Erkenbrand so that the audience would know who the person with Gandalf was other than some random Rohirrim soldier.

Orc Shot First

One of the Rohirrim shot first at the battle in the movie, while the Orcs shot fight first in the book. Surprised there have not been "Orc Shot First" shirts like the "Han Shot First" ones. (this was just a joke).

 

  

 

 

 

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Book Review: LOTR The Two Towers.

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers by J. R. R. Tolkien is the sequel to The Fellowship of the Ring. Actually a better description would be that The Two Towers is part two of three to the best fantasy story ever told and one of the greatest works of fiction in the work of mankind.

Because not everyone has seen the movie or read the books, I will have a "Spoiler" warning before any small spoilers. Additionally, if you have only seen the movie and not read the book, there is nothing that would be considered spoilers.

I would have to say that I enjoyed it even more than The Fellowship of the Ring. Everything was excellent, the Two Towers was faster paced, more epic, and overall even more involving, although The Fellowship of the Ring is still currently my second favorite book of all-time.

The story of the Two Towers continues directly were the previous book ended. The narrative structure of the Two Towers is unlike any other book I have read. It is split-up into two different parts, the first part focuses on two different groups. The first group being *Spoiler* Aragorn and the surviving company on their journey, excluding Frodo and Sam, who are the focus of the second part of the book. *End Spoiler* Surprisingly, there were many similarities with the movie but that will be discussed in a later post.

All of the characters in the story are more developed and given more depth, especially the ones that were given a more minor role in the previous book. Unlike the previous book, Frodo is not the main character of the story, the material is more evenly distributed among the many fascinating character throughout the story. Also there were almost no poems or songs throughout the book, which was great. Although that is not to say I disliked what was in the first book, it did become distracting at times. The ending of the book really made me love the book that much more, *Spoiler* it was one of the saddest ending to a book I have ever read, even though I know how it is going to end. *End Spoiler*
Author: J. R. R. Tolkien

Genre: Fantasy, Adventure, Epic

Release Date: November 11, 1954

 

Plot: Because the plot starts directly were the previous book ended, it would be pointless to have a plot summary.

 

 

 

 Plot: 10/10- As with the Fellowship of the Ring, I already love the story. The Two Towers film is one of my favorite movies of all-time, it is just that amazing. The pacing was improved, although the slower pacing was necessary to set up the plot in the first installment, it featured more material of my favorite characters and introduced many other memorable characters that were never developed as much in the films.

 

 

Audiobook: 9.5/10- The audiobook was made by the same fan that recorded the previous one I listened to. However, it was vastly improved compared to his previous work (except for the "White Rider" chapter) with better use of music and voice work. His Treebeard impression sounds exactly like the movie and his ability to mimic the other various characters' voices is great. Only Legolas, Aragorn and a few other minor do tend to sound alike at various points. Other than that minor flaw, it was overall excellent and better than any other Lord of the Rings audiobook I have listened to before.

 

 

Overall: +10/10- I am giving The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers a special rating of +10 to signify that is better than the other books that I have given a ten rating. Everything in the book was basically perfect, and I cannot wait to read the Return of the King.

Closing Comments: The Two Towers is the epic middle chapter in one of the best stories ever told. What more do I need to say, watch the movies or read the books, either way they are both excellent.

 

 

 

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Two Towers: Book Vs Movie Part 1.

Now I have finally written the first part of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Book Vs Movie. Sorry everyone for the delay it took longer than expected to get enough inspiration and ideas to actually write it. This is only part one of the long analysis comparing the book of The Two Towers to the film adaption. Because I watched the movie almost ten years before reading the book, I am a more neutral to any changes than completely roasting Peter Jackson for changing the book. Also I view many of the changes as a film maker, thus some changes are made to work better in the visual mediun of film, opposed to a book.

These are only a few of the changes from the book to movie. There will be another part most likely posted in the near future. For the changes to Faramir, Treebeard, and Shelob's Lair, which I consider the most significant, I am trying a more formal essay format and it is taking far longer than I originally expected. Also be sure to check back here Monday for my review of Back to the Future!

