The overview video I didn't know I needed! Great takes, Rachel. I love that you didn't lean in on so many of the same books from the EU that are so frequently reviewed and recommended, you really went all over the place and gave great recs. It will always be about what is now considered "Legends" for me. Very, very little of what has been produced in the last decade or so connects with me at all, as a fan of Star Wars from Day One. Love your content, great video.
Why thanks! Yeah I snuck in a couple Disney Era books but almost all the good stuff is Legends now. I spent a lot time reading and dnfing books before making this list so I hope it helps others find the good stuff
Star Wars came out the same year that I graduated from high school. It made for a very magical summer. We went to see it four of five times - once at a drive-in theater with real stars above us.
Loved this. The Thrawn trilogy is what got me hooked on reading again after having kids. I just loved the descriptions of the Wookie home world. I also enjoyed the Claudia Gray book on Princess Leia. Although-it is a bit slow(YA), it gave me a great feeling of Alderaan and all that she lost when it exploded. I love that they are always there to jump into!
What a great episode! I am daunted by the number of Star Wars books and had no idea where to on-ramp. Curiously I do have Zahn’s “Thrawn Trilogy” paperbacks on my shelves already, because I grabbed them off my mother when she unloaded them (yes, assume this is the source of my love for SciFi, but she’s never been a collector as I am). ⭐️ 👊 Loved the LEGO reveal too! 😍
Thank you SO much for doing this. I was given ALL the Star Wars Legends books...and at first just picked up this or that book to read, loving some, and not others. I am currently in the process of reading ALL the books from a chronological order. I've just finished the Jude Watson, Middle Grade books (which, for a 58 yr. old man...was not always the easiest, but had some fun, too). I'm glad that you highlighted some books that I have yet to read...which allows me to look forward to certain one. I have read a number of the ones that you started out talking about, but the ones that I have not read yet are: Shatterpoint; Revenge of the Sith; Shadows of the Empire; Tatooine Ghost; Luke Skywalker and the Shadow of Mindor; I, Jedi; and the New Jedi Order series. Thank you. About the books that we have read (all the books NOT mentioned above), I have to agree with you. Now the Courtship of Princess Leia versus the Disney Canon one, I choose the newer one, though neither of them are books that I think are great. My favourite author in the current Disney Canon books is Claudia Gray. She really does a great job with characters, especially Princess Leia IMO. In the terms of quality, I lean more towards the cohesive narrative of the Disney Canon novels (which is controversial to die hard Star Wars Extended Universe book fans), but I do love the big swings that the now Legends novels take. So, am really excited to read through the Legends books, getting these high points (from your perspective. I've read 73 of the Disney Canon books, and 43 of Legends books. I love them BOTH and I know that that isn't the norm for a person my age, but I'm not "normal". Thanks for this video...and appreciate you putting yourself (and your views) out there. Talk to you, soon.
@@TheShadesofOrange - Always. I'm really thankful for your thoughts, and I learned new books to look forward to reading. BTW - because of your video, I started reading Cloak of Deception by James Luceno...in the Rise of the Empire portion of the Legends book. Having fun. Thank you.
Really enjoyed your video here Ms Orange, I have not read any of the Star Wars books apart from the novelization of Episode 4. I was there at the beginning, watched the original movie Saturday morning after release day in my town in the UK 1977/78. I was so blown away, stayed in the theatre and watched it three times off the belt! I do love the series, Episode iV is one of my fav movies of all time. You may of sparked my interest here so I just might start reading the series from the prequels to the prequels! I will let you know how I get on.
Thanks for a great video recommending the expanded universe/legends in Star Wars. Must admit that I have added a lot more Star Wars books to my TBR; the funny thing is I have l lots of Star Wars to read already
@TheShadesofOrange I am currently reading the first Star Wars EU book that was released the year after A New Hope came out, Splinter of the Mind's Eye by Alan Dean Foster. It is quite a fun read. Have you read it?
"...once the ewoks stopped dancing." I recall (back in the original day) a novel "Splinter Of The Mind's Eye" ( or something like that) written (I believe) by Mr. Movie Novelization himself, Alan Dean Foster.
