Caramel reviews Star Wars: Lost Stars by Claudia Gray

Today Caramel is reviewing a book recommended by a friend of the blog: Star Wars: Lost Stars, written by Claudia Gray and published in 2015. As usual, Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

Sprinkles: Finally we are talking about the space book you had promised us a couple weeks ago. 

Caramel: Yes, it’s a Star Wars book this time.

S: What do you mean by that? Is it about the movies? You reviewed three books like that: Ultimate Star Wars: New Edition, Star Wars Encyclopedia of Starfighters and Other Vehicles by Landry Q. Walker, and Star Wars: Complete Vehicles – New Edition. Or is it fiction about the Star Wars universe? 

C: All those were cool! But this one is fiction. 

S: Oh great! You have reviewed two fictional works about the Star Wars universe before: 5-Minute Star Wars Stories by LucasFilm Press and A Jedi You Will Be by Preeti Chhibber and Mike Deas. But according to Wikipedia, there are almost a million books about the Star Wars universe, and many of them, this one included, basically expand the universe with storylines touching the stories of the original three movies. 

C: Yep, maybe not a million, but a lot! And this is one of them. It is what they call a “young adult” book. I am young but pretty far from being an adult. 

S: Hmm, I can see it is a lot thicker than those two books you reviewed before and there are no illustrations or cute drawings. 

C: No, unfortunately, it’s more of a romance thingy.

S: I guess when they call books “young adult”, sometimes romance shows up. And I know illustrations are always cool, and especially for space and technology related books, they would be really helpful.

C: Yeah, I wish it had drawings, too.

S: But you have also read many books without illustrations. Almost all the Wings of Fire books for example, not counting the graphic novelizations. So sometimes the story will still carry you along, because words help you see things too. 

C: Yes, that is true. 

S: Okay, so tell us a bit about the story itself. I understand we are in the Star Wars universe and there is some romance. But there has to be a story. 

C: It’s about two people: a boy named Thane Kyrell and a girl named Ciena Ree. They live on an Imperial world. The boy is relatively rich and the girl is poorer. They become good friends and end up learning how to fly.

S: Okay, you will have to slow down for me a bit. An Imperial world, what do you mean by that?

C: It is a planet which is governed by the Galactic Empire. You remember the Galactic Empire from the movies?

S: Oh yes, I do. Okay, I cheated and looked it up: Wikipedia says that “[t]he book is set before, during, and after the events of the Star Wars original trilogy (A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi), in which the Galactic Empire has tightened its stranglehold on systems in the Outer Rim while the Rebel Alliance also grows in strength.”

C: Don’t cheat! You should read the book if you want to know that! But anyways, yes, that is correct. 

S: Okay, so we know the setting, kind of. But they learn to fly? You mean space ships? 

C: Yep, they fly space ships, mostly inside atmosphere ships. Then they get really good, and they sneak into a show of the empire, and grand moff Tarken is there. The moff finds them and can see that they have potential. They then sign up to join the Imperial Navy, also known as the space people. They are the people who fly the TIE fighters.

S: Wait, you are going way too fast for me. What is a show of the empire? And what is a moff?

C: They sort of just show off their power and ships.

S: Oh, kind of like a military parade or an air show? 

C: Yeah, except more dictator-like.

S: Well, the empire is kind of authoritarian, so that adds up. Okay so what is a moff? Sounds like a military rank then. 

C: it’s some sort of important military leader

S: I see. Then what happens?

C: Well, basically they are split up and one stays with the Empire while the other one joins the rebels. 

S: Is that how it ends?

C: No, that is kind of in the middle. 

S: I see; that is good. At least we have not given away too many plot secrets. But it sounds like an interesting tension, of two friends who take different sides in a very big conflict. The romance is between the two of them, I am assuming?

C: Yes, it is.

S: But from all that you are telling me, the romance is there, but the story could work even if we just assumed they were two very good friends who are facing the dilemma of choosing different paths. 

C: Yep, and honestly I’d have preferred that. 

S: I know you and Marshmallow do not love romance. But for many readers, that sometimes adds just some extra flavor. But it seems to me the Star Wars backdrop is actually quite engaging too. 

C: Yes, but it is not really a backdrop. It is really like you are living in the time of the movies and the world is very real. 

S: Okay, then. That sounds good to me. Would you recommend it to other bunnies who like the Star Wars universe? 

C: Maybe bunnies older than elementary school because younger bunnies do not like the mushy stuff too much. 

S: I can’t imagine which younger bunnies you are talking about! 

C: Hmm, me neither. 

S: Okay, let us leave it there then. But the story was cool, no? 

C: Yeah, it was neat to learn about how they got into flying. And it was a story of love and betrayal. And that can be kind of epic, you know. And I always love to read about the Star Wars universe and the ships and such. It was cool for example that Thane and Ciena were flying TIE fighters and we have seen them in all the movies. 

S: Yes, I can see how that could be neat. Okay, so maybe this is a good place to end this review. What would you like to tell our readers? 

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!