A review by berenikeasteria
The Han Solo Adventures by Brian Daley

3.0

Back with another early relic among Star Wars novels, The Han Solo Adventures by Brian Daley was published 1979-80, and this isn’t my first encounter with it. I attempted to read this collection for the first time years ago, and honestly all I remember about it is thinking that it was very retro and cheesy, and I gave up on it pretty quickly. Since I’m in the process of rethinking my Expanded Universe collection, I decided I should give this one another shot, and so here I am again.

Both The Han Solo Adventures and The Lando Calrissian Adventures set their three stories in states that are client, allied, or independent of the Empire, I assume because the authors didn’t have the go ahead at this early stage to mess with the lore of the Empire itself. But they try to evoke the underdog feel of the original films by making these interstellar bodies just as greedy, ruthless, and corrupt as the Empire. It’s this impetus that enables Han to perform his role of law-defying scoundrel with a heart of gold as he and Chewbacca set out to make some illicit credits in the Corporate Sector.

In the first story, Han Solo at Star’s End, the two smugglers are roped into their do-gooding, as they often are in pre-Battle of Yavin days, by necessity and a severe cash flow problem. The Millennium Falcon urgently needs an upgrade, and Solo lacks the credits to cover all the work. Urgency is added by the local authority bearing down, and they don’t care who’s in the wrong place at the wrong time. Leading a truly precarious existence and barely scraping by, Han’s initial truculence to any suggestion to stick his neck on the line is driven by the need to protect what little he already has – his own life, the life of his best friend, and the preservation of their home and livelihood, the Falcon. But once he gets going, and faced with enough callous selfishness from the authorities, and nothing will stop him from helping old friends and even complete strangers to earn their freedom and deliver payback. The Lando Calrissian stories were much more focused on wit, cunning, and exploration of sci fi themes and concepts like outlandish alien technology and the mysterious disappearance of ancient civilisations. Han Solo Adventures are less about discovery and exploration, and more about thrilling action sequences. Oh, they too contain wit and cunning, but Han’s brand is of the fast-thinking, shoot-first variety.

Considering that each story is shorter than a standard novel, I wasn’t sure what to expect in terms of plot and character development, but Daley manages to stick the landing, in my opinion. The plots are surprisingly complex, with Han and Chewie having to deal with sudden reversals, unknown traitors, and unexpected reveals often enough to keep things exciting and unpredictable, and there’s just enough page space to give decent development to new characters with their own clearly defined agenda. I liked Jessa, Atuarre, Pakka, Fiolla, and even warmed up a little bit to Bollux and Blue Max, annoying and cutesy though I thought them to be upon first introduction.

The second story, Han Solo’s Revenge, is unusual in that Han and Chewie aren’t roped into things, but decide to seek vengeance against a slaver ring. It’s a mix of motivations; of course Han and Chewie don’t stand for this sort of thing, it’s at the core of both characters and their lifelong friendship. But it’s mixed in with much more selfish sentiment – the need to pay back those who would seize the Millennium Falcon, and a huge credit pay-out. The second masks the altruistic first, which again is classic Han Solo. There’s a lot of interested agents and double crosses to keep this one interesting, but on occasion certain plot twists seemed a little too convenient. Overall a decent story though.

For me it was the third story, Han Solo and the Lost Legacy, which lost me, in which Han and cohorts seek the long-lost treasure of Xim the Despot in the Tion Hegemony. I didn’t feel the urge to pick it up as often, so it’d be two or three days between reading sessions, and I quite frequently forgot the details of what was happening and where things had left off. The initial pitch of the main quest, so to speak, was rather confusing and just didn’t grab me. I did feel that there were echoes of Return of the Jedi here, in the ‘sacrifices of a primitive tribe’ section, but given when the book was written it’s actually more likely that the influence was the other way around and the film took inspiration for that scene from this book.

Han Solo at Star’s End: 7 out of 10.

Han Solo’s Revenge: 6 out of 10.

Han Solo and the Lost Legacy: 5 out of 10.

A mixed bag of decently enjoyable and slightly subpar tales, resulting in an overall mediocre score. Honestly, in the end the final story brought the whole experience down for me, and I just can’t see the necessity of holding on to this book, both in terms of essential events/character arcs or in terms of fantastic writing. It’s just okay. And in the end that’s why I’m letting it go.

6 out of 10