Star Wars: Revan
Written by Drew Karpyshyn
Narrated by Marc Thompson
4/5
()
Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this audiobook
a juggernaut of evil bearing down to crush the Republic-
unless one lone Jedi, shunned and reviled, can stop it.
Revan: hero, traitor, conqueror, villain, savior. A Jedi who left Coruscant to defeat Mandalorians-and returned a disciple of the dark side, bent on destroying the Republic. The Jedi Council gave Revan his life back, but the price of redemption was high. His memories have been erased. All that's left are nightmares-and deep, abiding fear.
What exactly happened beyond the Outer Rim? Revan can't quite remember, yet can't entirely forget. Somehow he stumbled across a terrible secret that threatens the very existence of the Republic. With no idea what it is, or how to stop it, Revan may very well fail, for he's never faced a more powerful and diabolic enemy. But only death can stop him from trying.
From the Hardcover edition.
Drew Karpyshyn
Drew Karpyshyn is the New York Times bestselling author of Children of Fire as well as the Star Wars: The Old Republic novels Revan and Annihilation, and the Star Wars: Darth Bane trilogy: Path of Destruction, Rule of Two, and Dynasty of Evil. He also wrote the acclaimed Mass Effect series of novels and worked as a writer/designer on numerous award-winning videogames. After spending most of his life in Canada, he finally grew tired of the long, cold winters and headed south in search of a climate more conducive to year-round golf. Drew Karpyshyn now lives in Texas with his wife, Jennifer, and a variety of four-legged companions.
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Reviews for Star Wars
272 ratings17 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5It's 2 years after the Jedi Civil War. Most of the Jedi are dead and the Republic has to recover from the devastating war. With Revan still recovering from the loss of his memories, he soon begins having a repeating dream of a storm-covered world. Revan soon has difficulty sleeping and seeks answers. The next day, Revan travels to a small cantina to meet an old friend. Canderous Ordo is a Mandalorian warrior from the Mandalorian clan Ordo. Canderous tells Revan of a search for the mask of Mandalore that the clans are conducting. Mandalore was the warrior ruler of the Mandalorians. His mask is like a Mandalorian crown. Whoever claims it is the new Mandalore. Revan and Canderous travel to Rekkiad, the barren ice planet where Revan supposedly hid the mask before the loss of his memories. There, Canderous meets his friends and family from Clan Ordo. Revan must hide his identity as a Jedi, as most Mandalorians are not fond of the Jedi, due to the war between the Jedi and the Mandalorians that led to the destruction of the majority of the clans. What results is Canderous becoming the next Mandalore and the reunification of the clans. Now Revan begins his search for the storm-covered world. As always with a book, the real question is not will he find it, but will he be prepared for what is there amongst the storms and darkness? Finally, a book about Revan! Revan was my favorite Star Wars character, simply because of how strong and wise he was. This was a man who knew both the light and dark sides of the force had their own strengths and weaknesses, as he walked both of them. He drew on his emotions for power, yet always used them for protecting the weak and innocent. This is why I love this book by Drew Karpyshyn. It shows both of Revan's sides, his good and his bad. We never saw both when we played the games about him, only the good or the bad. This was a better look on the character's story. Easily one of my favorite books.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Drew KarpyShyn is an excellent writer and Marc Thompson an excellent storyteller I get so absorbed in the world when Marc speaks
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Great book the whole way through! loved the ending! Ready to read more of Old Republic Books.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5I wanted to like this book, I really did. A month ago when I was so eagerly anticipating the release of Star Wars: The Old Republic: Revan, I didn’t expect I would be starting a review for it this way, and I really don’t like having to be negative, but what can you do.Granted, it is possible that my high expectations may have clouded my judgment. For one thing, I’m a big fan of Drew Karpyshyn — he wrote the Star Wars Darth Bane trilogy and also the Mass Effect novels that I found I really enjoyed. But more importantly, I’m also a big fan of the character Revan, having been obsessed with and emotionally invested in his story from the Knights of the Old Republic games. Still, I have a feeling that even the most casual of readers picking this up will find many problems with the writing and execution of this novel.To be fair, I’ve been following Drew K’s blog for a while now, and on it he occasionally talks about the pressures of looming deadlines and the challenges of meeting them. His writing in Revan appears