Victory's Price Part 1

[colls]

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

This month’s book is Victory's Price by Alexander Freed
Chapters 1-8

Victory's Price

1. The team thinks Quell is dead, but she's to be embedded within her old Imperial squad now. To what purpose?

2. What sort of leader are you finding Wyl to be?

3. What are your thoughts about Karios?

4. 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

[brokenmnemonic]

1. Quell seems to believe that she is where she is so that she can arrange for Shadow Squadron to be destroyed, although she seems to have hedged about how and when. I'm very curious as to whether she's following some kind of predetermined plan (for which the planner may now be dead) or if she's flying by the seat of her pants. From a meta point of view, I think that the author wants to try and make us see some or all of Shadow Squadron as being nuanced characters. I was a little intrigued by some of the character glimpses we've got, both in terms of Saize's comment about pilots who can't adapt to the new reality, and little moments like the pilot Quell thought had never really liked her, who this time around helped look after her after her first flight, and who seemed on the edge of a breakdown at one point. I also liked that glimpse we were given of the conversation between Saize and the commander of the Star Destroyer they're about to battle. It keeps making me ponder where that line is between someone being a monster and their being someone the Republic would be willing to accept as prisoners and try and integrate into the new Republic in some form.

2. I feel like Wyl is one of those pilots who's going to end up leaving the military looking about 20 years older than his physical age. Syndulla seems to have confidence in him, and he's trying hard to be a good commander, but I think he's also learning how you have to keep a distance between yourself and the people you're in charge of. I think he's finding dealing with interacting with those he's responsible for easier than trying to interact with his remaining Alphabet Squadron teammates - although I'm not sure there's anyone who'd find it comfortable managing a relationship with Chass.

3. I'm hoping we'll see more of Kairos. I'm very curious about whether the actions that saved Kairos' life have also left her stuck between life stages for her species, although I have no idea what her species is. Perhaps Alphabet Squadron needs a protocol droid?

4. In general, I'm finding that this novel is reading quickly and I'm enjoying it. I like the way it's exploring Quell's perceptions of Shadow Squadron, and how conflicted her feelings are. If the novel goes well, I can see it asking some really interesting questions about what's forgiveable and what isn't. I'm having mixed feelings about Chass, though; I like the way we're seeing her contemplate the chips the cult gave her and feelings about it, but it feels as if Chass' basically aggressive and abrasive response to absolutely everyone hasn't changed at all. And it's frustrating me a bit, because her scene with Wyl in the hydroponics room is one of my favourite from this part of the book...

[colls]

1. Characters like Quell are so well done by this author - they're ambiguous and you really can sense their internal moral struggle at times. I find it fascinating.

2. Yes to all of this. Wyl has already aged much more than any of the others since the first book.

3. Wasn't there a protocol droid at one point? Or am I confusing this book with the X-wing series?