Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi: Omen

Product Review

The Jedi Order is in crisis. The late Jacen Solo’s shocking transformation into murderous Sith Lord Darth Caedus has cast a damning pall over those who wield the Force for good: Two Jedi Knights have succumbed to an inexplicable and dangerous psychosis, criminal charges have driven Luke Skywalker into self-imposed exile, and power-hungry Chief of State Natasi Daala is exploiting anti-Jedi sentiment to undermine the Order’ s influence within the Galactic Alliance.

Forbidden to intervene in Jedi affairs, Luke is on a desperate mission to uncover the truth behind Jacen’s fall to the dark side–and to learn what’s turning peaceful Jedi into raving lunatics. But finding answers will mean venturing into the mind-bending space of the Kathol Rift and bargaining with an alien species as likely to destroy outsiders as deal with them. Still, there is no other choice and no time to lose, as the catastrophic events on Coruscant continue to escalate. Stricken by the same violent dementia that infected her brother, Valin, Jedi Knight Jysella Horn faces an equally grim fate after her capture by Natasi Daala’ s police. And when Han and Leia Solo narrowly foil another deranged Jedi bent on deadly destruction, even acting Jedi Grand Master Kenth Hamner appears willing to bow to Daala’s iron will–at the expense of the Jedi Order.

But an even greater threat is looming. Millennia in the past, a Sith starship crashed on an unknown low-tech planet, leaving the survivors stranded. Over the generations, their numbers have grown, the ways of the dark side have been nurtured, and the time is fast approaching when this lost tribe of Sith will once more take to the stars to reclaim their legendary destiny as rulers of the galaxy. Only one thing stands in their way, a name whispered to them through the Force: Skywalker.

Features a bonus section following the novel that includes a primer on the Star Wars expanded universe, and over half a dozen excerpts from some of the most popular Star Wars books of the last thirty years!

Customer Reviews

Average Customer Review

(67 customer reviews)

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful

I blame the editors, July 6, 2009

Marc Weinstein "MAW74656" (Illinois) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi: Omen (Audio CD)

I mostly liked this book. It had a lot of interesting character moments, some decent action, and some interesting plot points.

That said, I have a few problems with this title, but only one of them can be placed at the feet of the author, Ms. Golden. I like her writing, she is great at characters (See Star Trek: Voyager Homecoming). Here is my one problem with Golden's writing. Several times during this book, Jedi ignite their lightsabers to cut through a door or wall. They've done this in the past, and they'll do it in the future. My problem is that each time, Golden goes on for several paragraphs about how difficult it actually is to cut through a wall with a lightsaber. Look, its a valid point, and something the other authors have ignored, but I got it after the first time. WE GET IT! ITS HARD TO CUT THROUGH A DOOR WITH A LIGHTSABER!

And I also would have liked to see some mention of the droids, and some of the other peripherial characters, but since...Read more

16 of 21 people found the following review helpful

Lather, rinse, repeat, July 4, 2009

New Jersey reader (New Jersey, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Omen (Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi, Book 2) (Hardcover)

Is LucasFilm Ltd. so hard up for money that it justifies charging $27 for a book that is essentially a repeat storyline of Allston's Outcast, and a short one-- fewer than 300 pages-- at that?

Two Jedi go insane, wreck havoc, are captured ; Luke and Ben go to the next stop on Darth Putz's scavenger hunt and learn... not much, just that there's another mystical destination ahead! Vestara was a mildly interesting new character, but the parts devoted to her especially read like a YA book. I have nothing against YA books, many of them are better written and more compelling than a lot of dreck aimed at the adult market. However, Omen was not one of these.

The most ridiculous element in the book was the subterfuge employed in order for Jag and Jaina to... go on a date. Honestly, I kept thinking there was going to be more to it, that all the fuss and bother and resources were going to lead to a covert mission. But no; it was just a silly, junior-high-esque caper so they...Read more

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful

Too much of the same, September 18, 2009

Andrew T. Goldman - See all my reviews

This review is from: Omen (Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi, Book 2) (Hardcover)

At 250 pages long and with not much new to distinguish it from the first book in the Fate of the Jedi series, Omen is a disappointment and the perfect example of what is wrong with the all-hardcover approach to this latest series of Star Wars novels. With Legacy of the Force, three of the books were hardcover, and you could maybe convince yourself that it was worth it to buy and read those immediately rather than wait for the paperbacks to come out a few months down the line. The problem with making all of this series in hardcover editions is that not every book (and certainly not Omen) is worthy of a $27 cover price. What might have worked in an $8 paperback is revealed for what it truly is in hardcover: stealing money from the pockets of hardcore fans. (Unless you do what I did and borrow it from your local library!) Perhaps Omen would have worked better trimmed down and distributed as an e-novella between two more substantial books.

Major complaints:

The...Read more