to be the latest victim of this restrictive time crunch, as it’s definitely not his best work. This is a shame for two reasons: 1) He’s usually capable of much better writing, and 2) I would have pegged him as the perfect author to tell Revan’s story, as he was intimately involved with the development and writing of the first KOTOR game.Another reason why I think the book was a rush job is how well it started out in the first handful of chapters, versus how everything started unraveling and falling apart in the second half. I’d glimpsed some of the not-so-positive starred reviews prior to finishing the novel, and thought to myself, “Nah, this isn’t that bad.” But then I hit part II. And I began to understand.First of all, in retrospect so much of the book felt like filler, lengthy exposition sequences and drawn-out descriptions. While I understand the need to bring readers up to speed with the events of KOTOR (for those who have never played the RPG or need a refresher — it’s been about 8 years since the game’s release, after all) I lamented the fact it came at the expense of scenes that actually required details and a more in-depth look. Instead, important action sequences and scenes that actually drove the plot forward or called for more emotion were completely glossed over.Second, the book was so short. It’s not like there wasn’t enough to write about. Like I said, so much of the novel could have been fleshed out and made better. It just felt like the author needed it to be over and done with, fast.Third, there was a very noticeable shift in focus by the end of the book. I thought I began by reading about Revan, but little by little, he started taking more of a background role, and by the final chapters it was clear the emphasis was more on the Sith character of the novel, Lord Scourge. I just found this odd, and I still don’t really understand the purpose.Nonetheless, there is still plenty of Revan, which is one of the reasons why I couldn’t just toss this book aside. There will be answers to some big questions left behind by the ending of KOTOR and KOTOR II, and for this reason I don’t regret reading it at all. The Jedi Exile also plays a huge role, and it is in this book that she is finally identified and given a name — Meetra Surik.However, speaking of characters, don’t expect many of the companions from the games to make an appearance. The three that get the honor are Canderous Ordo, T3-M4 and Bastila Shan. The rest like Mission Vao, Zaalbar or HK-47 are only mentioned in passing, or given some weak excuses why they couldn’t show up. Carth Onasi doesn’t even get a mention, and while admittedly he was one of my more whiny and annoying BioWare boyfriends, I couldn’t help but notice the snub. Ouch.I don’t want to make it sound like Revan was all bad. I personally liked a lot of the dialogue, though I think I’m probably in the minority with regards to this. I definitely think dialogue-writing is Drew Karpyshyn’s forte, but while some lines might work well in a video game, I admit they don’t always translate well onto a page in a novel. Some plot points were predictable, but in general I enjoyed the story. And finally, like I said before, the book does manage to bring some form of closure. Sort of.This does beg the question: Is closure — that is, a truly satisfying conclusion that emotionally invested KOTOR fans have been waiting almost a decade for — even possible for an epic story like Revan’s? Honestly, I believed the answer is yes. And I still do. Which is why I had such high hopes for Revan. Despite my biases, I still think it could have been the book to bring ultimate closure to the KOTOR series. If only Drew K had been given enough time.So, to wrap this review up, you may find Revan interesting if you’re into Star Wars novels or game tie-ins in general. I say read this book if you’re fan of the character and the KOTOR games. You might end up disappointed, but you’ve come this far, so might as well finish up. Also read this book if you’re really into the upcoming Star Wars: The Old Republic MMO. There will be quite a few mentions of Revan and his adventures in the game, so knowing the character’s background might enhance the story behind those quests for you, but it’s definitely not required knowledge.But if you don’t know much about the lore behind SWTOR and the Old Republic era and are thinking of reading this to get pumped for it, I would rethink that decision. For that, you’d be better off playing KOTOR.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5As a fan of the games I was curious to know what the canon was concerning questions that the games didn't answer, and this book does a good job of answering those in a way that's faithful to the characters and themes.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Although when I started listening to it believing it would be solely based on Darth Revan, I was pleasantly surprised to learn the story of Darth Scourge. I believe this wraps up the games in a great way.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Such a great listen! The reader does a fantastic job!
