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A review by jaredkwheeler
Hostage by Alex Wheeler
4.0
Star Wars Legends Project #230
Background: Hostage was written by [a:Alex Wheeler|2637206|Alex Wheeler|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] and published in January 2009. It is the second in the 6-book Rebel Force series, following [b:Target|5826424|Target (Star Wars Rebel Force, #1)|Alex Wheeler|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1328839011l/5826424._SX50_.jpg|5998557] (my review). Wheeler is the author of the whole series, which is his only listed Star Wars work. However, as I read this series, the Internet is abuzz with rumors that Pablo Hidalgo, one of the official keepers of Star Wars lore and a member of the Lucasfilm Story Group supposedly confirmed on Twitter just this year that Alex Wheeler (long known to be a pseudonym) is in fact another pen name for Judy Blundell aka [a:Jude Watson|11912|Jude Watson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1403530689p2/11912.jpg]. Blundell has issued a denial, but also posted a very confusing response to a different reader that suggested she in fact is the author. Under the name Jude Watson, Blundell has written some 50 Star Wars books, chief among the the 3 YA series chronicling the exploits of the main prequel-era Jedi throughout that time period.
Frankly, I'm not sure what to believe. Rebel Force is actually written to in some ways be a continuation of at least some of the characters and situations Watson established in her previous series, so if she didn't write it, it's a shame that those characters she shaped were handed off to someone else for their final adventures. On the other hand, if it is her, she's certainly adopted a somewhat different style of writing I would say, and one that I am not enjoying quite as much as her previous efforts. Still, people have speculated for years that Watson and Wheeler are one and the same, based on plot devices and themes that appear in Rebel Force.
In any case, Hostage takes place a few weeks after the Battle of Yavin, picking up very shortly after the end of the last book. The main characters are Han, Luke, and Leia, along with Chewie, the Imperial assassin X-7, and ex-Jedi Ferus Olin. The story takes place mostly on Yavin IV and Delaya, sister world to Alderaan.
Summary: Tasked with identifying and executing the pilot who blew up the Death Star, X-7 has successfully infiltrated the Rebellion and befriended Princess Leia. Knowing that she must have the information he needs, X-7 will stop at nothing to talk, trick, or (if he must) torture it out of her. But to do that, he'll need to stay close, which means accompanying Leia, Han, and Luke on their mission to Delaya, in the Alderaan system, new home to thousands of devastated refugees from Leia's homeworld. Emotionally vulnerable in the face of returning to the scene of her greatest loss, will Leia succumb to X-7's guile, or worse?
Review: After a week start, things are very much picking up in this book. If Watson is indeed the author, it's no surprise. This is the kind of thing she did best: unpacking the complex emotions of characters who have suffered significant trauma and loss. This is one of the few Star Wars books I've read that really deals with Leia's struggle in the period after Alderaan's destruction, and it's a rich vein of material, worthy of serious attention.
I had also forgotten that I had seen that Ferus Olin makes his return in this series. When last we saw him, his failure to launch a successful Rebellion against the nascent Empire had resulted in devastating personal consequences, and he had been tasked by Obi-Wan to watch over the young Princess Leia on Alderaan just as Obi-Wan himself was watching over Luke on Tatooine. Here, we learn that he was a much larger presence in Leia's life than Obi-Wan was in Luke's, but that he has played the role of a pompous, flattering hanger-on at court, and Leia kind of despises him and doesn't understand why her father placed so much trust in him. It's an interesting dynamic that contrasts with the relationship between Luke and Obi-Wan, and I look forward to seeing it unfold.
In addition, the story here is much more compelling, maybe because it's more personal to our heroes and the stakes seem so much higher. We begin to see Luke continuing to learn to trust his instincts, although it's clear that he hasn't quite fine-tuned them as a guidance system in line with the Force. But his moral compass serves him well in its stead in this case.
This was a really solid entry, and I hope the series continues in this vein. I'm still not sold on X-7 as the villain character, but although that element seems about to come to a head, his role in the better subplots of this book weren't as prominent.
