One of the biggest complaints from the Star Wars prequels is
the political aspects the movies focus on. People think the Senate scenes are
boring, and I agree for the most part. This doesn’t mean political films are
bad. Lucas just wasn’t able to draw us in with the story he tried to tell. If
they were to make a movie out of Claudia Gray’s Star Wars Bloodline it would be
the political thriller the prequel films should have been. It has compelling
characters, even ones we don’t know, and an enthralling twisting story.
The events of Bloodline take place six years before the
events of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The First Order is still lurking in the
shadows, and has not made its presence known. The New Republic Senate is
ineffective and fractured into two parties, the Centrist and Populist. The Centrist
believe in a strong central government and control. The populist believe a strong central government
is what lead to the Empire and should be avoided at all cost. Leia is a
Populist and an influential one, but who is getting tired of the political
struggle and ready to retire. She however finds one more reason to stick around
after an emissary from Ryloth pleads to the Senate to look into organized crime
activity happening in his area. This spurs Leia into action, but she is forced
to accept the help of a popular Centrist Senator, Ransolm Casterfo, so the
mission can proceed.
Claudia Gray did a fantastic job in Lost Stars of portraying
the mindset of Imperials. She showed how normal people with certain mindsets
could believe in the Empire and keep working for it. Ransolm Casterfo is
another example of Gray introducing us to an extremely nuanced character. We at
first view him from Leia’s eyes. As an Empire loving arrogant fool. By the end
of the novel you want him to succeed just as much, if not more than, Leia. At
the end he wasn’t really a fan of the Empire with Palpatine and Vader ruling,
but more of the control and order it provided. Misguided in my opinion, but
Gray paints in him in a way where his views are plausible and you can at least
see his side of the argument. One thing is for certain, something has to change
with the Senate or the New Republic could collapse. It is hard not to do draw
some parallels between the situation Gray paints in the book and our current
political climate. I won’t get bogged down here, but I think she made some good
points about real life politics in a galaxy far far away.
Along with the functional political story in the book the
main mystery plot is well done. I enjoyed trying to figure out how all the
parts fit together and who was on what side. There are some big reveals that
have impact on The Force Awakens. If you want a good entry point into the Star
Wars books this would be a great place to start because it introduces many interesting
facts that play into Episode 7. While reading I didn’t necessarily like the
reaction to a big reveal in the book. I didn’t think characters in the universe
would react the way they did when they found out a truth, but after thinking about
it more I ended up liking the choice. I think the choice plays a big part for
where Leia is during the Force Awakens. Without events in this book it would
make sense for Leia to still be a Senator in the New Republic, and this helps
explains why she is not.
The only other issue I had was how Han came swooping in at
one point of the book. It was too convenient and I thought they could have used
him in another way, or had him be introduced a little earlier to make it seem
more plausible. It is a small gripe for a long novel. I do think some will take
issue with the reaction to the big reveal in the novel. I don’t think this book may be for everyone.
If you are looking for an action packed adventure, this isn’t it. It is more of
a slow burn, but the action in it was perfect for Star Wars. I enjoyed this
book and can see myself listening to it again on audiobook, which is something
I reserve for only some of my favorite books.
Claudia Gray has written two great novels for the Star Wars
universe and I hope we get more books from her. If they decide to write a book
about the fall of Ben Solo, she is the author I want to write it. She writes
characters so well, if someone could show Ben’s decent into darkness I think it
would be her. She can show his perspective, and while I know many don’t think
he can be redeemed, I think Claudia could add good depth to him as a character.
Have you read Bloodlines
yet, if so what did you think? Did you like the how the story progressed or did
you think characters in the universe would have reacted to certain news differently?
If you haven’t read it yet will you give it a try? Comment and let me know.
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