Heir to the Jedi: Star Wars

This is only the second star wars book (to my knowledge) written in the third person and I think it's great. What most star wars fans don't realize is that you don't have to have 100% of the book being lightsabee fights and ships blowing up. This gives great insight into the mind of Luke and gives great insight into why things happen in the future

There are some nice character moments in Kevin Hearne's Heir to the Jedi, but I can't shake the feeling that it's not the same Luke we saw in the films.

Of the three adult Star Wars novels released since the EU relaunch (including A New Dawn and Tarkin), I think Heir to the Jedi is the most interesting. But it also has the weakest plot. As the publisher's summary notes, Luke goes on a mission to retrieve an Imperial cryptologist. It's the same premise as last year's Honor Among Thieves. Luke and Nakari basically bounce from one planet to another on a series of small adventures, but that seems more like the backdrop for the story rather than the story itself. I doubt anybody will be surprised at the ending of the book. Certain things have to happen. However, how it happens actually becomes interesting. This is definitely a book more interested in characters than in plot or action.

At its core, Heir to the Jedi is about Luke's relationship to the Force and to other people. Most of the old EU stories set in between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back seemed content to treat Luke as already a fairly skilled Jedi. Hearne realizes that at this point Luke had not had any training in the Force other than Ben Kenobi's instructions on the Millennium Falcon. In Heir to the Jedi, we get to see Luke struggle with basic Force skills. For example, we see the first time Luke uses telekinesis. It's a worthy payoff not just because it's a significant accomplishment but is also so humble. The ending provides an important payoff of a different sort, both in Luke's relationship with the other characters and his relationship to the Force. It subtly contrast Luke's decisions with those of his father.

That said, something about Luke's characterization in this novel feels off. In the Star Wars mythos, Luke Skywalker is the archetypical quest hero. He fights with a "laser sword," directly echoing medieval knights. He's also a fighter pilot, echoing the view of jet fighter jocks as the modern form of knights (at least during the 1970s and 1980s). Luke seems ill suited to "cloak and dagger" missions. In Heir to the Jedi, the Rebellion sends Luke to act as an arms buyer, but that seems more like Leia's area of expertise. I couldn't help but ask why the Rebels wouldn't send a professional retrieval team to rescue the cryptographer (incidentally, they do so for the cryptographer's family). Luke even talks about how he could find enjoyment in planning recon missions, which seems very different from the character we see in Empire Strikes Back.

Much has been made of Hearne's decision to write this novel from a first-person perspective. The only other Star Wars novel narrated in first person is Michael Stackpole's I, Jedi, but even that novel featured Corran Horn, a character who did not appear in the movies. Some fans were worried about the use of first person for a major character, whereas others thought it would provide for an exciting change.

Surprisingly, for most of the book, the first person narration did not really affect my reading of the story. For better or worse, it's generally not intrusive. The narrative and action flows pretty well, with a few observations and insights from Luke. So if you don't like the idea of reading a story in the first person, I wouldn't worry too much. Near the end, there are a few excellent character moments in which Hearne takes advantage of the first-person narration to tell us how Luke feels. At a few points, seeing Luke's thought process helps explain why he ultimately did not fall to the Dark Side like his father.

Overall, I'm glad I read this book, mostly for the payoff at the end. I wish the book had created an original character rather than use Luke in order to avoid some of those character inconsistencies. However, if you can overlook a few moments here or there, there's actually a decent coming of age story in Heir to the Jedi.

[I received an advance version of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.]

Heir to the Jedi, the third Star Wars Book in the new Canon. Written by Kevin Hearne, a New York Times Best Seller. This book is written if first person. Not really the ideal way to write a Star Wars book. You’re either going to love the style or hate it. (The Legends book I, Jedi was the first Star Wars book written in first person.)
In this book, Luke goes on one mission to another and another with all new characters, with the brief passing of a few familiar names like Leia and Akbar. I believe this book failed on so many levels. The biggest failure in this book is the portrayal of Luke Skywalker, (who just so happens to be my favorite character) a complete disservice!

Heir to the Jedi takes place soon after the Battle of Yavin, long before the events of The Empire Strikes Back. Luke doesn’t know much about the force as of yet but starts small by moving objects (noodles). This book portrays Luke Skywalker and the other new characters as complete morons. Do yourself a favor and watch my more in depth review before you spend the money on this book.

Kevin Hearne, he tried, I think… It might be best if he keeps his pen from writing any Star Wars Books for a long time. Heir to the Jedi was a major flop. I really can’t believe this book was approved to be a part of the Canon. The cover on this book is pretty awesome – Life lesson – don’t judge a book by its cover.
I want to give this book a 0 out of 5

NOTE: I received an ARC from the publishers through NetGalley for reviewing purposes! All opinions expressed are my own and are not influenced in any way!

To start, it's unnerving reading a novel in the 1st person character from Luke's point of view. I have read many Star Wars novels over the years, and the vast majority don't employ this device. Maybe I've been conditioned to read SW novels a certain way, and that's why I didn't care for this narration.

I read Star Wars novels to revisit the galaxy “far, far away”. So when I come across an Earth-centric word or object, it immediately takes me out of the story. I'm sad to say this happened in the very first chapter. Examples: “bandage” , “ice cream” and “toothpicks”. Really? The author couldn't find words more appropriate to the GFFA? I'm even more sad to say this occurred throughout the book, not just in the first chapter.

Something I did really like about this novel was that it tackled how Luke received Jedi training after Obi-Wan's death. I had always wondered – in Return of the Jedi especially, how Luke went from barely knowing anything of the Force to mastering it when his mentor had died. Thus, I'm glad this novel addressed that. Indeed, this, more than any other part of “Heir to the Jedi” made reading this book a treat. That is not to say the McGuffin of rescuing a Givin from Imperial clutches was boring. Rather, I just prefer the more esoteric, mystical parts of the Star Wars saga. And that's probably why the Dagobah scenes were my favorite in The Empire Strikes Back.
As to the overall story, I couldn't help but feel there was a paint-by-numbers feel to the storytelling. Although well-written in terms of grammar and vocabulary, I almost felt as though the author was checking off boxes as to how to propel the story along. OK, Ackbar does the exposition to explain the mission, then Luke needs to be shown where to go and who to go to for help, then the mission parameters are defined, etc. etc. For me, “well-written” didn't necessarily mean the story itself was entrancing or exciting.

One part of the novel that didn't quite work for me was the ready trust the Rodians at Chekkoo placed in Luke. Sure, they knew someone named “Luke Skywalker” would be the Rebel representative seeking to acquire weapons from them, but given their high level of security, why were they so unguarded with their security measures, their operational details? Why did they have such confidence that Luke was “Luke”, and therefore, were so open about their catalog of weapons and the security measures in their hidden complex? These entire scenes didn't quite seem plausible to me. This is especially ironic considering Luke's distrust of Drusil, wondering if she might be an Imperial agent. Ah well, I guess the author felt two instances of distrust and suspicion was too much to insert into his story.

I appreciated the few touches of humor in this book. The sewer scenes were both disgusting and entertaining at the same time. And the math! Oh, the math – humor at the expense of a subject I didn't care for at all while I was in school. Delightful!

For fleet junkies, you'll enjoy the dogfights in this novel. You will also love the descriptions of armaments and vehicles, but especially in the scenes depicting space chases and escapes. For those not so inclined, don't worry – the technical descriptions aren't over the top. You will read about interdictors and shield capabilities and missiles and sensors, but they didn't rise to the level of incomprehensible gobbledy-gook.

One thing I always find interesting about Star Wars novels is an author's introduction of a new species/planet into the greater SW universe. In this regard, Hearne did an excellent job with Kupoh and the Kupohan species. The planet reminded me a little bit of Cloud City in the atmospheric conditions and the natives were like earth gypsies crossed with Bajorans from the world of Trek. I wouldn't mind encountering this species in future SW novels.

Something occurred at novel's end that surprised me but if I was meant to feel sad, anguished or bereaved well, I did not. Sometimes, a newly introduced character really captures the reader and becomes a fan favorite (hello Thrawn) and sometimes it doesn't. For me, the demise of this person fell into the latter category.

Overall, I felt this was an adequate book. Adequate in storytelling, plotting and pacing. However, it did advance the story of how Luke improves in his mastery of the Force. That alone would be enough to get me to read this novel.

I'm glad that I borrowed this book from the public library and didn't buy it.

The book is written in the first person from Luke's perspective, and it just doesn't work. Hearne's narration doesn't sound like Luke to me. Actually, most of the book doesn't even sound like Star Wars. In order to compensate for this deficiency, Hearne sprinkles the text with some direct quotations from the movies. It's a cheap trick that will appeal to some younger readers who will be pleased that they caught the references. At one point Luke actually says something like—Hey! I never did pick up those power converters from Tosche Station! I think most older fans will roll their eyes at the awkward attempt at rooting the novel in the Star Wars universe.

The first half of this book wasn't worth reading at all. Luke does this thing and then that thing and then he does something else over here. The scenes seem random and they don't further the plot or Luke's character development. There were a number of details that seemed important at the time, but then never showed up again. I almost gave up on the book, but I figured that since it's a relatively short book I might as well finish it.

The second half of the book is actually much better than the first half. It doesn't necessarily sound like Star Wars, but at least it's interesting. It seems likely that Hearne wrote the second half first. Maybe he wrote a decent 120-page novella and then cobbled together some random scenes to try to explain how the characters got to the beginning of the story.

This book shows how Luke learned more about the Force between the end of Episode IV and the beginning of Episode V. Unless you really need to read everything Star Wars, you could safely skip finding out, because it's a little dull.

There’s a place in the Star Wars universe for a first-person Luke Skywalker adventure. Heir to the Jedi, while entertaining and sometimes humorous, is not perfectly executed. I won’t make excuses for its shortcomings, but will say that this novel was a close mix of enjoyable and puzzling. This story is, in my opinion, best served in the audiobook format, playing in the background and receiving marginal attention while living life. The fact of the matter is that it is a light-hearted look into the first steps of a fledgling Jedi, and when it is focused on that, Heir to the Jedi is quite good.

The biggest problem with this novel is not that every word seems to originate from the trash compactor; the problem is that there are a handful of issues that distract and detract from the story. Those elements are the first-person perspective, the constant focus on food, the awkward attention to math, as well as the absurdly goofy tone that pervades the narrative. If you are able to overlook those issues (or if they had been removed editorially), Heir to the Jedi would have been much more palatable.

All in all, Heir to the Jedi’s strongest elements grapple with its weaknesses, and at best I found it to be slightly entertaining. One thing’s for sure: the cover is incredible, and I’m glad to have it on my shelf. Secondly, walking with Luke on his path to becoming a Jedi is a walk I’m (mostly) glad I went on. Finally, Heir to the Jedi survives my criticism because quite frankly I believe that not every Star Wars book has to be one that makes me jump for joy. It’s good every now and then to pick up a light and silly read about a young Jedi-in-training just figuring things out, rather than saving the galaxy from superweapons and Sith Lords.

After his role in the Battle of Yavin, Luke Skywalker has been doing his best to be useful for the Rebel Alliance. His current mission could be of great importance. The Alliance has discovered that a skilled cryptographer is being held by Imperial forces, who hope to use her abilities for their own purposes. But she is willing to assist the Alliance instead, on the condition that they free her and reunite her with her family. Luke takes on the mission with the assistance Nakari Kelen, a wealthy heiress with a score to settle. After securing the funds to outfit their ship with better weapons, Luke and Nakari head off to liberate the cryptographer. But the mission is fraught with danger from Imperials, bounty hunters, and spies, and Luke will need to rely on his friends and his own abilities, both as a pilot and with the Force, to succeed.

For readers who have wondered at the changes in Luke Skywalker between "A New Hope" and "The Empire Strikes Back," this novel is sure to fill in some of the void. Like all of the licensed Star Wars books, "Heir to the Jedi" is extremely well-written and stays true to the galaxy that George Lucas envisioned. This is a fantastic book that is over far too quickly.

Originally written for San Francisco Book Review.

I've left the Star Wars Universe at what turned out to be roughly halfway through the Yuuzhan Vong invasion. Good story to that particular one, not important. That was back in 2007. I correctly called that TFA was going to be garbage as soon as I heard the rumors it was being made. I am one of those fans that TFA made *extremely* angry and as far as books are concerned, I will not go chronologically past the point I stopped at. Yes, I found out what happened to my favorite character and I'm still pissed about it.

Seeing this one in the library and seeing where it fit in the timeline seemed like a decent pick to read in the gym. The first 20 chapters were actually really good. It made me laugh in a lot of places and I am one of those people who can calculate eigenvalues in my head, so I could even appreciate the math jokes. My home gang thought the Fexian skullborers were plenty creepy and even some goofy pictures had been drawn. And I actually really liked Nakari: nice and obnoxious, just to my liking.

Then comes the kick in the teeth. I will say no more, but if you want to actually enjoy this, do not start chapter 21. After that, it's ruined.

When I heard about a new Star Wars novel by Iron Druid author Kevin Hearne, who had proven to me that he could take old mythologies and make them new, I was pretty excited.

Heir to the Jedi is a pretty good exploration of what it feels like to be a burgeoning Jedi with no real training. It is a really mediocre novel otherwise.

For starters, the characterization is off. Calling someone Luke Skywalker doesn't make him Luke if he talks differently, thinks differently, and performs differently. The “newbie” Jedi bops back and forth from wry commentary about life, to commando level tactical awareness, to super-piloting, and then we’re supposed to believe he’s insecure and doubtful about the Force, girls, and relationships.