King of the Golden Hall

In the movie Theoden's mind and apparently body is basically possessed by Saruman. Gandalf essentially exorcised Theodan from Saruman's hold on Theoden's mind. However, in the book Theoden is I suppose decevied by Wormtongue not possessed by Saruman. I actually like this change because film is a visual medium were things need to be shown not told. It also gives Gandalf a chance to use his new powers in the form of Gandalf the White.

Warg Battle

In the book there is no Warg battle on the journey to Helms Deep and the journey its self feels rather short in the book compared to the movie. On the other hand, the Rohirrim are attacked by a company of Warg riders. After which Aragorn falls off a cliff and has a vision of Arwen. This serves to add an Arwen scene, which was probably the best way it could have added one without feeling out of place. Although I have yet to see anyone else mention this, the Warg battle in the Fellow of the Ring was removed and this could be the reasoning behind adding the battle to the Two Towers. Similar to how "Old Willow Man" was placed in Fangorn Forrest because Tom Bombadil was removed. Plus it was an awesome action and I definitely cannot complain about that.

 



  

Dialogue

As with most adaptations from book to film the dialogue is drastically altered to make it more suitable for film. However, there are a few lines of dialogue that are nearly the same from the book or a different character delivers the line. Although most dialogue works well in the book, it often sounds awkward if actually said and other lines of dialogue used are out dated and the words mean something entirely different today.

 

 



Do you agree or disagree? There is no real "right" answer to any of these questions so please comment below with your thoughts. 

 

 

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Book Review: Star Wars: Darth Plagueis

The votes from the Reader's Choice were in and you voted for Darth Plagueis.

Thoughts: I have heard many great things about this Darth Plagueis book, and it did not disappoint. The book is basically a prequel to The Phantom Menace. It explains just about everything leading up to Episode I. Since the book is relatively new, the story tie into some of the story arcs form The Clone Wars. Also it contains many references to other Star Wars continuity, my favorite being, references The Old Republic. For those of you who hate The Phantom Menace and Midichlorians read Darth Plagueis, it explains things much better and makes it an even better movie. The books relies on the reader's knowledge of the Star Was Universe to some degree, therefore for someone new to the Star Wars universe could become lost in some areas of the book but that was not really a problem for me. The book's plot plays out like a history book from Palpatine's and Plagueis' point of view. The audio book I listened to was better than most audio books but it was not as high quality as Heir to the Empire or The Old Republic Revan (more about the audio book below). There were many cameos by different characters from the prequel era, which were great to see. Some of Darth Maul's origin was explained and Count Dooku's path to the Dark Side was explored briefly. Palpatine's character is developed and I have more interest in him now than I did previously. Darth Plagueis is also one of my favorite Expanded Universe characters now and I hope the next season of The Clone Wars will make a few references to Darth Plagueis and this book. It also possibly explains the birth of Anakin Skywalker. The book starts in the year 67 BBY and ends at the end of Episode I in 32 BBY.
Darth Plagueis also explains the Sith's plan and why they started the war.

Author: James Luceno
Genre: Sci-Fi, Star Wars,
Release Date: January 10, 2012
Audiobook Running Time: 14 hrs and 49 mins

Plot: The novel begins just after Darth Sidious kills his Sith Master Darth Plagueis. The Sith Lord experiences a moment where he feels a dramatic shift in the Force, which promises him that its dark side will use him as a tool just as he will use it as a tool for his own purposes. This moment in the Force is what promises Sidious that he will have a great impact on the galaxy in the future.

