Well, the story is advancing. Leia is pregnant, but she and Han head off to rescue Luke. Luke is in peril of going to the dark side. Once again we hear that Luke is the last Jedi master. The Rebel Alliance believes the only way it survives is to rebuild the Jedis. Obviously, Luke is needed for that so all hands on deck to save him.
Han flies to Nar Shaddaa, where all the galaxy's smuggling is centered. Ruled by the Hutts, Nar Shaddaa has a deal with the Imperials to run things here without worry. Of course, the Hutt family has a high bounty placed on Han and Leia for killing Jabba. Nevertheless, they enter this area and are immediately attacked by smugglers and bounty hunters looking for a score.
Han looks up his old friend Ninx, who controls traffic in this area. He agrees to help his old academy friend. Also there working on the "Starlight Intruder" is Salla, an old flame of Han's. As Han and Leia head into town, they encounter an old woman on the sidewalk. She and Leia both sense the force between them. Vima is a 200-year old Jedi who went to the dark side to save her daughter. She passes something to Leia. We will learn more of this ahead.
The story is getting good. I am into it.
Without the four pages of backstory provided at the end, I am afraid I would be lost. It is very helpful. It makes me wonder how much leeway there is for the authors of a mega-franchise as this, but I'm not going down that road. :)
After the backstory, there were two pages of letters complimenting the series. Black ink printed on pink glossy paper made that a difficult read. From those letters and the editor responses, I learned that this series draws on the book Heir to the Empire. I may need to look that and the other two books of the trilogy up.