That’s another thing: The only character who can’t figure out some way to teach Luke about the Force is R2-D2. It’s such a mystery that everyone else can guide Luke over dinner conversation. At this rate Luke doesn’t need to go to Degobah to learn from Yoda. He needs to open a food court and flirt some more.

If this story were somehow wedged into the middle of Stackpole’s I Jedi about an expert commando and veteran pilot suddenly discovering the force, I would believe it. But insted of Corran Horn it’s supposed to be the super-earnest Farm Boy of Destiny doing all these things.

The ending was particularly weak. The established genre fiction formula of Dark Moment – Critical Decision – Dramatic Reversal never really happened. At half of the key moments Luke is more spectator than anything else, which means he should NOT be the point of view character. The ending was dramatically significant for Luke’s future character choices, but they carried no real feel of resolution. It was a novel without a climax, and that leaves no one satisfied.

Then there is the ragged episode-related plot. Heir to the Jedi has the same plot structure as Voyage of the Dawn Treader in the Narnia books. It is a series of almost completely unrelated stories held together by the same cast and some underlying character grown in one and only one character. The problem is, Jedi has none of Dawn Treader‘s heart or soul, so the two primary strengths of the format disappear leaving only sort-of-entertaining stories between the same cover.

There are worse Star Wars novels out there, to be sure. Thirty years of Expanded Universe produced some stinkers. This is the least professional novel I’ve ever seen Hearne crank out.

A disappointment as Star Wars or as a Hearne novel. Not recommended.

Who’s up for more adventures in that Galaxy Far, Far Away? I know I always am! Heir To The Jedi has the honor of being the first novel in the newly rebooted canon to feature one of the “main three” characters from the films, as Tarkin was focused on that stellar baddie and A New Dawn was busy setting up the Star Wars: Rebels television series. The funny thing is, this still fits perfectly well with the older canon, which isn’t surprising since it was ordered before the cut. In fact, it was originally supposed to close out the Empire And Rebellion so-called trilogy, now a duology with the omission of this volume. The series isn’t really hurt by this though–the stories bore no relation to each other, and were a trilogy only by virtue of theme: first-person narratives, each focusing on one of the “big three” characters. As far as I’m concerned, this can “count” for both universes, both the official one overseen by the Lucasfilm Story Group and the more tumultuous “Legends” canon that came before.

The Death Star has been destroyed, but the Empire lives on. Though they’ve bloodied the Empire’s nose, the Rebel Alliance finds itself in an extremely tenuous situation, on the run and strapped for cash. The Empire has them outnumbered and outgunned in nearly every way, leaving the Alliance desperate for any advantage they can muster. So when word comes that a brilliant cryptographer under Imperial “protection” would like to defect, they have little room to refuse. Luke hasn’t had much time to train with the Force–in fact, without Ben around to train him, he has absolutely no idea what he’s doing–but he’s still one of the best pilots in the Rebellion. Alongside Nakari Kelen, newly-recruited Rebel and a crack shot with her slugthrower, Luke is dispatched to an alien world to stage a rescue under the very nose of the Empire….

There are a lot of terms I could use to describe this particular adventure, but I think the best one to pick would be “fun.” Remember the sense of unadulterated adventure you felt watching the original films for the first time? That’s what you get with this book, minus the whining Luke does through most of the first movie. That callow youth who yearned for something, anything to take him away from the sun-scorched sands of Tatooine is gone, sobered by the loss of friends both new and old. In his place stands an awkward young man just beginning to understand his place in the galaxy, conscious of his connection to the mystical Force but unsure how to proceed with learning to tap into it. No longer the boy he was, not yet the man he will become, this is Luke Skywalker at a crossroads, and anything can happen next….Or, you know, not. Because while this is all new territory, it was conceived before the reboot came down. Even leaving that aside, we know what the status quo is at the beginning of Empire. The game isn’t going to be changed by this book. But that’s okay. There are still things to be learned here. We can watch Luke take his first solo steps towards realizing his fate as a Jedi, cringe at his awkwardness with the entire field of romance, and cry with him when that romance proves doomed.* For the first time, we can really get inside Luke’s head as he narrates the entire adventure in the first-person POV. And who knew? His internal dialogue is remarkably entertaining! Bottom line, this is Star Wars at its best, as you remember it. I heartily recommend picking this one up.

As for when this happens, the closest I can nail it down is “shortly after” Star Wars IV: A New Hope. I’d say at least a couple months later, probably not more than a year. It’s pretty vague.

CONTENT: Mild profanity, mostly fictional. I don’t actually recall any whatsoever, but there’s usually a little bit. Some violence, usually not too disturbing. Some flirting, but no real sexual content.

*That’s not a spoiler–Luke is single at the beginning of Empire, so any romance set before that is doomed….

Oh my!! Where to star? I won't say I'm an expert in Star Wars literature but I've read my fair share, and to my disappointment this is topping the worst of them all. A great opportunity thrown to the garbage compactor, I hope this new EU canon stuff gets better, fast. I just finished the book because hey, I already started and it's Luke Skywalker right? But boy did I had a hard time dealing with this "Luke"

The story is as straightforward as they come, Luke on a mission to rescue a slicer, meets up with a girl, they like each other, they face some resistance in the rescue mission, Luke is as incompetent as it comes. On top of this background story with the simplest plot ever, everything is told in first person incompetent "Luke" view. Now I understand the author wanted to show that Luke wasn't a remarkable Jedi right away, but man having to read the whole book just to learn that in the end Luke could move a noodle with the force? Come on!!!

With a whole new Expanded Universe and trillions of things happening in the galaxy between New Hope and Empire you came up with a rescue mission in first person? If you are going to make a first person view book you either choose a pretty interesting character like Han or you make damn Luke look better!!

This review originally published in www.lookingforagoodbook.com. Rated 2.5 of 5

<em>Heir to the Jedi</em> is part of the "new canon" for the<em> Star Wars</em> universe, meaning that whatever you read here is now and forever (or until they change their minds) officially part of the grand <em>Star Wars</em> story. I'm not sure why there needs to be an 'official' declaration of this other than that a few savvy readers would otherwise question (at conventions and online) each adventure and wonder "Did Luke really do that?" (as if Luke Skywalker were real and some adventures are true, and others not).

For myself, I just like a good story, and if contains characters with whom I am already familiar, then I typically find it very comforting.

This story, by Kevin Hearne, features Luke Skywalker and R2D2 (and not much of the other main characters from the movies), and takes place shortly after <em>A New Hope</em>. Luke is not yet a Jedi, but still a moisture farm boy who is just beginning to experience a taste of the greater galaxy. Hearne does a good job of reminding the reader of this throughout, with Luke trying to use the Force with very little success periodically.

The story is that Luke is sent on a mission for the Rebel Alliance. He is rescue a brilliant cryptographer who is trying to defect from the Empire. She is not a hostage, but she is being monitored due to her uncanny abilities to decode even the most advanced codes and communications systems. But getting in and out of Empire territory will challenge Luke and he'll need more than a fast ship to pilot.

For the most part, Luke travels a lot, hopping from planet to planet and I'm not sure why this was important. I found no reason for it. The plot is very straight forward and basic. Rescue the brilliant cryptographer. There is a new character introduced into the canon -- Nakari Kelen -- to help him along the way.

If you're looking for a deep story with exciting subplots, this isn't the book for you. The plot is just what I've mentioned above.

Hearne does a fine job capturing the essence of the Mark Hamil Luke Skywalker, though there is perhaps just a tad too much made of his not being a Jedi yet. There are also moments when he's downright dumb, rather than innocent. For instance...he's on a secret mission to pick up someone who is being kept hidden and when he asks to see Taneetch Soonta, his target, he is met resistance and the insistence that no such person is there. He finally manages to get across to the person that he's there on her behalf and we get this exchange:
<blockquote>“That changes things. Welcome back to Rodia, Master Skywalker. If you would please follow me, I’ll take you to Taneetch Soonta.”
“What? You said there was no such person.”
“And now I’m saying I’ll take you to her. Try to keep up.”
“Who are you?”</blockquote>
Why would he ever say "What? You said there was no such person.”? Did he suddenly forget that this was supposed to be a secret?

There are also a few moments in the book that strike me as 'off' considering that this takes place after "Episode IV: A New Hope." At one point, Luke reminisces:
<blockquote>Flirting on a mission is one of the best ways to ensure mission failure—and most likely romantic failure. I’d seen Han Solo get in trouble too many times while he was trying to charm Leia to doubt it, and he hadn’t exactly won her good graces yet.</blockquote>
When, exactly, did Luke see Han trying to charm Leia ... too many times?

I found Hearne's choice of perspective an interesting one. This book is written in first person, from Luke's point of view - which explains part of the reason there isn't any subplot ... we can't visit any other players unless Luke is there. Typically these sorts of books are written in third person, and I found the POV refreshing, even if it did narrow down the scope of what could be told.

I don't care if this is 'officially' part of the Star Wars mythos story or not. I found it to be a generally interesting read, though it won't have a lot of lasting value.

Looking for a good book? <em>Heir to the Jedi</em>, by Kevin Hearne is a quick story of a Luke Skywalker adventure that takes place between the events of <em>Star Wars</em> movies, Episodes IV and V, and is a fine enough story but lacks any new information relevant to the movie history.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

It took me a LONG time to finish this book. Didn't want to give this book a 2-star rating, but I didn't want to give it 3 stars, either. But, as I couldn't go with a 2.5...

I had made it halfway through before having to go to the library to get the audio book. I couldn't take the plodding through any more.

I'm not sure how this book made it to be a New York Times bestseller. The plot and storyline were pretty good (and that's what kept me going), but it was a tough read. Two reasons:

1. The characters seemed flat. It may have been for reason number two. I wasn't permitted by the author to assume anything about Luke and his feeling. Everything was force-fed (forgive the pun) into my thoughts. But they didn't need to be. I didn't need to know every possible minute detail of his thoughts, but that's what I got, which caused the story to feel like I was trudging through a bog, unable to breeze my way through chapters. I felt next to nothing, emotionally, for the characters because I wasn't permitted to develop my own emotional ties to them. I was, in a basic sense, told what to feel, and that didn't sit well with me.

2. The author would not allow me, the reader, to make obvious assumptions. Repeatedly, the author kept regurgitating information that we already knew or could easily assume (not just about Luke's emotions). Again, it caused the storyline to bog down, especially during action events. Information overload. The book could have been both shorter and a more exciting read, if not for this.

But ... I fought through to the end (yes, even the audio book became monotonous at times) because the the author developed in me a need to know the outcome.

If you want to read a Star Wars-style book, do not read Hearne's Heir to the Jedi.

I feel like a boob because I haven't enjoyed reading any of the recent Star Wars novels. For whatever reason, they don't provide the sense that they're in the same universe as the movies.

Maybe the new movie will rectify that problem, but for now, this book could have had different character names and no one would know it was Star Wars.

The story is told from Luke Skywalker's point of view and it takes place between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back.

Luke teams up with a brand new character and they play hop, skip, and jump between planets.

I'll give Hearne credit for tackling a point-of-view style writing in a character that everyone and their aunt has their own assumptions about. Luke is the big hero yet it didn't feel like I was reading about Luke.

I feel bad for not enjoying this book because it appears that it's an enjoyable read to many others. But it falls in line with all of the other recent Star Wars tales. I understand that it's difficult to branch out and create something fresh for a franchise that milks everything to the last drop.

But do yourself a favor and skip this book.

This book was provided for review, at no cost, by LucasBooks.

This isn't a bad book. It's also not a good one. In fact, it seems aggressively mediocre, as if deathly afraid of doing something that might possibly mean something for any of the main characters. I say characters, but I just mean Luke. He's the only one who shows up here except for a brief appearance by Leia and, oddly, Ackbar. I can't say there's a single awful moment, but there aren't any really good ones either.

In fact, the entire book reads like a series of side quests. The first third of the book is a sidequest unrelated to the main plot. The remaining two thirds is one brief adventure after another, none of which build on each other or have any real effect on future missions. In fact, the big dramatic escape at the end is resolved in one line that says that the main chase is over, instead of actually building on the drama of whether they made it or not. And again, even the main plot is generally unimportant on either a personal or galactic level.

The big draw of this book is hearing an entire story told from Luke's perspective. It's less effective than you might think. Luke just doesn't have the sort of charming cynicism of someone like Han or even Leia. In fact, he doesn't have much of anything. Inasmuch as there is any cohesive character drama it's about Luke's daddy issues, which alternate between feeling really obvious and somewhat implausible. I could believe Luke being interested in what his father did, but his curiosity waxes and wanes depending on the author's mood. It would have been far better if the book had focused on Luke's insecurities (daddy issues being one among many) rather than just sort of half-heartedly acknowledging them. Some of the character dialogue is awfully stilted too. Can anyone really imagine Luke saying “That’s an extraordinary feeling, if you don’t mind me saying. How did you come to hold it?”

I can't really say I'd recommend this book to anybody who wasn't a diehard fan. It's not even of much use as a resource for finding out more about the new canon since, while it is new canon, it was already commissioned under old canon and hastily reworked. Of all the books released thus far this is by far the weakest. Still, it's fairly harmless and inoffensive as such books go. And if that's all you're in the mood for thenn it might work for you. Just don't go in expecting Shakespeare.

A couple of years ago there was a series of books to come out that told some stories with each of the main characters in mind. The books were titled over all to be “Empire and Rebellion” and took place between A New Hope and Empire Strikes back. Before the Legends banner and the Disney acquisition, Razor's Edge (the Princess Leia novel), and Honor Among Theives (the Han Solo novel) came out. Each book was fantastic in its own right, and Heir to the Jedi really feels like that was supposed to be the last entry into that series.