B
Background: Hostage was written by [a:Alex Wheeler|2637206|Alex Wheeler|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] and published in January 2009. It is the second in the 6-book Rebel Force series, following [b:Target|5826424|Target (Star Wars Rebel Force, #1)|Alex Wheeler|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1328839011l/5826424._SX50_.jpg|5998557] (my review). Wheeler is the author of the whole series, which is his only listed Star Wars work. However, as I read this series, the Internet is abuzz with rumors that Pablo Hidalgo, one of the official keepers of Star Wars lore and a member of the Lucasfilm Story Group supposedly confirmed on Twitter just this year that Alex Wheeler (long known to be a pseudonym) is in fact another pen name for Judy Blundell aka [a:Jude Watson|11912|Jude Watson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1403530689p2/11912.jpg]. Blundell has issued a denial, but also posted a very confusing response to a different reader that suggested she in fact is the author. Under the name Jude Watson, Blundell has written some 50 Star Wars books, chief among the the 3 YA series chronicling the exploits of the main prequel-era Jedi throughout that time period.
Frankly, I'm not sure what to believe. Rebel Force is actually written to in some ways be a continuation of at least some of the characters and situations Watson established in her previous series, so if she didn't write it, it's a shame that those characters she shaped were handed off to someone else for their final adventures. On the other hand, if it is her, she's certainly adopted a somewhat different style of writing I would say, and one that I am not enjoying quite as much as her previous efforts. Still, people have speculated for years that Watson and Wheeler are one and the same, based on plot devices and themes that appear in Rebel Force.
In any case, Hostage takes place a few weeks after the Battle of Yavin, picking up very shortly after the end of the last book. The main characters are Han, Luke, and Leia, along with Chewie, the Imperial assassin X-7, and ex-Jedi Ferus Olin. The story takes place mostly on Yavin IV and Delaya, sister world to Alderaan.
Summary: Tasked with identifying and executing the pilot who blew up the Death Star, X-7 has successfully infiltrated the Rebellion and befriended Princess Leia. Knowing that she must have the information he needs, X-7 will stop at nothing to talk, trick, or (if he must) torture it out of her. But to do that, he'll need to stay close, which means accompanying Leia, Han, and Luke on their mission to Delaya, in the Alderaan system, new home to thousands of devastated refugees from Leia's homeworld. Emotionally vulnerable in the face of returning to the scene of her greatest loss, will Leia succumb to X-7's guile, or worse?
Review: After a week start, things are very much picking up in this book. If Watson is indeed the author, it's no surprise. This is the kind of thing she did best: unpacking the complex emotions of characters who have suffered significant trauma and loss. This is one of the few Star Wars books I've read that really deals with Leia's struggle in the period after Alderaan's destruction, and it's a rich vein of material, worthy of serious attention.
I had also forgotten that I had seen that Ferus Olin makes his return in this series. When last we saw him, his failure to launch a successful Rebellion against the nascent Empire had resulted in devastating personal consequences, and he had been tasked by Obi-Wan to watch over the young Princess Leia on Alderaan just as Obi-Wan himself was watching over Luke on Tatooine. Here, we learn that he was a much larger presence in Leia's life than Obi-Wan was in Luke's, but that he has played the role of a pompous, flattering hanger-on at court, and Leia kind of despises him and doesn't understand why her father placed so much trust in him. It's an interesting dynamic that contrasts with the relationship between Luke and Obi-Wan, and I look forward to seeing it unfold.
In addition, the story here is much more compelling, maybe because it's more personal to our heroes and the stakes seem so much higher. We begin to see Luke continuing to learn to trust his instincts, although it's clear that he hasn't quite fine-tuned them as a guidance system in line with the Force. But his moral compass serves him well in its stead in this case.
This was a really solid entry, and I hope the series continues in this vein. I'm still not sold on X-7 as the villain character, but although that element seems about to come to a head, his role in the better subplots of this book weren't as prominent.
B