Well, at least the Squibs are in it. It has that going for it. Otherwise: dead boring, and a frustratingly out-of-character autocratic Luke. I feel like Lucasfilm had an endpoint in mind (Luke as Grandmaster of a New Jedi Order structured exactly like the old Jedi Order), and that endpoint had to be reached whether it made sense or not. I want a happy Jedi Order that fundamentally gets along, not a group of argumentative children ruled by a dictator.

The premise: ganked from BN.com: In the explosive conclusion to the Dark Nest trilogy, Luke Skywalker summons the heroes of the New Jedi Order from near and far, as the Star Wars galaxy teeters on the edge of eternal war. Yet even the combined powers of the formidable Jedi may not be enough to vanquish the deadly perils confronting them.

The Chiss-Killik border war is threatening to engulf the entire galaxy and raising the awful specter of Killiks sweeping across space to absorb all living creatures into a single hive mind. The only hope for peace lies with the Jedi–and only if they can not only end the bloodshed between two fierce enemies but also combat the insidious evil spread by the elusive Dark Nest and its unseen queen.

Leia’s newly acquired Jedi skills will be put to the ultimate test in the coming life-and-death battle. As for Luke, he will have to prove, in a lightning display of Force strength and swordplay, that he is -- beyond a shadow of a doubt -- the greatest Jedi Master in the galaxy.

My Rating: Worth Reading, with Reservations

Goal accomplished! I really wanted to finish this trilogy before the end of the year, so finish it I did! As a whole, it's not my favorite Star Wars arc: I think there was far too much filler and the arc could've been condensed to two books rather than three. I also never really took the Killiks seriously: I never sympathized, so I struggled with the characters who did, and the whole Joiner element bothered me greatly, in that it seemed too easy to overpower Jedi Knights who were powerful in their own right and make them, well, weak. With the exception of one major arc (because I've gotten spoilers for later), I'm curious to see how the events of this trilogy will reverberate through later books. But for now, I've got four non-Luke & Co novels to read before I get to the next installment featuring this cast, and right now, I'm glad for the break. There were definitely some frustrating moments in this trilogy, but as a whole, particularly for one specific character, it was detrimental to the overall EU. Stuff will be HAPPENING, and I'm really, really curious to see how it all plays out.

Spoilers, yay or nay?: Yay. And I also want to point out: there will be spoilers, at any given moment, for the entire run of Star Wars books up until the date the current book was published. So if the Star Wars are something you want to get into, stop now and read THIS instead. I don't recommend anyone reading the full review unless they've read the book I'm reviewing now, due to aforementioned spoilers, so stop now or -- if you have read the book -- carry on!

The full review may be found at my blog, and if you're interested, just click the link below and it'll take you directly to the review. As always, comments and discussion are most welcome!

REVIEW: Troy Denning's THE SWARM WAR

Happy Reading! ( )

(Alistair) (The first couple of the books in this trilogy, The Joiner King and The Unseen Queen, I'd read before I started booklogging.)

Alas, something of a weak and anticlimactic end to not to the strongest series (or sub-series, if series would be more appropriately applied to the entire SW EU book collection). While some of the sub-plots (especially those tied into long-term plot arcs, such as the changes in the Jedi Order, both internally and in the relationship with the government of the Galactic Alliance, Luke finally finding out some information about his family - from RotS-era recordings, and some of the set-up for Jacen's upcoming plotline) held interest, the conclusion to the Chiss-Killik war frankly didn't. And I'm entirely unsure that some characters were behaving consistently with their established personalities, even if being assimilated into the Killik hive hive mind (something which's portrayal was at its best in the first book, unfortunately, and not so much later) can account for some of that.

Good enough for reading, especially since it sits on some significant continuity, certainly, but come on, Mr. Denning. We've read your work in the past, and we expect better. Please don't 'phone it in.
( http://weblog.siliconcerebrate.com/cerebrate/2008/08/the_swarm_war_troy_denning.... ) ( )

"Star Wars : Dark Nest III"

I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/13696970