Please like the video and subscribe to our channel for even more Star Wars content! Also, comment below and let us know your Top 10 Star Wars Books. Thanks for watching!
Wonderful vid! Your tastes and mine overlap perfectly. Fortunately I still have to read many of your favorites. I have read and loved Bloodline, Brotherhood and the original Thrawn trilogy. I cannot wait to dive into all the other amazing books you so eloquently and informatively extol. Many thanks!
They’re amazing reads! We just recently started to put out reviews for them to coincide with their re-release in the Essential Legends Collection. Check them out if you’re interested. They’re non-spoiler reviews.
I have only just ventured into these novels, I read the Thrawn Canon trilogy first so I have ordered the Heir to the empire trilogy, Darth Bane trilogy and I'm currently reading Plagueis, which are your top 3 picks!
So glad my list could help! Hope you enjoy all of them! Plagueis can be very tough to read if you don’t have a lot of Legends knowledge, so make sure you’re well-versed for full enjoyment.
@@starwarslads I'll definitely check out your other recommendations too. Plagueis is amazing so far, though there has been mention of things I'm not familiar with. Would you suggest reading the Dawn of the Jedi, Revan, Deceived etc before going into the Bane trilogy?
@@DANJEPO You can, but they really aren't connected at all. I would recommend you just dive straight into Darth Bane. All four of the Old Republic Books were released from 2010-2012, and Dawn of the Jedi released in 2014. The Bane Trilogy released from 2006-2009. Although the Darth Bane Trilogy technically takes place in The Old Republic, it takes place roughly 2000 years after TOR novels, and 25,000 after Dawn of the Jedi.
Plagueis was absolutely brilliant, but I feel like one of the absolute GOAT novels got overlooked here: The Revenge of the Sith novelization by Matthew Stover. All of those "this is what it's like to be [character]" scenes were absolutely gut-wrenching
An absolutely incredible book, but to make room for more "book exclusive" stories, I made the stipulation at the beginning of the video that I wouldn't include any novelizations. That's why it isn't on the list.
Thrawn Trilogy and Hand of Thrawn are probably my favorite Legends material so far. I love Thrawn and Mara Jade and Talon Karrde and Pellaeon and Rukh. Also an overlooked character in the Hand of Thrawn which I really liked was Moranda Savich. Dark Disciple is also my favorite canon novel I could barely stop reading perfect ending to Ventress’s story. I’m a little behind though because those are the only ones I’ve read so far
Those are all great choices! Agreed about all of those characters. Pellaeon in particular gets even more awesome throughout the EU! I glad you enjoyed Mara too! She one of my all-time favorite characters.
@@starwarslads yes I do really like her character I plan to expand on her character thru some of her other books. Pellaeon gets more interesting? Hmm, he’s already made peace with the New Republic which was unexpected but developed his character well in my opinion. I also read No Prisoners, he was a decent man not too full of himself plus showing his relationship with Hallena Devis, but he made some pretty big screw ups. Pissed Rex off pretty bad. I heard he has a lot more story during the New Republic and the New Jedi Order. Unfortunate he’s only seen once in canon
@@timalsept2854 He does! Hand of Thrawn starts what continues to be an awesome journey for him in NJO and beyond! As an Imperial that could've just been Thrawn's sidekick, I love how the EU continued his journey and made him transform into a leader. I hope he's an integral part of the Thrawn stories moving forward!
@@starwarslads he was in the Mandalorian S3 ushering Thrawn in and in Rebels finale but hopefully he plays an integral part in the new Heir to the Empire movie. But I’m sure it won’t compare to the original.
Plagueis on number one, the OG thrawn books on two and Bane on number 3 is the correct opinion. Honestly, instead of fleshing out characters people don't particularly care about, Disney SW should just get it over with and bring book-accurate Bane and Plagueis over to the screen. (I can excuse Andor though, as that show was close to perfection). Having said that, can we just appreciate that Zahn just made a new trilogy that almost rivals his old one about the same subject? That's absolutely wild to me.
