Balance Point (Star Wars: The New Jedi Order)

I have to admire Tyers’ attempt to do a Star Wars novel with very little starship combat, though there is a fair share of juking and jinking to be done. However, what we’re left with flies off the page like a Tie Fighter with one solar panel missing. It’s sad because this is a novel that sets up a lot of the books to come (or appears to, anyway). Coruscant is threatened, Han and Leia may be back together and Han is acting more like himself after what happened in the last few books. Jacen comes to a crossroads and appears to make the correct decision, and there’s plenty of personal action. Yet for some reason, none of this stuff seems to move. Droma gets very little characterization, and what there is of it is carried over from Luceno’s novels (Hero’s Trial and Jedi Eclipse). He is clearly not taking Chewbacca’s place, but I can’t tell if that’s because he’s not supposed to or because he’s just characterized badly.

The regulars are decent, but bland. The reunion between Han and Leia should be electrifying, but it just limps along (granted, they are in decontamination, but still…). It’s nice to see them working together and caring about each other, but it would have been nice to have better dialogue for them. Jacen’s relationship with his sister, Jaina, takes a nosedive as Jacen reveals that he won’t use the Force, even to rescue their mother. Thankfully, Jacen realizes that not using the Force but relying on others to use it is kind of hypocritical, but then he never does anything with that realization. When Jacen makes his final decision about his destiny, it all comes about in a fairly cliched way, with a loved character being in danger forcing him to decide. The answer is, of course, predictable.

We are introduced to Warmaster Tsavong Lah, a Vong who appears to be an ongoing character in this one, as well as meeting Nom Anor yet again. Anor is actually getting a bit irritating, so one can only hope that he will soon be vaped accidentally by one of his own troops. He’s a spy, infiltrating the New Republic in various guises, showing up in book after book in another role, serving the Vong god of Tricks rather then the god of Violence. While it looks like this dynamic could be interesting in future books, Anor as a character has never achieved anything more then reader annoyance in my book.

As I said before, the plot is a lot more intimate and less star-spanning then previous books, which does make for a tighter book. I really liked the way the book didn’t jump all over the known galaxy and stayed in one place pretty much. Of course, it’s a stretch that they all end up in the same place yet again, but it’s a given with the Star Wars books, so I should probably stop complaining about it. I also really liked the relationship between Mara and Anakin, and to a lesser extent, Luke. A momentous event in Luke and Mara’s relationship occurs in this book, and I hope it leads to even more interesting things. In the meantime, though, Mara and Anakin make a wonderful pair. Mara’s the experienced one and Anakin is eager to learn at her feet. He learns a bit about espionage as well as more about using the Force. He’s also shown to be a bit of a hot shot, and I hope this leads to a lesson in future books.

All in all, Balance Point is a perfectly acceptable Star Wars novel. It has some excitement and some good character moments. I just wish there had been more of them. If you’re reading the series, it’s not really one you can skip (though hopefully future books that rely on it will tell you enough about it if you do decide to pass it by). It’s also good enough to get through if you have to. But if you’re picking and choosing, give this one a miss.

David Roy


Nice book   April 26, 2003
 2 out of 4 found this review helpful

I only gave this book 4 stars because despite being an ecxellent book it's not the best in the series. The descriptions of the stories that the characters find themselves in is fantastic, however the plot take a little while to move from place to place and is the only fault of an otherwise essential book in the NJO Series. Like all the NJO books it will make a lot more sense if you go back to the beginning of the series and read through from there. A must for all SW fans.


An excellent read!!!   July 23, 2001
 7 out of 11 found this review helpful

Having read all of the other NJO books so far and finding them on an average-good level compared to some of the earlier ones (mentioning no names), I had high hopes for this one, having read other SW work from Kathy Tyers before. (Truce at Bakura for one: *****) I was certainly blown away by all the little details woven into the story for those who might be newer to the series, and was certainly impressed by how much the 'older cast' of characters got to do here, (Luke, Mara, Leia and Han)whilst still letting the newer characters (Jacen, Jaina & Anakin Solo) come into their own amidst all the action, developing well as characters with their own, individual traits and personality quirks. Definitely worth a re-reading , and with a few, serious developments for the future, I wait with baited breath to see further chapters and find out 'what happens next'?


Read this book!   February 8, 2001
 1 out of 2 found this review helpful

This book truly captures the characters of Han, Leia, Jaina and the rest. It is an essential read if you wish to read any books after this one. It leaves some things as yet unresolved, such as whether Leia will recover, making us long for the next book. Kathy Tyers has always been a favourite of mine. However, do not attempt to read this book unless you have been following the series - you may have a shock.