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Firstly I definitely don't envy Drew in taking on this novel (even with his work on the KOTOR games) Revan is a huge fan favourite and tough territory. Before reading this book the expectations were huge, I mean it's called Revan. It'd better be good!Starting very differently than I expected, this book doesn't just focus on Revan but also a Sith Lord named Scourge. Scourge is hell bent on serving the Emperor who is currently preparing the secret with civilisation for war. Scourge was a great character and I loved seeing his rage get him into awkward moments at times as he tended to act first and think second. His later curiosity of Revan was also refreshing. By the end of the book I had a much greater appreciation for Scourge as he became more of 3D character.Otherwise the majority of the book obviously focused on Revan, the once Jedi, turned Sith Lord, turned Jedi. Well he's kind of a Jedi. I love the idea of the character Revan and for the most part it was really interesting as he tried to piece together his memory with Canderous at his side. But at times his character was a bit weak. Probably due to there not being much personality to draw from in the game. His relationship with Bastilla seemed not quite real and there's the fact that he still doesn't have a name. Somehow Bastilla calling him just Revan is kinda weird.With that a side this was a fantastically quick read. The pace moved well and the variety of characters was refreshing. Drew is a master at creating great Sith characters and no one should be disappointed at the amount of page time given to Scourge. He's a great character and the way his fate intertwined with Revan is chilling.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5really enjoyed this one!
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Liked the Revan mythos, the fear he instilled in others despite not remaining with the dark side. As usual Karpshyn has good flow to his story and the action is easy to follow. Very good read!
2 people found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5An entertaining story on the level of a season finale, not made for the big-screen. I would give it a 3.5 star rating, but, alas, there are no half-stars in the known universe.
Pros - Good action scenes and military strategy. Nice to see a novel in the Star Wars universe not based on a force wielding protagonist. It was clean (no language, sex, etc.). It was character driven with a flawed protagonist who comes to grips at the end. Good story arc.
Cons - A little sappy, and predictable. (Just a touch.) The bent blaster seemed to be a contrivance ... yeah, I was waiting for Theron to use it like a grenade. Good idea, but saw it coming. I had a hard time understanding Theron's brotherly love for Teff’ith. He had a lot more patience for her than I would have -- almost to the point of being a stalker. I had a hard time understanding his motivation for sticking with her to the point where it lost credibility. - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I expected a lot of this book since Drew Karpyshyn's Darth Bane trilogy is one of the best Star Wars trilogies that I've read. Although I feel the story had a slow start, I think it redeemed itself with some pretty good action and a nice ending (although the ending does leave you hanging). I highly recommend this novel to any Star Wars EU fan.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Although the book is based in legend surrounding the Old Republic game, it was still fairly easy to gather the history of the character. This particular book in the series moves a bit slower and the story seems a bit “pieced-together” rather than flowing smoothly. The parts about Mandalorian history and the history between Revan and Malak are very interesting, but only play backstory roles. I would recommend Revan to any Star Wars fan just for the history provided. The most engaging parts of the plot for me were the details of the Emperor, how he came into power, and how he had maintained that position for so long. Looking back on this book, I think fondly on the absolute menace of the emperor but very much less in the novel.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5it obviously had to serve as an introduction of the SWTOR universe to players of the MMO by bioware. that´s exactly why i read it. there are truly great scenes, almost all of them involving the sith character SCOURGE. the REVAN storyline was a bit dissapointing to me. good read overall. for fans and players of the MMO alike. if you are neither of both i won´t recommend it.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The best of the three Old Republic books I've read so far. More character building as Drew builds his characters a bit more than the other authors. He is one of the better writers when it comes to portraying the Sith.
Spoiler -
At the end one character is left a prisoner. Not sure where to turn to see this part of the story resolved.1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5As a Star Wars fan in general and a Knights of the Old Republic fan in specific, this novel was a terrible disappointment to me. It really read like something that should have been released free with the new Old Republic video game and not as a stand alone novel. At best this was half a book, released without an ending.If you enjoyed the Knights of the Old Republic, then avoid this travesty like the plague. Very disappointed.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A tale from the old republic, this is the story of the Rogue Jedi Revan, and his quest to bring safety to the republic and protect his wife and child. I enjoyed this book very much. Mr. Karpyshyn weaves a fantastic adventure story filled with double, triple and quadruple crosses that leave you guessing right to the very end. But he does not shirk in character development, his book is peopled with big, complex personalities that make you genuinely care for them, and, like his other books, you will at times find yourself rooting for the Sith
1 person found this helpful