Black Fleet Trilogy 1: Before the Storm (Star Wars)

There are 3 separate storylines which eventually converge at the end. It starts with Luke becoming a hermit like Obi Wan and Yoda (the explanation of which is plausible and a good start) but later he goes off with a woman called Akanah to look for his mother. It turns out that his mother and Akanah are of the Fallanassi, a group like the Jedi but who use the so-called White Current instead of the Force. This is one aspect of the books I don’t like. The introduction of this new Force-like concept is un-needed and as far as I know is never mentioned ever again in any Star Wars books ever (a slight mention of the Fallanassi in the New Jedi Order series is all I could find). Instead the Fallanassi could have a different understanding of the force to the Jedi (maybe they don’t distinguish between light and dark sides etc). The culmination of this plot is also anticlimatic and a little pointless I think as it has no reprecussions in the wider universe.

The other storyline involves Lando and Lobot trying to commandeer a mysterious organic ship called the Vagabond. While this story is okay-ish it doesn’t result in a typical star wars outcome. If anything the outcome smacks more of Star Trek then Star Wars which is a little odd. However, the introduction of Admiral Drayson and the super-secret Alpha-Blue intelligence agency is a nice side to this plot line.

The third and most interesting plot involves Leia in trying to negotiate with a species called the Yevetha. The Yevetha are a brilliant addition to the Star Wars universe as they’re not the classic dark-side/Empire villain which seeks to rule the galaxy. Instead they’re more into purging they’re territory of “vermin”. In essence they’ve combined xenophobia with genocide to produce a Nazi-like regime. The way they manipulate Leia and the New Republic is brilliant as well. Additionally the explanation of how they attained their military might is well done especially the side plot where the New Republic tries to catalogue all their ships to account for the missing Imperial “Black Fleet”.

The battle scenes are generally good I think, though the introduction of new technology like K-wings is a little strange. The E-wing I can understand (its mentioned in other books as well) but the K-wing seems totally new and not needed I think (what happened to B-wings?).

Overall as a standalone this book is a decent (though not brilliant) read. The main problem is that none of what happens here makes any difference to the star wars universe. For example the Thrawn trilogy has produced characters like Thrawn, the Noghri, Admiral Pellaeon and the Imperial Remnant, the Jedi Academy trilogy has produced the Yavin Academy, several jedi, Admiral Daala, the Maw Installation, and the retirement of Mon Mothma. The black fleet trilogy provides nothing like this and in the end does not resonate like any of the great trilogies.


Much better than expected   March 11, 2000
hilasbat@aol.com (London,UK)
After reading several reviews slating this triology, I wasn't expecting much, but I'm glad I didn't listen to them, as I found it hard to put this down. The only critism I have really is that the three books have a slightly different style in lay-out, so continuity is disrupted a bit, but the content is enjoyable, and writing good. Recommended, if you've exhausted the SW list!


This book is LOOONG!   August 10, 1999
This book is really WRONG!! When Luke goes to his mother's home world in the book it isn't Naboo! I think that George Lucas was a little stupid not to realize that some lady spent millions of hours writing a LOOOONG book and Geoge doesn't care. For some entertainment and read this book about Luke running off with a girl, and Leia becoming worried. AND WORRIED. AND WORRIED. AND WORRIED. read the other review after me to get the point.


Any relations to star wars is purely accidental   August 9, 1999
3 out of 3 found this review helpful

I hate to say it, but I did wait until I read all three books, and they just are a massive screwup. The author has managed to completely change the characters we know and love, the technology they use, and the plot(s) are barely reasonable. Luke is searching around aimlessly for his mother (this is pre-TPM so we'll forgive the author) but has no interaction with other characters we know, and doesn't act like himself. His personality is non-existent and he is completely non-assertive. Leia is hesitant and weak, unlike the strong leader we saw from the movies. She doesn't confront anything (if she had that attitude in Episode VI she would be getting opinions on going to Endor instead of firing at stormtroopers. The universe has been changed completely. It's great to see an enemy that isn't ex-Imperial warlord #848, and they come with their own ships, but the Republic bears no resemblance to what it normally is. The battle fleet has none of our regular main line ships (such as Calamari Cruisers or assault frigates) and the starfightes which everyone else views as great (including the x-wing which in the New Rebellion has been upgraded to keep it top-notch) is inferior in this book. No longer do we fire proton torpedoes, rather we fire slugs and flechettes. The e-wing and k-wing aren't really stated why they are so great, we just have to take the author's word that they are. Personally, if it ain't broke, why is the New Republic replacing it? And as for plot(s)- they are terrible. Lando, a psychiatric Lobot (who really should be left at Cloud City), and two suddenly hostile droids are wandering around the universe blindly (and completely unconnected to the story). Luke is lost, looking for his mother (and unconnected to everything else). While battle is possible (except for technology screw-ups) and is the underlying plot, is written a little too vaguely. Everything's happening one way- then POOF!- it's going the other, but the reader doesn't know why or how. In summary, what we have here is a Star Wars universe that bears little resemblance to the movies and other books, with poor characters, and is poorly written. It contributes very little to other stories (pretty much every other author has decided to ignore it) and adds no new dimensions. If you are a die-hard Star Wars fan determined to read every piece about SW, go for it. But if you are trying to decide how to spend $20, ignore this and go read something else.


Not the best but better than MANY ...   July 20, 1999
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

I've read through all the reviews and was surprised to see this book (and the entire trilogy) attracting as much anger as it did. There are dreadful Star Wars books by Rusch, Hambly, Anderson and Macintyre that are truly deserving of such malice but not this book or the trilogy it starts. True, the star ships described were not traditional Lucas-types, an unnecessary mystical energy type similar to "the Force" is introduced and the Lando adventure was unlike anything else in the Star Wars series but that does not justify the expression of wrath below. I suppose if it did not pretend to be a Star Wars book it would have been better received (but would have sold far fewer copies). I found it overall pretty good but since I'm awfully picky, I can only give it 3 stars. It would have been a much better Star Wars series if Kube had been kept on a shorter leash by Lucasfilm. I get the feeling they surrendered often to Kube's zeal to put all sorts of odd (non Star Wars) sci-fi details in this book (and trilogy).