This book is an in interesting position. No doubt the acquisition and new cannon has garnered some new interest in the EU. There is a place to start now for those that haven't been keeping up since the Zahn era, and it's not so overwhelming. For that reason, I think that the book is getting sort of a bad rap. You see, it's not that there is anything “new” to fans of the EU, they for the most part have witnessed the struggle of Luke Skywalker in his beginnings with the force, and want something new. So to them, this book is really going to be just “filler”. However, for those that haven't been initiated into the EU this is a great title!

Luke Skywalker, new found hero to the Rebellion has been sent on a daring rescue mission that is essential to helping the rebellion. With a newly introduced companion Nekari, they the adventure is filled with space and ground combat and really focuses on Luke's struggle with the fact that “taking care” of a situation actually doesn't involve caring at all, it involves the exact opposite.

Gaining a different perspective on his thoughts of the war as the mission progresses, and his struggle with the force (like unsuccessfully using Obi-Wan's hand wave to help change someone's mind), you gain a better appreciation for Luke going forward through Empire and Return of the Jedi. You get to see a bit of the bigger picture, and while you know the outcome, really start to feel for Luke has he tries to find answers about who his father really is.

The other interesting aspect is the awkwardness of his relationship with Nekari. You can tell he has feelings for Leia, which we all know is just wrong, but he fights with it because he begins to have these schoolboy crush type feelings for Nekari as well. It's cute, it's awkward, and it's playful and feels right.

The Bottom Line: If you aren't initiated in the EU, then this is actually a great book, if you are, then it's probably not the book you want it to be. The problem comes in because the EU fan boys want something for them all the time, and right now it can't happen that way because they have to build a new canon for everyone. This doesn't stop it from being a bad book, it just stops it from being the book the EU initiated wanted. I thought the book was well worth it. I enjoyed the struggle of Luke, I enjoyed the first person perspective, and I enjoyed the original trilogy feeling. It just fit perfectly.

Audiobook Review: I got the pleasure, and yes, I mean pleasure of listening to this as well. Narrated by the incredible Marc Thompson. As always, the production was absolutely incredible. The music, the sound effects, all pull you into the experience and it completely takes you away. The narration as well pulls you in. This is a first person story, which means that you get it from the perspective of Luke, and there is no other person I'd rather have narrate this. Marc Thompson NAILS Luke. From his voice, to his wavering confidence in himself, to the unwanted label of hero, he flat out nails it. In my opinion, if you've got a way to listen to this, I'd spend an audible credit on it if you've got it, or drop some cash, because it's so much better than just reading it. It's like a 9 hour Star Wars movie in your mind (my apologies to Graphic Audio for stealing their tag line).

I would like to start by saying that I am a huge Star Wars fan and also a Kevin Hearne fan. So when I saw that Heir to the Jedi was a Star Wars novel written by Kevin Hearne I was so excited I squealed a little. I enjoyed Heir to the Jedi. But I did have a couple of issues to begin with.
The first person POV set in Luke’s head is unsettling and kept throwing me off for two reasons. First, the vast majority of other Star Wars novels are written in the third person POV; so it was strange to be reading a Star Wars novel in first person. I think I could have gotten accustomed to this were it not for the fact that the POV character is none other than Luke Skywalker, which is my second reason for being unsettled at first.
Luke is such a well known character from the movies and previous books that most Star Wars fans already have their own ideas of how he should think, and how he should act. So being told what Luke is thinking, and not having it match what we think he should be like (and let’s face it, we all have different opinions of what he should think and how he should act), was strange and unsettling. Had this novel been told from the first person POV with a minor or new main character I think it would have been fine. But since it was Luke I think third person POV would have been a better choice.
The plot itself is great. It’s a rollicking good adventure, and I eventually did get past my issues with the first person POV. I am glad that I stuck with it and was able to get past my initial issues with Heir to the Jedi.
**I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review via NetGalley.**
Visit my blog for more in depth reviews and recommendations.

With a little tweaking, this could have been a better Poe Dameron story. This didn't feel like Luke Skywalker, who always seemed sort of whiney and immature to me until Episode VI. I truly could not fix it in my head that I was reading a story about Luke. If the author had set it a few years ahead and taken out the Force stuff and made it about Poe Dameron, it would have been more interesting. I didn't mind the idea of the rescue mission, etc. but there's almost something pointless about some of the new stories that take place in between the older movies. The movies are far beyond these points in time now and so there really is no need to give us a new Luke adventure that has literally no influence or bearing on what happens in the movies, especially when it doesn't even read like it's the Luke we are familiar with. I did like the story, I liked the rescue mission idea, and the action was written well enough that I could visualize it. But like I said, tweak it a bit and bring it forward in time and make it about Poe, and it would have been one of my favorites.

I must say I was a little disappointed in this book. It is not a BAD novel, but considering it's the first story to be told from Luke's perspective (and in the first person), it definitely could've been better. I didn't feel the author gave Luke a voice of his own; his narration felt generic and nothing like his personality from the movies. Plus, the plot isn't anything to write home about; it didn't feel epic or important.

The secondary characters are interesting, though, as well as some of the new species that are introduced (especially these new aliens who are obsessed with math), but I didn't feel any urgency or suspense in the plot. It all felt pretty... flat, even when a couple of major characters suddenly died.

Heir to the Jedi is capably written and is never boring, but I wouldn't call it a great book either. It's entertaining for Star Wars fans and those of us who want to know what Luke was doing between Episodes IV and V (it's also cool to see characters like Leia have memorable cameos), but it's definitely flawed. I was expecting more.

George: We were both sent Advanced Reader’s Copies of Heir to the Jedi by Kevin Hearne. It showed up just as we were both finishing Tarkin and I wasn’t sure what to expect. Tarkin was such a great read and I really hoped that Heir to the Jedi could stand up to it. I’d hate to see the the “new” series tank after a few good titles.

Jeff: To be fair, this title was written BEFORE they announced that the Expanded Universe was going on. With a few slight adjustments, Hearne managed to make it fit into the new Disney-owned canon, and become part of the lore. Like George said, we had just finished Tarkin when they showed up, so the entire time I WAS measuring it them against each other.

George: So, Heir to the Jedi is interesting for several points: it’s written in the first-person and it takes place shortly after the Battle of Yavin. Luke Skywalker is the main character, so we read the book from his point of view. At first, the first person perspective was weird for a Star Wars novel, but it did make for a really good read, as far as the story progression. Also, taking place a short while after A New Hope was an area that we’d not seen much of before.

Jeff: It was interesting to me that a lot of the book focused on Luke’s Jedi training…or, rather, his lack thereof. Really, he had all of, what, 20 minutes with Ben before Vader struck him down? Luke may be a hero of the Alliance, but he literally has no idea about his powers or what he is doing. He knows nothing, and his uncertainty about his future as a Jedi is made known throughout the entire book.

George: Sounds like two podcasters that I know…

Jeff: That’s true. I’ve always been unsure about my future as a Jedi. Mostly because Sith seems more my style, but still…

George: I would totally use the Force to convince the Cast Member that my Fastpass was valid. I guess that makes me a little Sithie? Wait. Nevermind.

Jeff: ANYWAY…the book follows Luke, along with R2-D2 and his new companion, Nakari, as they try to rescue an alien cryptographer from the clutches of the Empire. At first, the book is kind of slow moving, but it ramps up the action as time moves on. To me, it seemed more of a character piece, getting to know Luke’s mindset immediately after the Battle of Yavin, and settling into his role in the Alliance.

George: It was interesting that Hearne used math in a lot of the books, including some formulas tied into the chapter titles. The alien cryptographer spoke in a mathematical language and it added some twists to the typical Star Wars story. As Jeff mentioned, we see Luke as the hero of the Battle of Yavin and as one of the last remaining Jedi. People he meets seem to know what Jedi are, but it had been almost 20 years since the Empire had purged the Jedi. It’s a good juxtaposition for the story, especially with the number of action scenes and space battles.

Jeff: Overall, I did like it. It gave us some more Luke in his early years, just learning to use his new found skills, and trying to do good by the Rebellion. It wasn’t as strong as Tarkin, unfortunately, but it still filled in an interesting gap of time that we don’t know much about.

George: Also, it wasn’t too creepy that he liked Lea in this book.

Jeff: Well, I mean, this was BEFORE he (spoiler) knew that she was his sister. They DID share a brief kiss in Empire. That’s WAY creepier, dude.

George: So, we both really liked it and recommend it. It’s a strong title in the Star Wars canon and really gives us a great look at Luke’s next step.

This review originally appeared on Live Fast Die Poor

Heir to the Jedi is an adequate Star Wars novel, hitting most of the right notes yet still falling flat a lot of the time. The story takes place after the events of A New Hope, but before The Empire Strikes Back. Fresh from his victory at Yavin, young Luke Skywalker is sent by Admiral Ackbar on a mission to open up new supply channels to the Rebel Alliance. He soon finds himself hooking up with the beautiful daughter of a galactic industrialist with her own grudge against the Empire. Eventually, the two are assigned to help an alien cryptographer defect from the Empire to the Alliance, and soon have Imperial agents hot on their trail.

The book has some clever moments and tense scenes as Luke and his allies face off against the empire, pirates, and deadly alien creatures. It's fun to see Luke's naive optimism, believing that his father was a great man, struck down by the evil Darth Vader. The book also offers some decently drawn characters that add to the narrative. The problem with Heir to the Jedi is that it never really feels that engaging. Part of that is due to the fact that you know where it is heading ultimately, not only in terms of Luke's overall story arc within the saga, but also within the book itself. There are not a lot of surprises, and it's easy to spot who will live and who won't make it.

Heir to the Jedi is a good Star Wars novel, it's just not a great one.

Luke Skywalker has destroyed the Death Star. Now, the fledgling rebel alliance must find a new base of operations. But first, young Skywalker is given a mission of vital importance to the rebellion. A brilliant alien cryptographer renowned for her ability to tap into Imperial codes is being detained by Imperial agents. In exchange for being reunited with her family, she will share her secrets with the rebellion. Luke, along with his faithful companion R2-D2 are soon dispatched.

Before setting off, Luke acquires a cool ship called the Desert Jewel. Owned by Fayet Kelen of Kelen Biolabs, the Desert Jewel is one of the fastest ships around. Piloted by Fayet's beautiful daughter Nakari, Luke sets off to free the cryptographer.

Along the way, Luke and Nakari run into several skirmishes, including Imperial star destroyers, bounty hunters, and mysterious alien parasites. Also, he discovers that he has feelings for Nakari. Will they succeed in finding the cryptographer, or will the Imperials discover their intentions first?
I'm a big fan of the Star Wars novels, and "Heir to the Jedi" adds an interesting twist to the series. Told in Luke's voice throughout, the story focuses on Luke's development as a Jedi along with his deepening feelings for Nakari. There is a good amount of action throughout, and I felt that the character development, especially that of Nakari and Drusil, is very good. This is a good book worthy of a place with the previous Star Wars novels. Recommended.

This book is a perfect demonstration of why writers need to 'show, don't tell' - the author painstakingly walks you through every action, every thought, every motivation. The amount of times I practically went cross-eyed from boredom were legion. I would often get to the end of the page and have no real memory of what I'd just read. (A book which would have taken a few days to read ended up taking weeks, as I repeatedly switched to another novel I was reading out of frustration.) It's clear this 'walkthrough' style was done in order to keep the novel simple to follow for younger readers, but it ends up having the opposite effect, leading to the reader feeling patronised. Added to this is the problem of characterisation: the author clearly doesn't have a good feel for Luke's personality. The dialogue of all characters seemed immature, as did Luke's thoughts. His interactions with Nakari (romantic interest) felt like those between 14 yo high school kids. Like others have said, there's a ridiculous amount of non-SW lingo, referring to bathrooms, noodles, buffets, negligees, etc. This takes you out of the action, and makes the story seem ridiculous. I ended up making a game of it: highlighting parts of the text which seemed out-of-place (largely to stay engaged). I found scores of examples. Overall, pretty disappointed with this one.

I was looking forward to this book. I have read the first two books in this new Star Wars "canon" and enjoyed both. I got the audiobook from my local library and gave it a try. I really enjoyed the book, nothing earth shattering here but very entertaining. I enjoyed the reader of the audiobook, and with all of the Star Wars audiobooks I have listened to the sound effects and music are great. Kevin Hearne seems to be a wonderful writer, I need to check out more of his work. This book focuses on Luke Skywalker in the time between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back. I am more of an Empire man myself, but it was nice to get into Luke's head a little bit. I thought it was a fantastic little story. I was not engrossed in the story, but I was entertained. I guess when you get down to it that is all that really matters when you want a book to listen to on your daily commute.

Fantastic cover art really got me nostalgic to read a tale about the coming of age of the last Jedi Knight. Two caveats 1) I listened to the Audio Book version, and 2) I heard it at the same time as I was reading Andy Weir's "The Martian." That said the reason this book only gets two stars is that the characterization of Luke Skywalker feels off. I like the idea of telling the story from his point of view (handled better by Weir in the aforementioned tome) but the story feels too much like the author knows what's coming around the next corner in Luke's life and he's telegraphing his blows (really sloppy here where Vader is concerned). After the battle of Yavin and before Hoth is a period that deserves some exploration for this character. I would have liked a better connection to the films with him remembering his friends Biggs, Windy, Camie and the Fixer back home. It was good to see the book have him deal with some of his sorrow around his Uncle and Ant and Ben but Biggs gets only a brief mention. All Luke really knows at this point is his life on Tatooine. That stuff blowing up the Death Star and running around with a princess and a wookie are new to him. Luke certainly isn't an "agent." This story felt like it was meant for Han Solo. It would have been more fun seeing Luke revert to his farmboy ways a little and come back to his destiny during this story. Having Luke regurgitate mission process is a way to move the story forward but that really only works for characters like Han, who have Imperial training. Upon seeing a new starship Luke would become a fanboy kid and talk about it's power converters! The book certainly has a few moments but it didn't feel like a Star Wars book. I'm worried about the future of the Star Wars book franchise. It's sad to think that well thought out books and new characters like the ones Zahn created are being replaced with this. Given that Luke looks to be really important in the upcoming trilogy, fleshing out his story is going to be really important and for people like me that saw Star Wars in the Theater in 1977 we really think we know that kid. He is us! This wasn't him.