Id recommend you watch the clone wars series. It takes place during the entirety of the time between ep 2 and 3. The finale even takes place during the events of ep 3! An incredible series you should watch. Also have you read any of the graphic novel series? There are some amazing graphic novels
If you like the Prequel Era, Rachel, I highly recommend the "Clone Wars" comics published by Dark Horse between 1991-2015 particularly those written by John Ostrander and illustrated by the phenomenal Jan Duursema. They gave life to Asajj Ventress before her animated existence as one of the franchise's great anti-heroes. However, their saga of Quinlan Vos is where they really left their mark chronicling his deep-cover assignment as Dooku's right hand and his forbidden love affair with the thief Kahleen Hentz. The animated version that was salvaged is a pale shadow of the edgy, dangerous loner who strays too far into the shadow of the Dark Side! Matthew Stover's "Shatterpoint" is referenced in those comics and you get to see what happens to Depa Billaba after Windu extricates her from his homeworld of Haruun Kal.
Great video!👍👍👍🤖🚀📚🐲 I have been looking for a video like this. I really like star wars rebels🎨💣and thought to start with the thrawn novels, but you are setting me straight. From one thing to another, Rachel, have you seen that Tim pratt has come out(I think) with a new space opera, the knife and the serpent?
my faves have always been the Revan books and its sad that they are no longer considered cannon when they have him in games and he is one of the most powerful sith/jedi.
I like the prequel trilogy too. Shameful though that is. Great video. I love Star Wars but there are SO many books. Now I'm jazzed to go on this journey. Thank you for taking the time to suggest this.
Not sure if you're into D&D, but have you played the Star Wars RPG by Fantasy Flight Games? This guide is super helpful because I'd like to read some of the better books to get inspiration for the story-telling of Star Wars for use in game mastering in the future. I'm surprised Shatterpoint is so good since I agree with you, Mace did come off pretty flat in the prequel movies even though he had so much potential as a cool Jedi (and the one who actually beat Palpatine solo and fair and square according to George Lucas).
Have you read the High Republic novels? They are great! Also, I would recommend the Alphabet Squadron trilogy by Alexander Freed. The whole trilogy is excellent, but the final book is phenomenal.😃
In my case that gap between episode 2 and episode 3 I got the Clone Wars XBOX video game 2003 (Expanded Universe) and then I got the Clone Wars micro series (Also EU) so by Episode 3 I got that gap filled. I started to read the Thrawn Trilogy last week. My first EU book so I hope I like it. Also I started to read Dark Empire comics and I really like those.
Great guide. I have never read a star wars book but i did see the new one by Deliah S. Dawson at Barnes and Noble the other day and it peaked my interest. However, I am not a fan of Star Wars since Disney took it over so maybe i will start somewhere else 😉
Master and Apprentice and Brotherhood are phenomenal! But they’re part of the new canon and not the old expanded universe like the rest of the books on your list just to let you know
@@TheShadesofOrange It definitely fits with Legends! Another great Qui-Gonn series is the old Junior Reader Jedi Apprentice series. They’re OOP and not available digitally but if you can find them they’re a lot of fun!
Thanks for this video. I didn't know where to begin with Star Wars books There are so many of them. Also, if you like Sci-Fi check out Ariya Kai the secret of colony LIFE by F. Z. Zach, it is worth a read.
The Mouse's worst business and creative decision was to make Legends non-canon! The Zahn Thrawn Trilogy was ready-made with the classic cast involved! It kept the flame of fandom alive during the lean years before the Prequels! It would have been a perfect Sequel Trilogy and the Yuuzhan Vong Invasion would have been great fodder for an epic follow-up streaming series on D+! "Shadows of the Empire" was a major multi-media project that included the novel, a comic adaptation published by Dark Horse including a sequel and a video game! And, of course, if you haven't seen the incredible "Clone Wars" animated series, it provides everything you wanted that the prequels lacked. Just know that it's at variance with the Dark Horse comics even though certain themes and characters were cherry-picked.
Yes Legends are the best. They easily could have turned the later books into sequel movies. I've watched some of clones wars and look forward to doing a complete re-watch when my kid is older
I‘m relieved someone has the same opinion about Zahns writing as me. You’re right, he has done amazing things for the franchise, but his writing is strange. Very dialogue-driven, but he doesn’t describe things. He names them, but he doesn’t describe them. I tried another one of his books (The Icarus Hunt) to see if this might have been a limitation within the franchise, but it was exactly the same, plus a very disappointing ending. And … every tenth sentence ends with „all right“. I’m obviously not a native speaker, but even for me, that seemed like a sign for bad writing or bad editing.
