Books : Hard Contact (Star Wars: Republic Commando, Book 1)

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by: Karen Traviss

: Hard Contact (Star Wars: Republic Commando, Book 1)

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Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
EAN: 9780345478276
ISBN: 0345478274
Label: Del Rey
Manufacturer: Del Rey
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 304
Publication Date: October 26, 2004
Publisher: Del Rey
Release Date: October 26, 2004
Sales Rank: 14071
Studio: Del Rey



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Editorial Review:

Product Description:
As the Clone Wars rage, victory or defeat lies in the hands of elite squads that take on the toughest assignments in the galaxy–stone-cold soldiers who go where no one else would, to do what no one else could. . . .

On a mission to sabotage a chemical weapon research facility on a Separatist-held planet, four clone troopers operate under the very noses of their enemies. The commandos are outnumbered and outgunned, deep behind enemy lines with no backup–and working with strangers instead of trusted teammates. Matters don’t improve when Darman, the squad’s demolitions expert, gets separated from the others during planetfall. Even Darman’s apparent good luck in meeting an inexperienced Padawan vanishes once Etain admits to her woeful inexperience.

For the separated clone commandos and stranded Jedi, a long, dangerous journey lies ahead, through hostile territory brimming with Trandoshan slavers, Separatists, and suspicious natives. A single misstep could mean discovery . . . and death. It’s a virtual suicide mission for anyone–anyone except Republic Commandos.



Customer Reviews
Average Rating: out of 5 stars

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars - One of the best novel adding depth to the Clone Wars
Recently I have been reading novels based upon the Clone Wars. This book gives depth and insight not only into the development of the clone soldiers (by development I mean literal and emotional), yet also (perhaps just as important) to the younger Jedi involved with the leadership aspects of the war. Karen Traviss not only understands military structure (and jargon), she treats these charachters as if they are in a real situation, and this is (one of the factors) that makes the book interesting. While other novels have touched upon the Jedi (General/Commander) to clone trooper (infantry leader or 'grunt') This is the only novel I have read that attempts to delve into this relationship with depth and an awareness of a shared humanity.

The reviewers who have critiqued this book for showing the charachters as having revealing 'weaknesses', are missing the point that this is one of the highlights of the story, and critical to the 'real' developments of the charachters. I would think most readers familar with the setting of the Clone Wars, would realize that it is early in the war, and thus the insecurity (and initial instability) of the charachters rings true. It is one of the dissapointments of a lot of the Clone War novels featuring the main characters from the films, that they all just jump right into the war hacking and blasting everything in sight without a thought to what they are involved in.

Hard Contact provides a unique perspective in that Traviss is able to have a little latitude utilizing 'non-essential' characters within the Star Wars universe (obviously they were featured in the game). It is with these 'non-essential' characters that Traviss utilizes to 'build' into some of the most 'actualized' characters existing within the Star Wars/Clone Wars novels.


Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - "Not all soldiers wear uniforms, ma'am"
Thanks to a Star Wars book club, I got to reread this amazing Clone Wars era novel!
Four clone commandos have been assigned an important task: land on Qiilura, apprehend scientist, Uthan, and destroy her work on biological agents targeted at clones. But a Mandalorian mercenary, the desperate natives, and a green Padawan might keep them from their objective.

