Jonathan Koan
Way More than advertised...
I know several Star Wars fans were apprehensive when this book was announced. Sure we've gotten YA books before, and they've had romance as the main subplot (in particular the famous Lost Stars and the less famous [though really sweet] A Crash of Fate), but we've never gotten one that is so explicitly branded as a "Star Wars Romance Novel". This also marks a move between publishers, from Disney-Lucasfilm Press to Random House Books for Young Readers.To start with what I liked, Ashley Poston clearly did her homework on the Star Wars universe. This book jumps around between several planets, and Poston does a great job of capturing the feel of the planets, references to things we know about the planets, and adding her own information to them.Poston also does a great job of bringing in many familiar Star Wars terms and phrases. Sometimes when new writers try this they either sound like they're copying the movies and are unoriginal or they sound too different and out of place. I think that Poston did an excellent job getting the best of both worlds.The story is about Ardent Quay, a girl whose family runs the tour ship "Starfarer", and while on Coruscant she runs into a young man (Sian) who is trying to evade the villainous First Order officers. Ardent agrees to let Sian stow away until their ship reaches their next destination, but in a confluence of events (it's not a comedy of errors, but it is funny at times), Sian ends up staying around long after he's supposed to leave. During his stay on the ship, he and Ardent begin to form a romantic connection (it's not a spoiler, this is literally the pitch of the book).Sometimes, writing a romance book the author can get way too caught up in just writing the romance itself and just have a really weak story around it. Let me tell you, the story in this book is quite strong. In fact, the publisher could have just advertised this as a YA book without the romance and it probably would have worked. The opening few chapters did make me very hesitant, though. I wondered if Poston would actually tell a Star Wars story of if she'd get caught up in the romance. But rest assured the story goes in places you're not expecting.When it comes to the romance itself: yes, it's cheesy and sappy. Yes, I rolled my eyes at some of the characters thoughts and lines...that's what happens in cheesy/sappy romances like this. However!...I think it really works, and many YA authors would be tempted to write smut, and I appreciate Poston not doing that and keeping the romance in this book appropriate for the age-bracket (at most this book has some kissing).Beyond the main characters, the droid VeeBee was absolutely delightful! I was laughing at so many of that droids one-liners, and it's very hard to get a droid's voice right, but Poston nailed her character!On the note of humor, Ashley Poston does have a knack for it, even beyond the character of Veebee. So much of her characters' interactions and the descriptions and the references really did make me laugh out loud. This book is *almost* a rom-com....almost*A few notes on things that I didn't care for in this book. Ashley Poston does include quite a few modern day language words/phrases/idioms that I just thought stuck out like a sore thumb in the Star Wars universe. Words and Phrases like "Both-Sides-ism", "Heard" (when a character says something and another character responds with "heard"), some swear words like the S-word and the A-word (yes, I know Andor used the S-word, doesn't make it a fit for the Star Wars universe or apppropriate for kids books), and the term Fascist is used quite a few times. Other readers might quibble about if those words fit or not, but they did take me out of the story.There's also a few things that Poston throws in the story really quickly that I didn't love, but they're really minor elements. Also, Poston relies on a few callbacks to Star Wars things that at times were a bit too "elbow in the stomach to get your attention".The best part of this book is actually a spoiler...which I will not explain or divulge here. Suffice it to say that there is a MASSIVE element of this book that has been hidden by the marketing campaign for this book (and the reviews so far have done an excellent job of hiding it as well). Once I realized that this is where the book was going, I thought "she's not going THERE is she?"...wondering what I mean, well, you'll have to read the book.Poston also explores some themes about people falling down the wrong paths and what influences them to do so, and those themes will definitely resonate with today. But it doesn't feel preachy at all.On its surface, the book just looks like a basic romance. And yes, the romance is ostensibly the biggest part of it. But as a Star Wars story it is really entertaining, is enmeshed in the Star Wars lore and history, and was such a quick, fun experience. Yes, I had my issues with a few elements, but when the characters, story, and worldbuilding (and yes the romance) work...it really works. Overall, I'll give this book a 9 out of 10! Well done Ashlye Poston.Ver másVer menos
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