Narwhals: Arctic Whales in a Melting World
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Among all the large whales on Earth, the most unusual and least studied is the narwhal, the...
Indie Saint: An Urban Fantasy Adventure (Words of Power #1)
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Jane's young. She's broke. Oh, and she just discovered she has supernatural powers so bizarre they...
NBA Dunk by Panini 2018
Sports and Entertainment
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NBA DUNK from Panini is the exclusive and officially licensed trading card and collecting app of the...
Dominion: Adventures
9.0
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Tabletop Game
Life is either a daring adventure or nothing. You're not sure which, but at least you've narrowed it...
Near and Far
8.4
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Tabletop Game
Four wanderers search for the Last Ruin, a city that legends say contains an artifact that will...
Boardgames StoryGames LaukatGames
Belle, Book and Christmas candle
8.0
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Book
Sky St Clair doesn't, and growing up in Castle Clair, a small town renowned for its mystical past...
David McK (3600 KP) rated The Last Command (Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy, #3) in Books
Nov 21, 2021
So we're talking before the Prequel trilogy, never mind the Sequel trilogy. Before even the 'Special Editions' of the original movies.
And, talking of the Sequel Trilogy: I'm of the opinion that these would have been a better basis for those films than the disjointed mess we eventually got: there's a clear overall arc to the plot here, it doesn't disrespect the core characters (Han, Luke, Leia) while also does both deepen and expand upon the original trilogy, and introduces certain characters and locations that later made their way into the mainline movies: Coruscant? Grand Admiral Thrawn? The Noghri? All have their first appearances in these novels. I'm still waiting for Mara Jade to make her live-action debut, though ...
That's not to say that changes would have been needed: The Clone Wars mentioned here, for example, here has the Clones as the villains of the piece, and makes absolutely no reference to the Droid armies of the Trade Federation (understandably, as - remember - this was released way before 1999s 'The Phantom Menace').
All in all, this is a strong trilogy of novels that laid the groundwork for what would later become known as the Expanded Universe- later renamed as Legends - and of which parts are now being cherry-picked to fit into the main story lines following Disney's acquisition of Lucasfilm back in (roughly) 2012 or so.
David McK (3600 KP) rated Thrawn Ascendancy Book II: Greater Good in Books
Sep 4, 2022
Back to the early 90s, when Zahn first introduced the character in Heir to the Empire, and 'kickstarted' the old Star Wars Expanded Universe (EU), now known as Star Wars: Legends.
Thrawn is one of the few characters (so far) mined from said EU and carried over the the Disney era of Star Wars, which is no surprise giving his popularity.
What may be slightly surprising, however, is (IMO) just how 'different' this version of the character feels: not better nor worse, just different. In the case of this novel (part 2 of a trilogy, after Chaos Rising but before Lesser Evil, what is also surprising is just how loosely connected to the rest of the Star Wars sandbox universe this is - I mean this as in there are no Jedi or Sith, no lightsabres, no Old Republic, no Seperatists, no Empire and no Rebellion.
Indeed, as before, the very opening sentence of the novel makes that clear: "A long time ago, beyond a galaxy far far away ..."
The Star Wars 'sandbox', of course, is more than big enough to accommodate such a departure, with those who have read part one of the trilogy knowing more of what to expect: Thrawn's tactical genius but political blindness, a few 'large scale' space battles and individuals in the Chiss family to which Thrawn belongs seeking to undermine him whilst other shadowy figures also have their own design for the Chiss Ascendency ...
Merissa (13197 KP) rated Ariadne Unraveled: A Mythic Retelling in Books
Jul 6, 2021 (Updated Jul 17, 2023)
The story takes various myths and legends and weaves them into one epic story that features betrayal, transformation, friendship, loyalty, and love. Instead of the usual Athenian telling of the Minotaur, we hear from the Minoans themselves. We learn how their women knew things about their own bodies that others didn't. We see how the Minoans were a magical, intelligent race that made mistakes just like any other. And woven through is Dionysus as he feels his way and figures out just who he is.
Wow! Just... wow! What a story. So intricate and rich in detail, I was totally immersed in Ariadne's story. I loved hearing about her - both the big picture and also the small, intimate details that made her life. And, yes, I know this is myth, but with how it has been written, I could see myself there and it all seemed real. There were even tears shed at some points, it was that good! The pacing is perfect and the writing style is smooth.
This is the first book by this author I have read, but I can guarantee you it won't be the last. Absolutely brilliant and highly recommended by me.
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Jul 6, 2021