The Force Unleashed II

By: Sean Williams

The Force Unleashed is a novel set in the Star Wars universe that takes place during the Rise of the Empire era, and is the Second of two books in The Force Unleashed duology.

Plot: After a self-sacrificing move by Starkiller that begins the Rebellion, he wakes up on a cloning facility on Kamino alive.  Quickly, he locates General Kota in order to find Juno Eclipse, the woman he fell in love with and his former pilot, who has been occupying his memories as of late.

However, Starkiller is not the only person looking for Juno.  Vader has hired Boba Fett to track down and abduct Juno before Starkiller can find her.  As long as Starkiller has a love, Vader believes he will always have power over him.  It is this fact that brings both Sith Lord and apprentice together again for a confrontation that will change the fate of the Galaxy.

Review:  Even though the first book was action packed and a great thrill ride, the second novel exceeds the first in many respects.  The plot development of the novel shows a great growth in Sean Williams' writing.  Williams does not stick to the script the way he did in the first novel.  This is a testament to all great writers.  Rather than lengthening a basic video game script, he took the idea, expanded on it, and made it his own. 

The subplots really make the characters seem more real, the impending tragedy makes the plot twist and turn, and the way the love is written between Juno and Starkiller is just as entertaining as any of the action sequences in the novel.  Even if the reader has not read the first novel, the character relations in the novel will be more than enough to keep the reader's interest piqued.  The second novel was even more enjoyable than the first, and is definitely worth a read.