The plot is a bit bland and Han and Chewbacca do not even appear. Leia is just a side character also. Another fault is the author lazily writes this in the first person of Luke. Also, I would have thought Luke's journey to expand his force knowledge would start with something more than pushing soggy noodles and spoons around a table while flirting with a girl. But, some nice action scenes balance out 'some' of the bad. SOME.
Passable at best.

I've read all of the adult Star Wars novels, Legends and the new canon. This may be my least favorite novel of all of them. It is written from a first person perspective of Luke Skywalker. I dealt with the narration not sounding like him because I can understand that it is not meant to be his actual voice, but his actions, dialogue, and personality are not Luke Skywalker. Not at the time this is set or any other time.

The story is boring, doesn't feel like Star Wars, and in no way pertains to the greater saga.

I don't want to give spoilers, but there are items that are better suited for general sci-fi and not well suited for a well developed and well known universe such as Star Wars.

I hope this is not a harbinger of what is to come from the new canon because I found it very disappointing. If you don't HAVE to read every Star Wars book, just skip this one.

As a Star Wars fan eager to sink my teeth into the New Canon I had very high hopes for this novel. I will say that I did thoroughly enjoyed the story, and I felt invested in the characters.
The story takes place between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back (though I'm still unsure of the timeline of how this and the new canon comics fit together) and shows Luke struggling with becoming a Jedi and wishing that he had someone to train him. I really enjoyed reading Luke's thoughts on the force and his descriptions of what it felt like. I also feel, however, that writing Luke in the first person was one of the weaker points in the novel. It just did not feel right in my opinion. Especially being that none of the new canon novels are written this way.
One reason I really did enjoy the plot is that it shows Luke doing work for the Alliance while also struggling to find his place and learn the Jedi way. His character has a complete turn around in between New Hope & Empire Strikes back and this novel does help show some development in his character.
Heir to the Jedi, while not the strongest novel in the new Canon is enjoyable and worth a read for Star Wars fans.

This book has many flaws one of the most glaring for me was how it had ties in to the worst elements of the new three movies (Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and Revenge of the Sith). Luke moves noodles on a plate with the Force akin to Anakin moving fruit from Attack of the Clones. This was so undramatic. Meanwhile movie four had Luke train against a remote droid that would shoot lasers at him giving great sense of tension and maturity.

That gripe aside the book is written in first person perspective that was hard for me follow. The story was unremarkable and the secondary characters even moments after setting the book down I could not recall their names. There were many earth idioms that really should not make their way into Star Wars. Who knew Luke would have a coffee maker he could not figure out. Or have "daddy issues." The list goes on and on and was made worst with the author reminding the reader constantly that Luke was the character from the movies with a constant flow of unnecessary references.

I hope that there are less books in the future in the Star Wars that are at this low a bar in quality. Please hire a editor who will challenge future authors to write stronger entries.

No Spoilers:

I was honestly a little bummed out by this one. Luke's book was the one I was looking forward to the most, but unfortunately there were quite a few problems that I had with the book. First, the narrative. While it was nice to get a glimpse of the mind set of Luke, I've never really liked the portrayal of him as a naive farmboy. It always seemed to me that he had to grow up a lot during this time period and I would have rather seen that then have him kind of stuck here. The dialogue also felt a little clunky at times, resulting in awkward pauses and awkward laughing. It never really felt genuine. The characters did not feel too developed either, which is weird, because I already knew Luke from the movies. Second, the story. At times the story felt rather disjointed. It was still a fun ride, but I'd be lying if I said there weren't a few times when I had to flip back and check to see why they were on the planet in the first place. Lastly, the time period. Now this is just a preference, but I feel this is the least interesting time to set a Luke book. What do we know about him at this point? He blew up the Death Star, so has some pull with the Rebels, and he can barely use the Force, as demonstrated by the sheer difficulty he has pulling his lightsaber out of the snow on Hoth. This means that it's clear he can't learn too much about his abilities during this time period, and that he can only rank up to Commander with the Alliance. Plus the canon comic is already covering this time period. I would much rather see what he is up to after Empire Strikes Back. (Shadows of the Empire was one of my early favorites and I've been curious what they are going to do with that time period). The ending was also not my favorite.

All of that said, it was still a fun ride and had a few establishing moments that I did really enjoy. I wouldn't stoop to give it a 2, but I also could definitely not see myself giving it a 4. If you really like the idea of Luke training, I say give it a shot and make up your mind, but if you can find preview pages I'd check those out first before buying.

Okay, so this was a pretty bad review. There was a real bait and switch. I told you all that this book is "full of surprises". This does not mean that the plot moved in a ton of really believable twists with new story beats happening every single chapter. What do I mean? I mean this book had so many disparate story lines that you couldn't see where this book started and where it ended. It started on Rodia, then hit the real meat of the plot, and then had an ending I didn't see coming (that felt really cheap?). I couldn't follow the importance of a lot of events as they pertained to the book - it felt like this novel had to hit a bunch of important points in Luke's training and the book itself suffered for it.

We get some valuable insight into Luke's brain because this book was written in the first person (you didn't like Aftermath's prose? Probably because you missed this one). There were some interesting insights, but on the whole I think we would have learned just as much had this book taken place outside of his head. I know that's bad (and sad), but nothing warranted the first person of this novel. I was waiting for it to finish - you probably will, too, unless you're the most die-hard Luke fan ever.

That's not to say that this is a truly wasted book. Nakari, the new female introduced, is interesting and has some fun quirks. She helps Luke unlock his potential as a Jedi and distract him from his incestual feelings toward Leia. She can't save the book, though.

Maybe the best part about the book was the insights we got into Luke's Jedi training. He encounters a Jedi who knew his father from the Clone Wars and explores his lightsaber a little bit before destroying it. He wonders what it would be like to be trained by Darth Vader. Other than that, it's not very cool.

Die hards *might* find something to like. Casual fans should avoid this, honestly.

Minor Spoilers:
Very little to do with the Jedi or Luke training to be a Jedi. It jumps to a lot of planets, but most remain undeveloped with animals that kill everyone. The female lead seems to be promising but you know what is going to happen to her almost instantly. The chemistry is built up throughout the entire novel only to come to the point of I don't care by the final pages, because I predicted it when they meet her father. This part seems like the author was watching Despicable Me to many times. The father refers to his workers as minions multiple times. Was this part supposed to be funny or cute?...It wasn't anything but oddly dumb. Very little force in this one. But hey on the bright side only place from this is up.

If you're looking for a Luke focused novel, you found it. "Heir to the Jedi" takes place during the original trilogy, specifically between "A New Hope" and "The Empire Strikes Back". Luke and R2-D2 are the main characters of the novel - though there are a couple of characters that were created by Hearne; Leia, Ackbar, and Threepio have bit parts and Han and Chewie are only mentioned. "Heir to the Jedi" starts with a mission for new weapons and ends with a rescue mission - with a little light romance for Luke thrown in. Throughout the whole novel, Luke is trying to improve his skills in the Force - from speaking with a Rodian, who was related to a Jedi, to levitating noodles. It's an interesting novel and worth the time it takes to read it.

I am a devout Star Wars Fan. I have read every expanded universe book published. Some have been ok, boring, and page skippable. While others have been exciting and captured my imagination and had me buy back in to this universe I fell in love with at 3 years old. I never really found any magic in this book. There maybe some light foreshadowing deep in the pages but honestly I only kept reading because I was waiting for it to feel and emote what the current Marvel Comics Darth Vadar, and Star Wars bring to the table. Even the Rebel's Cartoon emoted more from me than anything on the pages here and that is coming from a 40 yo man. I am accepting the reboot of cannon, but this didn't really help in my journey towards TFA.

Heir to the Jedi
by Kevin Hearne
Kevin Hearne is one of the better writers of this genre, and i found his Heir to the Jedi book at enduring in the vain of Star Wars iconography and ideology. Luke Skywalker is adrift between the Battle of Yavin, and the base on Hoth. He is trying in these intervening years to find his way with the Force. He has lost his mentor Ben Kenobi on the Death Star, and does not know where to begin looking for a teacher or at least someone he could learn about the force with. On a private mission for Leia and the Alliance he meets Nakari Kelen a business tycoons daughter with her own axe to grind with Vader. Their improbable friendships and partnership make an endearing story about learning about ourselves, our desires, and what inspires you to go on. A great book to the series that i will get and share with my son.

Luke Skywalker has destroyed the Death Star. Now, the fledgling rebel alliance must find a new base of operations. But first, young Skywalker is given a mission of vital importance to the rebellion. A brilliant alien cryptographer renowned for her ability to tap into Imperial codes is being detained by Imperial agents. In exchange for being reunited with her family, she will share her secrets with the rebellion. Luke, along with his faithful companion R2-D2 are soon dispatched.

Before setting off, Luke acquires a cool ship called the Desert Jewel. Owned by Fayet Kelen of Kelen Biolabs, the Desert Jewel is one of the fastest ships around. Piloted by Fayet's beautiful daughter Nakari, Luke sets off to free the cryptographer.

Along the way, Luke and Nakari run into several skirmishes, including Imperial star destroyers, bounty hunters, and mysterious alien parasites. Also, he discovers that he has feelings for Nakari. Will they succeed in finding the cryptographer, or will the Imperials discover their intentions first?
I'm a big fan of the Star Wars novels, and "Heir to the Jedi" adds an interesting twist to the series. Told in Luke's voice throughout, the story focuses on Luke's development as a Jedi along with his deepening feelings for Nakari. There is a good amount of action throughout, and I felt that the character development, especially that of Nakari and Drusil, is very good. This is a good book worthy of a place with the previous Star Wars novels. Recommended.

This book is a perfect demonstration of why writers need to 'show, don't tell' - the author painstakingly walks you through every action, every thought, every motivation. The amount of times I practically went cross-eyed from boredom were legion. I would often get to the end of the page and have no real memory of what I'd just read. (A book which would have taken a few days to read ended up taking weeks, as I repeatedly switched to another novel I was reading out of frustration.) It's clear this 'walkthrough' style was done in order to keep the novel simple to follow for younger readers, but it ends up having the opposite effect, leading to the reader feeling patronised. Added to this is the problem of characterisation: the author clearly doesn't have a good feel for Luke's personality. The dialogue of all characters seemed immature, as did Luke's thoughts. His interactions with Nakari (romantic interest) felt like those between 14 yo high school kids. Like others have said, there's a ridiculous amount of non-SW lingo, referring to bathrooms, noodles, buffets, negligees, etc. This takes you out of the action, and makes the story seem ridiculous. I ended up making a game of it: highlighting parts of the text which seemed out-of-place (largely to stay engaged). I found scores of examples. Overall, pretty disappointed with this one.

I was looking forward to this book. I have read the first two books in this new Star Wars "canon" and enjoyed both. I got the audiobook from my local library and gave it a try. I really enjoyed the book, nothing earth shattering here but very entertaining. I enjoyed the reader of the audiobook, and with all of the Star Wars audiobooks I have listened to the sound effects and music are great. Kevin Hearne seems to be a wonderful writer, I need to check out more of his work. This book focuses on Luke Skywalker in the time between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back. I am more of an Empire man myself, but it was nice to get into Luke's head a little bit. I thought it was a fantastic little story. I was not engrossed in the story, but I was entertained. I guess when you get down to it that is all that really matters when you want a book to listen to on your daily commute.

Fantastic cover art really got me nostalgic to read a tale about the coming of age of the last Jedi Knight. Two caveats 1) I listened to the Audio Book version, and 2) I heard it at the same time as I was reading Andy Weir's "The Martian." That said the reason this book only gets two stars is that the characterization of Luke Skywalker feels off. I like the idea of telling the story from his point of view (handled better by Weir in the aforementioned tome) but the story feels too much like the author knows what's coming around the next corner in Luke's life and he's telegraphing his blows (really sloppy here where Vader is concerned). After the battle of Yavin and before Hoth is a period that deserves some exploration for this character. I would have liked a better connection to the films with him remembering his friends Biggs, Windy, Camie and the Fixer back home. It was good to see the book have him deal with some of his sorrow around his Uncle and Ant and Ben but Biggs gets only a brief mention. All Luke really knows at this point is his life on Tatooine. That stuff blowing up the Death Star and running around with a princess and a wookie are new to him. Luke certainly isn't an "agent." This story felt like it was meant for Han Solo. It would have been more fun seeing Luke revert to his farmboy ways a little and come back to his destiny during this story. Having Luke regurgitate mission process is a way to move the story forward but that really only works for characters like Han, who have Imperial training. Upon seeing a new starship Luke would become a fanboy kid and talk about it's power converters! The book certainly has a few moments but it didn't feel like a Star Wars book. I'm worried about the future of the Star Wars book franchise. It's sad to think that well thought out books and new characters like the ones Zahn created are being replaced with this. Given that Luke looks to be really important in the upcoming trilogy, fleshing out his story is going to be really important and for people like me that saw Star Wars in the Theater in 1977 we really think we know that kid. He is us! This wasn't him.

