Summary
"The author, a noted sociologist at Cambridge University, begins by critiquing the relevance of socialism, neoliberalism, and conservatism for a world characterized by globalization, the abandonment of tradition, and pervasive uncertainty stemming from socially manufactured risk. . . . The book contains useful insights into the difficulties of the welfare state."--Choice
Published Reviews
Booklist Review:
"Yet another prolific action-sf writer has been recruited to labor on the Star Wars series, George Lucas' stupendous mingled-media creation. The results are something of a mixed bag but, on the whole, more agreeable than not. The story takes place between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and those of Return of the Jedi, with Luke continuing his self-training as a Jedi knight and everybody else trying to track down and unfreeze Han Solo before Boba Fett delivers him to Jabba the Hutt. Unfortunately, Darth Vader is looking for his son (Luke--remember?), to turn him to the dark side of the Force, and a nonhuman criminal mastermind who makes Jabba look like a shoplifter--Prince Xizor of the Black Sun--is also after Luke, to take vengeance on Darth Vader for killing his family. We see a good deal of Vader's ambivalence toward both his son and his emperor, which led to the conclusion of Return, and Perry handles the multitudinous details of the increasingly complex Star Wars universe as competently as he deals with characters and pacing. A solid rather than an outstanding effort in the reliably popular SW canon. (Reviewed Feb. 15, 1996)0553100890Roland Green"
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Publisher's Weekly Review:
"Laser fire and swashbuckling abound in this new addition to the Star Wars saga, though other things are sadly lacking. Covering the time between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, Perry gives us a failed attempt to rescue Han Solo from his carbonite block, a convoluted plot to leak plans for the new Death Star to the Alliance and a major new villain, Xizor, Underlord of the Black Sun, who pretends loyalty to the Empire while plotting Darth Vader's death. Perry, the author of dozens of SF adventure novels, including Spindoc (1994), is not at his best here. His style is often clumsy and his characterization is, if anything, less complex than that of the films. The novel is full of the standard Star Wars clichés, but the action scenes lack the ususal punch. This book should appeal only to confirmed Star Wars fans. Major ad/promo; simultaneous BDD Audio release. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved"
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Additional Information