There are lots of ways you can go. You can go by release order which is best if you want to see how the EU laid out its original lore before the Prequels eventually called for many retcons of the material. You can also read in timeline order beginning with the Dawn of the Jedi Era but that would take you a long time to catch up to where Heir to the Empire takes place. Your final option would be to just cherry pick the best books and only read those. I have multiple videos on all of these methods of reading the EU, so hopefully they help you out better than my comment does haha. Here are the links to - the full Legends/EU Book Timeline: th-cam.com/video/YHWFgw-DgmU/w-d-xo.htmlsi=toi_hH97xVN6q483 | The Complete Legends/EU Timeline (Books, Movies, TV, Video Games, Comics, etc.) Series I just started: th-cam.com/video/5Gveoz_ABH0/w-d-xo.htmlsi=zNS5IyunNyUT8pSr | Legends/EU Books for Beginners: th-cam.com/video/yotQPRvlZI4/w-d-xo.htmlsi=9H2vjXsCyvxzKL6T | Essential Legends/EU Books Every Fan Should Read: th-cam.com/video/uLOViH_N-m4/w-d-xo.htmlsi=6KvosMxh6FXOXL2z
I personally like Legends more as of now. It’s hard to compare the two considering Legends is made up of 35+ years of stories and Canon only has 10 years worth of material, but I prefer Legends because of how much more expansive the universe is and how much more committed the secondary material (books, comics, video games) was to expanding the story of Star Wars instead of just filling in gaps.
After consuming Starwars through games and movies all my life the first starwars books I picked up was the Darth Bane trillogy. And just like that I turned to the Dark side and got my cookie. Sadly I found it hard to find any other books that was not about the main cast of the movies, which I was rather sick of hearing about. Then I discovered The Thrawn canon trilogy as it was just released at the time. I got it in audiobook form and fell so in love I read everything I could get my hands on about the Chiss and our beloved Thrawn. Really wish we had more of Eli Vanto as I adore his character and story arc almost more then Thrawns. Then I got into Darth Plagueis, such a good book. And now... I think it's time to look into the man in black himself. See what all the fuss is about.
@@starwarslads Outbound flight was a total supprise :D Read it cus I recognized the author and it had my favorite characters in it :D Awesome recommendations m8!
I had made a rule for this video that we weren’t to include novelizations. If we include Revenge of the Sith, I’d probably put the trilogy somewhere at lower half of my top 10. If we’re just including the other two, I’d put them right outside the top 10.
Plagueis is a Muun, and that species doesn’t feature a prominent nose. Unless you’re referring to when Plagueis was injured and was forced to wear a breathing apparatus.
All books that have something to do with Disney or the Sequels: SKIP They may be good and can enhance the s**t. But I don't want to waste time on Disney Star Wars.
Thank you and thanks for subbing! You’re right the sound mix isn’t great in the Bloodline section. It’s kind of an old video though, so know that this isn’t the standard for the majority haha. Thanks for watching!
Great video. Personally, I hope Lucasfilm leaves Mara Jade out of canon for a while longer. They aren’t currently worthy of her. Maybe someday they’ll be able to do her justice.
Thanks! I'm hopeful she comes back in a meaningful way. I have lots of videos on the channel on how I think they could bring her back. Thanks for watching!
LOL the High Republic is only good for emergency toilet paper. With the expectation of Timothy Zahn's books, NOTHING that has come out of Disney is worth a pile of poodoo
@@starwarslads A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, Return Of The Jedi. I don't know if you ever heard of them but I have been told they were rather important to the story and introduced several characters and tons of lore. I even heard about talks of a movie adaptation once but that was just a rumor, and even if there was one I'm sure no one saw it.
@@88Spint Gotcha haha. I get what you're saying now. Although, the films did inspire the novelizations not the other way around. Even if the novelizations did release shortly before the films to promote their theatrical releases. Unfortunately, I made the rule for this list not to include novelizations to keep the list focused on stories original to the novel format.