The plot is a bit bland and Han and Chewbacca do not even appear. Leia is just a side character also. Another fault is the author lazily writes this in the first person of Luke. Also, I would have thought Luke's journey to expand his force knowledge would start with something more than pushing soggy noodles and spoons around a table while flirting with a girl. But, some nice action scenes balance out 'some' of the bad. SOME.
Passable at best.

I've read all of the adult Star Wars novels, Legends and the new canon. This may be my least favorite novel of all of them. It is written from a first person perspective of Luke Skywalker. I dealt with the narration not sounding like him because I can understand that it is not meant to be his actual voice, but his actions, dialogue, and personality are not Luke Skywalker. Not at the time this is set or any other time.

The story is boring, doesn't feel like Star Wars, and in no way pertains to the greater saga.

I don't want to give spoilers, but there are items that are better suited for general sci-fi and not well suited for a well developed and well known universe such as Star Wars.

I hope this is not a harbinger of what is to come from the new canon because I found it very disappointing. If you don't HAVE to read every Star Wars book, just skip this one.

As a Star Wars fan eager to sink my teeth into the New Canon I had very high hopes for this novel. I will say that I did thoroughly enjoyed the story, and I felt invested in the characters.
The story takes place between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back (though I'm still unsure of the timeline of how this and the new canon comics fit together) and shows Luke struggling with becoming a Jedi and wishing that he had someone to train him. I really enjoyed reading Luke's thoughts on the force and his descriptions of what it felt like. I also feel, however, that writing Luke in the first person was one of the weaker points in the novel. It just did not feel right in my opinion. Especially being that none of the new canon novels are written this way.
One reason I really did enjoy the plot is that it shows Luke doing work for the Alliance while also struggling to find his place and learn the Jedi way. His character has a complete turn around in between New Hope & Empire Strikes back and this novel does help show some development in his character.
Heir to the Jedi, while not the strongest novel in the new Canon is enjoyable and worth a read for Star Wars fans.

This book has many flaws one of the most glaring for me was how it had ties in to the worst elements of the new three movies (Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and Revenge of the Sith). Luke moves noodles on a plate with the Force akin to Anakin moving fruit from Attack of the Clones. This was so undramatic. Meanwhile movie four had Luke train against a remote droid that would shoot lasers at him giving great sense of tension and maturity.

That gripe aside the book is written in first person perspective that was hard for me follow. The story was unremarkable and the secondary characters even moments after setting the book down I could not recall their names. There were many earth idioms that really should not make their way into Star Wars. Who knew Luke would have a coffee maker he could not figure out. Or have "daddy issues." The list goes on and on and was made worst with the author reminding the reader constantly that Luke was the character from the movies with a constant flow of unnecessary references.

I hope that there are less books in the future in the Star Wars that are at this low a bar in quality. Please hire a editor who will challenge future authors to write stronger entries.

No Spoilers:

I was honestly a little bummed out by this one. Luke's book was the one I was looking forward to the most, but unfortunately there were quite a few problems that I had with the book. First, the narrative. While it was nice to get a glimpse of the mind set of Luke, I've never really liked the portrayal of him as a naive farmboy. It always seemed to me that he had to grow up a lot during this time period and I would have rather seen that then have him kind of stuck here. The dialogue also felt a little clunky at times, resulting in awkward pauses and awkward laughing. It never really felt genuine. The characters did not feel too developed either, which is weird, because I already knew Luke from the movies. Second, the story. At times the story felt rather disjointed. It was still a fun ride, but I'd be lying if I said there weren't a few times when I had to flip back and check to see why they were on the planet in the first place. Lastly, the time period. Now this is just a preference, but I feel this is the least interesting time to set a Luke book. What do we know about him at this point? He blew up the Death Star, so has some pull with the Rebels, and he can barely use the Force, as demonstrated by the sheer difficulty he has pulling his lightsaber out of the snow on Hoth. This means that it's clear he can't learn too much about his abilities during this time period, and that he can only rank up to Commander with the Alliance. Plus the canon comic is already covering this time period. I would much rather see what he is up to after Empire Strikes Back. (Shadows of the Empire was one of my early favorites and I've been curious what they are going to do with that time period). The ending was also not my favorite.

All of that said, it was still a fun ride and had a few establishing moments that I did really enjoy. I wouldn't stoop to give it a 2, but I also could definitely not see myself giving it a 4. If you really like the idea of Luke training, I say give it a shot and make up your mind, but if you can find preview pages I'd check those out first before buying.

Okay, so this was a pretty bad review. There was a real bait and switch. I told you all that this book is "full of surprises". This does not mean that the plot moved in a ton of really believable twists with new story beats happening every single chapter. What do I mean? I mean this book had so many disparate story lines that you couldn't see where this book started and where it ended. It started on Rodia, then hit the real meat of the plot, and then had an ending I didn't see coming (that felt really cheap?). I couldn't follow the importance of a lot of events as they pertained to the book - it felt like this novel had to hit a bunch of important points in Luke's training and the book itself suffered for it.

We get some valuable insight into Luke's brain because this book was written in the first person (you didn't like Aftermath's prose? Probably because you missed this one). There were some interesting insights, but on the whole I think we would have learned just as much had this book taken place outside of his head. I know that's bad (and sad), but nothing warranted the first person of this novel. I was waiting for it to finish - you probably will, too, unless you're the most die-hard Luke fan ever.

That's not to say that this is a truly wasted book. Nakari, the new female introduced, is interesting and has some fun quirks. She helps Luke unlock his potential as a Jedi and distract him from his incestual feelings toward Leia. She can't save the book, though.

Maybe the best part about the book was the insights we got into Luke's Jedi training. He encounters a Jedi who knew his father from the Clone Wars and explores his lightsaber a little bit before destroying it. He wonders what it would be like to be trained by Darth Vader. Other than that, it's not very cool.

Die hards *might* find something to like. Casual fans should avoid this, honestly.

Minor Spoilers:
Very little to do with the Jedi or Luke training to be a Jedi. It jumps to a lot of planets, but most remain undeveloped with animals that kill everyone. The female lead seems to be promising but you know what is going to happen to her almost instantly. The chemistry is built up throughout the entire novel only to come to the point of I don't care by the final pages, because I predicted it when they meet her father. This part seems like the author was watching Despicable Me to many times. The father refers to his workers as minions multiple times. Was this part supposed to be funny or cute?...It wasn't anything but oddly dumb. Very little force in this one. But hey on the bright side only place from this is up.

If you're looking for a Luke focused novel, you found it. "Heir to the Jedi" takes place during the original trilogy, specifically between "A New Hope" and "The Empire Strikes Back". Luke and R2-D2 are the main characters of the novel - though there are a couple of characters that were created by Hearne; Leia, Ackbar, and Threepio have bit parts and Han and Chewie are only mentioned. "Heir to the Jedi" starts with a mission for new weapons and ends with a rescue mission - with a little light romance for Luke thrown in. Throughout the whole novel, Luke is trying to improve his skills in the Force - from speaking with a Rodian, who was related to a Jedi, to levitating noodles. It's an interesting novel and worth the time it takes to read it.

I am a devout Star Wars Fan. I have read every expanded universe book published. Some have been ok, boring, and page skippable. While others have been exciting and captured my imagination and had me buy back in to this universe I fell in love with at 3 years old. I never really found any magic in this book. There maybe some light foreshadowing deep in the pages but honestly I only kept reading because I was waiting for it to feel and emote what the current Marvel Comics Darth Vadar, and Star Wars bring to the table. Even the Rebel's Cartoon emoted more from me than anything on the pages here and that is coming from a 40 yo man. I am accepting the reboot of cannon, but this didn't really help in my journey towards TFA.

Heir to the Jedi
by Kevin Hearne
Kevin Hearne is one of the better writers of this genre, and i found his Heir to the Jedi book at enduring in the vain of Star Wars iconography and ideology. Luke Skywalker is adrift between the Battle of Yavin, and the base on Hoth. He is trying in these intervening years to find his way with the Force. He has lost his mentor Ben Kenobi on the Death Star, and does not know where to begin looking for a teacher or at least someone he could learn about the force with. On a private mission for Leia and the Alliance he meets Nakari Kelen a business tycoons daughter with her own axe to grind with Vader. Their improbable friendships and partnership make an endearing story about learning about ourselves, our desires, and what inspires you to go on. A great book to the series that i will get and share with my son.

This book accomplished two major things for me: 1) Filling in a bit of the mystery of why Luke can barely sense the Force by the end of “A New Hope” yet can use the force to pull his lightsaber to him in the beginning of “The Empire Strikes Back”, and 2) Showing me the direction that the ‘new’ LucasFilm is going to go under their new Disney masters.

Yes, this book is canon under the new Disney structuring, so what’s printed within should be taken as actual Star Wars history. I have a feeling that the author took that direction to provide a few moments that helped build in the scarred appearance of Luke in “Empire” as compared to “A New Hope” (on top of the obvious Wampa attack).

Having not read a Star Wars novel since the EU was majorly en vogue back in the late 90’s, I was looking forward to an opportunity to dive back into the Star Wars mythos. And overall, I was pleased. Most other reviewers have some gripes about how the book portrays Luke as some bumbling soldier to just lucked his way into heroic status, but taking the events of “A New Hope” out of their legendary film status lets you see that he really is just that. In the grand scheme of things, when Luke blows up the Death Star, he was but a farmer two weeks prior. And pal-ing around with Ben Kenobi looking to deliver some droids isn’t really what you’d call boot camp.

So “Heir To The Jedi” actually brings this into the characterization of Luke. He’s never really had a chance to slow down and realize what’s been going on since the destruction of the [first] Death Star. Everything’s been a succession of one critical mission onto the next and it’s not until the events of this novel that he gets a chance to slow down, realize how he’s involved in an intergalatic war, how woefully unprepared he is for his “hero” status, and that maybe, just maybe, if he disciplined himself, he might be able to learn the ways of the Jedi.

Again, kudos to the author for filling out some of the Luke Skywalker backstory. There were a few moments that were a bit overdone: Luke seems bent on reusing or recalling lines that were spoken to him by Obi-Wan in just a few too many instances. And the previously nit-picking Star Wars fan in me cringed a few times when the author used “R2” in dialogue instead of “Artoo”. But all in all, a solid start to a new generation of canon novels.

[Note: I thought it was interesting that there was some significantly more graphic descriptions of violence in these books than I expected from Star Wars. Beyond “blaster burns” or limbs being cut off cleanly by lightsabers with no blood, there were some descriptions of violent gunshot like wounds. This isn’t to comment on anything other than the fact that I wasn’t expecting it; it doesn’t detract from the review at all.]

[Review from an advance copy provided by NetGalley]

Was waffling between 2 and 3 stars, but ultimately I did enjoy this book, however after A NEW DAWN it's my least favorite of the new canon novels (for reference BATTLEFRONT: TWILIGHT COMPANY just came out). Taking place shortly after Episode IV, the first person perspective allows for a quick read but it does take some getting used to. Sometimes you get "But I was going to the Tosche Station to pick up some power converters" Luke, and other times you get a Luke that sounds a little off for where we are at this point in the Star Wars timeline. I do like how Luke is truly portrayed as a rookie in the Force, but "sexy" Luke should've stayed on Tatooine. The last two or three chapters redeem what would be a surefire 2 star review, and if nothing else just read those chapters and you'll get the best parts. For the completist/Rebel/Skywalker fans only.

I am a long-time Star Wars fan. I read all the books through the Yuuzhan Vong war, but after that I needed a break. With the "new continuity" that Disney is building, I was excited to see what the new stories would be. Then I saw the poor reviews of Heir to the Jedi. To be honest, I read a library copy, and sadly it was worse than I could have ever expected.

Read the 1-star reviews before wasting your time. Every familiar character feels foreign. Every "earth reference" (nerf nuggets... really????) was intolerable. Every hope I had of at least something interesting occurring (e.g. Luke's increased power in the Force) was dashed. And it was BORING. I slugged through it because I'm a fan ​and hoped for something good out of it. That didn't happen.

MINOR SPOILER:
Worst of all, this book went NOWHERE. In the end, there was no point to what happened, and the journey to get there was long and boring. Was this meant to be a book for young adults? The writing seems that way, but I don't' think that's what was meant.

I am skipping the other books until Star Wars Aftermath arrives. I only hope that will be enjoyable. I suggest you Heir to the Empire instead. Yes, it's no longer Star Wars cannon, but it will remind you of how good Star Wars novels can be.

*I received this book as an eARC from Random House Publishing Group - Del Rey Spectra via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

This is the third book in the new Star Wars canon. It is also unique in that it is in first person from the perspective of Luke. I think this was my favorite of the new canon books. A New Dawn introduced us to characters from Rebels and Tarkin showed the Empire pre-Ep IV, but this book really delves into Luke Skywalker's mindset after the Battle of Yavin.

Luke doesn't really know what being a Jedi means. Ben was his mentor, but now he's gone. His hatred for Darth Vader has also been fueled, having killed both his father and old Ben.

It was interesting to see the state of the Rebel Alliance at this point. They're right off their first major victory, but they don't have a lot of funds and are in search of a new base. Admiral Ackbar and Princess Leia make appearances, but this book is about Luke.

He travels from planet to planet on a new mission. There's a great character introduced as his potential love interest. I like her backstory. With this book being first person, Luke's thoughts about her and his mixed feelings for Leia can really be represented well.

My favorite part of the book was seeing Luke try to understand The Force. He attempts to make a noodle move and his thought process behind it is really cool.

Luke is known as the whiny farm boy, but in this book his social awkwardness and interest in this new bigger world come forward.

I give this book a 4/5, but maybe a little over that because it's my favorite of the new canon Star Wars books. I highly recommend it. The great thing about the new canon is that they are all standalone so far, so you don't have to read them in any particular order or with each other.

