Last Shot: Part 1 of 4

[colls]

Welcome to our first of four check-in and discussion posts for our Book of the Month.

This month’s book is Last Shot by Daniel José Older
Part I

Last Shot Part 1 of 4

1. This book involves time jumps, telling the 'current' story a few years following events in The Return of the Jedi where Leia and Han are married and parents to a toddler named Ben, and the 'past' stories: one where Han is still a smuggler and one where Lando and L3 are still partnered. How well do you think the time jumps have been structured? Are they easy to follow and does the timing of what the author is revealing build a meaningful story so far?

2. Most author's put their own stamp (intentionally or not) on familiar characters. What do you make of Han's characterization so far?

3. Part I ended on a mystery for me, making me look forward to next week! Who is Fyzen and why does it seem he snapped so quickly? Is Peekpa going to reunite (or meet?) Chewbacca? Will Lando and Kaasha find true love? What unanswered question is most burning for you?

4. What other thoughts do you have? How are you liking it so far?



FYI - There's no need to answer all (or any) of the questions above - they're just talking points to get us started. Informal chatter is more than welcome! In-person book clubs often veer off topic, it's okay if we do as well. :)
All I ask is that you try to avoid spoilers for things past Part I of the book.

Comments

[colls]

1. Time will tell, but so far the time jumps are leaving enticing breadcrumbs and I think they're rather fun to follow. I don't like the chapters being unnumbered, but that's more because it's harder to go back and reference something like 'X happened in chapter Y'.

2. Han's past seems a bit shadier here than we've seen for Han in some time - it feels like a call back to his more original scoundrel personae. He's intoxicated at Maz's place and seems to deserve the term 'disreputable'. Lando seems more 'heart-of-gold' at this point than Han (in the 'past' sections, I mean).

3. All those things (they were my burning questions - LOL). I also wonder if we'll see a rift open between Leia and Han - we know in the sequels they didn't stay together and here we see how Han (and perhaps a bit of Leia) are struggling as parents.

4. I'm between being all in and being cautiously optimistic!

[condnsdmlk]

1. I'm good with the time jumps so far and interested to see where the different stories are going, especially (at the moment) Lando and L3's adventure. Because I love them and want to see more of their adventures together. I think the present day Han stuff ties in really well with the Aftermath books so that continuity is nice. Good to know Chewie is still sorting stuff out on his home planet!

2. If I'm honest Han is pissing me off a bit but at the same time I do get his insecurity about being a good dad and husband. I guess it's just extra sad as you know the epic disaster that awaits their family.
I thought the past Han bits fit in really well with the Solo film and present-day Han fits in with Aftermath, although to me the post-series novel characterisation strays a bit from how I see him in the films. He's a bit more sulky than I'm used to, lol!

3. No burning questions as yet but I'm looking forward to seeing how the new crew is going to gel. Hope Han and Lando get over how condescending they are towards Ewoks :( I assume Peekpa will put them in their place XD
I'm not really invested in Kaasha and Lando, but I do love Kaasha a lot. She's amazing!

4. I really loved that we got to see Conder Kyl again and that we have an update on him and Sinjir. They're still together, yay! They were definitely my favourites in the Aftermath novels. <3

[colls]

I agree about wanting more Lando and L3 adventures ♥

Han does not feel at home in this life he seems to have fallen into, does he? Sulky and awkward and sort of annoyed by everything. We don't really get Leia's POV, but neither of them seem to be much into being parents or having a family - which I agree is extra sad knowing what's coming for them all.

I only read the first Aftermath book, and it was so long ago that I only remember bits. I think I'd like to go back and revisit.

[condnsdmlk]

Yes, Han and Leia really seem poorly suited to parenting and it's heart-breaking. I love their story though, even if it is such a sad one. It feels very real.
I'm glad I read the Aftermath series but I didn't find it the easiest read. I didn't read them back to back as I needed a break in between books. Halfway through the series I also switched to the audiobooks which helped a lot. I don't know why I just couldn't get into them, if it was because the books jumped around so much or because I was less interested in some characters or something else. I did enjoy many things about them though and I adored Sinjir (and Conder)!

[brokenmnemonic]

I was worried that I'd find the time jumps in this novel frustrating or difficult to track, but so far it's actually been following them really easily. Possibly because I've been reading on my phone at night, so the start of each chapter is very ... prominant? The jumps do have me curious as to why this structure was chosen. I'm presuming there's something that will tie them all together, but the way it's one chapter at a time is intriguing.

I really like Daniel José Older's novel Shadowshaper, and I'm finding that I'm enjoying some of the same things here - I very much enjoy the way Older fleshes out the descriptions of where the characters are, rather than focusing entirely on the characters and their narratives. I'm a little less certain of his characterization, but I think that's partly because I've not read much that has Lando as a protagonist, and following Solo, I'm a little nervous about how much the fan takes I've seen on Lando on twitter are akin to the pop culture takes of OST Captain Kirk compared to the canon portrayal of Kirk, if that makes sense? I am definitely enjoying having Kasho in the storyline.

With Han... I think it feels like seeing the beginning of how Han ended up where he was in TFA? I remember chatting with someone else after I first saw TFA who pointed out that while they were sad that Han had died, at the same time, it also felt like Han was organically at a point where his storyline had ended. He'd evidently gone back to the things he knew - like smuggling - but as was pointed out, he'd double-crossed or tricked pretty much every faction in the galaxy, so there was nothing left there. It feels like Han is already struggling to find a place in this novel - he clearly loves Leia, but he doesn't seem to fit in the world of the New Republic, and I can see his feelings around his relationship with Ben preying on his mind.

One of the things I'm hoping you can tell me about is Peepka and the Ewoks - how did an Ewok end up learning enough about technology in general to end up becoming an amazing slicer? Are there ewok enclaves that are much more advanced than those on Endor that've been shown in ROTJ and the two Ewok movies?

[colls]

Everything you say about Han rings true and is still so incredibly sad.

I have no idea about Peepka. The Ewoks could've been sabotaging the Empire all along and she might've picked up a few things - I have no special insight here. :)