I’ve never really gotten into the books though I’ve always sort of meant to. Maybe I’ll give a couple of these a try sometime. I know some Star Wars “fans” can be toxic so hopefully none of them find this video and everything stays cool in comments!
Dear Rachel, I very much enjoy watching your reviews and I've got lots of recommendations from you, BUT if you don't mind me saying, I find it very confusing/frustrating when you use gender neutral language. When you mention THEY, I never know whether you're referring to HIM or HER, or a group of people?! Usually I just roll my eyes when it happens, but when you start referring to yourself as THEY, that's where I draw a line Rachel. Sort it out please. ....I'm someone who admits that THEY do enjoy..... Timestamp 0:40
The overview video I didn't know I needed! Great takes, Rachel. I love that you didn't lean in on so many of the same books from the EU that are so frequently reviewed and recommended, you really went all over the place and gave great recs. It will always be about what is now considered "Legends" for me. Very, very little of what has been produced in the last decade or so connects with me at all, as a fan of Star Wars from Day One. Love your content, great video.
Why thanks! Yeah I snuck in a couple Disney Era books but almost all the good stuff is Legends now. I spent a lot time reading and dnfing books before making this list so I hope it helps others find the good stuff
Heir to the Empire is such a favorite!
Love the legos!
I have always loved movies, and I am curious to read a book but have never known where to start. This helped a lot. Thank you for this list.
Glad this was helpful
Thanks for the overview, this might come in handy later on!
I already got the Thrawn Trilogy and it's waiting on my TBR pile.
You are correct. I agree ROTSith'zation was surprisingly deep.
Phew! Glad it wasn't just me!
Star Wars came out the same year that I graduated from high school. It made for a very magical summer. We went to see it four of five times - once at a drive-in theater with real stars above us.
Loved this. The Thrawn trilogy is what got me hooked on reading again after having kids. I just loved the descriptions of the Wookie home world. I also enjoyed the Claudia Gray book on Princess Leia. Although-it is a bit slow(YA), it gave me a great feeling of Alderaan and all that she lost when it exploded. I love that they are always there to jump into!
What a great episode! I am daunted by the number of Star Wars books and had no idea where to on-ramp. Curiously I do have Zahn’s “Thrawn Trilogy” paperbacks on my shelves already, because I grabbed them off my mother when she unloaded them (yes, assume this is the source of my love for SciFi, but she’s never been a collector as I am).
⭐️ 👊 Loved the LEGO reveal too! 😍
Glad this was helpful
Thank you SO much for doing this. I was given ALL the Star Wars Legends books...and at first just picked up this or that book to read, loving some, and not others. I am currently in the process of reading ALL the books from a chronological order. I've just finished the Jude Watson, Middle Grade books (which, for a 58 yr. old man...was not always the easiest, but had some fun, too).
I'm glad that you highlighted some books that I have yet to read...which allows me to look forward to certain one.
I have read a number of the ones that you started out talking about, but the ones that I have not read yet are: Shatterpoint; Revenge of the Sith; Shadows of the Empire; Tatooine Ghost; Luke Skywalker and the Shadow of Mindor; I, Jedi; and the New Jedi Order series. Thank you.
About the books that we have read (all the books NOT mentioned above), I have to agree with you. Now the Courtship of Princess Leia versus the Disney Canon one, I choose the newer one, though neither of them are books that I think are great.
My favourite author in the current Disney Canon books is Claudia Gray. She really does a great job with characters, especially Princess Leia IMO.
In the terms of quality, I lean more towards the cohesive narrative of the Disney Canon novels (which is controversial to die hard Star Wars Extended Universe book fans), but I do love the big swings that the now Legends novels take. So, am really excited to read through the Legends books, getting these high points (from your perspective.
I've read 73 of the Disney Canon books, and 43 of Legends books. I love them BOTH and I know that that isn't the norm for a person my age, but I'm not "normal".
Thanks for this video...and appreciate you putting yourself (and your views) out there. Talk to you, soon.