The book then cuts back 35 years, as Darth Plagueis and his Master Darth Tenebrous arrive on the world of Bal'demnic to examine its cortosis supply, which is being mined unbeknownst to either the Republic or the Jedi Order. Tenebrous plans to take advantage of the cortosis' natural resistance to lightsaber blades for his future attempts to overthrow the Jedi and replace the Republic with an empire ruled by the Sith. During the examination, the mining probe droid begins digging at a pocket of explosive lethane next to a cortosis deposit against orders, leading Tenebrous and Plagueis to rush back to their ship and escape the resulting explosion. The explosion occurs before they make it back to their ship, though Tenebrous was able to use the Force to contain the explosion so it doesn't kill him or his apprentice, while Plagueis makes sure that their ship isn't destroyed by the impact of the blast. In the process, Tenebrous is severely wearied, and Plagueis finds himself with the opportunity to end his Master's life and take on the role of Sith Master. He uses the Force to hurl falling debris on top of his Master and inflict a mortal wound, attempting to make it look natural as he rushes to his master's side. However, he cannot resist revealing to Tenebrous how he died, and what it means for the future of the Sith. The Muun tells his Bith Master that he will put an end to the old order of the Rule of Two before breaking Tenebrous's neck and observing his dying body through the Force in an attempt to manipulate midi-chlorians. However, Tenebrous dies before Plagueis is even able to at least prolong his Master's life for the sake of his experimentation. Read the book to know what happens next.

Plot: 9.5/10- The plot is excellent and it spans several years. Plagueis' and Palpatine's story is very interesting and their relationship is unique compared to other Sith, although the politics might bore some readers. However, I rarely felt the “Edge of my seat” suspense that other books like The Thrawn trilogy had.

Audiobook: 8.9/10- While the audio book is much better than most of the other ones I have listened briefly it was not near as good as The Heir to the Empire or The Old Republic audio books. The narrator did not imitate the original character's voice very well compared to Heir to the Empire but Palpatine was really the only character that was in the movie that had a lot of dialogue in the book. The use of music to highlight important parts was perfect, For example when Darth Maul was first introduced the music was perfect and added bone chilling effect.

Overall: 9.5/10- Although one would have to be a Star Wars fan to truly appreciate Darth Plagueis, it is one of the best Star Wars book I have read thus far. 

Closing comments: Darth Plagueis is highly recommend for any Star Wars fan of the prequel era.

 

Recommended for: Star Wars fans, Prequel haters, Sci-Fi fans,

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Fellowship of the Ring Book Vs Movie.

As I said in my review for The Fellowship of the Ring review, I would write a comparison between the book and the movie about some of the biggest differences. For a future post, I would like you to comment or e-mail me some changes in The Fellowship of the Ring that you want me to write about next.

*Warning: There will be spoilers for both book and movie.*

Disclaimer: I am not an expert and this is my opinion.

Aragorn's Sword Andúril/Narsil

In the book Aragorn had the broken hilt of Andúril/Narsil when the Hobbits arrived in Bree and then the sword was re-forged before the Fellowship left Rivendell. However, in the movie the broken sword was on display at Rivendell and Elron later re-forges the sword during The Return of the King and gives it to Aragorn. I am not entirely sure why this was changed. I see no real reason to change it from the book.

Songs and Poems

Although the songs and poems were well written and work well in the book, I cannot stand the over use of songs during movies, especially serious ones like The Lord of the Rings. There is no way that most of the songs could have actually worked in the film without bogging it down.

Shorter Time Span

The book takes place over many years after Bilbo's birthday and Frodo stays at Rivendell around 6 months. In the movie, it appears to only take a year or two from the beginning of their journey to the end. Before reading the book, I have always wondered how everyone at the Council of Elrond arrived so quickly without modern transportation, but the book does give a better perspective of time. However, the time gap does not really affect the story and would have only slowed the plot and making Frodo younger was a better decision, because Elijah Wood was casted in the role. 

Tom Bombadil

"Ho! Tom Bombadil, Tom Bombadillo!" Tom Bombadil's part of the book was completely removed from the movie. Probably because of the lighthearted feel of those chapters and that the songs and poems in general were removed from the film. While, I found the chapters in the book very enjoyable, it really would not have worked in the movie very well. Only in the extended edition could it have worked at all.

Awren

As I have read from many fans, they were very unhappy with the addition of Awren in a more prominent role. She barely had one line of dialogue in the entire book, if that much. Awren was mostly there to ad a love interest for Aragorn. If I am not mistaken, this story arc is more based on the appendices by Tolkien. Although, I am not the biggest fan of this addition, it works in the movie and did not seem out of place in the story. Her race to take Frodo to Rivendell was an excellent action set piece and having an intelligent horse might have been a little outlandish for the audience to believe so early in the film.

