With author Claudia Gray’s second book in the Star Wars canon, Bloodline, she becomes the most prolific novelist therein by default. But more than that, along with her first foray into the Galaxy far, far away, Lost Stars, she has proven herself as the greatest canon author to date.
(I’ll only talk about one major spoiler, at the very end of my review, as it’s essentially the crux of why this story is so good.)
Bloodline takes place roughly 6 years prior to The Force Awakens, and the Galaxy is at a vastly different place than it was in the film. The novel follows Senator Leia Organa as she follows a lead that finds her confronting a mysterious Nikto crime organization that has sprung up within the void left by the Hutts. This organization, it turns out, is funded by an extremely wealthy client. Throughout the novel Leia and her allies discover something truly incredible.
Though the novel doesn’t have any huge revelations for us as readers, the draw here is that we get to see the revelations occur for the first time through our characters eyes. Gray does this exceedingly well, and her grasp on character, particularly that of our favorite Princess, knows no boundaries. The shock reveals are all the more exciting, because we know what they allude to, and can conjecture as to what happens next. As a puzzle piece in the ever expanding Star Wars universe, this proves most satisfying.
With The Force Awakens, we never really got to see anything with the New Republic, perhaps a move by Disney to not show any political drama in the sequels – a heavy criticism of the prequels. Starkiller Base just goes and blows it all up for us. With Bloodline, we finally get to learn more about the goings on in the newly reformed senate, and then some. The novel is chock-full of political intrigue and drama. On the surface that may sound like a bit of a drag, but this book is anything but. It’s highly entertaining, and at a turning point in the Senate’s history.
Claudia Gray does some incredible work with creating budding friendships out of unlikely partners. Ransolm Casterfo, a political rival in the Centrist party, is young, zealous, and totally unlike Leia in every way. The goal of the Centrist party worlds within the New Republic political structure is to bring back a more domineering, stronger government, not unlike the Empire. Leia’s political party, the Populists, seek to give more power to the people. Naturally the two parties bicker. These differing ideals make for a highly entertaining adventure, as Leia and Casterfo learn to overcome their differences in pursuit of their goal, which is to find out more about the aforementioned criminal organization and bring it down.
We also get to know quite well who Leia surrounds herself with, politically, as well as in the workplace. We learn about the lives of some of those whom she employs, and about her current relationship with Han. I feel as though I’d very much like to learn more about these side-characters, and hope to have many more adventures with them within the expanded medium of books and comics, if not for films or tv shows.
(Spoilers follow from here, though it’s to be mentioned it was spoiled quite heavily in the marketing campaign for the book.)
The mic drops, so to speak, when Leia is outed as Darth Vader’s daughter. Though this proves no small matter to those of us who’ve known this for years, it’s a big deal to those in the Galaxy far, far away who remember the oppression brought about by Vader and the Empire. It’s a bomb that ruins Leia’s life, career, and relationships with many. And it’s also a highly believable development, though its discovery is slightly convenient. How this concept hasn’t been addressed yet is beyond me, because it’s so brilliant, and so easy, and yet so difficult to pull off with such finesse. Claudia Gray has no trouble making this the climax to her tale, and it’s this that cements the book as one of my favorite canon novels to date.
Geekritique
I’ve been considering reading this and based off of your review I think I’ll give it a try! Last week I was standing at a Target with this book in hand and I couldn’t decide, so I set it down. I may need to re-think that decision!!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s a great read, and well worth it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It sounds like this covers some of the story ground that TFA should have done. Given the length of time from the film to this book’s release, I’m going to guess that it was more of a scrabble to fill in the blanks than the result of meticulous planning.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The author began writing prior to the film’s release, so it definitely doesn’t feel less like a scrabble, and more like meticulous planning. The only thing TFA should have shown us is more of the senate before getting wrecked. This feels like it’s very own story, and most of it wouldn’t fit in the the kind of story the Skywalker lineage is trying to tell with VII-IX.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Nice review. It’s got me interested in reading the book. But I do have to wonder if perhaps the new owners of Star Wars will put too much in the books, and now the fanbase will be compelled to read them in order to understand the films.
LikeLiked by 2 people
You need not worry. The main films will take precedent, and you’ll never need to read any extra material. They just add to the understanding and color in some background characters.
LikeLike
Hopefully they won’t. Although I have to admit that I felt a little lost watching TFA the first time around.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Everyone was. There was a 30 year gap in the story. It was about rediscovering Star Wars. The next few films I think you’ll find you’ll be all caught up.
LikeLike
I guess they were trying to, not so subtly, show that it was going to be a different story. But I can’t wait for the next installment. Hell, I can’t wait for Rogue One.
LikeLiked by 1 person