I really appreciate your long thoughtful comment. I knew the video topic would make this video less popular so I appreciate the discussion
@@TheShadesofOrange - Always. I'm really thankful for your thoughts, and I learned new books to look forward to reading.
BTW - because of your video, I started reading Cloak of Deception by James Luceno...in the Rise of the Empire portion of the Legends book.
Having fun. Thank you.
Excellent video! Thank you for explaining the book order and the reasons to check them out!✨
Thanks
funny how i was thinking about getting into the legends stuff and this video came out.
great video it helps a lot
Haha, perfect timing then!
Great video Rachel. I read the Darth Bane series with my son and loved it.
I love that you read it with your son! I'm highly anticipating introducing my boy to Star Wars.
Really enjoyed your video here Ms Orange, I have not read any of the Star Wars books apart from the novelization of Episode 4. I was there at the beginning, watched the original movie Saturday morning after release day in my town in the UK 1977/78. I was so blown away, stayed in the theatre and watched it three times off the belt! I do love the series, Episode iV is one of my fav movies of all time. You may of sparked my interest here so I just might start reading the series from the prequels to the prequels! I will let you know how I get on.
Please do
Thanks for a great video recommending the expanded universe/legends in Star Wars. Must admit that I have added a lot more Star Wars books to my TBR; the funny thing is I have l lots of Star Wars to read already
Thanks for watching this one
@TheShadesofOrange I am currently reading the first Star Wars EU book that was released the year after A New Hope came out, Splinter of the Mind's Eye by Alan Dean Foster. It is quite a fun read. Have you read it?
The old republic is the BEST Darth bane and Zannah for the win 🤩 lol I have an entire Bane Zannah and Revan sleeve
Yes! Love Bane!
"...once the ewoks stopped dancing." I recall (back in the original day) a novel "Splinter Of The Mind's Eye" ( or something like that) written (I believe) by Mr. Movie Novelization himself, Alan Dean Foster.
Id recommend you watch the clone wars series. It takes place during the entirety of the time between ep 2 and 3. The finale even takes place during the events of ep 3! An incredible series you should watch. Also have you read any of the graphic novel series? There are some amazing graphic novels
I haven't read graphic novels. I have watched some Clone Wars and look forward to watching the whole seasons when my kid gets older
If you like the Prequel Era, Rachel, I highly recommend the "Clone Wars" comics published by Dark Horse between 1991-2015 particularly those written by John Ostrander and illustrated by the phenomenal Jan Duursema. They gave life to Asajj Ventress before her animated existence as one of the franchise's great anti-heroes. However, their saga of Quinlan Vos is where they really left their mark chronicling his deep-cover assignment as Dooku's right hand and his forbidden love affair with the thief Kahleen Hentz. The animated version that was salvaged is a pale shadow of the edgy, dangerous loner who strays too far into the shadow of the Dark Side!
Matthew Stover's "Shatterpoint" is referenced in those comics and you get to see what happens to Depa Billaba after Windu extricates her from his homeworld of Haruun Kal.
I haven't read more (or any?) Of the star Wars comics so I appreciate the rec... thank you!
Great video!👍👍👍🤖🚀📚🐲 I have been looking for a video like this. I really like star wars rebels🎨💣and thought to start with the thrawn novels, but you are setting me straight. From one thing to another, Rachel, have you seen that Tim pratt has come out(I think) with a new space opera, the knife and the serpent?
Thanks and yes I'll be posting that review in a week or two
@@TheShadesofOrangegreat!👍
my faves have always been the Revan books and its sad that they are no longer considered cannon when they have him in games and he is one of the most powerful sith/jedi.
I've really been enjoying revisiting the X-wing series
I like the prequel trilogy too. Shameful though that is.
Great video. I love Star Wars but there are SO many books. Now I'm jazzed to go on this journey.
Thank you for taking the time to suggest this.
So glad I'm not alone in liking the prequels
Not sure if you're into D&D, but have you played the Star Wars RPG by Fantasy Flight Games? This guide is super helpful because I'd like to read some of the better books to get inspiration for the story-telling of Star Wars for use in game mastering in the future. I'm surprised Shatterpoint is so good since I agree with you, Mace did come off pretty flat in the prequel movies even though he had so much potential as a cool Jedi (and the one who actually beat Palpatine solo and fair and square according to George Lucas).
