Resistance Reborn by Rebecca Roanhorse

**In this pivotal prequel to Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, the heroes of the Resistance—Poe Dameron, General Leia Organa, Rey, and Finn—must fight back from the edge of oblivion.**

The Resistance is in ruins. In the wake of their harrowing escape from Crait, what was once an army has been reduced to a handful of wounded heroes. Finn, Poe, Rey, Rose, Chewbacca, Leia Organa—their names are famous among the oppressed worlds they fight to liberate. But names can only get you so far, and Leia’s last desperate call for aid has gone unanswered.

From the jungles of Ryloth to the shipyards of Corellia, the shadow of the First Order looms large, and those with the bravery to face the darkness are scattered and isolated. If hope is to survive, the Resistance must journey throughout the galaxy, seeking out more leaders—including those who, in days gone by, helped a nascent rebellion topple an empire. Battles will be fought, alliances will be forged, and the Resistance will be reborn.

I couldn't actually finish it. It's been sitting in my queue forever. I even abandoned it, felt guilty for abandoning such an easy read, picked it up again, and read for about 30 pages before I realized I'd already read those 30 pages a month ago. I can't really blame the author; they had the thankless task of writing a bridge novel where nothing of substance could actually happen, but it's amazing how much nothing happens in this book.

“Overall the story reads as if Roanhorse did her best with an incredibly tight outline from the powers that be, but then found little moments to add her own sparkle.” - Amazing Stories ReviewThat's a pretty good summary. I've read [a:Rebecca Roanhorse 15862877 Rebecca Roanhorse https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1512417497p2/15862877.jpg]'s Sixth World novels and in those her writing just buzzes with energy and sucked me in like an overcharged magnet...this book felt like all that energy was muffled - kind of like a distant thunderstorm. You could feel it was there, but you weren't getting the full blast.Also, unless you are an elite Star Wars expert, you are going to need access to Wookieepedia to find out who half the characters are, the novel does seem to assume you've read every comic, watched every cartoon and know the names of characters who are onscreen but never actually named in the movies.That aside, did I enjoy the book? Yes!If I was rating the final quarter, then this book would be verging on 5 stars, once Ms Roanhorse gets going her true talent explodes. It took me ages to slog through the first three quarters of this slim book - the last quarter got blasted through in one breathless sitting, it was epic and made me ache for a real unconstrained space SF novel from this author. I can see why they chose Rebecca Roanhorse to write this book, she can really make the internal struggle and pain of a character seem real and moving - and she does defiance really, really well.