I started reading the second entry, Triple Zero, in Karen Traviss' Republic Commando series almost exactly a year ago. I had started the book but put it down and stopped reading for many months. I didn't stop because the book was boring. Reading - in general - bores me and I can only do it in waves. Rarely do I read for pleasure or for more than a few days at a time.
I finally picked Triple Zero back up this fall. And I'm glad I did.
The book was riveting; I could barely put it down. I'd usually read 20 to 30 pages a day, which is a lot for me, and want to read more. About 2.5 weeks after I began to read the book again I had completed it.
Triple Zero stand for Coruscant, the center of the Republic in the Star Wars universe. In the book, Omega Squad - the focal point of Hard Contact - return to Coruscant for a covert ops mission with fellow commando squad Delta Squad, who are the focus of the LucasArts video game Republic Commando. The two commando squads work with their former trainers on Kamino - Kal Skirata and Walon Vau. Add in some Null-ARCs, a wookie, and some (allegedly, it is a book afterall) pretty ladies and the book is set.
At the beginning you find out that Kal Skirata is the trainer and de facto father of the six Null-ARCs - Prudii, Kom'rk, Mereel, Jaing, A'den, and Ordo. As you return to the "present" - one year after the Battle of Geonosis - you find out that General Arligan Zey, Jedi General in charge of Special Operations Brigade, is tasking Skirata and Omega Squad with help from Vau and Delta Squad to eliminate a Separtist cell spying on the Republic.
The writing in Triple Zero helps to develop the Republic Commando series characters, specifically Omega Squad and Jedi General Etain Tur-Mukan, as well as introduce key characters for the remainder of the series (Skirata, Vau, Delta Squad, Besany Wennen, Bardan Jusik, the Nulls). However, the plot does not suffer despite the focus of the book truly on the characters.
I don't want to give much away. The book, to me, is even better than Hard Contact, its predecessor. It is packed with character development, an intriguing storyline, and parts that make you really feel for the characters.
After finishing Triple Zero I immediately began True Colors, only to stop for weeks once again. However ever since I started True Colors again I haven't stopped reading.
I have noticed, after finishing True Colors and currently reading Order 66, that the RC series gets stronger with each entry. For any trooper-oriented Star Wars fan, Traviss' books are a must.
You can view the status of my reading in the upper right hand corner of this blog.
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