Good to know. I've been playing D&D for years. I might have to convince our group to try that one
Have you read the High Republic novels? They are great! Also, I would recommend the Alphabet Squadron trilogy by Alexander Freed. The whole trilogy is excellent, but the final book is phenomenal.😃
I tried the High Republic but they didn't hook me
@@TheShadesofOrangeBummer. I loved them.
In my case that gap between episode 2 and episode 3 I got the Clone Wars XBOX video game 2003 (Expanded Universe) and then I got the Clone Wars micro series (Also EU) so by Episode 3 I got that gap filled. I started to read the Thrawn Trilogy last week. My first EU book so I hope I like it. Also I started to read Dark Empire comics and I really like those.
🛸
Great guide. I have never read a star wars book but i did see the new one by Deliah S. Dawson at Barnes and Noble the other day and it peaked my interest. However, I am not a fan of Star Wars since Disney took it over so maybe i will start somewhere else 😉
Master and Apprentice and Brotherhood are phenomenal! But they’re part of the new canon and not the old expanded universe like the rest of the books on your list just to let you know
I knew Brotherhood was Disney but I really thought Master & Apprentice was Legends
@@TheShadesofOrange It definitely fits with Legends! Another great Qui-Gonn series is the old Junior Reader Jedi Apprentice series. They’re OOP and not available digitally but if you can find them they’re a lot of fun!
Ever read any of the Star Trek novels?
Only a couple! I'm a Trekkie so I should read more
Thanks for this video. I didn't know where to begin with Star Wars books There are so many of them. Also, if you like Sci-Fi check out Ariya Kai the secret of colony LIFE by F. Z. Zach, it is worth a read.
Glad it was helpful
The Mouse's worst business and creative decision was to make Legends non-canon! The Zahn Thrawn Trilogy was ready-made with the classic cast involved! It kept the flame of fandom alive during the lean years before the Prequels! It would have been a perfect Sequel Trilogy and the Yuuzhan Vong Invasion would have been great fodder for an epic follow-up streaming series on D+!
"Shadows of the Empire" was a major multi-media project that included the novel, a comic adaptation published by Dark Horse including a sequel and a video game!
And, of course, if you haven't seen the incredible "Clone Wars" animated series, it provides everything you wanted that the prequels lacked. Just know that it's at variance with the Dark Horse comics even though certain themes and characters were cherry-picked.
Yes Legends are the best. They easily could have turned the later books into sequel movies. I've watched some of clones wars and look forward to doing a complete re-watch when my kid is older
I‘m relieved someone has the same opinion about Zahns writing as me. You’re right, he has done amazing things for the franchise, but his writing is strange. Very dialogue-driven, but he doesn’t describe things. He names them, but he doesn’t describe them. I tried another one of his books (The Icarus Hunt) to see if this might have been a limitation within the franchise, but it was exactly the same, plus a very disappointing ending. And … every tenth sentence ends with „all right“. I’m obviously not a native speaker, but even for me, that seemed like a sign for bad writing or bad editing.
Ah thank you for sharing my opinion. I thought I was the only one
I’ve never really gotten into the books though I’ve always sort of meant to. Maybe I’ll give a couple of these a try sometime.
I know some Star Wars “fans” can be toxic so hopefully none of them find this video and everything stays cool in comments!
Aw thanks. So far so good! (But it helps that this video isn't going Viral)
Def a blind spot for me, tho I’ve read some Star Wars comics
Ans I need to read more of comics
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⭐🗡⭐
⭐🗡️📚
Where’s Crystal Star? Truly the height of Star Wars fiction! /s
Haha I'm relieved you added the "/s" 😅
Hello there hey there hey
⚾👍👏
⚛😀❤
👩🏻🚀✨💥🌌
Dear Rachel,
I very much enjoy watching your reviews and I've got lots of recommendations from you, BUT if you don't mind me saying, I find it very confusing/frustrating when you use gender neutral language. When you mention THEY, I never know whether you're referring to HIM or HER, or a group of people?! Usually I just roll my eyes when it happens, but when you start referring to yourself as THEY, that's where I draw a line Rachel. Sort it out please.
....I'm someone who admits that THEY do enjoy.....
Timestamp 0:40