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The second Death Star has been destroyed. Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine are dead. Luke Skywalker, the last of the Jedi Knights, stands victorious and the galaxy celebrates him as a hero. But a new, dark menace named Shadowspawn has reared its head. With his army of black suited StormTroopers, can this new enemy spell the end of the fledgling New Republic? Or is there a darker game being played behind the scenes?

Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor is named like an old-school pulp novel and with good reason. It seems, since his victory over the Empire, Luke has been made the subject of several holothrillers with titles like Luke Skywalker and the Dragons of Tatooine and Luke Skywalker and the Jedi's Revenge. So when the mysterious Shadowspawn shows up on the volcanic planet of Mindor and starts attacking New Republic vessels, the stage seems set for a typical, space battle, light saber duels, Star Wars adventure of good versus evil.

But when Luke realizes things are playing out much like the holothriller adventures themselves, he discovers a much deeper, much darker plan that threatens not only himself, but his sister Leia as well. Blackhole, one of the surviving Emperor's Hand has malicious machinations behind the scenes.

One of the nice things about this particular addition to the Star Wars Expanded Universe is the original cast, in their prime, in action again. Luke is just coming into his own as a Jedi, Han is still up to his roguish way, Chewbacca is alive and well, Leia is flexing her political muscles but can still handle a blaster and See-Threepio and Artoo-Deetoo are utilized as the team they were meant to be. Plus Lando Calrissian really shows is prowess as a general.

There are a few EU nods as well, with Fenn Shysa and the Mandalorians making an appearance and a left over clone named Klick who has bought into Blackhole's manipulation of the Star Wars events. And there's quite a bit of Rogue Squadron mixed in for good measure.

But even with its creepy subtext story (wait till you get to the point about the lobotomies and the stone…) there's plenty of pulp. In fact you'll find more "Like a (Star Wars creature) in a (Star Wars location)" moments than any other Star Wars novel. If you are a fan of Luke, this is definitely not a novel to miss.

Science fiction enthusiast David Maddox has been many things, including Star Trek characters and the Riddler in a Batman stunt show. He holds a degree in Cinema from San Francisco State University, and has written several articles for various SF sites as well as the Star Wars Insider and the Star Trek Communicator. He spends his time working on screenplays and stories while acting on stage, screen and television. He can sometimes be seen giving tours at Universal Studios Hollywood and occasionally playing Norman Bates. Really.