Star Wars books are a guilty pleasure I guess. While many would not consider them science fiction and rather something more like a fantasy, I consider them science fiction.
I have seen the movie many times of course but I had always heard that the novelization of the movie was pretty good and considered one of the best of all the Star Wars novelizations. So, I decided to give it a try.
I found that I enjoyed it quite a bit. The books follows the movie of course. Events and scenes in the movie are in the book. Dialog as well is pretty much faithfully the same in the book. But what sets it apart and indeed what sets most novels apart from later movies make from the books is the additional detail and most of the inner dialog and thoughts that flow through a character's mind.
It is these inner dialogs and thoughts that provide a more colorful picture of what goes on in the movie. Most of this is conveyed in the movie but sometimes is awkward or incomplete rendering the scene either less impactful at the least or unintentionally funny or seen as a plot hole.
A good example is Ender's Game. The book is much better than the movie that was made because much of what make's Ender special is his thinking and motivations behind what he does that are conveyed in a single line of dialog in the movie.
Palpatine, Anikan and Kenobi all benefit from having their characters and interactions broadened and fleshed out more within the book.
If you are a Star Wars fan then you can't do wrong by reading this book.
( )

"Though this is the end of the age of Heroes, it has saved it's best for last."

Funny thing about this novelization: it's either breaking my heart or boring me to death. To be fair, it did mostly the former, but the second was enough for me to drop a star.

Anakin's pov here is made of everything that makes Revenge of the Sith my favorite Star Wars movie, and the way we can see how deeply he was groomed and precisely manipulated is gut wrenching. It also acknowledges that despite all the machinations, it was all still his choice, and I really appreciate not making him a simple victim. It has all of the aspects of the inevitability of a tragedy I love so much.

Now, this is definitely for the big fans of the movie. Differently from most of the more modern SW novels, this one doesn't deal so well with the action sequences, specially considering they are all ones we know the exact outcome of from the movie. It's where I got really bored and had to skim whole pages. Some things just don't translate exactly to another format like that.

I feel obligated to point out that this drinks a lot from Legends, and giving it was written before even Clone Wars was a thing I can understand it, but there were enough hints about "the jedi not evolving enough", leaning close to bashing Mace and Yoda in favor to Anakin and Obi-Wan, to make me uncomfortable. At the same time, the exterior povs, that narrated events like an onisciente being, gave a lot of nuanced insight on the intricate plot Sidious had and the sad situation the Jedi were.

Overall a good read, extremely well written, and that made me bleed for Anakin Skywalker's tragedy even more. ( )

The novelization of the final prequel film Revenge of the Sith hit shelves approximately six weeks before the film hit theaters, written by fantasy-science fiction writer Matthew Stover based on the script and story penned by George Lucas.

Stover sticks with the general outline of the film, especially at the beginning and the end of the novel but adds details that either Lucas cut from the film or details that added to the overall narrative. The book focuses more on Palpatine’s arguments to Anakin about the Jedi conspiring to destroy the Republic while his concern for Padme was subtly intertwined within the political aspects. While it added depth to Palpatine’s manipulation as well as Anakin’s character flaws, it would not have translated to a film. The scenes showing the birth of the Rebellion amongst Senators were nice touches that gives background to events that occur in the original trilogy. The best part of the novel was Stover’s descriptions of the characters throughout the novel especially their inner thoughts.

Revenge of the Sith is a great novelization that adds to what was included in the film as well as giving greater context. ( )

One of the most amazing Star Wars novels EVER. Best character development on the planet! ( )

3 1/2 stars: Good

No need to state the synopsis here, as we know the story. This is the official movie novelization. As my favorite movie of the prequel trilogy, this book did an even better job of explaining to us the inner workings of the Jedi, how they failed Anakin, and why he turned to the dark side. A good job, particularly to enhance his character from "whiny teen" to a deeply conflicted person who was failed by those who loved him, in their own blindness to see that we require connections to make life worth living.

A few quotes I liked:

"Because his real fear, in a universe where even stars die, is that being the best will never be quite good enough.

"I think" Obi-Wan said carefully "that abstractions like 'peace' don't mean much to him. He's loyal to 'people', not to principles. And he expects loyalty in return. He will stop at nothing to save me, for example, because he thinks I would do the same for him. [ discussing the Palpatine spying task, with Yoda and Mace} .... "I am firmly convinced Anakin can do anything, except betray a friend. That's why I don't think he will ever trust us again."

Order 66 is the climax of the Clone Wars... What is happening right now is why the Clone Wars were fought in the first place. It is their reason for existence. The Clone Wars have always been, in and of themselves, from their very inception, the Revenge of the Sith.

He lifted his head and the stick angled to poke Obi-Wan in the shin. "Especially the darkness in ourselves, young one. Of the dark side, despair is."
The simple truth of this called to him. Even despair is attachment: it is a grip clenched upon pain. Slowly, very slowly, Obi-Wan remembered what it was to be a Jedi. ( )