I hate giving negative feedback on artistic projects, as it can be so subjective, but I must honestly say that I didn’t enjoy this book: Star Wars: Reign of the Empire: The Mask of Fear by Alexander Freed.
This author has had other works published, and there is always the fanfare about the books being bestsellers. I have read three of these books. None of them were my favorite, except I did enjoy Rogue One, but I doubt whether this person created those complex characters. The book in question was written by Alexander Freed, and his previous novel, Star Wars Battlefront: Twilight Company, left me wishing for more details. More descriptions. It was full of action, but lacked elements that would draw the reader into the story and make them care about the characters. I have seen a couple of movies that suffer from this constant action overload and lack of plot or character development. I had speculated that the writer was trying to convey to the reader the feeling of intense combat, where there is no time to get to know the people. But The Reign of the Empire: The Mask of Fear is the same way, with no action, just bland events that don’t pull the reader into the story. And it is not the character’s fault.
The author utilizes established characters, such as Mon Mothma and Bail Organa, who have undergone years of character development and possess interesting personalities. There is an attempt to create new characters, but they are also riddled with confusing components that do not contribute to the plot line or character development. I lost interest after reading a third of the book. I wanted it to be good, but I found it confusing in some sections, and others were not that interesting.
I love Star Wars and am usually willing to try a book set in this universe, but lately, the books have not been very good. The High Republic series is just an example of that disappointment. I just finished reading a book by Alan Dean Foster that was written over twenty years ago, and honestly, it was so much better. It makes me wonder …. what is happening to the new writers for this franchise? I don’t feel drawn into these stories, and in some cases, they completely misrepresent the established characters, as if the authors had never bothered to conduct any research on them. The Ahsoka book was something I couldn’t get past page three, as it was undeniable that the writer did not understand who Ahsoka was. I am not interested in spending pages ripping someone’s work apart. I just hope they find a topic they love and better advice. I have decided to obtain some of the older novels and read them to compare to some of the newer works. Is it really that the new stuff is bland and unfocused? Or have I been unlucky?
I read a third of this book. I hoped it would be like the Andor series. It’s not.
It’s not rad at all.
G. Winkler © 2025
