One of the chief pleasures of Star Wars is the sheer breadth and complexity of its fictional universe. It is the type of secondary world in which a viewer, and a reader, can lose themselves. Though Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm rendered most of the Expanded Universe non-canon — they have been rebranded as Star Wars Legends — they are still beloved by many parts of the fandom.
Indeed, the users of Reddit have pointed out which of the many Star Wars Legends books should be considered the best, demonstrating how much pleasure can still be found in these various books.
Darth Bane Trilogy By Drew Karpyshyn
Some villains loom large in the history of Star Wars, and Darth Bane is one of these. Known for establishing the “Rule of Two” governing the Sith, he was the centerpiece of a trilogy of novels which fleshed out his story in detail, showing how he became such an important part of the history of the Galaxy.
Sapitoelgato writes, “You don’t need prior knowledge to jump right in at this point, but there is a ton of cool stories set prior to this.” Given how complex and textured Star Wars lore can be, this series is a good place to start.
Darth Plagueis By James Luceno
There have been many powerful Sith in the history of Star Wars, but few have exerted quite as much influence as the powerful Sith in Star Wars, Darth Plagueis. Given that he was the mentor to none other than Palpatine, he is one of the most important characters, setting the stage for much that would come later.
TeeRick puts it this way: “This is EU royalty. This masterpiece tells the tragedy of Darth Plagueis the Wise, and fills in an astounding amount of holes left by Episodes I – III, and even IV – VI. This is also the book that will make you fall in love with the sith and really want to find out how this crazy thing began.”
Coruscant Nights Trilogy By Michael Reaves
Coruscant is one of the most important planets in Star Wars, first as the capital of the Republic and then of the Empire. Thus, it makes sense that it would serve as the setting for the Coruscant Nights Trilogy by Michael Reaves, which focuses on a lone Jedi who managed to survive Order 66 and tries to survive in the bowels of the city as a private investigator.
Theinvisibleguy3 argues that it “has a detective/noir feel to it. In my opinion it’s one of the more underrated series I don’t see mentioned often.”
The Han Solo Trilogy By Ann C. Crispin
Han Solo is one of the best characters in the original trilogy. As important as he is, however, he is also something of an enigma for many of the movies, with his backstory left unexplored. This is what makes the Han Solo Trilogy by Ann C. Crispin so important. Before Solo depicted Han’s backstory (in particular, his meeting with Chewbacca) this series was key to understanding his background.
LominAle praises the trilogy, noting: “It does a great job of intertwining characters and events from the original trilogy (Jabba, Lando) without ever feeling like artificial fan service.”
The Thrawn Trilogy By Timothy Zahn
Thrawn is another villain who has exerted a powerful hold on the Star Wars fandom imagination. In large part, this is because of his presence in Timothy Zahn’s Thrawn Trilogy, which was designed as a sequel to the original movies and in which Thrawn was the prime enemy. User Isord has high praise for the series, writing: “ It’s just a high quality trilogy that perfectly embodies the Star Wars feeling.” Given how important Thrawn has been to the Star Wars mythology, it’s all the more extraordinary that he has yet to appear in a movie.
Traitor By Matthew Stover
One of the exciting things about the Expanded Universe was the extent to which it took events in the series beyond what was depicted in the original trilogy. Of particular note was the very expansive New Jedi Order, which focused in particular on the invasion of the sinister group known as the Yuuzhan Vong.
As a result, many new characters emerged, including Jacen Solo, who is the son of Han and Leia. The novel has been very popular with users of Reddit, with user Cern_Stormrunner stating: “If you read one NJO book, make it Traitor. I ended up selling all my star wars books when i lost my job a few years back, but that one I kept.”
Republic Commando Series By Karen Traviss
It is often the case in Star Wars that a given storyline can and will be explored in various media. Indeed, this is part of the pleasure of this very expansive and interconnected universe. A notable example of this phenomenon is the Republic Commando series by Karen Traviss. The series, as well several video games, focused on a group of clone warriors during the height of the Clone Wars.
Merkon approved of the series (with a small caveat), writing: “Republic commando series is good, can be a bit Mary Sue at times but still enjoyable.”
Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter By Michael Reaves
Darth Maul is another of Star Wars’ most notable villains, having appeared in both the prequel series and in several other properties. Thus, it’s not surprising that he would appear in his own novel, including Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter, which helps to flesh out his story and his own identity as a member of the Sith. He emerges from the story as a formidable warrior.
And, as teeRick puts it: “Maul is better, and this is a fun tale.” Thus, this is the type of book one should read if one wants to get a better, more nuanced understanding of this fascinating character.
Deceived By Paul S. Kemp
One of the most sinister foes to have appeared in the Galaxy was Darth Malgus, who was able to achieve what few other Sith could, i.e. conquer the Jedi Temple. Though this earns him a place as among the series’ most formidable and ruthless villains, he emerges as a complex and nuanced character in Paul S. Kemp’s Deceived.
As brown_felt_hat writes: “Malgus is a pretty great character, especially if you know his whole story I think.” As so often in Star Wars, even the most reprehensible characters show that they have hidden depths.
I, Jedi By Michael A. Stackpole
The Jedi is one of the most important organizations in Star Wars. While many of the series’ central characters are Jedi, it is up to the novels to show fans just what joining the Order entailed. This is what makes I, Jedi such an important book, as it provides a deep perspective of the training of a Knight.
It is also notable for being a book not from the point of view of a major Star Wars character from the movies. ChillyAleman enjoyed the book, and they write that the book “gives a great many details about the construction of a lightsaber.”
