Ricky Church reviews Star Wars: Aftermath – Life Debt…
Though Star Wars: The Force Awakens was released months ago, there are still some burning questions left regarding the 30-year gap between the Star Wars trilogies. We’ve slowly been getting more answers about some of these events with books like Bloodline or the Poe Dameron comic and now we’ve gotten more information with Chuck Wendig’s second book in his Star Wars: Aftermath trilogy, Aftermath – Life Debt. The second installment paints a fascinating look at the crumbling Empire as Wendig brings in more of the original heroes in this adventure.
Former Rebel pilot Norra Wexley and her team are tasked with hunting down Imperial officers and deserters while the newly promoted Grand Admiral Rae Sloane plots with her mysterious benefactor to return the Empire to its former glory. Meanwhile, Chancellor Mon Mothma and Princess Leia work to make the New Republic a viable government as Han Solo launches a deeply person mission to free the Wookie homeworld of Kashyyyk.
Aftermath – Life Debt has a lot of moving parts, but Wendig doesn’t make the book feel overstuffed or convoluted. The plot moves along at a good pace and all the pieces come together by the story’s conclusion, though a bit more time could have been devoted to Kashyyyk towards the end. Wendig also mixes a lot of action with political intrigue on both the Republic and Imperial side. One of Aftermath’s main strengths was seeing how various Imperial officials dealt with the turning tide and Wendig goes even further in Life Debt by showing the Empire devolving into different factions, scattered throughout the galaxy with varying levels of desperation. The faction on Kashyyyk, for instance, has turned into an even more brutal regime with its own culture that barely recognizes Sloane’s authority while another faction has taken up kamikaze practices.
Wendig’s characters continue to be one of the best aspects about the Aftermath series. Norra gets a nice arc as she considers her life after the war is officially over and what kind of legacy she’ll leave behind for her son, Temmin. Temmin comes off a little less whiney than he did in the previous book and takes some essential steps towards becoming the X-Wing pilot we see in The Force Awakens. The bounty hunter Jas Emari may get the most development as she goes through something of a mid-life crisis, unsure of whether or not to stay with the Rebels or go back to pure bounty hunting. Sinjur Valus also gets a lot of development as he struggles to put his past actions behind him. It’s also great to see him interact with Han Solo; the two morally grey characters have a lot of chemistry and Wendig utilizes every chance he has to put those two together with great effect.
The real standout, however, continues to be Grand Admiral Sloane. We get a greater sense of her motivations and why she believes so much in the Empire as a just, if firm, government. Though she sees the ugly side of the Empire, she’s determined to steer the course back to a righteous cause before the Empire’s darker aspects cause its downfall. Her mysterious ‘advisor’ also receives some good characterization, coming off as a brilliant and patient tactician Palpatine would more than approve of. Any scene where he and Sloane played off each other was a scene-stealer.
Making a return are the interludes featured every few chapters or so, showcasing how the rest of the galaxy is dealing with the drastic changes. There are some notable interludes showing how chaos has spread to various planets and what other Alderaan natives are doing, recalling the Colonials in Battlestar Galactica. These short chapters offer a nice break from the main plot as well as an expansion of the galaxy far, far away.
Wendig once again proves he’s more than adept at writing Star Wars and displays that even more now that he’s included some original characters in Life Debt. His writing style may take some getting use to for some readers as its third person present tense, but doesn’t take very long to overcome that. With an intense plot, political intrigue and great characterization, Wendig’s Aftermath – Life Debt is an excellent read for Star Wars fans.
Rating: 8/10
Ricky Church
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