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kirnet 's review for:

Revan by Drew Karpyshyn
2.75
adventurous medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated
Pros:
  • no mention of Carth at all, which is hilarious.
  • I actually really like Canderous's and Revan's friendship. It was enjoyable to read and endeared me to both characters.
  • I don't feel like it was really expanded upon enough, but I did like Revan and Bastila's relationship. There is a ton of trust and mutual respect in each other's abilities, which is nice to see.
  • A fairly quick and easy read.
Cons:
  • No mention of Carth at all, which is really noticeable since every other KOTOR 1 character is mentioned at least once.
  • Completely inaccessible if you haven't played both KOTOR 1 and 2, which makes sense, but there are a number of inconsistencies and just plain wrong information from the games, which is odd and annoying. (Like the events at Malachor, or the Mass Shadow Generator (NOT mass-shadow generator, like it is in the novel),
      Meetra calling Mand'alor "Canderous" even though she would have never learned his true name
    , or even Atris's age.) All of it really stands out.
  • The writing style is incredibly easy to read, mostly because it is so flat. Everything is just simply told to you with little emotion. I was really looking forward to re-discovering Revan's memories with him, but instead you get a static, unemotional retelling of events. The loss of memory, the loss of identity, the loss of knowledge of his relationships with Malak and the Exile should feel tragic, but they just feel like nothing. It would make sense if Revan was maybe more emotionally stunted or purposefully detached and that is why the prose is like that, but his dialogue and interactions with other characters show that he isn't, and the descriptions are the same in the other POVs.
  • If you are a KOTOR 2 stan this ain't the book for you. None of the characters except Kreia are mentioned, and the Meetra's potentially conflicted relationship with her is never extrapolated on. Again, very flat.
  • About a million other nitpicks lmao. I'm a big fan of the original games, and I don't think that the characters were really done justice, but I understand that only so much could be done with the ending while still keeping it in line with SWTOR. 
  • No HK-47, just mentions of him. :(