This is a convincing enough story told from the first person perspective of Luke Skywalker between episodes IV and V. I agree with another reviewer that it seems a little strange to give the hero of the battle of Yavin as assignment like this one, which equates to a Navy SEALs covert operation and hostage extraction type thing. What exactly qualifies Luke for this duty? Piloting skills? Seems like there would be someone better. Once I got over that it really was a decent adventure story. Nothing earth shattering or amazing happens other than the introduction of a love interest for Luke that we've never heard of before and glimpses of his first attempts at telekinesis. Worth reading for the completest, but I'm sure there are more entertaining Star Wars novels out there for casual fans.

Heir to the Jedi isn't all that good, but there are enough moments in this relatively short book to make it worth the time to read. It's somewhat meandering and filled with unnecessary details filling in the space between key moments and locations. The first-person narrative also doesn't work because it doesn't feel like it's Luke narrating; the vocabulary and tone doesn't ring true, but the first-person style was probably necessary for the moments of introspection that are the highlight of the book. I would have given this book 2 1/2 stars if possible: three stars is a little much, and two stars is a little too generous. It's mediocre, but considering the relatively short read, it won't hurt to give it a go for some insight into Luke's journey through the Force.

I thought this was a fun book. Lots of action and adventure. Other reviewers don't seem to care for this book because of its light hearted nature. End the end, it's fun star wars journey. If you are looking for super heavy material that has very little to do with anything, go read the battlefront book. If you want something quick and fun to read, check out this book.

Okay but really... I'm sorry Kevin Hearne, I'm not usually one for scathing criticism. But this book had absolutely no substance. I was so excited for it (bless that stunning cover art). But the only truly good section was the opening paragraphs and maybe the closing ones when Luke describes the Force filling him and then reflecting on the loss of his aunt and uncle, Ben, and Biggs. Other than that, it was pointless plot-driven action and extremely lame world-building. Caf for caffeine? R2-D2's photoreceptors turn into a "cam eye" because Hearne's world-building consists entirely of abbreviating words. (Or using superhero costume references that don't exist in a galaxy far, far away.) Let's not even talk about his "math culture" for Drusil and the cringe-worthy love story with Nakari.

I am MOST UPSET though, with Hearne's characterization of Luke Skywalker, my Jedi hero, my fresh-faced idealist, my upstart kid looking for a mission and a meaning in his world. No, this Luke is CALLOUS to war. In his mind we hear him say, "Nakari would place bullet holes on their temples like periods at the end of a sentence." Just kill me now. Where is his moral center? Luke just stepped off from Tatooine, had ONE major battle in an X-Wing and ZERO experience in hand-to-hand killing and we see him not even blink at eye at a guy whose brains are shot not three feet in front of him??? (This actually happens in the book.) PLEASE KEVIN HEARNE.

At best, it's forgettable. At worst, painfully awkward and decidedly unlike Star Wars.

Buy "Splinter of the Mind's Eye" instead. This book was so boring it actually hurt. My wife is a bigger Star Wars fan than me, and she couldn't even make it a third of the way through it. It's a shame because the author is actually good. There's just nothing interesting about this story.

This is more like two short stories and a novella than a single novel, but it was serviceable, if nothing more. It's a few Luke Skywalker adventures shortly after he blew up the original Death Star. The book is hamstrung a bit since we know what happens shortly after its conclusion, and the author tried to balance Luke's burgeoning Jedi powers with his teenage hormone explosion and general fame for being a hero of the Rebellion, but overall it was nothing special.

Recommended for completists only.

I'm an avid Star Wars reader with the bulk of the now-jettisoned E.U. under belt. While I was sad, I was excited that a fresh start meant we might get more tales from the Big Three, particularly Luke Skywalker. I'm no snobby reader. I'd just like a Star Wars author to immerse me in that familiar Galaxy far far away. That didn't happen in this novel. Like other reviewers, the first-person narrative was off-putting and Luke's voice was undecognizable. A boring story with too many glossed over details, I feel like the author missed the chance to really spin a fantastic tail of adventure and self discovery. And the anachronism! Things imported from our universe that just don't fit in the Star Wars world, they always brought me to a head-scratching halt. But if you've read the author's Iron Druid series, you know this is par the course. It's the very reason I couldn't finish those books. I was so pumped to see a new Luke Skywalker book and totally disappointed by the end result. Publishers, we want to see more Big Three stories, just please try a different author!

This is beyond terrible, and I'm only halfway through. This is the slowest SW I've ever read (heard would be more appropriate since I do audiobooks 90% of the time). I generally do not write reviews, but this story has earned a spot in my heart as the only SW novel I've ever read that I genuinely hated. It feels like the author does not understand Luke at all.

My main issue with this book is the absolute lack of imagination in the details. I don't know if this comes from the editing or the author, but the combination cannot hold a candle to the array of talented SW writers in the past like Timothy Zahn, Aaron Allston, and Michael Stackpole. Where are the transparisteel viewports, ferrocrete buildings, and exotic food items that have no relation to familiar items we see every day? I cannot abide being dragged back to Earth by "ice cream" and "soup and crackers" references. The main reason I enjoy Star Wars as a whole is the absolute lack of reference to Earth or our Galaxy or anything else familiar to us.

Major thumbs down, but the only thing that redeems anything about this book is the reading of Marc Thompson, which is the best thing that ever happened to SW Audiobooks.

I can't grasp why everyone seems to think a 17 year old Luke Skywalker, who grew up on a desert farm with 3 whole people and a few droids to talk to, should somehow jump out of the Battle of Yavin as a Master philosopher king. Which is why I was so charmed by the bumbling, goofy teenager who gets tongue tied around pretty girls. Hes not a master swordsman, but still carries his fathers saber. Hes not a Jedi, and his 11 minutes of training didn't give him a lot to go on.

The plot is a bit weak, and gets lost in the middle. Luke is tasked with rescuing a master cryptographer from the Empire, and the series of unfortunate events that leads up to that actual mission. The pacing is very languid for the majority of the novel, and doesn't really feel like its going anywhere until the very end.

Maybe Aftermath, an utterly terrible book lowered the bar so much that basically anything can get over it, but I enjoyed the journey almost because of the constant detours. The Rebels give missions, but can barely help, and Lukes scrounging for more resources seems more plausible than being handed a fleet to support a simple find and extract mission. It papers over some of the glaring Jedi holes between the two movies, and provides some Force scenes that were very well handled.

The audiobook is handled flawlessly, incredibly voiced, and even includes radio drama sound effects. maybe that's why I enjoyed this so much, but even without this, this story would be a solid three stars.

First off, let me say that it always pains me to rate a Star Wars book so poorly. I had been so excited over this book. I had read the two previous novels in this trilogy, Razor's Edge and Honor Among Thieves, and loved them. So of course I thought this book would be equal to those ones. I was wrong, horribly wrong.

One of the first things that stood out to me was that the book is written in first person, which seemed very odd to me since the other books in the trilogy are written in third person. Why, oh why would you change that? It doesn't make any sense. Consistency of writing tense is very important when dealing with books in a series. Switching it part way through, or in this case at the end, is just annoying.

Then there was the poor story line. Instead of Heir To The Jedi this book should really be called Luke Skywalker: Errand Boy, because that's pretty much what he does throughout the book. He runs errand for the Alliance. Granted some of them are more important than others, but it was kind of agonizing to read. And let's not forget that moment when he suddenly things about the power converters that he never picked up at Tosche Station and wonders if they might still be there waiting for him.

This book reads almost like a fanfic, instead of an actual published novel. Of the characters that were introduced in this book, I found none of them to be interesting enough to make me care about who they were and what they were doing for or against the alliance.

In the end I was very disappointed in this book. I didn't feel like I really learned anything new about Luke Skywalker or the Alliance (though let's face it we all know how things works out in the end already). I'm sure somewhere out there a reader or two will enjoy this book, but I honestly wouldn't recommend it.

This book just didn't work for me. It's not the first-person approach, it's just the overall execution. First, this book is less than 300 pages with a large typeface, hardly an epic story. But mainly, the story is just so lame -- hardly any action takes place, mostly just Luke mooning over a potential love interest who has no future in the universe, and in the end it's hard to buy that this story has any real impact on the SW universe. I was EXTREMELY disappointed. I'm trying really hard not to let the fact that this is (as far as I know) the first SW book with a Disney logo on the back of the dust jacket...

Heir to the Jedi is light-years away from being as good as Timothy Zahn's Heir to the Empire, from which it borrows the name. I have been reading Star Wars books since the 3rd grade (1993) and this is easily one of the most disappointing books I have read. I won't give away any spoilers for those of you who do want to read it, plus, who knows, YOU may enjoy it if you do read it, which is perfectly fine. Don't get me wrong, there are some bright spots in the book which is why I gave it two stars instead of one. However, as a Star Wars novel, and one that now sits OFFICIALLY as part of the canon, I am left wondering: why did the Star Wars Story Group approve this? Though it gives glimpses of Luke's (slow) movement towards becoming a Jedi, at no point in this novel did I feel that anything drastically important was really added to the Star Wars universe. Read it if you feel you need to because it says Star Wars on it, but don't be surprised when you set it down after a few days and are left wondering: "what was that?"

So far I have liked every new canon book to come out but this book is the worst of not only the new canon but I would say even of the legends books I have read.
Spoilers
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The good

I liked seeing Luke trying to teach himself how to use the force.

For the most part I liked the character of Nakari for the part and sasly due to the lack of her in Empire or Jedi they had to kill her off.

The bad

This is the corniest book I think I have ever read.
there are so many different things in this book where I just thought how cheesey, for example
The math greetings
or how about those Corellian buckwheat noodles with Rancor sauce and don't forget the Nerf nuggets yum am I right.

My next gripe would have to be luke himself
I feel like Luke had split personality disorder thoughout the book there would be very short and infrequent sperts where Luke would feel like he did from the movies but in some scenes espcially some of the ones with either Nakari or Leia where I feel like I am reading a cheesy romance with poorly written dialogue but I can't give the guy to hard of a time because I am not any good at dialogue either, which leads to my next complaint being that the dialogue is horrendous in some places to the point it actually sounds like something I would have written.

One of my biggest complaints was the writing style I didn't like the 1st person point of view writing call me old fashioned but I prefer the good old 3rd person writing style.

My final complaint is the math I mentioned earlier it was so cheesey to the point I don't know what made the author think it was a good Idea but it wasn't. The funny thing about it is that before I read the book I read the reviews and everyone was complaining about the math and the cheesey dialogue and I assumed they were the people who were mad about the old books being designated legends but now I realize their complaints were valid and don't take this as me bashing the author I have heard a lot of gis books are actually pretty good

I know I have complained a lot about this book but let me reassure you that if you are hesitant to read new canon don't be, this book to me is the oddball of the new books there are some real jewels in the new canon such as Lost Star or Tarkin and if you are attempting to read all of the canon then read it, the book is bad but who knows you can read and maybe enjoy it like you would the holiday special. One thing I ask though is don't let the negative reviews including this one prrvent you from reading the book because at the end of the day you could like something totally different than me so I say give it a shot and if you don't like it you will probably get a couple of laughs in while reading it.

This is the third Star Wars novel following the dropping of the expanded universe and relegating them to the Legends range and so far they are very much hit and miss. Heir to the Jedi (the title ironically a deliberate nod to Timothy Zahn's excellent EU novel Heir to the empire) is set between A New Hope and Empire strikes back and uniquely is told in the first person by Luke Skywalker. An ineresting approach that doesnt quite work as at certain parts its hard to imagine Luke saying the lines written for him so it detracts a little from the action. Still this is good read and I'm still curious as to the direction Star Wars is headed in and look forward to future releases.

It was nice to see Luke's journey to becoming a jedi but most of it was just talking. It did escalate in the end though and it's nice to see Luke have a love interest since Mara Jade is no longer canon.

A Luke Skywalker adventure set between episodes IV and IV sounds good but because of it's first-person narrative, it stumbles a bit. It's a fun read, sure, but having to read an account by teenage Luke make this book seemed more geared for a younger audience than a late-twenties adult. It can be awful to read at times but there some nice moments such as whenever Luke is trying to reach out to the Force and learn his powers. I listened to the audiobook and it was awful listening to the narrator speak as Luke. All in all, it's a fairly enjoyable read but doesn't add too much to the Star Wars lore.

I don't see why all the hate surrounds this book. I thought it was great. Sure they have nerf nuggets and sure there are noodles. Who cares? It's not like every cuisine had been described in star wars prior to this book.
I thought it was a good read. I liked the pacing. The action was good enough I could really visualize it all happening as I read. You read all these thoughts going through Luke's head and get to know him better.
I've never been a big fan of Luke and his whining, but I was wonderfully surprised with him in this book. I think it was believable and you get to see how he grows with using the force.
A quick run down of the general plot: The rebels send Luke and another person on a mission to extract a super hacker from the imperials.
I liked the characters. The slicer is funnier than I expected. The action had more gore at points that I really enjoyed more than the normal lame burn mark left from a blaster. I think because of that, the action was more exciting. You can only take stormtrooper effectiveness with a blaster so many times. This changes it up.
Oh and there's some pretty good space fight scenes.
I happened to read lords of the sith as well and it was boring to me compared to heir to the jedi. I don't know if it was the writing styles or what but I did not enjoy lords of the sith nearly as much as this one. Take any review with a grain of salt. You don't always like the same things as everyone else.

Initially, I was disappointed with this story (brain-eating aliens, really?) but thankfully that's the low point of the book and it picks up some steam after that. It was interesting reading from Luke's point of view, and after finishing the story I wish that we had more stories from the first person point of view in the Star Wars canon. The book did fail to fully capture my attention though, despite showing Luke and his developing Force powers. I'd recommend checking this out from a library, but not actually buying it.

