Star Wars: The Han Solo Trilogy: The Paradise Snare

I enjoyed the story, but the writing style was what hurt this book for me. I think, with effort, I could grow accustomed to the style, but why struggle through something I don’t enjoy without reason? Right?

My reason here was Star Wars, and I’ll read the series again. But that doesn’t mean I will ever be more than accepting of it.

This tends to be similar to other books I’ve read by the author, including Star Trek books.

That said the story arc is great and enjoyable if you don’t mind the writing style (I have a few friends who love the style). I recommend giving the book (and series a chance).

I loved rereading this as an adult. Before, I was twelve and completely missed things like Bria, the woman who broke his heart, being so similar to Leia which I assume upsets Han when he meets the Princess in A New Hope.

I was thrilled to discover Han’s noble lineage, intrigued by his shady childhood, disturbed by his cousin Thrackan’s brutality (which is important to recall later in the EU), and sympathized with Solo’s cruelty under Shrike who is kind of like an evil version of Yondu.

Muuuurgh (did I miss a ‘u’?) was fun! I’m a big fan of dangerous catlike aliens. I wish he appeared in more books.

I wonder how many elements of this volume will feature in the Solo film of the new canon…I already have noticed a heist, Kessel, a smuggling mentor, Corellia, Han’ s Imperial service, his speeder racing, and scamming on the street in the trailers….Ugh.

Looking forward to The Butt Gambit, book two!

This setup to the Han Solo trilogy is pretty well made, some of the dialogue between Han and significant others is cringy-worthy, with an overuse of pal, honey, and sweetheart, but it is mostly a great book that strays away from the conventions of Star Wars. It’s a self-contained story about a young adult trying to make an honest living by doing dishonest things to get there. The book is a bit slow in the first act but it does pickup halfway through. It’s worth the read especially since the new canon and Han Solo movie are borrowing elements from this trilogy.

A. C. Crispins The Paradise Snare (1997) came with a high recommendation from a friend who read it as a teenager shortly after its first publication. With Disney’s acquisition of the Star Wars franchise, the new owners demoted “The Paradise Snare” from Cannon to Legend. After seeing the somewhat disappointing Solo: A Star Wars Story, I caught up on the Star Wars universe, and the book fun but something of a disappointment.
After a brief glimpse of a semi-derelict Troop Carrier, the Author stops the story to tell the reader the history of Garris Shrike. Had I picked up the book in a bookstore and read the first few pages, I would not have bought it. I persevered through what writers call a data dump. The story picks up speed, for, as with the troop carrier,”it was still capable of hyperspace travel, even though it was slow by modern standards.”
Crispins Hahn Solo differs from the cocky, arrogant and confident smuggler and crook. As I followed him through his first grand love affair and loss, I found the romance element unsatisfying. His work with drug smugglers and the use of religion as an addictive substance is the highlight of the book. It made a better beginning to the amoral smuggler happy to shoot first when threatened
This is not a book that will change your life. The brightest point of the novel is its entertainment value. I recommend it to readers of Star Wars Novels, everywhere.

Before reading The Paradise Snare, I made a pledge to myself to read only the best Star Wars novels out there. Having exhausted myself on Zahn and Stackpole, I decided to give A.C. Crispin’s series a try. The trilogy was based on my favorite Star Wars character, after all, who had been completely neglected in the prequels. I thought this would be exactly what I was looking for.

Obviously I had high expectations going into this novel, and they were quickly tossed aside within the first chapter. Crispin (a veteran of the Sci Fi genre) constantly used strange phrasings, like “gee force” instead of “G-force”, and opened the book with the most ridiculous Wookie to Human dialog I’ve ever had the misfortune of reading. The whole thing was cringe inducing. And my lord, I’ve never read a female author so bad at creating female dialog!

But that all turned around though in the second chapter. The story really stands out among the huge pile of Star Wars novels because it’s so different than the norm. Where other stories aimed to be epic, The Paradise Snare focuses on a small group of characters, and uses small events to change those characters. The antagonist of the novel isn’t an evil Emperor and his underlings, but rather the concept of addiction, which was refreshing.

Crispin is at her best when the book strays from Star Wars conventions, and her worst when attempting to fit into the extended universe. Countless references are aimed at hardcore Star Wars fans, and these just feel shoehorned in. I didn’t need to read “I have a bad feeling about this” eight times. I didn’t need to learn why “scruffy” was a major insult to Han. And I certainly didn’t need a specific favorite character to rear her head in an absolutely meaningless appearance. Oddly enough, I DID enjoy one of Han’s many aliases: Jenos Idanian. Obviously an anagram for Indiana Jones.

That being said, AC Crispin did a terrific job of molding Han into the character we all know and love in unconventional and indirect ways. She showcased Han slowly growing, rather than just throwing out simple answers for why he is the way he is. She makes you work to understand Han, something I wasn’t at all expecting from this.

All in all, I really enjoyed the book. It’s absolutely in my top 10 Star Wars books, and I look forward to reading The Hutt Gambit soon. Han Solo has always been my favorite Star Wars character (and therefore my favorite fictional character), and I still think it was a great injustice to completely ignore him in the prequel trilogy. Obviously I feared that The Paradise Snare and The Han Solo Trilogy wouldn’t be able to capture the magic behind the character, but it did. AC Crispin gives a back story to one of the greatest characters of all time that, in my opinion, could easily outdo anything George Lucas could concoct.

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