Merry, Pippin and The Hobbits

Another change that was noticeable was how the Hobbits, especially Merry and Pippin, were portrayed as being a little more naive and incompetent at times. Although Merry and Pippin added much needed humor to the films, similar to C3PO and R2-D2 in the Star Wars Trilogy. Many of the funniest scenes involve Merry and Pippin, like the scene "Second Breakfast", which I often quote to this day. On a side note, I wish that Pippin fooling the Orc into thinking that he had the Ring in "The Two Tower" would have been included in the movie.

Ending

The ending of The Fellowship of the Ring is a little different in that it uses the first chapter of The Two Towers rather than the actual end of The Fellowship of the Ring book. However, the film really needed to end with the death of Boromir to give it true closure and the Lord of the Rings was originally intended to be one large book, therefore it did not make a difference.

There were many more changes from the book to the movie. For my next post about The Fellowship of the Ring Book vs. Movie, I would like you to comment or send me an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com about what you want me to write about in my next post. If possible I will write and post the answers to the questions within the next two week.

If you want to contact us or have any question please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

Book Review: The Fellowship of the Ring.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring by J. R. R. Tolkien.

Thoughts: As anyone who follows my blog would know, I like The Lord of the Rings Trilogy and I have been a big fan of the movies since watching them many years ago. Now I have finally read the book and as I expected, it was beyond fantastic. It is easily one of the best books that I have ever read. Because there are some people that have not read the book or seen the movies, this is a spoiler-free review. However, in a later post I will compare the book to the movie.

I already like the story of The Lord of the Rings and it is one of the most original concepts ever created in fiction. There has never been anything like it before or since. Because I am a fan of the movies I enjoyed every minute of the book, however there are a few things that may discourage reads who are new to the story. One of which being the songs and poems. In the book there are many songs and poems, which can become monotonous at times (it did not bother me much though). Although the audiobook is better in those parts because you are listening to them not reading them, fortunately they were removed from the movie. The book starts a little slow, taking several chapters of exposition to get the plot moving. One more thing, there are some passages in the book that are written in different Middle Earth languages, which are not translated.

Disclaimer: I do not have near as much experience with books as I do with movies, although who could not agree that The Lord of the Rings are fantastic books.

Author: J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Fantasy, Adventure, Epic
Release Date: July 24, 1954


Plot: Bilbo Baggins celebrates his 111th (or eleventy-first, as it is called in Hobbiton) birthday on the same day, September 22, that his relative and adopted heir Frodo Baggins celebrates his coming of age at 33. At the birthday party, Bilbo departs from the Shire, the land of the Hobbits, for what he calls a permanent holiday. He leaves Frodo his remaining belongings, including his home, Bag End, and (after some persuasion by the wizard Gandalf) the Ring he had found on his adventures (which he used to make himself invisible). Gandalf leaves on his own business, warning Frodo to keep the Ring secret.
Over the next 17 years Gandalf periodically pays short visits to Bag End. One spring night, he arrives to warn Frodo about the truth of Bilbo's ring; it is the One Ring of Sauron the Dark Lord. Sauron forged it to subdue and rule Middle-earth, but in the War of the Last Alliance, he was defeated by Gil-galad the Elven King and Elendil, High King of Arnor and Gondor, though they themselves perished in the deed. Isildur, Elendil's son, cut the Ring from Sauron's finger. Sauron was thus overthrown, but the Ring itself was not destroyed as Isildur kept it for himself. Isildur was slain soon afterward in the Battle of the Gladden Fields, and the Ring was lost in Great River Anduin. Thousands of years later, it was found by the hobbit Deagol; but Deagol was thereupon murdered by his friend Smeagol, who coveted the Ring for himself. Smeagol subsequently possessed the Ring for centuries, and under its influence he became the creature named Gollum. The Ring was found by Bilbo Baggins, as told in The Hobbit, and Bilbo leaves it to Frodo. Sauron has risen again and returned to his stronghold in Mordor, and is exerting all his power to find the Ring. Read the book to know what happens next.


