Last month, Del Rey was released Star Wars: Brotherhood from Mike Chen. This is a novel that follows Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker at the start of the Clone Wars. You can read the 352-page book now, and Del Rey was kind enough to send me a copy of the book for review, even though all of the following thoughts are mine. Also, there will be some slight spoilers after the recap, so consider this your warning, although I’ll do my best not to go too deep.
The Clone Wars have begun. Battle lines are drawn across the galaxy. With each world joining the Separatists, the peace guarded by the Jedi Order is slipping through their fingers.
After an explosion devastates Cato Neimoidia, the jewel of the Trade Federation, the Republic is blamed and the planet’s fragile neutrality threatened. The Jedi send Obi-Wan Kenobi, one of the Order’s most gifted diplomatic minds, to investigate the crime and maintain the balance that has begun to change dangerously. As Obi-Wan investigates with the help of a heroic Neimoidian guard, he finds himself working against the Separatists who hope to lure the planet into their conspiracy and senses Asajj Ventress’s left hand in the mists that envelop the planet.
In the looming chaos, Anakin Skywalker rises to the rank of Jedi Knight. Despite the mandate that Obi-Wan travel alone, and his former master’s insistence to listen this time, Anakin’s stubborn determination means that nothing can stop him from blowing up the party and bringing along a promising but in conflict.
Once Obi-Wan’s Padawan, Anakin is now on an equal, but uncertain, level with the man who raised him. Persistent friction between them increases the danger to everyone around them. The two knights must learn a new way of working together and must learn fast to save Cato Neimoidia and his people from the fire of war. To overcome the threat they face, they must grow beyond the master and the apprentice. They have to be together as brothers.
The time of the Clone Wars has been undermined for much content in the Star Wars universe that includes an animated film, a 7-season animated series and a two-part animated series (no longer canonical). There is certainly nothing more to say. Well, Chen decided there had to be more. I think Chen did a really good job of capturing the sensations Attack of the clones. Anakin is very clumsy and at times he feels a little superfluous. Meanwhile, the meat of it all surrounds Obi-Wan as he is tasked with solving yet another mystery and trying to serve up some diplomacy. He’ll say the dialogue is a lot better than some of the things we got in Attack of the Clones and overall the book is a good read.
Now I will go into it a little more. The book shows us a little more of Anakin and Padme’s married life, including reading about a date they have. This gives us an extra look at their dynamics and a slightly different look at how Anakin thinks. That said, I still feel like it’s a little pointless. The centerpiece of Anakin’s journey into Brotherhood is that he grows into his new role in the Jedi Order as a Jedi Knight. The book begins with him becoming a Knight along with other Padawans due to the sudden start of the Clone Wars. I think the most annoying part for me was how often Anakin complained about his new mechanical arm. In my opinion, it didn’t really help the story except to explain why in some moments it is wrong.
On the other side of the book is Obi-Wan. Maybe it’s because he’s my favorite character or because of the recent launch of Obi-Wan Kenobi on Disney +, but Obi-Wan’s story is the focus of this book and it’s great to read. He must understand what happened to Cato Neimoidia, convince the Neiomoidians to help the Republic and not the Separatists, and survive his first encounter with Asajj Ventress. In addition to this adventure and the slight mystery, Obi-Wan has to adapt to the fact that Anakin is no longer his Padawan and he also learns a little more about Anakin’s relationship with Padme and tries to figure out how to deal with it as it worries him a lot.
Along the way, we also encounter some interesting Neimoidians such as former Commander Ruug and young Mill. These characters are all interesting, and at least the two I’ve mentioned might provide some interesting additional stories along the way. Overall, there’s quite a bit of fun and Anakin’s parts are more bearable Brotherhood than in the film that precedes it. If you want another story from the prequel era, this is a good book.
by Tommy Williams
Source: Geek Tyrant
