I’ll start by saying that I like the book. It wasn’t amazing or anything, and it had a dire lack of real stakes or conflict, but I assume those threads will be further explored down the road in the second book. I really loved getting to see Barriss in a staring role after reading her first book appearance in “The Approaching Storm”, but I feel like without Luminara and stronger personalities with Anakin or Obi-Wan to bounce off of, Barriss gets pretty lost in the events of the book, often times now appearing for multiple chapters, only to show up and act as support for one of the story’s other characters. Which, again, I assume will be less of an issue in the second MedStar Book.

The characters are, on the whole, very well written and interesting. I just wish this Author didn’t make such a habit of having his main male lead start ogling the main female lead who’s half his age on frame one of them meeting. It was an issue both here and in Maul: Shadow Hunter. Jos Vondar is not a fun character to be in the headspace of, and o get that the book was written over 20 years ago, but some of this inter voice comes off as borderline incel-speak. And I’m not sure it was the author’s intention for him to be unlikeable. 

This book gave me some conflicting feelings at the end of it. One the one hand, I feel like it had a lot of very interesting things to say and debate in regards to war, the Clones, the motivations behind conflict and why it happens, the Light and the Dark Side, etc etc. 

But on the other hand the general slow pacing and lack of stakes until everything goes to hell in the final half dozen chapters makes this a book I’m not sure I’d ever read again. I’ve only heard good things about the second book, so I’m looking forward to seeing how it ends.

I just finished reading MedStar 1: Battle Surgeons!