Cover Artist: Drew Struzan

As Head Of State for the New Republic, Princess Leia has gone on a covert diplomatic mission to meet with Seti Ashgad who represents a faction on a planet that wants a higher standard of life. She had been warned in a note from Callista to not meet with Ashgad for any reason, but it was too late to stop the meeting. Luke decided to come with her because he saw a chance to find his lost love, and so tried to sneak down to the planet but was shot down. During Leia's conference, the crew of her ship and her escort ship begin to die from an unknown disease that kills everyone else while she is kidnapped by Ashgad and his assistant Dzym. C-3PO and R2-D2 manage to escape the ship right before it is sent into hyperspace with no destination, and begin to try to warn the New Republic of the danger. Surviving the crash, Luke begins searching for Callista, but feels like he is being watched. He finds shelter and temporary work for Seti Ashgad's faction where he meets a fallen Jedi who is much older than she seems. This Jedi tries to get him to attack her ancient rival, but he fights her off after realizing how he had been tricked. As a result of his defense, he discovers that his use of the Force causes dangerous storms on the planet that may injure or even kill innocent bystanders. Leia is being kept drugged, but one of her captors, named Liegeus, takes pity on her and stops drugging her, to protect her from Dzym. She manages an escape from her prison after discovering what Ashgad's plans for the planet really are, and is recovered by Callista. Luke on the other hand finds out that Leia is on the planet and goes to rescue her, where he barely escapes from Dzym with his life. When Han Solo discovers that Leia is missing, he takes Chewbacca and Lando Calrissian and they begin looking for her. They can't find her, but they do find a few New Republic warships that have been destroyed by tiny robotic drones called Needles. Their search for the source of these Needles leads them to the planet where Leia is being held. As Ashgad and Dzym escape from the planet to where Dzym can unleash the Death Seed plague on the galaxy, Leia fights and kills a fallen Hutt Jedi named Beldorien and Luke attempts to destroy Ashgad's ship but is shot down. Upon crashlanding, Luke discovers that the crystals that are found all over the world are actually sentient, Force-sensitive life forms and they are being used to power the Needles. They are also the only thing keeping the Death Seed in check, and that is why Dzym wants to escape. He is essentially a genetically engineered, overgrown droch, the insect that carries the disease. He persuades the crystals that he will help bring all their people back if they help him stop the Death Seed, and so Ashgad's ship is destroyed by the Needles that are in orbit. Even with this action, the battle rages until a large force of disgruntled Imperials led by Admiral Daala arrive to stop the rest of the Imperials. She has C-3PO and R2-D2 with her, they were the ones who gave her the information she needed to arrive in time. As Luke leaves the planet, he sees Callista from a distance and decides to let her lead her own life and move on with his own.

I remember not thinking that I really liked this novel all that much, but when I read through it again I found it was really quite enjoyable. Luke and Leia are the two many characters of this novel, and they both grew through their experiences. It seemed there was a theme of letting go of past hang-ups and moving on to the next stage in life. Overall, it was better than I remembered it being.