Dull but good gap bridging
July 2010
A review of No Prisoners
Having read, and very much enjoyed, Karen Traviss’ novelisation of the Clone Wars film I was eagerly anticipating her latest addition to this mini saga.However, I sadly felt this book lacked the excitement, pace and humour of the Clone Wars novelisation. I found it as hard going and difficult to visualise as I did her Republic Commando books. There wasn’t much of a plot and what little there was wasn’t at all captivating.
I have said many times that I like Karen Traviss and think what she has brought to the Expanded Universe is excellent, especially her work with the Clones and Mandalorian culture. My problem with her is that I find her writing very dull. It’s easy to fall asleep during chapters and I can never figure out who anybody is. This book was no different.
It did have its good points. As much as I hate the train wreck that was “Planet of Twilight” by Barbara Hambly, I did like the way Traviss filled in some of the holes regarding the Altis Jedi group and this might make her books slightly less painful if I ever dare to pick them up again – which is highly unlikely. Callista is a good character and the subtle hints we got as to what would become of her were written well. Including other well known characters like Pellaeon was also good. I like reading new books that bridge gaps between older novels and deal with clearing up some inconsistencies brought on by the prequels. Traviss handled this very well.
So what is my verdict? Well I’d say that it is probably worth buying if you are a real fan of the books but it’s definitely not one of the best.
