Star Wars: The New Jedi Order: Traitor

Matthew Stover is a fantastic writer, love his style of profound bordering on poetic narration. I was first introduced to him when I read Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith. This book picks up with what happened to Jacen Solo after his capture at Myrkr. He is tortured in the Embrace of Pain for months and Vergere cuts his connection to the force. All along you can tell this is dangerous waters as she leads him subtly into more and more universality, a watering down of Jacen’s moral sense of the Force. There is a lot of excellent ethics dialogue between Vergere and Jacen throughout this book. Ultimately, Jacen is tricked over and over by Vergere but seems to develop a kind of Stockholm syndrome with her because she is always “kind” or warm to him (while he is being tortured or enslaved. Jacen is implanted with a slave seed and forced to work in the Yuuzahn Vong Nursery where they shapers train creatures to run a new YV planet. Jacen does not initially realize that they are going to Vong-form leveled Coruscant. When he does realize this, he fights the YV warriors in some creative ways. His slave seed combined with the Force and his empathic abilities for living things allows him to influence even Amphistaffs and other YV creatures. Jacen is subdued by paralyzing tears (touch) by Vergere and wakes next on Yuuzantar, Coruscant re-shaped as a steamy YV jungle world. He is heartbroken and flees, he has hallucinations of his deceased brother, Anakin, which usually turn out to be Vergerre influencing him again. Jacen finds a human survivor down the throat of a giant YV Pit Beast. She is being sucked slowly into its stomach to be digested (pretty grim stuff). You find out that Coruscant survivors are living in this beast and throw the newest arrival into the stomach to satiate the beast. Jacen puts an end to this… He returns to the overgrown apartment that had once belonged to his parents. He is entangled by YV spiders and falls into despair. Vergerre and Nom Anor arrive to invite him to learn the Truth from the YV and take his place as one of their gods. Part 2 starts with Jedi, Gannor Rhyoside tracking down a rumor of Jacen’s appearance on Coruscant. He finds Jacen but is captured. Jacen hatches a plan to fake Ganner’s sacrifice to the YV gods so Ganner can escape and Jacen can access the World Brain of Yuuzantar, possibly to defeat the YV. Jacen seals them inside the World Brain Well, but the YV will break through soon. Ganner sacrifices himself in an awesome standoff with dozens and hundreds of YV Warriors, this is done to buy Jacen time with the YV World Brain whom he befriends and turns to subvert the YV fanaticism. Vergere and Jacen escape on Nom Anor’s ship and leave him tied up in vines. Jacen has become a much more shades of grey person, but he has also crossed a lot of lines morally, he is more in touch with his power, and this sets up the Legacy of the Force series when he will “do what must be done”.

I am curious how Master Luke Skywalker and other Jedi will receive Vergere. Jacen has defined himself in some ways by enduring so much pain and confusion, but he has also be twisted with dark side teachings of moral ambiguity. I am waiting for the day when Vergere is revealed as a Sith and some kind of showdown ensues. It seems inevitable.

This is a very different book than all the other NJO books up to this point. The whole book is one story told entirely from Jacen Solo’s point of view. It is the story of his time as a captive with the Vong. A Force user named Vergere “tutors” him on a different view of the Force than has been previously seen. This is the predominant theme throughout the book. Some people will like this, some people won’t. That, you will have to determine. The only thing I will say is it is only one being’s viewpoint when it is presented. My issue will be if somehow, everyone in the galaxy accepts this new viewpoint when they learn about it in the future books. If they do, I’ll be really upset, because it basically says she must be the wisest Force user of all time, and that every previous Jedi/Sith with a different view (Revan, Yoda, Windu, Palpatine, Obi-Wan, Vader, and now Luke) were wrong in their views on the Force. And yes, Jedi and Sith have the same view of the Force, they just USE the different “sides”. If she is just seen as one person with a different view and others don’t accept it, then it’ll be okay. Plenty of people have differing views. I will say this about the actual book, it’s sort of slow. First off, since it is mostly philosophical content, the longer chapters (14 chapters in 300 pages) with less breaks can seem to drag on. Second, the parts that do explain the new Vong look of the world can be overly described with flowerly language in a way that is actually hard to picture. They become really hard to read without zoning out. Plot is what really carries a book and what is absolutely necessary to make sure all readers experience the same events. I’d much rather simple descriptions that let me imagine what I want in the way of visuals. That way I actually understand what I AM seeing. Visuals can range from person to person without issue. So my rating comes from the long chapters, writing aspects, and the unknown future that this book could affect…

So this is it… Jacen’s call to the Dark Side. When I started reading this book I thought it was going to be boring because the pace of the first chapters were really slow and repetitive. I thought the whole story was going to be focused in Jacen being trapped in the Yuuzhan Vong prison. Fortunately after reading more chapters I realized that I was wrong, the verbal duel between Jacen and Vergere was philosophically well done, it even made question a lot of things: what is good, what is evil, what is the Force that surrounds the entire universe. Even the name Traitor fits very well with the development of the story. I can’t wait to read the ending of this long New Jedi Order series to witness the fall to the Dark Side of the Force of Jacen Solo.

“Is it what the teacher teaches, or what the student learns?”

The rare book challenges, inspires, and helps the reader grow as an individual. It is my belief that Traitor accomplishes this highest of ideals to which literature can aspire. However what you take into the book and what you take out of it depend entirely on you.

As many have noted, this book breaks from the traditional Star Wars mold of heavy action and a clear light vs. dark storyline. It is complex, nuanced, and downright philosophical. For those who do not desire such a departure, they will understandably struggle with Mr. Stover’s novel. But for those who are open to the change in style and substance, they will find themselves stunned by the mastery with which Stover weaves his story. His writing is both challenging and engaging, immersing the reader in the mind and heart of Jacen Solo. The reader struggles every step of the way with Jacen, echoing his questions and yet growing through the journey.

This book will resonate for anyone who has or continues to grapple with pain, setbacks, and/or uncertainty. It helped me to not only get through the most difficult trial in my life, but to be stronger for it. Traitor is, in essence, a masterpiece.

This story lacks the classic elements of Star Wars (a big battle, a lightsaber duel and several diverse locations). In the place of these it intelligently addresses the flaws in Jedi philosphy, reveals some fascinating new ‘Vonglife’ and deeply explores the often-abused character of Jacen Solo.
This book is Jacen’s story, much as ‘Dark Journey’ was Jaina’s. But ‘Traitor’ is by far the better book, with Jacen exploring himself on many new levels instead of just angry/not angry.
Vergere also gets the attention she deserves here. We know from prequel era books that she was once a Jedi, but now we begin to learn what she has become since joining the Yuuzhan Vong. You are constantly thrown between her being an enemy or an ally, but in the end, her lesson is that there is no distinction.
Also, Ganner Rhysode gets some more attention here. After his change of outlook way back in ‘Ruin’, he’s been left aside as a cameo character, but here he goes on a mission of self-discovery that leads him to become ingrained in Yuuzhan Vong mythology as the guardian to the gates of the afterlife. He becomes the type of Jedi we all love when facing thousands of Vong warriors he declares “None shall pass.”
In all, although I’m a fan of the epic and dynamic Star Wars stories, this book brings a welcome change of style and pace to the New Jedi Order.