I really look forward to Barbara Hambly's work. I expect a lot from her and each time I buy a book it worries me that this may be the sell out. Strangely, the fact that this book seems more like an interlude than a novel comes as some comfort in that regard. The fact that a bunch of stuff happens but nothing really moves forward is a disappointment. The main characters were already strong enough to carry a story, a large group of new characters are introduced but never developed or carried forward. Thinking you were at the climax of a trilogy, this book was a bit of a disappointment, however it was still good escapist literature; colorful and interesting, but no new character moves forward to complicate the next story and John and Jenny are frankly getting a bit tired. Good grief I'm getting tired of watching them abused. It's hard to imagine how this series can resolve happily, thankfully that's Barbara's problem and not mine. Can't give this author up.

During the past few years, Hambly has spent much of her time sending her characters to hell, sometimes figuratively (in her mystery series (Graveyard Dust, et al)) and sometimes literally, as in this series. Decades ago, many characters might have experienced such a journey, but most of them would emerge unscathed, except for the rare one such as Frodo. A more recent trend is to see how much damage, physically, emotionally, and mentally, a character can endure and yet return. While not completely dark as that, the separate travels of Jenny and John are something you would rather stay home and read about rather than experience yourself. The hells include the usual physical difficulties, but also the ones of figuring out who to trust, how to survive in different environments, and having to worry about personal survival, the survival of those that you love, and at the same time worrying about the future of the land that you live in.

I cannot recommend that anyone start the series with this book. Knowledge of what happened before is vital. As it is, since it has been months since the previous book, trying to separate out the various minor characters and determining whether they are important enough to worry about and why, is very difficult.

On the other hand, Hambly brings us, among her hells, a new world, a mix of Blade Runner with the cities of Walter Jon Williams, a place that is not our own, but one that might be one of our own future hells. That piece is very well done.

I hope that Hambly can bring about a conclusion of all this in the next book. Besides the concerns we have for the main characters, the lights are going out across the land, even without this plague of demons. While I do not expect a solution to all the problems facing Jenny and John, some more immediate than others, it would be good to allow them some peace and a chance to regroup.

You'll never get what you expect from a Barbara Hambly book. Perhaps this is why her books haven't degenerated into predictable series fiction. This is a case in point, as the continuance of her series seems likely to kill every character in it, or at least destroy them in other ways. John the Dragonslayer remains a vivid, honest character caught between his personal life and the open need of the starving and bandit-plagued Winterlands who depend upon Lord John to defend them. His mate Jenny is torn between her need for magic and her desire for a human life, and in the first book DRAGONSLAYER she found she needed both. DRAGONSHADOW saw Jenny possessed by a demon, whose addictive magic made her betray everything she loved and whose defeat left her a scarred, despondent cripple, yearning for the demon's touch. KNIGHT OF THE DEMON QUEEN drags John and Jenny behind it screaming into all the Hells that exist or that men can make for each other. She's rough on her characters, our Barbara. And on the basis of this book, I hereby promote Ms. Hambly to goddess, since the last thing I expected was a cyberpunk episode in a 'Dragon' book. I wish it was longer, but I'm glad I didn't have to wait 2 years for it; evens out in my opinion. But maybe I just can't resist a world in which heroic deeds tend to be done by men who wear glasses ...

what? huh? that book i just read...was that Star Wars? no...couldnt be!

this book was probably the worst book i have ever read...or its at least tied with Children of the Jedi, that other terible book by Barbara Hambly.

the beginning started out terribly. it was so boring and i was literally forcing myself to read on, hoping that it would get better.

the characters were all wrong...i'm sure that the Leia, Han, Luke, etc. that i was reading about were NOT the Leia, Han, luke that we all love from the trilogy. these people must have been clones gone bad...

This book was not about Leia! the chief of state that was descibed was NOT Leia. in the beginning, she sounded like a mean, snobby, cold, hard politician whose power has gotten to her. she wasnt warm and caring like the Real Leia Organa Solo is. Later, she became more normal, but still, i kept thinking: who is this???? they said she had a deep voice. um, correct me if im wrong, but Leia DOES NOT have a deep voice.

Han was weird. He wasnt as bad as Leia, but, please, people, come on!!! that WAS NOT Han. period. end of story.

And Luke was even worse! was this the Jedi Master we all know? NO!!! it was not. he doesnt think or act like that...that just WAS NOT Luke. end of discussion. next topic.

granted, the book got better as it progressed, but it still was a weird story. and those Drochs were GROSS!

I was very surprised with the ending on the last few pages with the Dalla-and-Liegeus-interaction. dont wanna mention it in cause someone reading this didnt read the book yet. i was surprised, but i still kinda liked it.

anyway, this book was not good. i'll basically read any STAR WARS book and i can tell by reading the blurb ( i love that word) if its gonna be good or bad. i knew this would be bad. but i read it anyway...i shouldnt have done that..but at least the Callista thing is now all cleared up...

