Star Wars: Catalyst is my first dip into the Star Wars extended universe of stories, prompted by the cinematic expansion of the canon. If they are going to expand on the myths and stories around the main films then there is no reason not to expand my knowledge on the expansion! Always one step ahead…..
This is the story of what happened before the new Rogue One film. We are introduced to the back story of Galen Erso, Lyra and Jyn. The book also introduces a young and driven Orson Krennic and we see his rise through the ranks and his place in the building of the Death Star.
I found the book to be interesting, with plenty to dig into around the relationship between Galen and Krennic, and especially Krennic’s overpowering desire to climb the Empire’s ranks. It is fairly well written, the story flows at a decent pace with always something happening and characters are well fleshed out, you really get a sense of who they are and what they stand for.
For a fan of Star Wars this book is a great addition to the wider storyline but not essential for your enjoyment of the films. If you want to know more about some of the newly introduced characters in Rogue One then this is a good option. James Luceno has written this well and I am interested in reading some of his other books that are based around the Star Wars mythology.
Rating: ★★★½☆
Film N Stuff 
Just finishing up my reading of this at the moment; one of the strongest of the new official canon in my opinion, particularly in expanding on the motives and desires of the characters and in setting the second admits the prequels.
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Have you read many others? Any recommendations?
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I’ve read most of the new canon books, just got a couple to catch up on. Must admit, even as a huge Star Wars fan, they can be rather hit-and-miss.
Catalyst stands as one of the better ones, alongside DARK DISCIPLE (which I reviewed: https://crabpendium.wordpress.com/2015/12/29/dark-disciple-book-review/), while some have been rather high on tedious information and are, frankly, a little boring.
TWILIGHT COMPANY was well-written but not my cup of tea at all (reviewed: https://crabpendium.wordpress.com/2016/09/07/star-wars-battlefront-twilight-company-book-review/), while I’m hoping the Rogue One novelisation is better than THE FORCE AWAKENS one (reviewed: https://crabpendium.wordpress.com/2016/01/29/star-wars-the-force-awakens-book-review/).
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Good review. I want to read this book. Looks interesting. I know its not going to super essential to the movie, but it looks somewhat intriguing.
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