A lost piece of Alderaanian art has resurfaced on the black-market. The art contains a secret code that is linked to the rebel Shadowcast network, which links all of its undercover agents. Ultimately Tatooine Ghost is the story of Princess Leia’s quest to discover the truth about her father Darth Vader, particularly when he was Anakin Skywalker as a boy on Tatooine.

The initial energetic passion and accusatory banter between Leia and Han Solo were rather emblematic of the original trilogy, and I really felt that the characters were alive. The early main scenes were Han and Leia’s elaborate attempt to recapture the lost artistic masterpiece on Tatooine at an auction, or to destroy it if the imperials won. These scenes were fun to read, and I enjoyed reading about the entourage of characters and political interplay in the auction hall; it was classic Star Wars!

I also thought that once Tatooine Ghost got going, Leia’s journey into discovering the truth about Anakin Skywalker through recorded holographic messages, and the people who lived with him when he was a boy, was fascinating to read. It provided a strong bridge between Episode: I The Phantom Menace, when Anakin was a slave who raced in a podrace, and the original trilogy.

My criticism was that after the auction scene and Leia’s truth-seeking, many of the action scenes, technology, and organisations later in the story were over-descriptive. I wanted another main event of import to occur that would test or otherwise lead Leia to the truth rather than teaching it to her through messages or conversations with people. Small skirmishes with imperials were a repetitive feature of this book, and Han Solo’s hotshot personality seemed to have dried up.

Overall there was much to like about Tatooine Ghost, despite my criticism. I probably would have rated this 3.5 on a more precise scale. If you’re looking for some perspective between the old and new trilogies, and you love the immense construct of the Star Wars universe I would definitely give this a read.