A surgeon who covers his despair with wisecracks; another who faces death and misery head-on, venting his emotions through beautiful music. . .A nurse with her heart in her work and her eye on a doctor. . .A Jedi Padawan on a healing mission without her Master. These are the core members of a tiny med unit serving in the jungle world of Drongar, where battle is waged over the control of a priceless native plant.

3rd Clone Wars novel
Era: Republic, 20 years Before the Battle of Yavin/2 years After the Battle of Geonosis
Author: Michael Reaves and Steve Perry
ISBN: 0-345-46310-2 (Del Rey)
Finished: 5 May 2006

This is the kind of Star Wars story I like: character driven, interesting plot, some action, and witty dialog and observations. Since it is a two-part story, much is still left hanging at the end of the book. All that was accomplished in the first book was eliminating the possible spy suspects. The fact that I had not guessed the identity of the spy by the end of the book is a testimony to the authors’ mystery writing abilities.

Cheesy as it may seem, I still like the nod to the real-life USO and Bob Hope’s tours to entertain the troops. The authors choose to honor him by creating a character who travels from world to world, with his variety troupe. His name is ‘Robert Hope’ spelled backwards: Epoh Trebor.

There is another nod to a real-life, and fictional, organization. The medics in this story work in what is called a RMSU, or Rimsoo. It stands for Republic Mobile Surgical Unit, the Expanded Universe counterpart to the real Mobile Army Surgical Hospitals, otherwise known as MASH.

Not a keeper. Second book was a major let-down.

Rating:

Enjoyed it!