Gross, too much Disney ST material. Sadly the ST tainted everything connected to it. Can't bring myself to read Bloodline or Shadows of the Sith because it all leads to Jake Skywalker. Shadows of the Sith is especially bad in this regard because it tries to justify what happened in Rise of Skywalker. No amount of good writing can fix the toxic mess that is the ST. Otherwise good list, though I like me some Survivor's Quest/Outbound Flight too.
Irrelevant to this video, but the worst moment in Star Wars history is when Princess Leia flew through outer space without a suit and without freezing to death or even breathing.
The whole gang from the original trilogy spent an extended amount of time exposed in the mouth of a space worm on an asteroid (no atmosphere), why are we pretending Star Wars is this super realistic hard sci fi story?
Please like the video and subscribe to our channel for even more Star Wars content! Also, comment below and let us know your Top 10 Star Wars Books. Thanks for watching!
Just got to read Plagueis and its my favorite by a mile. Gonna have to re-read at some point
It's the best!!!!!
Awesome video and great picks! Which SW book have you re-read the most?
Thank you! I’ve re-read the Thrawn books and Plagueis the most. What about you?
Wonderful vid! Your tastes and mine overlap perfectly. Fortunately I still have to read many of your favorites. I have read and loved Bloodline, Brotherhood and the original Thrawn trilogy. I cannot wait to dive into all the other amazing books you so eloquently and informatively extol. Many thanks!
Thank you so much, Johan! I hope you enjoy all of the books from the list that you haven’t read. I think you’re in for a treat!
great video my friend and im happy about your first pick lol i have it as well and cant wait to read it!! I have heard to many good things lol
It’s sooooo gooooooood hahaha! Thanks for watching!
@@starwarslads your very welcome!!
the bane trilogy is my favorite
Great series!
My favorite book is ahsoka. You should try it!
Ahsoka is an interesting one to go back to right now with Tales of the Jedi coming out!
It's also the only canon novel to be made non-canon, as far as I'm aware.
@@godofthecripples1237All of the legends novels were canon before disney bought star wars….
I recently found all 9 xwing books at a used book store for a dollar each. Can't wait to read them
They’re amazing reads! We just recently started to put out reviews for them to coincide with their re-release in the Essential Legends Collection. Check them out if you’re interested. They’re non-spoiler reviews.
I have only just ventured into these novels, I read the Thrawn Canon trilogy first so I have ordered the Heir to the empire trilogy, Darth Bane trilogy and I'm currently reading Plagueis, which are your top 3 picks!
So glad my list could help! Hope you enjoy all of them! Plagueis can be very tough to read if you don’t have a lot of Legends knowledge, so make sure you’re well-versed for full enjoyment.
@@starwarslads I'll definitely check out your other recommendations too. Plagueis is amazing so far, though there has been mention of things I'm not familiar with.
Would you suggest reading the Dawn of the Jedi, Revan, Deceived etc before going into the Bane trilogy?
@@DANJEPO You can, but they really aren't connected at all. I would recommend you just dive straight into Darth Bane. All four of the Old Republic Books were released from 2010-2012, and Dawn of the Jedi released in 2014. The Bane Trilogy released from 2006-2009. Although the Darth Bane Trilogy technically takes place in The Old Republic, it takes place roughly 2000 years after TOR novels, and 25,000 after Dawn of the Jedi.
@@starwarslads perfect, thanks so much!
I am half way through Darth Plagueis and I am really enjoying it. I have just ordered Revenge of the Sith. I am so looking forward to reading that
Two of the best Star Wars books ever!
@starwarslads I'm also looking forward to "Battle of the Star Wars youtubers, Theory vs Explained"
Shadow Hunter (Maul) and Shatterpoint (Windu) are two underrated gems for me personally.
They both are great books! Shatterpoint is one of my favorites
Plagueis was absolutely brilliant, but I feel like one of the absolute GOAT novels got overlooked here:
The Revenge of the Sith novelization by Matthew Stover. All of those "this is what it's like to be [character]" scenes were absolutely gut-wrenching
An absolutely incredible book, but to make room for more "book exclusive" stories, I made the stipulation at the beginning of the video that I wouldn't include any novelizations. That's why it isn't on the list.