Plot: 10/10- Because I have already seen the movie many times (extended edition as well), there were very few plot twists that I did not expect, although there are a good deal of changes from the book to movie, which I will go into more detail in the later post. The writing style is good, although the meanings of some words have changed over the years and Tolkien goes into much detail in describing the people and places.
By far, this is the best book ever written (including the other entries in the series), there is so much mythos and history in the fictional world of Middle Earth. In the copy I own, which contains all three books, it includes the Eleven and Dwarven languages as well as maps of Middle Earth.

Audiobook: 8.9/10- The audiobook was fan made and it got progressively better as the creator improved his quality. Although there might be a few minor errors, it is well worth listening to it compared to the other Lord of the Rings audiobooks out there. Howard Shore's epic score is used very well and adds to the feel of the book just as it did in the film. Also the sound effects and background sounds helps to add the proper atmosphere to the scenes. Some of the words might not be expressed exactly right and there are a few choppy cuts but that does not diminish the experience.





Overall: 10/10- Without any doubt The Fellowship of the Ring deserves a perfect ten, it is one of my all-time favorite books.

Closing Comments: It is hard to truly give this masterpiece of literature justice in my review, however if you like books or movies you must watch/read The Lord of the Rings.

Some might want me to answer the question: Which is better, the book or the movie? There is no real answer; both are the best in each respective media.



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Book Review: Star Wars Heir to the Empire Audiobook Review Part 1: The Book Review

If you haven't seen my Top Top Star Wars Parodies. Please Click Here to check them out. And please vote in the comments and let us know if you want to see a Star Wars Knights if the Old Republic Beginners Guide?


Disclaimer: I have not read a lot of books so my opinion on books may not be as accurate compared to my opinion on movie, which I have seen many movies. And you have to be at least like Star Wars to like the book. If you haven't seen Star Wars stop what you are doing and go watch Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope right now!



Also if like our review please let us know if you want to see more book reviews.



Note: Although I listened to the audiobook I will say that I "read" the book in the review because it just sounds weird saying that I listened to it. And I am going to review with very few spoilers, only the few chapters if that much.



Please tell us if what you think of the review and tell us if you want more book reviews.



We are splitting up the review into two parts.

Part 1: Is this one about the book and a general review.

Part 2: Is about the character especially the new ones like Thrawn and Mara Jade.





Okay now on to the review: First off I just want to say WOW!!! This is first book I actually enjoyed. I have read some books but none of them I enjoyed reading and actually cared about what happened in it. But Heir to the Empire changed that! It was fantastic! I had high hopes going in since this is considered one of, if not the best Star Wars book. The reason I decided to go with the audiobook was that it adds another dimension and I listen to it when I doing things like driving, exercising, ect. I was very surprised by how entertaining listening to it. I listened to the 20th Anniversary Edition by Marc Thompson and I have to say that his impressions of some of the characters were very close to the characters from the movies but more on that later. The story blew me away, one of the best stories of anything Star Wars maybe even better than some of the prequels. If there was an Episode VI (7) this would be it. And the new characters like Thrawn and Mara Jade were fantastic. Now I understand why Thrawn is considered one of the best EU (expanded universe) characters. His brilliant military strategies, which gave him the rank of Grand Admiral, using the knowledge of a culture's art he forms a strategy that almost always succeeds. And Mara Jade is a very interesting character. But knowing her ultimate relationship with Luke kind of spoiled the surprise in the next two books. Although most Star Wars fans know who Mara Jade is I will not give away any spoilers about the character. More about the characters in Part 2.




Author: Timothy Zahn
Genre: Sci-Fi, Star Wars,
Release Date: 1 May 1991
Audiobook Running Time: Around 18 hours




If you want to listen to the audiobook Click Here to check out the playlist but there has only been 6 chapters uploaded out of the 32 in the book.


Here is the first part of audiobook.




