Jedi Apprentice #10 - The Shattered Peace
by Jude Watson

Published by Scholastic

Scott's Rating:   2.5 out of 4

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This is the tenth book in the Jedi Apprentice series. Two neighboring planets, Rutan and Senali, have a long history of war. Rutan is a medieval society that values hunting and culture while Senali is a Polynesian type culture that values nature and harmony. However, after a stunning victory by Senali, a truce is agreed upon. The rulers of each planet agree to temporarily exchange children and raise them in an effort to get the future leaders to appreciate each other. However, the plan backfires after hundreds of years of working when the heir of Rutan decides he does not want to go home and he does not want to become king. Prince Leed decides he truly loves Senali and wants to make it his permanent home. This infuriates his father, King Frane, who believes he has been brainwashed by the Senali. He threatens to declare war on Senali.

Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon are called in to mediate the dispute. After meeting with King Frane, they go to the ocean world of Senali with his other son Taroon and attempt to get Leed to come home, thus avoiding war. Unfortunately, it's not that simple as the Jedi would hope.

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Scott:

    The Shattered Peace features an interesting environment on the world of Senali. It is an ocean paradise filled with small tropical islands. The natives remind me of Hawaiians. They even seem to have that laid back "hang loose" attitude. It was an interesting setting for the book, though I have to wonder if Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon swam around stupidly in their robes the entire time. What, no Jedi standard issue Speedos?

The book has an interesting setup and some good action along the way. It also asks important questions like when does your own personal satisfaction and happiness take back seat to that of others? In a "Me! Me! Me!" society, this is an interesting point to ponder.

The book also tied neatly in with some of the other expanded universe stories by including nek battle dogs. These creatures appeared in some of the earlier Dark Horse Star Wars comics.

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Scott:

    This is probably one of the least satisfying of the Jedi Apprentice novels as far as story goes. By the end of the book, all of the betrayals, fights, and near interplanetary battles are settled with nothing more than a big laugh and a slap on the back. Two characters who hated each others guts most of the way through the novel suddenly flirt with each other at the end. There was nothing to hint that this was building up. The entire package just seemed to be wrapped up too neatly. This pretty much made it less interesting to me.

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Scott:

    Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan chow down on rocshore fish, ripping out the claws and eating them. Ah, island delicacies!

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