Star Wars The Han Solo Trilogy: The Paradise Snare by A. C. Crispin

 

Synopsis:

Here is the first book in the blockbuster trilogy that chronicles the never-before-told story of the young Han Solo. Set before the Star Wars movie adventures, these books chronicle the coming-of-age of the galaxy's most famous con man, smuggler, and thief.

The first book in this exciting new Han Solo series begins with a recounting of Han's late teen years and shows us how he escaped an unhappy adopted home situation to carve out an adventurous new life for himself as a pilot. Han Solo, the handsome rogue, is every girl's dream man, and every boy's hero. The Paradise Snare is another stellar Star Wars production, complete with original music and sound effect.

Review by Patrick:

Okay. So I'm a Star Wars fan. Actually, I'm a nerd of many different types, but Star Wars is one of them. So what better way to expand your nerdy knowledge than to read books in the saga?

The Paradise Snare gives the beginning of Han Solo's life, at least as far back as he can remember. This is very interesting to learn the childhood stories of the handsome smuggler. Later in the movies, Han says he's good at rescuing princesses. Well, it turns out he had to rescue himself first, then some friends. He's had some practice at rescuing. The book also set up some other themes that reoccur with Han.

The book by itself was good. It was interesting and was fast paced. There was good story building, spaceship flying with a brief encounter with pirates, blaster fights, and a lot more. Also, possibly Han's first love interest, and a new species that I hadn't heard of before, the Togorians, a feline species that are very formidable. It also wrapped up loose ends nicely, so even though this is part of a trilogy, it almost feels like a stand alone. Needless to say, I liked the book.

There were a few things that kind of irked me.  If you are a "Scoundress" shipper, you are just going to have to get over the fact that Han has a very diverse past, including women. The author made it feel like the Han in the book talked like and behaved like the Han in the movies. There were times I felt like I could hear the diolauge in Harrison Ford's voice. But I'm a little skeptical about how someone with this particular background could have so many specialties, like piloting, shooting a blaster, smuggling, learning alien languages in a matter of weeks, and other bits of his knowledge set. There's very little growth. He just comes from being a "slave" to rescuing himself with piloting a ship without controls. There were also a few questions that were not answered. One I think will be answered later in the trilogy, "why can't he remember anything before Garris Shrike." But other less minor ones. Like, "Why did the Ylesians want a Corellian to pilot?" and "Why did Bria ... spoilers, sorry?"

My recommendation, if you like Star Wars, space science fiction, the character of Han Solo, or a protagonist trying to overcome the punches that life throws their way, this is a good book. This book gets four stars from me.