Bought through a different seller. This book was ok. It's told in first person but lacks depth of character. Granted like was 17-18 in this time but seriously it felt like I was reading a teenage fan fic. No character development and really who sends an agent to negotiate a sale of weapons without telling him how much he can spend?! Also, the language used by the author lets me know that this is his first foray into the Star Wars universe. The "Galactic Standard" language is called Basic and bathrooms are freshers. Also, Luke really had very little self taught skills other than connection when he finally met Yoda. Yeah he'd moved a few things but subtle things like mind control m, not so much.
Not enough story and too much teen drama.

When I settled in to read this new canonical adventure starring a fresh-faced Luke Skywalker just after the Battle of Yavin, my expectations were sky-high. I knew up-front that this novel was written in the first person, and I didn't expect that to bother me after loving I, Jedi by Mike Stackpole a number of years back. Unfortunately, Heir to the Jedi's problems became apparent just a few pages in. As others have commented, the first person perspective in this novel feels like fan fiction at best and Twilight-level writing at worse. I've never read any other works by Hearne so I can't comment on his talent as a writer, but this effort leaves a lot to be desired. Perhaps if he had just gone with a traditional third person narration this novel wouldn't feel so poorly written. I try to find as much good in things as possible, but the sentence structure throughout is honestly awful.

THE GOOD
- The plot itself was just entertaining enough to get me through the substandard writing
- A couple of fun new characters
- It's canon, so if you're a big fan you'll probably read it anyway

Both A New Dawn and Tarkin were very well done; I'm disappointed by this effort and hope that future canonical works adhere to a higher standard of quality.

Quick review: If you can get past the first half of the book, the second half is a real treat.
Full Review: This book follows Luke as he goes on a mission to help the Rebels, and while the plot of the story is fairly weak, its the characters that will keep the book going. The book feels like it was written for the fans of books like Hunger Games and Divergent, having similar tones and dialog. Speaking of dialog, I have a love hate relationship with it, while it feels great and the characters speak like normal people in their early 20's would, the problem is them being normal. This is Star Wars and this kind of dialog feels off. Though I would much rather have them talk like this then how people spoke in the prequels. This is also a different Luke then we have seen, and while odd at times, it is also good to remember how much growth his character had from 4 to 5, and this fits well as a bridge between those two lukes. Some of the best parts are when Luke is trying to train in the force or talks about interstellar travel and the rebels and funding. In the end if you are a Star Wars fan you should read the book.

An intriguing look in Luke Skywalker and his development as part of the rebel alliance. Written from Luke's first person point of view, the story reveals a greal deal of background into his life. Unfortunately the story can get bogged down with details. In many ways the character development portrays a different type of Luke than what was seen in the movies. This can be both refreshing and sometimes mundane.

 I have  never read a Star Wars book before. I have seen all six movies in the theater.  I'm sure there is a bible for such things, regardless, this felt like Luke to me. Good story telling  and characters made this an easy read. No spoilers here;  I don't do that! If you, likr me, have never read Star Wars, let's try some more. If unlike me, youve never read Kevin Hearne, check out the iron druid!

Luke Skywalker has been one of my favorite characters since childhood. However, this story seemed very awkward from the get go. My brother and I read it, and he compared it to an indie rpg- learning your skills in this really prototypical way with an easily predictable plot. Side quests with awkward characters (a species that speaks in math equations?) and an odd focus on nerf-meat for some reason. It was just, awkward

All I can say is oh my god. Seriously whiney and hard to follow. Good money was spent so I forced myself to finish this book but it was difficult and, to be perfectly honest, it was painful. There were some bad books in the original universe but if the rest of the new books are like this one, after 30+ years of following the series, I will have to say no more, I am done. I truly truly miss you Aaron Alston.

I'm six chapters into the book and I'm muscling through it for hope that there's a nugget of relevance in it somewhere. Written from Luke's point of view (a concept I like), this book is pure fanfic rubbish, so far. Hearne's work reads like a Johnny Carson stage satire with direct quote references to A New Hope - Carson, though, made me laugh; this just makes me shake my head. Using words like "funky" and other malapropisms that are completely out of place a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, the book makes it impossible to believe that these are the thoughts of a poor, young moisture farmer.

I'll finish reading the book because of the possibility that there may be a reference that will help something in the new movies make sense. That's it.

UPDATE: I just read the chapter where Luke used the word "negligee." Apparently Kevin Hearne is the nom de plume of George Lucas, bent on ruining the new canon. Downgrading to one star. Still reading. I have no spine.

UPDATE 2: Book has little imagination. Uses references to pedestrian condiments, like salt, pepper and sugar packets. Hearne colloquializes things for no reason (anyone hungry for "nerf nuggets?") rather than using imagination to create concepts unique to a galaxy unfamiliar to the reader. Still reading, though. I'm an idiot.

This book is a good Star Wars story. There are some definite pluses. I liked the first person point of view using a familiar character and many of the new characters were interesting. I did feel like there were a few things mentioned that didn't seem to fit in the SW universe (were more from our world) and they were a bit distracting. These books have a way to go to reach the level of the old Thrawn books.

I have both read this book and listened to the Audible version. I must admit as i read it it was a bore but the audio version made it more bearable. It just didnt seem like a whole lot happened of note and was kind of a pointless read. I didnt mind the writing or anything, just the simple fact that nothing happened. Luke has a love interest which was the most interesting part of it in my opinion but for the most part it seemed like a bunch of really short stories crammed together and wasn't all that exciting. If youre a Star Wars completionist than id recommend the audible version for sure. If not i find it really Hard to recommend to anyone

Heir to the Jedi: Star Wars
The third book of the revised canon, it provides a very nice and pleasing reintroduction to the Luke from the "initial" trilogy, the young, naive and uneducated on the ways of the Force Luke.
It was very pleasing to listen to the audiobook, with the background noises and musical score for pivotal parts of the story. I really enjoyed how Luke was trying to discover how to use the Force and that the book is being told from a first's person point of view. Hope this is also explored on "The Weapon of a Jedi" to be released later on the year (Sept 2015)

While I did not hate this book overall it did not deserve the epic title given it. Maybe a middle school age Star Wars fan could enjoy this book but I couldn't finish it. The writing was immature and the plot didn't seem to have much of a point. The only point in the book that grabbed my attention was when Luke was investigating a Jedi relic but was abruptly curtailed by the story. The author should have followed this narrative rather than the mundane ones here. About half way through I just said who cares and stopped reading. I don't wholly blame the author as I feel that Disney did not give the authors of the new canon books enough license and time to write truly compelling stories.

This is the first Star Wars book I've ever failed to finish reading. The supposed first person narration by Luke Skywalker sounds more like a cross between C-3P0 and two characters from the author's urban fantasy series "the Iron Druid Chronicles." (Atticus and Granuaile, to be specific, leaning more towards Granuaile. Who is female.) I've read more than 8600 books in my fifty years, and failed to finish forty-two. That should tell you how bloody awful this book is.

Awful! I have read fan fiction that is better written than this drivel. I wasn't even able to get through the book. If you want to read about Luke cruising around the galaxy with a character we know nothing or care to know nothing about while he attempts to move limp broccoli with the force, then this book is for you. Han is no where in evidence and the few exchanges Luke had with Leia were so forced and out of character I simply had to put this book aside and say, 'no thanks'.

There is no reason to buy this book. It's not entertaining, it's poorly written. It makes familiar characters a little weird in uncomfortable but not interesting ways. New characters are boring and forgettable. The writing seems to make sure that surprises in the plot are well choreographed ahead of time and genuinely not surprising. Admiral Ackbar in particular is poorly rendered. All the charm of luke skywalked has been sucked away.

Please Disney/Lucasfilm gods, don't ever let any of the authors you work with write a Star Wars story in first person ever again. EVER. The story was ok but the first person narrative really took me out of it. Which bummed me o ut.

I am reading this book now and the story is good but the execution of it being a first person account of Luke Skywalker is weak. Much of the wording in this book doesn't sound like words Luke would have used in the time between episodes 4 and 5.

If I could give this book a ZERO star rating I would. It seams like all the new writes that Disney has hired to write their new canon are not that could should not have done those book. Do not buy this book if ye must read it check it out from a library so ye need not waste ye're money on it.

It took me quite a while to get into the voice of the narration. It was hard for me to separate how I thought Luke would sound in his own head from what I was reading, but I grew to like it. I think it had something to do with trying to read it first on my own and then switching to audiobook. The audiobook is much more enjoyable.

Anyway, it's a fun enough read, with some interesting insights into the force. I'm not quite finished with it, just a few more chapters, but I'm glad it hasn't mentioned anything about midichlorians... yet.

I chose the rating because there were a few mixed metaphors that were distracting. On the positive side, the explication of Like having to battle with the negative feelings which came from the death of Nakari were a nice parallel to the feelings Vader may have experienced at the death of Luke's mother. It would have been nice if there were an index to give a lay introduction into some of the higher mathematics used in the book. This could inspire some erstwhile mathematicians.

When reading this book its important to remember the time it takes place in which is right after Episode 4. Luke has limited knowledge of the force and no one to teach him. He has the ability to use the force on a limited basis. If you have that realization you will enjoy this book. It provides important character development for Luke helping distinguish the path he chooses compared to his father. One of the chapters really shows how talented of a pilot he is and why he is such an asset to the alliance. It is a quick read and should be read by all Star Wars novel fans.

I am not one for fancy words nor can I write complex reviews. So my review is simple. I did not like this book. I really wanted to. This book is in first person, which admittedly turned me off at first. I am not really fond of first person accounts. There are very few I have re that I enjoy. But I just found the whole story to be dull and boring. To be honest I thought Luke's characterization was kind of off. In what way I cannot really be sure unless I went back and re-read the book which is not gonna happen. So to keep it simple again, I did not like the book. So glad I borrowed it from the library before buying.

I LOVE Kevin Hearne's Iron Druid chronicles and had high hopes for this book. It fell VERY short of my expectations. I forced myself to finish it. It started bad and never got better. Sorry Mr Hearne, not your best work at all. Waiting for the the IDC installment.

I just didn't enjoy this as much as I'd hoped. The first person perspective is annoying to me. Also, Luke has a kind of love interest that, once introduced, you know is going to end up dead--nowhere to be seen in Empire, right? So that seemed like kind of a dumb thing to do. All-in-all, this book seemed like so much filler in my opinion. There were aspects I enjoyed, it just didn't blow me away.

Want to know how Luke learnt to build a lightsaber, and first began to use the force to move objects? How the dark side feels and how he overcomes it? How about his thoughts on Leia and any other romantic interests? This book has it all! The best Star Wars novel I have read yet. Excellent characterisation, it was great to get inside Luke's head and learn about how he feels and thinks after the events of EpIV. True to the Star Wars universe. Clean. Funny. Well written action. I couldn't put it down.

I loved Star Wars when it came out in 1977, and when The Empire Strikes Back came out I did feel that a lot had happened in the interim. This book covers Luke's life for a part of that time, told in Luke's voice. I've read several books by different authors in the Star Wars genre, and this one definitely has a place. I enjoyed it and would read more like it by this author.

Set in between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back, Luke only had a bit of time with Obi Wan so he was barely able to begin studying to be a Jedi. The narrative is first person, from Luke's point of view - giving fans a unique perspective of the character.

Heir to the Jedi is an exciting, original story that focuses solely on Luke and a couple new characters. There is quite a bit more flirty, humor between Luke and his female companion than I'm used to in the series. But it was a nice contrast to the adventure and thrilling suspense. In fact, one scene with brain-eating aliens felt more like I was reading something from the Alien series rather than Star Wars. As a fan of Hearne's Iron Druid Chronicles, I had high hopes for this novel. Full of intrigue, colorful characters, action, and a bit of romance - this latest installment doesn't disappoint. And I absolutely loved that it was told from Luke's perspective.

*Review previously posted at SciFiChick.com

As a Star Wars fan I loved this book. It's alittle slow at first. Maybe about ten chapters in but me being who I am I love to read new Star Wars stories weather it's action packed or like the first 10 chapters of heir to the Jedi... Informative. Not much goes on at first but you learn of new characters visit new places and join Luke on his slow journey to understanding the force. It's a very enjoyable book for a Star Wars fan looking for anew story.

As stated I listened to the audiobook. That format may not be for everyone but it definitely makes things more exciting for me with the sounds and the music in the background. The tone is definitely set a lot better. I really enjoyed his book a lot more than the others in the new canon. Yes I agree that this is not the Luke we saw in the movies at least not in Empire Strikes Back. I think this is a nice bridge between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back. It builds Luke's character to the Luke that we see in the movies. Without going into details, when the book describes the efforts Luke went through to train himself and try to understand the force without Ben it just made sense. I completely recommend this book I really do think it developed this character accurately for the circumstances he was in.

One of the weakest SW books I've ever read and I've read 90% of them. Plodding yet pointless plot, people were put in danger without any real feeling of danger. Very anti-climatic. This first person writing style would fit better with Young Jedi Knights though this book isn't put forth as young adult fiction (it should be).

I honestly had such hopes for this book, especially considering its new canon, but it was a complete disappointment. The initial chapters had me very intrigued, with the first person format. This intrigue quickly ended. The character development is horrid, no depth at all.

Some of Luke's actions are not of the Luke we see in the original trilogy. The novel also ends too quickly and introduces a love interest that was not necessary and could have been replaced with a more interesting plot. The highlight of the novel IMO is the first chapter - this is the only part when we see the Luke we know.

