Last Shot: Part 3 of 4

[colls]

Welcome to our third 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 III

Last Shot Part 3 of 4

1. Han's past: I'm unsure if I find Han's attempts at flirting and love with Sana to be humorous, irritating, or pitiful. Perhaps all three. What are your thoughts?
Does Sana's influence give Han and Chewbacca a reputation amongst some of the criminal gangs?

2. Lando's past: We learn a bit more about L3 and her rebellion, but this seems to be the least developed story line at the moment. What do you think L3's ultimate involvement with 'Phylanx Redux Transmitter' will be?

3. Fyzen's past: Fyzen seems to have hit an obstacle when the local warlord gang, Wandering Star, came back. Do you think his loss in that battle is the catalyst that drives him out of simply killing the locals for their body parts and aiming for galactic domination? Or was he headed on that trajectory all along?

4. The 'current' time line has a lot happening, the pacing of the story feels like it's ramping up (which is logical for the 3/4 point of a narrative). What scenes stick out for you?

5. 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 III of the book.

Comments

[colls]

Apologies for not having a post up yesterday, my (vaccinated) family finally got together yesterday and I mistakenly thought I'd have time for the internet. *hands*


1. Han taking bickering as flirting both makes me nostalgic and mildly disappointed. He really has no other way to measure these things though, which mostly makes me sad.
While Han certainly did his part to screw up the plan, I have to wonder if Sana didn't start a pattern here. Han had his past on Corellia and his job with Beckett that involved Crimson Dawn (considering how Solo ended, I doubt anyone in Crimson Dawn knew his name at this point), but other gangs didn't know him.

2. I practically ache for more L3 in this and I have high hopes for the rest of the book. I also find the parallel between the comic we read last week where C-3PO had a spy network and here where L3 has this whole other droid life that Lando knows nothing about fascinating.

3. Something about Fyzen's story line feels off to me. It feels like it lacks cohesion or any real driving factor. IDK, I'm not sure if it's because I'm glossing over how incredibly gory and disturbing it is or if it's really just that something in the story is not revealed yet.
I'm sitting here wonder "what is his point?"

4. The bantering between Han and Lando when they land at the "asylum" planet had me laughing. It was chock full of emotional we-have-to-talk-about-our-issues and I'm-angry-at-you-but-you're-my-family vibes along with a side of I-see-what-you're-doing about each other's love lives.
I found the reveal that Taka was a New Republic agent to be somewhat unsurprising, the fact that they're Leia's agent personally made me kind of sad. This is a marriage that really is doomed to fail. Han seemed to sense the same thing - he wasn't mad about it, just seemed resigned.
I do not understand what this cult of metal and bone is - what their goal is - other than being creepy and wanting to end organics? Or wanting to transcend organics? Or wanting to save organics and help them evolve to something other? I think this ties to the fact that I don't get Fyzen's point and this cult seems to be something he cooked up.

5. I'm invested in wanting to know what happens. We already know Han, Lando, and Chewbacca survive - but we don't really know about anyone else, so I'm expecting some death. I hope I'm wrong? But also I'm wanting to understand how the different threads tie in together and WHAT IS THE POINT of this weird Fyzen-droid-new-cult thing?!?!

[brokenmnemonic]

Fyzen is - definitely disturbed, and the droids with organic components/organics giving up limbs thing is definitely uncomfortable reading, but like you, I'm really not sure what the point is behind it. I mean, as things that would look creepy and disturbing on screen go, it's great, but what's the intent?

This book is making me wish that Lucasfilm would make the Star Wars equivalent of the opening party in Stark Tower sequence from Age of Ultron, only with all our post-original-trilogy characters and their significant others as stars, and a couple of hours long.

Was it just me, or was this part very much all about Han and Lando?

[colls]

I would watch a couple hours of a cocktail party like that - LOL

There was definitely a lot of Han and Lando - which feels fitting for the story. Past heists come back to haunt them and all that.

[condnsdmlk]

Han's ideas about love are a bit pitiful tbh but I also understand that he's not really had much guidance on that front so I get it. Because of that lack of a clue it is slightly more humorous than irritating. Sana's influence probably didn't help Han and Chewie's reputation but I have a feeling they'd have gotten there in the end anyway, Han just doesn't make the best decisions does he?

Lando's past: I wish this were more fleshed out, I would love to see more L3 but I have a feeling the final section will focus even more on the present. A book about L3's adventures would be awesome!

Fyzen is still such a mystery. I really don't get the logic of using bio parts on droids, it sounds like way too much effort for too little reward. How does it even work as there is no blood flow? Does the flesh not rot? I am very puzzled by this aspect of the whole thing. I know he says organic parts are in abundance, but I don't think droid parts are that hard to come by either. What are his motives? I really don't know where this whole thing is going.

I must admit there's maybe a bit too much action in this book for me. I did like Han and Lando's heart-to-heart, glad they aired some of their issues! They really do act like exes. The little glimpses into Han and Leia's relationship are also very tragic. I think the parts of the book that have had me most entertained (and the parts I usually enjoy most in SW novels) are when they show you day-to-day life in the galaxy, when they talk about the different gangs, the politics of the new republic, talk about disarmament issues, show the issues surrounding the fall of the empire or the rise of the empire. I basically just want to see people go about their daily lives, but then have adventures too!

[colls]

Yes, agree wholeheartedly about Han's ideas about love - LOL. And I think you're right that he'd have gotten there anyway, he doesn't make the best decisions.

More L3!!!

Fyzen doesn't appear to possess much logic and neither does that thread of the story. Maybe the point is he's mentally unhinged and it's not supposed to make sense? (this book doesn't seem deep enough for that sort of thing, but maybe I'm wrong).

Heh... I admit I like the mix - sometimes I want action action action and other times I want slice of life bits. I'm kind of enjoying the pacing of this one, but am sort of glossing over some of the action sequences myself.
The first book we read here was full of politics and didn't contain a lot of action, if you haven't read Queen's Shadow, it might be up your alley.