I would give this more of a 3.5 star rating.

It's hard for me to read this and remember it was written long before we knew Luke and Leia were siblings, before Vader is Luke's father. Before Yoda. So little of the Star Wars Universe that we know today was around in 1978, and yet this book was written and released back then.

I found that the was times where the story dragged and a lot of that I will contribute to the excessive adjectives used to describe everything. It was something that bugged me from the first sentence. Yet when the action was happening in the book the author never got truly detailed and wrote the action in a pace that matched what was happening.

This book is placed just after the battle of Yavin and we really get a sense of how the Rebellion is operating although we never see the units in action. Luke is still confused as to how the Force works and his abilities with his lightsaber are choppy and inadequate.

While the book had needless detailed information on the ship's sensors, the quick sand like mud and black water; I was surprised on how little description we got on some of the natives to the planet. It was almost as if at that point we were to look at the book more from the Empire's outlook and not the Rebels.

Although the Empire was present through most of the book it was more of a bug than the main opposing force. Darth Vader didn't even appear till the last 30 pages or so. The stormtroopers and officers were also not so militaristic in this book and more like a mercenary group who took things as they came.

I am glad that I read this now when we are reestablishing the Universe and not a few years ago when the EU was at a strong point. I feel that the upheaval of the canon timeline makes this book more fitting to how we see the Universe right now.

Three stars but not in a Galaxy far far away. Crapola, what a task for a writer to embark on: write a follow-up to SW IV - low budget mind you and exclude some pretty important main characters.

The beginning is much better than the middle / end and written today (in the vein of Aftermath), it would have been a much more complex and richer story. I wanted to see the meeting on Cap IV, the characters involved there and some more obstacles to get there. Instead we get sent to a cave to search for a crystal (Indiana Jones anyone?)..... yeah.

Halla is a fun character but too one-dimensional - she could have been a dark side adept just fooling Luke, etc... And the pig-nosed wookie replacements were too damn ugly not to mention the Coway (I couldn't read it without thinking of Tim Conway) who are humanoid tribal warriors (again, Temple of Doom anyone?), and the development of Grammel just died on the vine (that character was cool!)!

If you are a SW lorewhore then read it because it's quick and starts out fun. May the Force be with you......

This was supposed to be what the second Star Wars movie was about if they first one didn’t succeed in theaters. Definitely not canon as it has some very different plot lines than the movie series. Fun, quick read for Star Wars fans.

Interesting concept, but heavy handed writing.

The Short Answer
A fun but slightly disappointing Star Wars adventure. Notable for establishing the extended Star Wars universe and a number of interesting concepts, it is otherwise an excruciatingly by-the-numbers sci-fi adventure that plays like a video game. Hero's walk along then fight a boss. Repeat.

Worth checking out if you're into Star Wars history and want to read the very first Legends book ever written, but otherwise non-essential.

The Long Answer
I was really looking forward to reading this. I'd read it as a child and loved it, and had the first two issues of the comic adaptation and read them repeatedly, they were so cool! This book is also a historical oddity in that it was written before The Empire Strikes Back. Apparently it was designed to be a low budget made for TV movie if the original didn't do well. It was even written by the guy who wrote the novelization for Star Wars So he should totally understand the source material.

Unfortunately that's never really the case. There are a few bright spots though, so I'll start with them. Mostly it's interesting to see how someone pictured the expanded Star Wars universe based on a single movie. It's actually close enough to they type of stuff that came later that it's easy to jam it into the Legends timeline with no major issues. It's also fun to have an adventure with just Luke and Leia since normally you get Han and Chewie tossed into the mix (Harrison Ford wasn't signed on for a second movie yet so he was written out of this just in case). It's awkwardly fun to watch their early sexual tension grow since at this point no one had decided they'd become siblings.

The story also starts off alright with some nice tension and atmosphere to get things going, including sneaking into an Imperial mining post and pretending to be workers. Unfortunately after some excellent setup the story of the book devolves into a series of uninteresting confrontations. First they fight some stormtroopers, then they run from some wildlife, then they run from some more wildlife, then space indians attack them (I wish I was kidding), you get the idea. This rinse and repeat formula gets tiring since we aren't learning anything new about the characters at this time, it's just another random danger you know they'll survive. It all ends with a final boss fight against Darth Vader. This could have been cool, and has a fun section where Leia gets to go at him with a lightsaber. But it feels rushed and ends without a satisfying resolution. Everything is too simple and easy.

I wanted to give this book 3 stars, and if you're into Star Wars history you can give it an extra star for it's fascinating history and look at the universe, otherwise this is a very non-essential entry to the Star Wars universe. If you're still kinda curious read the comics, they at least come with cool art.

This isn't a good book, but who cares about things like quality? Reading this took me back to my early teenage years, when I ravenously and without discernment read countless pulpy, derivative fantasy novels and had a really great time doing it.

There's countless stupid things in here and quite a few things to make a modern reader cringe - for instance, a healthy dollop of unchallenged racism, including the use of a genuine real-world slur that honestly took me aback. Mind you, it didn't read like Foster knew it as a slur. He just seemed to think it was a fun, sci-fi-y way of shortening the word "aboriginal". It was just rather shocking to see in a fun, cheesy Star Wars romp.

But there's a lot of fun to be had, too. For Star Wars fans, it's fun to see a kind of first run at a sequel to the original, written before Harrison Ford was contracted to continue, in which Luke and Leia were definitely the endgame couple, before Luke was destined to be a sage warrior-monk and instead got to be some thick-headed bumpkin from the Outer Rim for a while longer, in which Foster hadn't even seen the original film and thus evidently could not visualise things such as R2-D2 not having arms.