@@starwarslads well that's what I get for not paying attention 🤣
It’s all good haha
Thrawn Trilogy and Hand of Thrawn are probably my favorite Legends material so far. I love Thrawn and Mara Jade and Talon Karrde and Pellaeon and Rukh. Also an overlooked character in the Hand of Thrawn which I really liked was Moranda Savich. Dark Disciple is also my favorite canon novel I could barely stop reading perfect ending to Ventress’s story. I’m a little behind though because those are the only ones I’ve read so far
Those are all great choices! Agreed about all of those characters. Pellaeon in particular gets even more awesome throughout the EU! I glad you enjoyed Mara too! She one of my all-time favorite characters.
@@starwarslads yes I do really like her character I plan to expand on her character thru some of her other books. Pellaeon gets more interesting? Hmm, he’s already made peace with the New Republic which was unexpected but developed his character well in my opinion. I also read No Prisoners, he was a decent man not too full of himself plus showing his relationship with Hallena Devis, but he made some pretty big screw ups. Pissed Rex off pretty bad. I heard he has a lot more story during the New Republic and the New Jedi Order. Unfortunate he’s only seen once in canon
@@timalsept2854 He does! Hand of Thrawn starts what continues to be an awesome journey for him in NJO and beyond! As an Imperial that could've just been Thrawn's sidekick, I love how the EU continued his journey and made him transform into a leader. I hope he's an integral part of the Thrawn stories moving forward!
@@starwarslads he was in the Mandalorian S3 ushering Thrawn in and in Rebels finale but hopefully he plays an integral part in the new Heir to the Empire movie. But I’m sure it won’t compare to the original.
*Takes a DC-17m*
WHERE ARE REPUBLIC COMMANDO BOOKS BY CAREN TRAVISS????
Just ordered darth plagueis :)
Awesome! That’s what I want to hear! Thanks for watching!
Plagueis on number one, the OG thrawn books on two and Bane on number 3 is the correct opinion. Honestly, instead of fleshing out characters people don't particularly care about, Disney SW should just get it over with and bring book-accurate Bane and Plagueis over to the screen. (I can excuse Andor though, as that show was close to perfection).
Having said that, can we just appreciate that Zahn just made a new trilogy that almost rivals his old one about the same subject? That's absolutely wild to me.
Zahn’a work in Canon is ridiculously underrated!
Honourable mentions here is a pretty good list of the widely considered best Star Wars books 🤣
There’s lots of incredible Star Wars books!
Great picks but turn the music off or down.
i’m reading heir to the empire and I’m wondering if there’s a specific order after the trilogy? I’ve heard a lot is no so good
There are lots of ways you can go. You can go by release order which is best if you want to see how the EU laid out its original lore before the Prequels eventually called for many retcons of the material. You can also read in timeline order beginning with the Dawn of the Jedi Era but that would take you a long time to catch up to where Heir to the Empire takes place. Your final option would be to just cherry pick the best books and only read those. I have multiple videos on all of these methods of reading the EU, so hopefully they help you out better than my comment does haha. Here are the links to - the full Legends/EU Book Timeline: th-cam.com/video/YHWFgw-DgmU/w-d-xo.htmlsi=toi_hH97xVN6q483 | The Complete Legends/EU Timeline (Books, Movies, TV, Video Games, Comics, etc.) Series I just started: th-cam.com/video/5Gveoz_ABH0/w-d-xo.htmlsi=zNS5IyunNyUT8pSr | Legends/EU Books for Beginners: th-cam.com/video/yotQPRvlZI4/w-d-xo.htmlsi=9H2vjXsCyvxzKL6T | Essential Legends/EU Books Every Fan Should Read: th-cam.com/video/uLOViH_N-m4/w-d-xo.htmlsi=6KvosMxh6FXOXL2z
@@starwarsladsthanks i’m watching these. Do you like legends more than Canon?
