The Rise of Skywalker: Expanded Edition (Star Wars) Hardcover – Illustrated, March 17, 2020

The Rise of Skywalker novelization is a quick, but good read. It adds a bit more to the movie and the characters without straying too far from the fast, action paced plot of the film. Readers will get to find out just how Palpatine survived, how his son came about, and more. There’s extended scenes that were hinted at with the behind-the-scenes artwork, plus sections that help transition characters from one place to another that the movie didn’t have time to delve into. But beyond the book just having extra content, it maintains a enjoyable vibe that stays entertaining from beginning to end.First, lets get into the extra content. While it can be nice to have the dialog at your hands to go over again and catch what you might have missed, the real draw of any novelization is getting more out of the story. This novelization delivers on that in several ways. For anyone who was a fan of Zorii Bliss in the movie, you get a lot more of her in the novelization. The book explores a bit of her spice runner gang and helps connect the dots with what she did once everyone else left, how she wound up with Babu Frik, and how they wound up in the big battle at the end. It dives into her thoughts to explore more of her character. And the book doesn’t stop there. There are precious insights throughout the book where the story goes into the characters’ heads to reveal what they’re thinking and what they’ve been through. There’s reveals of Leia and her Force abilities and connection to the Force, what Hux thought he was up to, Poe’s reservations after Crait, Finn’s subtle realization of his Force connection, Rey’s lingering fear of the darkness within her and much more.Furthermore, there’s some big reveals with Palpatine. The book lays out how he survived his fall in the shaft of the second Death Star, why he looks like a rotting corpse, and he wound up with a son which lead to Rey. Not everything is completely revealed or explored, though. There’s still much about Ben Solo that we don’t know. There’s some cryptic stuff about that dyad that still leaves a lot to be fleshed out. But the book isn’t meant to be an encyclopedia to answer everyone’s questions or fill in all the voids. The book is simply capturing the story of the movie while also giving the reader a bit more to enjoy.Another factor that adds to that enjoyment is little bonuses like the cameos at the big space battle. At the end of the battle, there are thousands and thousands of ships. Far too many to identify while watching the film. We know there’s all kinds of visual cameos hidden in that scene. However, the book takes the time to point out some of those cameos, and even gives them a bit of dialog. Even the Wicket scene gets expanded with some dialog and background. It’s not a ton, but it’s a nice inclusion.In the end, The Rise of Skywalker novelization does a good job of retelling the story of the movie, keeping it fun, and giving readers something extra to enjoy. For hardcore Star Wars fans, this is a must read as you’ll get more out of the movie by reading the book. On top of that, it’s a good read. As such, I give it a four out of five.

So many typos. “Remaning” instead of “remaining”, “they” instead of “the” and worst of all, a repeat line on page 90 and 91, “c-3po took it from poe and she felt a a weight lifted” was used seven lines earlier, when it was appropriate. I appreciate a good editor and for the time this book took, I expect it free of these mistakes.

The novelization of The Last Jedi was so good. When I received this one it was incredibly thin. Like... I read the whole thing in a matter of two hours. Besides clearing up the thought process of a few characters, it didn't really add anything to the movie. Some things that were confusing in the film were made a little more clear, but other questions I had were, frustratingly, left unanswered.This doesn't add much, just a couple of scenes that happen outside of the film. I'd hardly call it 'Expanded'.

After seeing The Rise of Skywalker, did you leave the theater with a lot of questions? Like, how did Palpatine bring himself back from the dead? Horcruxes? Where did his orcs on Exegol come from? What is that crane contraption supporting his putrid body? What is the deal with the test tube Snokes? Why did Leia's death seem so sudden? Whose Medal of Honor was she grasping? These questions (and so many more) made me thirsty for a novelization. When I saw that Rae Carson was slated to write it, I got really excited. I have been a fan of hers since reading "A Girl of Fire and Thorns" back in 2011. And having read some other not-so-great Star Wars books, I had high hopes for this.Carson does not disappoint. Many of my lingering questions were answered. (Although I still would like to know how it's possible that Rey recognizes Ochi's ship, and yet somehow Ochi never saw/found her??) There were soooo many bonus scenes, and LOTS of extra Leia content, which made me super happy. I geeked out the whole time reading it, totally riveted even though I saw the movie twice and knew exactly what would happen. Carson really delves into the characters' feelings and motivations and I very much appreciated that. My only gripe, which is teeny tiny and will probably elicit boos from some people, is that I wish there was a bit more on the Reylo dyad bond. I am a die-hard romantic. Sue me.

Thank you Rae Carson. Than you for making the book feel like Star Wars. I have no doubt if Rae was given free reign she would have written a 5 star book the would have corrected all the mistakes in the movie. I was expecting a salvage job from this book but it is a lot better than I expected.Unlike a certain director who said he did not care about Star Wars lore when he made the movie, Rae has done her research, adding in bit of information for the other Star Wars book in the Disney era. Including what could/should have been a great bridging book to the movie.The book manages the fix many of the inconsistencies of the movie, goes into more detail of the characters. Though having to follow the screen play there are many things that could not be fixed or many characters who could not be given a lot more of a larger role.I enjoyed this book a lot more that I was expecting to. This book is supposed to be the end of the Disney saga, but with so many thing left loose I would not be surprised to see more prequels definitely and possible a sequel. I just hope they are written by real Star Wars fans that respect continuity of whichever era.

Good read. Answers some of the questions that were never answered in the film. I didn't enjoy the film in cinemas but got the book to see if it would change my mind and also to find answers to the questions from the film.Reason I didn't like the film was that I believed that the story could of gone in a different direction and certain decisions were poor but the book gives more details and helps the film out and I believe certain scenes from the book should of been included in the film like Darth Vaders castle for example.I also found that the book helped me pass time during the lockdown due to the corona virus here in the UK.Stay home stay safe and give this book a read.

I found the novelisation just as fun and exciting as the movie. Rae Carson does an excellent job of adapting the screenplay while fleshing out the story and adding some really interesting expanded elements.I read the ebook version, which syncs up nicely with the Audible version, the first time I've done this, and found it a really enjoyable and immersive experience. I'd highly recommend doing the same if you're willing to spend a little extra to get the audio version too.I don't want to spoil the additional bits added to the film, but I can say that it really does help to fill in some of the holes and answers quite a few questions I had after watching the movie in the cinema. One in particular - how Palpatine survived!It's a fantastic read, I devoured it in a couple of days, which is really quick for me, and if you enjoyed the movie then I highly recommend reading the novel to accompany it.

This novel was adequately written and composed. It covered the main points of the movie. There wasn't additional material to expand on the elements of the movie. I felt that the latest saga (Star Wars 7 to Star Wars 9) was safe in its storyline. It used elements over an over again from Star Wars 1 to Star Wars 6 in respect to introducing new characters and themes. It was not wholly groundbreaking, innovative or original in that respect and it seemed to be a rehash of Star Wars 4 to Star Wars 6 for this latest saga (Star Wars 7 to Star Wars 9). It wasn't something new to contribute to the Star Wars mythos and was disappointing in that area. It was not the grand epic I was expecting but was an adequate Sci Fi story.

Unlike a lot of star wars fans, I actually enjoyed the movie. It did feel like there was a fair bit missing though. I had hoped that the DVD would have an extended cut, but it didn't ☹️. Thankfully, this book is the extended cut. It builds on characters, includes extras scenes, goes into more depth of how the force feels. How a certain someone is back. Etc etc. It really is a great novelisation.