This new official post-RotJ (Return of the Jedi) tale is full of likable characters, a galaxy in flux, and a fun new robot that almost makes up for its clumsy battle droid cousins.
Star Wars: Aftermath – Readers Hate It, Listeners Love It
The divide over Star Wars: Aftermath is fairly obvious if you visit the book’s product pages on Amazon and Audible. The ratings are almost a mirror image of each other. Take a look at this Star Wars Interactive Chart I made to see the divided fan base. It’s interesting how readers are strongly split along print and audio.
Click to look at data trends, or just blow up the Death Star! (Source: Amazon and Audible)
I left the Star Wars universe a decade ago after the movie prequels concluded, disheartened by the direction the story had taken. On a family trip to Disney in October 2015, I was jolted back into Star Wars mode. Downtown Disney was jammed with gobs of Star Wars merchandise (for The Force awakens, coming that December). The R2-D2 suitcases and stormtrooper helmets were easy to ignore, but I decided to give the book a try. I really wanted to see where the Star Wars story was headed. But I was still tentative, so I picked up a copy of Aftermath from my public library.
What’s amazing about Star Wars: Aftermath (which I’ve dubbed Episode VI.I) is how author Chuck Wendig captures the feel of the original cinema saga we love but with a whole new cast of characters. Some might take issue with this statement – and many other things about the new “official” continuation of the Star Wars story – but put down the blasters and look at the data. Book ratings bear out evidence that there’s a huge love of this story. This is no Phantom Menace – there won’t be a mass exodus of fans. What we have is an interesting and polarizing reaction to this story. I’d expect no less from Star Wars fans.
The first twelve weeks of the book’s release showed a majority of Amazon print or ebook ratings were 1 Star (575), but the second highest rating was 5 star (278). Although the fans are half the number of non-fans, the fans embrace the story fully.
Surprisingly, Kindle readers split their star ratings almost evenly across the board. No single star rating dominated. The real group that took issue with the story were readers of good ol’ fashion print books.
The format obviously mattered where audiobooks are concerned. More than half of “readers” have given the book 4 or 5 stars. The 5 star ratings dominated, and when broken down by performance, story, and overall ratings, fans overwhelming loved the performance of the narration. (Hey, Shakespeare got his street cred for his writing AND the performances of his work…not that I’m comparing this to Shakespeare.)
The three data sources (Amazon, Audible and Goodreads) all give a different picture of fan reactions. For myself, I picked up the audiobook because I was not willing to invest more than my work commute to experiencing this story. I was just that skeptical of Star Wars in general. But I’m glad I gave the Force a shot again. (Yes, I was going to the movie anyway!) I can say that I love this story. I love the rogue, self-interested Imperial and bounty hunter and the bruised, tired rebel heroes. I love their plight and I love their personal struggles of how to live in this galaxy in flux. I think I just might be a Star Wars fan again.
I even love Mr. Bones! Man, if the battle droids can be redeemed, that by itself deserves credit. And since every Star Wars story requires a “boy and his droid,” this is the one we should have gotten instead of that mess on Tatooine at the turn of the century.
Thank you Chuck Wendig.
-JP
Subscribe to future posts. I’m planning a followup on how Star Wars: Aftermath trends after the new movie comes out.
A Galaxy We Love (Ep. 60) | Star Wars Aftermath by Chuck Wendig (pt1)
New official Star Wars story. High expectations. Here we go.
A Flat Sci-Fi Parody (Ep. 59) | Redshirts by John Scalzi
This is a lifeless Star Trek parody that takes nihilism to the extreme. It’s not without its laughs, but it ends up being a hollow sermon on how life is what you make of it.
Fight to the Bitter End (Ep. 58) | The Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan (pt2/finale)
The Dragon Reborn expands the mythology of the Wheel of Time series and its protagonists face increasingly powerful foes and dangers from every direction.
A Fellowship Divided (Ep. 57) | The Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan (pt1)
“For the world has grown full of peril. And in all lands, love is now mingled with grief.”
This line is from the fantasy epic Lord of the Rings movie, but it beautifully portrays the sense of urgency and import in the third entry of Robert Jordan’s magnum opus, the Wheel of Time series.
None of the heroes in The Dragon Reborn are safe and all must find strength to fulfill their destiny lest the world enter a dark age from which there will be no escape.
BOOK TALK: The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin
Brace yourself for aftershocks with this one. This world’s culture and geography will rock you. Spoilers galore.
This Story’s Aftershocks are Hard to Shake (Ep. 56)
Reign of Books Podcast is a discussion of our current reads and includes spoilers galore. Check out Book Talks in menu for short spoilercast on the book.
The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin (pt2/finale), Ep. 56
The price of admission is well worth it, with the book showing us not only a compelling, frightening world but packing it with a brutal realism depicting how its inhabitants are forced to survive (as individuals and as a society). Jemisin masterfully holds back details of this world, letting us experience the story with the characters as events unfold and letting the consequences of their actions slowly sink in. This happens in deeply personal ways and makes the story feel more than mere fantasy. I reeled from the trauma that each of the three lead female characters experienced and marveled at their determination to continue on. The women’s stories pack an emotional weight that becomes the center of the narrative and takes hold quickly.
REIGNfall – Irresponsible vs. Responsible Characters
Welcome to REIGNfall, our weekly series on book topics where we talk fiction and ponder the world of storytelling.
Sinking ships, space karate, chosen ones and much more. We love our fictional characters. They enthrall us with their adventures (or misadventures), their triumphs, losses, personal courage and funny lines. They make fiction what it is. Some characters show they can own up to their actions and keep moving. Others don’t know what personal responsibility is and cause major problems. Check out who we love and who we love to hate in some of our favorite fiction.
An Unstable World that Breeds Fear (Ep. 55)
Reign of Books Podcast is a discussion of our current reads and includes spoilers galore. Check out Book Talks in menu for short spoilercast on the book.
The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin (pt1), Ep. 55
The Earth breaks frequently, and with devastating effect. Earthquakes, volcano eruptions and tsunamis all conspire to erase any trace of human society, and, incidentally, the species itself. The skeletons of forgotten civilizations (“deadciv” ruins) that litter the landscape are a testament to the endless war the Earth wages on us. Thus the scene is set for the Fifth Season, named so for the cataclysmic events in the book.
REIGN of Books 