I personally like Legends more as of now. It’s hard to compare the two considering Legends is made up of 35+ years of stories and Canon only has 10 years worth of material, but I prefer Legends because of how much more expansive the universe is and how much more committed the secondary material (books, comics, video games) was to expanding the story of Star Wars instead of just filling in gaps.
After consuming Starwars through games and movies all my life the first starwars books I picked up was the Darth Bane trillogy. And just like that I turned to the Dark side and got my cookie. Sadly I found it hard to find any other books that was not about the main cast of the movies, which I was rather sick of hearing about. Then I discovered The Thrawn canon trilogy as it was just released at the time. I got it in audiobook form and fell so in love I read everything I could get my hands on about the Chiss and our beloved Thrawn. Really wish we had more of Eli Vanto as I adore his character and story arc almost more then Thrawns. Then I got into Darth Plagueis, such a good book. And now... I think it's time to look into the man in black himself. See what all the fuss is about.
You should definitely check out Thrawn Ascendancy and Outbound Flight if you haven’t!
@@starwarslads Outbound flight was a total supprise :D Read it cus I recognized the author and it had my favorite characters in it :D Awesome recommendations m8!
where do you put dark lord trilogy
I had made a rule for this video that we weren’t to include novelizations. If we include Revenge of the Sith, I’d probably put the trilogy somewhere at lower half of my top 10. If we’re just including the other two, I’d put them right outside the top 10.
Death troopers?
It’s a fun book, but doesn’t quite make my top 10
Ok. What happened to Plagueis’ nose? Some pics have it others do not
Plagueis is a Muun, and that species doesn’t feature a prominent nose. Unless you’re referring to when Plagueis was injured and was forced to wear a breathing apparatus.
I'm starting with phantom menace
A good starting point and an underrated novelization by a fantasy LEGEND in Terry Brooks.
All books that have something to do with Disney or the Sequels: SKIP
They may be good and can enhance the s**t. But I don't want to waste time on Disney Star Wars.
Great video. New subscriber here. One point: sometimes you are drowned out by the background music.
Thank you and thanks for subbing! You’re right the sound mix isn’t great in the Bloodline section. It’s kind of an old video though, so know that this isn’t the standard for the majority haha. Thanks for watching!
Great video.
Personally, I hope Lucasfilm leaves Mara Jade out of canon for a while longer. They aren’t currently worthy of her. Maybe someday they’ll be able to do her justice.
Thanks! I'm hopeful she comes back in a meaningful way. I have lots of videos on the channel on how I think they could bring her back. Thanks for watching!
LOL the High Republic is only good for emergency toilet paper. With the expectation of Timothy Zahn's books, NOTHING that has come out of Disney is worth a pile of poodoo
Funny how the original books are not on the list at all xD
Which original books? The Han Solo and Lando Calrissian Adventures?
@@starwarslads A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, Return Of The Jedi. I don't know if you ever heard of them but I have been told they were rather important to the story and introduced several characters and tons of lore. I even heard about talks of a movie adaptation once but that was just a rumor, and even if there was one I'm sure no one saw it.
@@88Spint Gotcha haha. I get what you're saying now. Although, the films did inspire the novelizations not the other way around. Even if the novelizations did release shortly before the films to promote their theatrical releases. Unfortunately, I made the rule for this list not to include novelizations to keep the list focused on stories original to the novel format.
Gross, too much Disney ST material. Sadly the ST tainted everything connected to it. Can't bring myself to read Bloodline or Shadows of the Sith because it all leads to Jake Skywalker. Shadows of the Sith is especially bad in this regard because it tries to justify what happened in Rise of Skywalker. No amount of good writing can fix the toxic mess that is the ST. Otherwise good list, though I like me some Survivor's Quest/Outbound Flight too.
Dude turn the music down
Irrelevant to this video, but the worst moment in Star Wars history is when Princess Leia flew through outer space without a suit and without freezing to death or even breathing.
Just out of curiosity, how did this video trigger your recall to that moment lol?
The whole gang from the original trilogy spent an extended amount of time exposed in the mouth of a space worm on an asteroid (no atmosphere), why are we pretending Star Wars is this super realistic hard sci fi story?