This book was just like her other one...she trys to make it more interesting but fails utterly. I disagree with the review that ddeboe@juno.com said about the difference in writing style. The truth is: SHE DOESN'T KNOW HOW TO WRITE A SW BOOK! And if ddeboe was hinting that Kevin Anderson is not a good writer than he/she doesn't know SW from Star Trek. She portrays Luke Skywalker as someone that has just learned to use the Force. I should know, I have read over 30 SW books and most were good. But Barbara Hambly is the most distinquishable black sheep of the flock. From my stand point, she should be removed from the SW writers' list and put in some other writer. The only reason that i gave it 2 stars was that the plot was well built and Leia finally has begun to use the Force. Overall, if you can avoid buying it, do so and borrow it from someone or the library. This is a really boring book that drags out for a long time. But think about what you like.

The book "Planet of Twilight" is one of the best books in the Star Wars series (At least that's what I think...). In her own wonderful style Barbara Hambly manages once again to create a very deep and involved, if somewhat hard to understand, story involving all of the characters in the hit movies. One thing I especially like about this book is that it deeply involves the entire Star Wars universe; it's not just an action story that simply happens to take place in the Star Wars universe like so many others. The technology, the worlds, and the chracters of the universe of Star Wars are all almost exactly as they were in the movies. This is a very hard task to accomplish. There are some problems with this book, however. Hambly's writing is sometimes unclear about some of the key details. I found myself skipping back a ways to try and figure out what the heck she was talking about. Also, if you don't know anything about Star Wars, don't even ATTEMPT this book. You would be lost like THAT. Watch the movies first and, just for good measure, read a few books that take place before this one. All in all, "Planet of Twilight is a wonderful book and is sure to please almost anyone, especially people who are into Star Wars. What the heck are you waiting for?! Go get it!!!!

Children of the Jedi, the first book of the Callista Trilogy, has some intriguing qualities to it, but overall this book is too weak, repetative and convoluted to be considered good. I would give it 1.5 stars if possible, but its not so one will have to do. Yet another superweapon comes into being, the super-automated ship, Eye of Palpatine, whose mission to destroy the children of the Jedi on Belsavis was stopped 30 years earlier by a young female Jedi. Someone restarted the ship's programs, and its up to Luke Skywalker, who i accedentaly on board the vessel, to destroy the ship before it reaches the planet Belsavis where Han and Leia are currently vacationing/investigating. The superweapon story just keeps being used over and over again. IT'S OLD GET OVER IT! Luke and 2 student companions are investigating some random coordinates when they are shot down and captured by the Eye, a super-intelligent ship that does everything it possibly can to kill Skywalker and his friends, but can't tell the difference between alien species. Um ok. After an attack/warning by an old smuggler friend, Han Solo and Chief of State of the New Republic Leia Organa Solo (without escorts, bodyguards or anything) travel to Belsavis seeking out the mythical place where the children of the Jedi were hidden. Right, like the Chief of State of a galactic republic can just wander around without a planet's population of guards orbiting her. Um NO! Luke gets hurt making his job that much more difficult, but to comfort him in his time of need the Jedi who originally stopped the Eye reappeares. It seems Callista had jammed her spirit into the Eyes gun system and existed for the last 30 years by herself. Right! Han & Leia fight a former concubine/Emperor's Hand and her son, who has been implanted with a device that allows him to use the Force to control droids. Menwhile, Luke & Callista fall in love, and eventually she is able to enter the vacated body of one of Luke's students and they can live together except Callista has lost her force powers. The Eye is destroyed and they all live happily until the next galactic crisis. The biggest problem with this story is that the plot is too convoluted and confusing, the story makes little sense and the characters are written out of character. There are some good lines, the Dr. Breen line was very funny, but overall this book is very poorly done. It is probably the weakest of the Callista Trilogy, although all three books are among the weakest in the exapanded Star Wars universe.

The writing style is too choppy to be considered a decent narrative. The plot is very weak. The characters are flat, especially Luke's love interest (who isn't even human). It is almost painful to read. The story even contradicts many beliefs of the Star Wars universe. I wouldn't even consider this a Star Wars novel hadn't the major Star Wars players been involved. I do not recommend this book.

Make no mistake about it, this is one of those Star Wars novels that polarize people. Most either hate it or love it. Obviously, by my review, I picked the latter. :)

Barbara Hambly's treatment of the Star Wars world skews toward a more adult audience. Instead of dumbing down the story (like certain SW authors seem to have done), Hambly raises the difficulty level of her prose and encourages the reader to match her. The result is a refreshingly strong tale that crackles off the page -- but only if you can figure out her style. Those who don't "get it" find this book nauseatingly hard to read.

The story itself is vintage Star Wars. Under Hambly's touch, the main characters (Luke, Han, Leia) exhibit feelings and emotion that are hard to find in other Star Wars books. Hambly also introduces us to Callista, a character both praised and maligned in the Star Wars universe.

In essence, it is the desires of the customer that will decide whether or not you will like this book. If you're interested in a simple, less cerebral read (or if you're 10 years old), you're probably not going to enjoy "Children of the Jedi." But if you're ready to delve into a more challenging depiction of the Star Wars Universe, this is your book.

This is Star Wars for the thinking man.