What I Liked:
There is so much to love about this book, it's hard to decide where exactly to begin.
I guess I should start at the beginning: the characters. So many books (even--or maybe especially?--Star Wars ones) tend to generalize. The sleuth is usually down and out but incredibly smart. The scientists are either sexy, sassy, ladies or complete dorky nerds. Jedi are omnipotent, all seeing. The bad guys are plum out of a children's book (replete with giggling over their latest plot device, which is lame, lame, lame). Personally, I am sick of this. I want to see REAL people. People who are like me. So-so at their jobs, average in looks, maybe not quite happy with themselves (and not because they don't have any friends, being supermodel material after all--cue eye roll), trying so hard to figure out why the heck they are there.
And then Karen Traviss starts writing Star Wars. First off, THANK YOU DEL REY!!! Karen Traviss is a superb, intelligent writer and the perfect fit for the Republic Commando novels. She can do what so many others fail at (particularly in this book): she writes about real people.
Hokan is a mercenary. He is not a giggling bad guy, but an intelligent, well-planned Mandalorian who doesn't kill because it's fun but for a purpose. He even shows a fondness and appreciation for a subordinate (something sorely lacking in other novels).
Etain Tur-Mukan is probably one of the best written Jedi in the universe. Seriously, here is a woman with a conflict. She has no idea what to do, doesn't even think she can do it if she could, and isn't a super-Jedi either. She doubts, she questions, she is unsure. In fact, she totally blows up at Darman when he calls her commander and is later chewed out by Jinart. This is rarely done in the Star Wars universe and is a breath of fresh air in a sewer plant.
Then, the clones. Karen Traviss gets the award for making each clone identical yet separate. Niner is a no-bones leader. Fi is more sensitive, more worried about the feelings of each member. Atin buries his thoughts behind mechanical equipment. Darman is amazing, tender yet tough. Through him, we see the unique balance of hardened warrior and childlike innocence, something one would never have expected from clones bred for the sole purpose of killing another.
The other characters (Jinart, Uthan, etc.) are similarly well done, but in a much smaller scale, since they are more of background characters.
Moving on from characterization, the number of characters is perfect. We have, as primary characters, 4 clones, one Jedi, and one Mandalorian (Jinart, the Weequay, the other Jedi, and Uthan being secondary). There is just enough time to develop each character, not too much to interrupt the action and plot. One complaint I had about Death Star was its huge cast. It was challenging to get close to any of the characters when there were 20 or so of them. Karen Traviss keeps the cast small so the audience can grow close to them. It works perfectly.
I feel the balance in Hard Contact--characters, Mando'a history, philosophical musings on the usage of clones and the actual plot of the story--is perfect. KT spends enough time to make you feel for the characters, get acquainted to the Mandalorian lifestyle (which had never before been revealed), ponder the humanity of the clones (though this got to be a little much at times--see below), and do what commandos are supposed to do: Fight! The action in the story is prominent, cementing its Star Wars-iness, but while it is a big part of the book, KT doesn't cut back on character.
Another (small) favorite comes when Hokan mentions to Uthan (another ho-hum lady, not some sexy vixan--Thank you again, KT!!) about Hard Contact! I love it when the author slips in the title of her book somewhere in the actual book. I know it can't always be done, but this was totally awesome!!

What I Didn't Like
It was very challenging to visualize the Gurlanins. They are vaguely described as having a snout, being black, and reminding me of either wolves or panthers. Other than that, their shapeshifting, their appearance is cloaked in mystery, making it hard to imagine the actual creature.
Another problem I had was towards the end. At this point, I felt the message of clones being real people was too heavy-handed. Etain mentions it at least twice in the last ten pages besides the conversations previous. I understand the concept and appreciate KT making the effort to talk about something this controversial, but I think she could have backed off a bit.
Finally, I do not appreciate Etain's being practically commended for defying a superior officer (when she is demanding the Laati stay on Qiilura until Fi and Niner return from their mission). Anywhere else, she would have been courtmarshalled for defying General Zey's orders. I understand this is a fiction novel; however, I feel that the scene could have been modified so as not to seemingly promote this fantastical scenario.

Dialogue/Sexual Situations/Violence:
Star Wars dialogue in the form of "fierfek".
A Weequay attempts to rape Etain. Other similar acts are referred to circumspectly.
This is a story about commandos and battle. There are tons of battles, lots of gun fights, deaths, explosions, etc. While most aren't gory in nature, they do exist.

Conclusions:
Amazing! KT has done for the Star Wars Clone Wars era--and for the Star Wars universe in general--what many of the other novels (The Cestus Decpetion and Jedi Trial) could only dream of doing. In Hard Contact, the audience is transported into the middle of a commando mission. There is no doubt about the authenticity, the realness of the surroundings, weapons, actions.
KT not only has created one of (if not the) best action novels, but she has also done the unbelievable: she has created a Mando'a culture, catapulted the clones into humans, and has portrayed Jedi in a real life sense.
With these amazing accomplishments under her belt, it would be impossible for me to give this novel anything less than a 5 stars, even with the minor road bumps.


Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - Fantastic Star Wars Story By A Fantastic Author
This is the first book in the outstanding Republic Commando series written by a fantastic author in Karen Traviss, who by the way has my heartfelt support for any book she decides to write in the Star Wars universe. The books written by her in the Legacy of the Force series, where easily the best ones out of all the authors who had written books in the series.

This book begins to tell the story of several clone troopers, a young female Jedi, Sergeant Kal Skirata and a host of additional support characters. Now I am not going to go into great detail on the finer points of this book, but I will say that it has been one of my most enjoyable reads from the "Clone Wars" era novels.

As you read this story (and the others in the series) you will share the experiences as a Mandalorian warrior becomes a father to a group of clone troopers whom he had saved from being terminated shortly after their "birth" from the cloning tanks, to the realization of a Jedi padawan that these clone soldiers aren't "wet droids," but real living breathing men under all that armor. Fascinating character development that really makes you believe in the characters and get into their individual stories.

If you want to really get into a great story with some very real characters, plop down one afternoon with this book and the other three in the Republic Commando series Triple Zero (Star Wars: Republic Commando), True Colors (Star Wars: Republic Commando), and Order 66 (Star Wars: Republic Commando) and time warp into another galaxy far far away! You won't be disappointed!

Shawn Kovacich
Star Wars Fan and Author of the Achieving Kicking Excellence series.


Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - Great Star Wars Series Written By A Fantastic Author
This is the first book in the outstanding Republic Commando series written by a fantastic author in Karen Traviss, who by the way has my heartfelt support for any book she decides to write in the Star Wars universe. The books written by her in the Legacy of the Force series, where easily the best ones out of all the authors who had written books in the series.

This book begins to tell the story of several clone troopers, a young female Jedi, Sergeant Kal Skirata and a host of additional support characters. Now I am not going to go into great detail on the finer points of this book, but I will say that it has been one of my most enjoyable reads from the "Clone Wars" era novels.

As you read this story (and the others in the series) you will share the experiences as a Mandalorian warrior becomes a father to a group of clone troopers whom he had saved from being terminated shortly after their "birth" from the cloning tanks, to the realization of a Jedi padawan that these clone soldiers aren't "wet droids," but real living breathing men under all that armor. Fascinating character development that really makes you believe in the characters and get into their individual stories.

If you want to really get into a great story with some very real characters, plop down one afternoon with this book and the other three in the Republic Commando series (Triple Zero (Star Wars: Republic Commando), True Colors (Star Wars: Republic Commando), and Order 66 (Star Wars: Republic Commando)) and time warp into another galaxy far far away! You won't be disappointed!

Shawn Kovacich
Star Wars Fan and Author of the Achieving Kicking Excellence series.


Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - Quite simply amazing
Somewhere in Ms. Traviss' background there was a lot of time spent talking to and with operators on the front lines and the bonds they develop. I don't know where or who she got it from, but I thank them that they gave a talented author an insight into what it is we do and thereby gave us a voice.

Traviss' Hard Contact is a true Clone War novel, viewed through the Clone warrior's eyes. It deals with the bonds that such men form through training and experience. It deals with what operators feel when sent into situations with less than full disclosure about what's happening. It deals with how society needs people who can engage in violence but also how society views them as disposable.

The plot of Hard Contact is simple - the Republic is investigating a world called Qiilura using a couple of Jedi as infiltrators. When contact with them is broken, a small group of Clone Commandos is sent in to establish contact and finish the investigation. Meanwhile, the Separatists are cooking up something on Qiilura, something that may turn the tide of war and shift the balance of power in the galaxy.

Please don't be turned off that the book was based on a video game. In fact, it's completely irrelevant that a video game is involved at all. This is top-notch writing in every way. Of all the books I have read in my life, I place Hard Contact second only behind Gates of Fire in explaining the bonds that men in combat form and what drives them to push on and do what they do.

The characters are well-fleshed out, including the "bad" guys. Motivations are complex, as they are in real life, and the dilemmas that people out on the edge of life and death face are well-portrayed. There are no cookie cutter characterizations and motivations here. I think this is a brilliant piece of fiction and I will follow Ms. Traviss' career and body of work with interest.

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