Book Review - Master and Apprentice by Claudia Gray

Name - Master and Apprentice 

Written by - Claudia Gray 

Narrated by - Jonathan Davis

Published by - Del Rey 

Audiobook by - Random House Audio

The prequel trilogy era is definitely one of the richest periods in Star Wars timeline to explore in written fiction; it has quite a large time period, some very interesting characters, a chance to expand with newer planets or species, and also there is quite a lot of room to add intriguing conflicts and adventures.

Claudia Gray is certainly one of the well received names in canon fiction and when I picked this book I had high expectations. Thankfully she did not disappoint, examining an interesting time in the lives of Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan, establishing the changing dynamics of their relationship while hinting at the tragic future that awaits them.

The new characters introduced were very thoughtful additions; I especially liked Rael Averross, the unconventional Jedi who was once Dooku's Padawan (maybe we'll have more from him in future). The jewel thief duo was also a nice addition and added a very enjoyable subplot while introducing an interesting corner of the Star Wars galaxy.

The over arching plot elements featuring Qui-Gon Jinn's complicated fixation with prophecies and the multi-faceted aspect of various forms of slavery throughout the galaxy are also depicted quite intelligently. Without complicating things much, the author strengthened the backstory of Episode I with subtlety here.

My only complaint was the underwhelming ending and the overall lack of action sequences, as it seemed like a missed opportunity when we look at the characters on offer.

The narration by Jonathan Davis was simply brilliant; his rendition of Qui-Gon Jinn often gave me a satisfying chill, and all his other voice acting was also spot on.

Nevertheless, this gets a solid 4 out of 5 stars from me.