Kevin Hearne’s Star Wars: Heir to the Jedi is the latest in the new “official cannon” line of Star Wars stories. It takes place fairly soon after the Battle of Yavin. The story follows Luke Skywalker as he is tasked with rescuing a cryptographer who has been co-opted into working for the Empire. Along the way, he interacts with several old friends, including Princess Leia Organa, Admiral Ackbar, and R2-D2. There are also new planets and new characters introduced.

The first thing that struck me about Heir to the Jedi is that the story is told in the first person, from Luke’s point of view. I’m not sure how often this has been done in Star Wars books, but it was new to me, and I enjoyed it. I feel that Hearne did a great job of capturing Luke’s enthusiasm for the Rebellion, his uncertainty about the Force, and his general naivete (he did, until recently, live on a very rural sand planet). This portrayal seemed to reflect the Luke Skywalker from Star Wars: A New Hope, and begins to show his journey to the character we are familiar with in The Empire Strikes Back. The narrative style also is nice as the reader gets access to Luke’s inner struggle with his abilities (or lack of) to use the Force. It’s easy to forget that he only spent a short time with Obi Wan Kenobi, and did not really receive much instruction in how to use the Force. Hearne does an outstanding job in conveying this.

Along with Luke’s inner dialogue, Hearne explores new planets, several of which are very different than have been seen in previous Star Wars outings. He brings in alien species both familiar (Rodians) and new (Givin). New character Nakari Kelen proves an interesting companion for Luke, and provides a romantic opportunity that will eventually lead him away from Leia. Drusil, a Given codebreaker, is another new character. She continues Star Wars' tradition of interesting non-human lifeforms. In fact, not only do the Given not look human, they usually speak in mathematical equations (one of my favorite parts of the book is Drusil's math joke; watch for it).

Underlying everything is a sense of adventure and fun. As the films went on, there was a darkness present. It was a necessary component, but some of the innocence was lost. Heir to the Jedi does a great job of renewing that fun, with the spectre of Darth Vader and the Empire hanging out in the background.

I enjoyed Heir to the Jedi more than any other Star Wars novel in recent memory. If this is an example of what fans/readers can expect going forward, it promises to be an exciting time in the Star Wars Expanded Universe. I highly recommend this book.

I received a preview copy of this book from Random House in exchange for an honest review.

I love Star Wars, but the truth be told, this was just long winded and boring. The prequels were honestly better then this book. Not a total loss though, there were a few good parts. Read it if you're into canon, if not, you may want to skip this one.

anything in the star wars universe with the stench of Disney on it will be discarded hence forth. read the first two chapters of this atrocity and had to watch the original trilogy to get this crap out of my head! novel is utter rubbish.

This was the first book I've ever read about Luke Skywalker. And it was the first book ever "written by" Luke Skywalker. And I really enjoyed it.

Having been written in first person in the voice of Luke, this book is a first for Star Wars novels. I enjoyed the first person aspect of the novel, as it allowed for even deeper internal narration to come across than a normal story would have. But I found it hard to keep Luke's "voice" in my head for the entire novel, so I'm not sure it was entirely a success for me.

I've been reading Star Wars novels and comics for about a decade, but have been going through them chronologically. I'm in the Dark Times currently, and so I've never read a story staring Luke Skywalker before. But my decision to begin reading all the new canon material as it comes out led me to jump ahead to this book. It was very interesting, therefore, to see Luke talk about the Clone Wars, wonder to himself how bad a guy the Emporer is, and know of the public reputation of Darth Vader.

The novel is set shortly after A New Hope, and features Luke going on a Rebel mission to rescue a master computer slicer with the help of a beautiful Rebel, Nakari. The Luke/ Nakari relationship was a great part of the story, and it really helped show Luke growing up in the period between Episodes IV and V. The mathematical genius whom they rescue from the Empire was an interesting character, and I enjoyed the way math was such an important part of her culture. The chapter headings embedded in mathematical formulas were a nice touch.

The most interesting part of the novel was Luke struggling to learn how to use the Force. With such little time and guidance from Ben before his death, all he knows is that the Force is out there but he has little idea how to use it, and what it can do. It was great to watch him take his first steps toward figuring that out, and even see him notice that the Dark Side always beckons. Luke trying to use the Jedi Mind Trick on someone for the first time was hilarious, as was his first forays into moving objects with his mind.

Admiral Ackbar, R2D2 "talking" to Luke, and the author's meditation on weather Vader was seduced by the Dark Side or fell to it by his own choice add even more great stuff to this book. It wasn't a standout 5 star novel like The Revenge of the Sith novelization or Darth Plagueis, but I really don't have anything but praise for Heir to the Jedi.

Being a big SW fan I thought I'd give this story a try. Thought it sounded interesting. But ended up finding it boring. I felt like it made the character of Luke take a few steps back even though this takes place after episode 4. I didn't even finish the book. Would rather move onto the next of the new SW books.

Fantastic! Kevin Hearne is a phenomenal writer, able to write character interactions and relationships with stunning skill and alacrity. The plot was not a high-stakes force fueled adventure, it was a realistic tension filled filler adventure, that allowed us to explore the still naïve character of Luke Skywalker. With Kevin at the helm, we see Luke take his second steps into a larger world; learning more about connecting to the Force and understanding what it means to feel death and despair, and letting it go.

One of the best Star Wars books I've seen published recently for several reasons:

1. It deals with PT/OT contradictions. Hearne brings up as problematic the differences between what we see in Revenge of the Sith and what Luke is told by Obi-Wan.

2. It bridges the gap between the Luke we see in ANH and ESB. When we see Luke at the end of ANH he can turn on a lightsaber and listen to Obi-Wan's instructions through the force. When we see him in ESB he can use the force to grab his lightsaber and kill a monster. This book shows the progress.

3. The audiobook narrator was good. He had a pretty decent Mark Hamill impression. It really worked well in this book being that it is all in first person.

It may be different for others but the typical SW novel McGuffin plot didn't grate so badly on my nerves this time. Probably only because the book was working for me in other areas, but that's important.

This tale begins shortly after the Battle of Yavin when Luke used the force to help him destroy the deathstar. He is assigned to help a prisoner escape from the Empire which leads him on quite the adventure. It is in many respects a coming of age story as Luke learns more about himself, the force, and caring about others. This was well written, exciting, and helps fill in the gaps between the movies.

Great read. It takes place between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back. Develops Luke more and introduces some interesting characters. It also answers some questions about how Luke knows some of the stuff he does at the beginning of Empire. Reading this makes me want to read other works by the author.

I really loved this novel!!!! I really loved how it was written in Luke's Point of View, it was like a behind the scenes look on how he deveopled his skills as a Jedi between A New Hope and my favorite The Empire Strikes Back!!!

Being a big SW fan I thought I'd give this story a try. Thought it sounded interesting. But ended up finding it boring. I felt like it made the character of Luke take a few steps back even though this takes place after episode 4. I didn't even finish the book. Would rather move onto the next of the new SW books.

Fantastic! Kevin Hearne is a phenomenal writer, able to write character interactions and relationships with stunning skill and alacrity. The plot was not a high-stakes force fueled adventure, it was a realistic tension filled filler adventure, that allowed us to explore the still naïve character of Luke Skywalker. With Kevin at the helm, we see Luke take his second steps into a larger world; learning more about connecting to the Force and understanding what it means to feel death and despair, and letting it go.

One of the best Star Wars books I've seen published recently for several reasons:

1. It deals with PT/OT contradictions. Hearne brings up as problematic the differences between what we see in Revenge of the Sith and what Luke is told by Obi-Wan.

2. It bridges the gap between the Luke we see in ANH and ESB. When we see Luke at the end of ANH he can turn on a lightsaber and listen to Obi-Wan's instructions through the force. When we see him in ESB he can use the force to grab his lightsaber and kill a monster. This book shows the progress.

3. The audiobook narrator was good. He had a pretty decent Mark Hamill impression. It really worked well in this book being that it is all in first person.

It may be different for others but the typical SW novel McGuffin plot didn't grate so badly on my nerves this time. Probably only because the book was working for me in other areas, but that's important.

This tale begins shortly after the Battle of Yavin when Luke used the force to help him destroy the deathstar. He is assigned to help a prisoner escape from the Empire which leads him on quite the adventure. It is in many respects a coming of age story as Luke learns more about himself, the force, and caring about others. This was well written, exciting, and helps fill in the gaps between the movies.

Too expensive. Stinking elitist never have to worry about money. $11.00 Kindle is a rip-off. It is direct digital, no production costs. The high cost is the book industry trying to maintain and support the value of hard copy. They are still wishing bad things for ebooks. Well guess what, they are losing their strangle hold on writers and readers. Publishing companies are the personification of elitism, deciding what people read and written by whom. Their monopoly over literature and what is available for people to read is finally ending. POWER TO THE PEOPLE.

UPDATE: 6/21/16 : "You now have a credit of $63.56 in your the store account. Apple, Inc. (Apple) funded this credit to settle antitrust lawsuits brought by State Attorneys General and Class Plaintiffs about the price of electronic books (eBooks). "

Edit 7/23/15: The credit results from legal settlements reached with publishers Hachette, HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Macmillan, and Penguin in antitrust lawsuits filed by State Attorneys General and Class Plaintiffs about the price of eBooks. This credit is in addition to the credit that you received from these settlements in March 2014.

Great read. It takes place between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back. Develops Luke more and introduces some interesting characters. It also answers some questions about how Luke knows some of the stuff he does at the beginning of Empire. Reading this makes me want to read other works by the author.

I really loved this novel!!!! I really loved how it was written in Luke's Point of View, it was like a behind the scenes look on how he deveopled his skills as a Jedi between A New Hope and my favorite The Empire Strikes Back!!!

My first impressions before reading: less than 270 pages and the font of the print is super big. What is this. junior novel for middle schoolers?

"I have a bad feeling about this..."

My God, what a sick pathetic joke this book is. I have consistently been reading Star Wars novels for the longest time...having just fiinished the Heir to the Empire trilogy, Darth Plagueis, Shadows of the Empire and the Bane Trilogy...and to come to this worthless drivel is a total insult to me and all the previous authors that have made the EU. NOTHING IMPORTANT HAPPENS IN THIS BOOK!!! Nothing at all! Luke just runs a bunch of meaningless errands and we get to know his thoughts and insecurities about being a Jedi. The damn thing reads like a boring diary and it is really sad because Luke is my favorite character. I understand the approach they were going for here but the plot is BORING! if you want a good Luke Skywalker stuff read Shadows of Mindor, Choices of One, Allegiance, the Heir to the Empire trilogy, or Shadows of the Empire. The best way I can describe this book is like that of a role playing video game, you know like Final Fantasy? Except that in the book instead of mainly paying attention to the Epic Storyline quest it spends the entire time doing little side quest that don't amount to nothing. This is easilly the worst Star Wars book ever written and that I have ever read in my entire life. I feel so ripped off having paid 25$ for it...please do yourself a favor and don't buy this! Rent it from the library if you have to but don't buy it! I'm returning mine for a full refund.

And some people thought Phantom Menace was boring! Wait until you read this!

This was quite a disappointment. There are two facets to my thoughts about this book. First off the first person narrative for Luke was not enjoyable. It did not feel like "my Luke". This is NOT a gsult of the author since I'm sure he was writing his version of Luke.

Second I really question the purpose of this novel. All novels being published are now consisered canon, so the events of the novel are weaved into the tapestry of the saga. So I was immediately questioned Luke being sent on a solo ( except for R2 of course ) mission to open up possible smuggling routes with Rebel allies.

Um. Why would you endanger the hero of Yavin on a grunt mission better suited for Han Solo or any other rebel commander?
There were some interesting characters and planets introduced in the novel, but not much of an emotional journey for Luke as I would have expected .

This was part of the new Canon, giving us back story to the Luke Skywalker character. It is a little unusual in that the entire story is done in the first person, but I was originally ok with this, thinking that it could be good, you would get a better understanding of what is going on in Luke’s head, you know, this ‘Heir to the Jedi’.
Unfortunately, to steal a line from Michael P Keaton, a lot of the time there was just a little voice saying ‘You can see for miles and miles in here….’
What should have been an interesting and intriguing story about the young Luke, fresh off the destruction of the Death Star and his new found abilities with the Force, was a collection of disjointed and ‘Forced’ stories that really did nothing to give us a better understanding of the character and his motivations as a Hero in the Rebel Alliance who has pretty much gotten all he dreamed of in a way, but is still coming to terms with the legacy of becoming a Jedi.
He zips around the galaxy doing fairly mundane missions on the whim of Admiral Ackbar, getting of course a good looking female companion so that there is a love interest, because this isn't a story about one of the greatest living Jedi in his early years, but a teenage coming of age story instead.
There is a definite lack of other Star Wars characters in the book (apart from a brief cameo from Princess Leia), but there is no shortage of being reminded that this is ‘THE LUKE SKYWALKER’ that blew up the Death Star, and he knows Han and Chewie, and all these various references to either ‘A New Hope’ or lead in’s to ‘Empire’, just in case you forgot in a book that is in the first person, who you are reading about.
I was hoping to get some really decent background here, I own and have read basically all of the EU series, and I realise they are no longer Canon and technically don’t exist under the new Disney guidelines, but does this mean that we have to lower the standards of the new books?
The first series that came out 30 odd years ago with ‘Heir’ in the title is still hailed as one of the best Star Wars books ever, so it is disappointing that this is the example of the new generation.
I had no issue with starting over, it is good sometimes to clear out the old and start again, it can get a bit too messy with nowhere to go, but this was not a good start. No wonder Luke couldn’t get a connection to Ben Kenobi in the book, he didn’t want to be in it.
If you are new to Star Wars, then don’t take this as the standard, go read some of the others, and if you are old school, just don’t.