Monday, December 19, 2016

On the Coffee Table: L. Neil Smith

Title: Lando Calrissian and the Flamewind of Oseon
Author: L. Neil Smith
via Wookieepedia
Lando's back, once again finding himself an unwitting pawn in someone else's game.   One of his Sabacc opponents draft's him to take part in a drug bust of a political rival.  There are also a couple of other parties who, entirely independent of the narc story, seem to have it in for our gambling scoundrel friend.

There's a little more character development for Lando this time, though not much.  The Millenium Falcon is still a fairly recent acquisition for him and we see how the ship is the beginning of a more stable, responsible life for Calrissian.  There are glimpses of a backstory, though one thin on details.  We get more Sabacc rules, too, though it's still a highly confusing game.  The phone app hasn't done much to help me understand it.

The Flamewind of the title is a more violent version of the Northern Lights and is a similar draw for tourists.  We do get one intriguing character: Waywa Fybot, an avian/humanoid from Uaua.  One, I believe fan-generated, image of the character looks like this:
via Wookieepedia
My own mental image was more like this:
via Wikipedia

4 comments:

  1. If I start reading any Star Wars material again, it's going to be the newer canon stuff, not because I want to read Star Wars novels (my experience tells me they are usually less than good) but because a lot of the current story line is there.

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    1. I think I've about reached the end of my run with these. They've been fun for a romp but there are too many other things I'd rather be reading.

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  2. I don't think I'll ever read a Star Wars novel. I've been enjoying the comic books. For me, it may be generational or the comic fan in me, but I like Star Wars as a visual medium. But, this story does sound interesting.

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    1. Over my explorations of the past few years, I've come to the conclusion that Star Wars works best on film, Star Trek on television - as it should be, really. I enjoy the books but like you, I'd rather watch.

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