For non-fans... Well, let's be honest. Anyone with the right temperament to enjoy this kind of story already likes Star Wars. That aside, though, there's very little that ties this story to anything, so in theory it could be picked up by a total newbie and they'd be able to grasp basically everything. On the other hand, in an alternate universe in which this was canon, nothing would be missed by skipping it. Nothing is achieved. Nobody of broader significance dies, and in fact, all scars are literally healed away in the end, leaving me with the impression I've just watched one of those Simpsons episodes in which the characters agree never to speak about the events of the episode ever again. But who cares? This book isn't about lore or canon or world building or expanding the IP. It's about rollicking adventure, and that's what it delivers.

Every now and then, in a fit of nostalgia, I wish I could find it in myself to switch off my matured tastes and cynicism so I could go back to enjoying those shitty old fantasy books from my youth. I'm glad to find that the power of the Star Wars brand can switch them off for me. I feel like I've recovered something special in myself, if only in the service of one megalithic IP.

EU #3 Knocked this one back in about 4 hours - I've had it lying around for years/

Yes I know this book was only written to be a low budget sequel to Star Wars if it had failed; but I'm judging it as a long time, young Star Wars fan who has just read it for the first time.

It gets two stars because it's written well - I know Alan Dean Foster is a good writer - but the story and characters are so bad.

It's based around Luke and Leia going on a secret mission - crash landing on a planet and then getting caught up with an old lady and a legend about a crystal. Along the way they meet two wookiee rip offs and a perverted Imperial.
Leia is possibly the most annoying character I've ever read. Splinter Leia is now my least favourite Star Wars character possibly ever. Gone is the headstrong woman who blasted open a garbage chute and dived into it not knowing it was. Here is a woman who freaks out about mud, and having to wipe off her makeup. Here is a woman who has Luke carry her across a puddle of water. It's the ultimate character assassination. And we know Leia had spunk in the movies - but it made her lovable. Here she just shoots off her mouth and it's annoying.
Luke is woefully inept at the force and pretty much anything. We all know he had a bit of a thing for his sister (who he didn't know was his sister) but this book really heightens it. Sure Lucas: you planned on having them be siblings from the start - this book shows otherwise. Also besides the mass murder of millions on the death star - we know Luke is a pretty nice guy. Not in this book. First example of things Luke would never did -but oh-my-god he did it in this book; slapped Leia across the face. So Luke is a 1700s husband now? That's not even the least considerate thing he did in this book - I'll use a quote for this one: regarding Leia's torture on the Death Star (which is a huge deal in this book but never brought up again in the movies) pg. 139
'"Leia why are you so afraid of an Imperial Governor?" he asked gently as they walked on. "What could Moff Tarkin had done to you back on the Death Star before Han Solo and I rescued you?"
She turned memory haunted eyes on him. "Maybe I'll tell you someday, Luke. Not now. I'm not... I haven't forgotten enough. If I told you I might remember too much."
"Don't you think I could take it?" Luke asked tightly.'
Luke - you idiot. What do you think they did to her - you know the Empire is evil - isn't this why you're fighting against them? They murdered your aunt and uncle. Vader murdered your beloved teacher - yet you can't understand that the tortured your beloved Princess on the Death Star? But that's not even the worst of it. He assumes she's not telling him about it because she thinks he can't take it. I think it's pretty self explanatory you self absorbed sack of bantha poodoo. Also this is one of 2 mentions of Han Solo in this entire book. Darth Vader actually gives the credit to Luke for shooting his TIE up on the Death Star - not Han. Chewie isn't mentioned once - and you really feel the absence of our favourite smuggling duo.

Darth Vader - not menacing at all. He shows up 2/3 of the way through the book. Apparently he's forgotten how to use the force too. Luke drops his lightsaber during their fight and he then races Luke to pick it up; instead of y'know - force pulling it toward him like a true master of the Sith would.

Halla and the rip off Wookiee's are pretty much the only redeeming things about this book. Then again I've already forgotten about them.

I only read this one because I'm a completionist. If you're doing an EU readathon - only read the books (outside of film novelisations) that have been published since Heir to the Empire. Skip this one unless you're interested in a little bit of Star Wars history and can get it cheap.

I'll finish it off with the only funny line in the book from C3PO to R2-D2- (pg 31)
"I hope one of the local carnivores chokes on you and breaks every one of your external sensors."

Re-read this classic star wars book. Delightful read, but it doesn't properly hold true to the canon in various points. Personally I would prefer if Alan Dean Foster had written the rest of the original trilogy though(he wrote both this and A New Hope) his vivid imagery is pleasant and invites a shrill picture of the world he is creating in the readers mind.

I read this entire book in one day. It was under 200 pages long so it is not that great of an accomplishment though I guess... but still.

I didn't hate this book, but it wasn't exactly hard to put down either. I only read this because of a comic "Blue Milk Special" and wanted to understand the jokes. (Also the reason I watched the StarWars Christmas Special - ugh!)

"Splinter" is pretty typical 70's pulp sci-fi, with a clunky plot and clumsy metaphores. I would not really recommend this book except for nostalgia purposes (it has the dubious honor of being the first "extended universe" fiction). The author was obviously unaware of some of the reveals in ESB (Leia being force-sensitive and Luke's sister for example)and possibly hadn't seen the first movie either (Vader has a blue lightsaber and says something about Luke shooting him down at the DeathStar - huh?).