Champions of the Force

Chapter 3 of the Jedi Academy Trilogy. A nice strong finish to a large collection of events. Things smoothly tie up at the end for those things which got started in the first chapter. Everything comes to a powerful, believable and enchanting closure. Things are also prepped for another series involving numerous of the characters. In fact there are several things I would like to see carried through: a romance, some weapons, certain people. I'm trying to be vague so as to not disclose the ending. The only negative thing that I have to say is that I got sick of all the straight homages/quotes from the movie. Things like Han Solo repeatedly saying "Don't quote me the odds" or references to Yoda's "There is no try. Do or do not." I know that show more Anderson was probably only doing that to help make the reader remember the characters better, but it began to get annoying. They started to sound like broken records instead. Other than that, these are enjoyable additions to the Star Wars universe. show less

After Kyp turns evil, the Republic is pretty displeased with the Jedi. Eventually the Jedi apprentices rise up, Luke gets his body back, and Kyp turns back to the Light Side. But what I really remember about this book is the relationship between Wedge and the tormented scientist Qwi Xux. The smartest children of her planet were stolen and forced to create terrible weapons for the Empire; those who failed had to watch their homelands bombed into oblivion. After surviving this, Qwi is highly-strung and racked with guilt. But she still has a brilliant mind, and with Wedge's tender help she begins to become a person instead of just a problem-solving machine. The duo did not stay together, but I really liked the evolution of their romance.

I have to say Mr. Anderson you made the final book of your Trilogy the best of them that is for sure. This book starts off fast and does not let up through the whole journey. I have to say after being disappointed with book 2 I was not sure what to think of this one. But I was surprised and thoroughly enjoyed this one.

Finally the Luke Skywalker we all know and love showed up in this one. Not the weak character from the second one. I am very pleased with how all the old and new characters worked in this book. Leia was finally written with the strength she has also. If I have to nitpick I would have to say that having had say "Never quote me the odds!" Instead of "Never tell me the odds!" Was a little too much change I always just said show more the second one anyway :)

I also have to say that the Sun Crusher story arch was finally used to my satisfaction and the conclusions to that part was action packed to say the least.

I am looking forward to see how some of these characters develop in future books. (Yes longtime SW fan first time real reader!)

So if you were like me and was disappointed in book 2 "Dark Apprentice" I think if you pick this one up you will be satisfied. I know I do not say much about story lines this is only my second review ever I will get better I promise. show less

This was the third and final installment in the Jedi Academy Trilogy, and though not ingeniously plotted, I thought it tied up the series pretty well.

Though I disliked the way that Anderson handled Kyp's descent to the dark side in the second book, I thought that the character's growth occurred more naturally and logically in this book. I also thought that the development of other characters, such as Ackbar and Terpfen, proceeded logically, as well.

Another thing that pleased me about this book was the manner with which it handled the topic of amnesia. This is a topic often depicted with extreme inaccuracy in the media, but here, it was done well. The character in question experiences retrograde amnesia, the type of amnesia where show more memories of the past are forgotten. Most stories depict characters which obtain this type of amnesia from brain damage, but this is unrealistic, as physical damage usually causes a different kind of amnesia. However, in the case of this novel, memories are forcibly (pun intended) ripped from the character's mind, justifying the result. The book also considers the fact that not all memories are lost in amnesia and that muscle memory is not affected.

All that said, this book wasn't perfect. In fact, it had a very glaring flaw in the basic plot. At the start of the book, Luke is in a coma and the spectral remains of dead Sith Exar Kun is trying to kill him. Because he is merely a spirit, he must resort to tricks to try to kill Luke, manipulating organisms in the environment to do the work for him. This made sense at first, but eventually, Luke's Jedi students stand up against Exar Kun, and he quickly begins Force choking them all into submission. That was where the whole thing fell apart for me, because there was no reason he couldn't have just choked Luke to death from the beginning.

I also didn't like how Anderson handled the mass of Jedi students. Apparently, there were 12 total students, but he only bothered to describe about half of them. He gave these students names, races, and basic personalities, and every time all 12 students got together to do stuff, he would describe what these named students were doing, then generically mention that there were other students there doing stuff, too. It fell very flat and really just left the impression that those extra students weren't there, at all. I would have preferred if the students were handled in a more Hunger Games-ish fashion, where you could tell the author at least knew a bit about every one of them, even if some got more attention in the narrative than others.

Overall, I gave the book 4 stars because it felt like a solid conclusion to the trilogy, even if the writing of this series in general was never perfect. show less

Champions of the Force wraps up the Jedi Academy trilogy by Kevin Anderson, and it's a roller coaster ride for anyone who enjoys exploring the Star Wars expanded universe.

For the most part I stopped reading Star Wars novels after this series. They grew too cyclical and redundant for my tastes—the point seemingly being to recreate the thrills of the original trilogy over and over again. No thanks. Been there, done that already. One exception: Star Wars video games. Love 'em.

Pages Read: 322/322. In the final book of the Star Wars Trilogy after Episode VI, the students at Luke's academy fully learn of the existence of Exar Kun, and go off to defeat him. Han and Leia's third son, Anakin Solo, is also under attack by the full Imperial Navy on Carida. They poise to attack the hidden planet of Anoth, and steal the baby because of his Jedi Powers. Kyp Durron must now face what he must do with the Sun Crusher, either attack and destroy the remnants of the Empire, or destroy the Sun Crusher itself so no one can use its destructive powers again. Kyp Durron changes a lot in this book. He used to be completely evil and hate the Empire completely. In the ending though, he decides that it is best to leave Exar Kun and show more go his own way. I relate to Kyp in this way. I used to be mean and hurt others all the time (Physically and Mentally), but now, I don't. I take my own path and listen to what I wish to do as right. I didn't like how in all the other books of this Trilogy, the chapters skip through and have the settings skip from one place to another. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves Sci-Fi books. show less

Anderson's "Jedi Academy Trilogy" ends like it began: uninspired, chock full of poorly distinguished characters (the Jedi Academy is just one of many threads going on here; if his students were as boring as the ones in this series Luke was right in The Last Jedi to burn it all down). I read this a chapter a day and I can barely remember what happened in this stupid novel.