The Force Unleashed

Rating NR Genre sci-fi Author Seam Williams Publisher Del Rey

The Empire is ascendant, the old Republic gone and Darth Vader, Lord of the Sith, is charged with rooting out the pockets of resistance that still remain led by survivors of the Jedi Purge. He activates his secret weapon, a young apprentice he has trained practically from birth in the power of the dark side, to carry out the final destruction of the Jedi and the eventual overthrow of the Emperor.

Accompanying the young Sith acolyte, codename Starkiller, on his mission is an Imperial pilot, Juno Eclipse. She starts to bring out the humanity in the young man as they work together.  With their plan close to fulfillment, the Emperor discovers Starkiller’s existence, orders him executed and Juno imprisoned for treason. Resurrected by technology and Vader, the apprentice is given a new and deeper plan to carry out; find Palpatine’s enemies and raise a rebellion. Only then can the Emperor be overtaken.

This new mission breeds conflict within Vader’s apprentice. He disobeys his teacher for the first time by rescuing Juno from prison before heading out. Then he forms an unlikely alliance with General Rahm Kota, a Jedi master he nearly killed. With Kota, Starkiller sees another way. New found feelings and actions pit him against Vader, setting him on an alternate path, one that will help him reclaim his lost past. 

An engaging, exciting character study about a man stripped of everything, turned into a killer, who still manages to find the humanity deep within him. I identified with Starkiller as he struggled with unfamiliar feelings of friendship and affection for his pilot, Juno, as well as with Kota. Williams does an exceptional job exploring the time right before Episode Four opens with the Rebellion and the Death Star. He gives a new layer to the enmity between Palpatine and Vader as well as conceiving some of the seeds that grew into revolution.

The plot is very clever and twisted, the stakes raised at every turn. The action is a little light, though and some parts are a bit slow going, but overall this is very well done. I enjoyed the tidbits with the origins of the rancor and sarlacc beasts. Anyone heavily invested in the Star Wars universe will enjoy this.