Plot: The following plot summery is copied from Wikipedia.com.
Gilad Pellaeon, captain of the Imperial Star Destroyer Chimaera, receives word that an information raid on the Obroa-skai system was successful. A retaliatory strike by an Obroa-skai task force is easily defeated by Pellaeon's superior, Grand Admiral Thrawn. On Coruscant, Obi-Wan Kenobi approaches Luke Skywalker in his sleep to say farewell, sending Luke into depression. Leia Organa Solo, three months pregnant with twins, senses Luke's depression and sends C-3PO to speak with him. On Tatooine, Han Solo and Chewbacca offer legal work to Dravis and his smuggler allies in an attempt to solve the New Republic's shortage on cargo ships; Borsk Fey'lya, a New Republic council member and native Bothan, dismisses this gesture as futile.
On Myrkr, smuggler Talon Karrde and his subordinate, Mara Jade, help Thrawn and Pellaeon obtain several creatures called ysalamiri. Afterward, the Chimaera travels to the Emperor's storehouse on Wayland. On the planet, Thrawn and Pellaeon encounter Joruus C'Baoth, the guardian of the storehouse. The ysalamiri that Thrawn brought with him prevents C'Baoth from using the Force within a short radius; with little choice, C'Baoth offers his services in exchange for two prospective students: Luke and Leia. Thrawn sends a group of Noghri to capture Luke and Leia on Bimmisaari, but the attempt fails. Read the book to know what happens next.



Plot: 10/10- Overall the plot was excellent! Heir to the Empire had new characters, plot twists, suspense, fantastic dialogue, and everything a Star Wars fan would want. I was so infested in the story and characters I didn't want to be over. It was also unpredictable I had no idea what was going to happen next and way the book ties all of the characters fates together was perfect. It also answered a few questions from the Original Trilogy and added a vast universe to expand upon. Heir to the Empire ended with a cliff hanger and I am very excited to know what is going to happen next! Unfortunately the Unabridged 20th Anniversary is the only one of the new Thrawn Trilogy to get a re-mastered audiobook but they coming in June with the other two books read by Marc Thompson, who read this one. As much as it I want to go ahead listen to the old audiobook with not near as good quality of audio and on sound effect or music I am going to hold off and wait for the new. I know if I go with the older one I will kick myself later for not waiting and listening to the better version. The only thing I can say bad about it was the first conversation between Leia and Winter just didn't seem right but other than that the dialogue was perfect.

Audiobook: 10/10- This part of the review is about the audiobook its self. Although this is the first audiobook I have listened from beginning to end. I have listened to parts of other audiobooks and this is one of the best with sound effects, John Williams music, and reading by Marc Thompson. I read a few reviews saying that it was a very good audiobook so I am not the only one who likes it. The sound effects of the blasters, lightsabers, spaceships and the ambient noise of the surroundings really made a mental picture of what would look like just with sounds. You could hear the hum of Luke's lightsaber as he slices through an enemy dispatches a few others. And the Marc Thompson's impression of Han Solo was very good and it sounded very similar to what he really sound likes. His voice for Luke also sounded good. And surprisingly his voice for Lando sounded similar. The only ones that didn't sound right were the female characters. But isn't a real problem since it is a guy narrating the book so I got use to it after a while. The thing that impressed me the most was Thrawn's voice. If he is in The Clone Wars or any movie it will hard to think of him without Marc Thompson's epic voice. He sounded just like you would expect someone like him to sound. The sound in general sucks you into the world and places in the book, especially if you already some about the planets. And John Williams' beyond amazing score added a lot to the overall audiobook. At time it was bone chilling.


Overall: 10/10- I have to give it a perfect Ten. It is the best book I have ever read and the first book I have enjoyed. If you are a Star Wars fan you have to read this or listen to the audiobook but I highly recommend the audiobook. This should be made into a movie or TV series but that is unlikely to happen but it should.


Closing comments: If you are a die heart Star Wars fan you must read (or listen to) this.


Recommended for: Star Wars fans, Sci-Fi fans,


Check back tomorrow for Part 2.

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