Star Wars: The Princess and the Scoundrel

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There is a wealth of stories about Han and Leia, both their individual stories from before they meet in the original trilogy. The Princess and the Scoundrel is a huge moment, when their lives are unified in marriage. It’s the beginning of a new journey for them. I was curious what stories Beth drew while writing this story.

Leia nodded. She had told Luke that she didn’t -- couldn’t -- understand the power he had, but he seemed eerily calm and confident that she could actually wield the Force as he did. Leia might not have any real experience with the Force, but there was no denying the power Luke had... the power she felt, too, like a fluttering of flitterfly wings just on the edge of her consciousness. Waiting for her to seize it. How are you?” Luke’s voice was sincere, but Leia wasn’t sure how to answer him. This was supposed to be a triumph, but all she really felt was confused. Not just about what Luke had told her about her lineage -- their connection was something she’d felt for some time, and it had been easy to accept Luke as her brother. She would not think about what that meant of her biological father. No -- it wasn’t just that. Faux Shadowing: Kelad, the inventor Han meets early in the story, is established as an expert in gravity manipulation and tractor beam technology. He gets busted for trying to kidnap Leia and stowing away, but is specifically sent to work off his debt in the Halcyon's engineering department. Later, on the planet Madurs, Han and Leia come across a seemingly impregnable Imperial mining facility that is specifically noted to run on advanced gravity manipulation and tractor beam technology. The characters immediately think of using Kelad's perfectly aligned skillset to defeat it... and then, just as they send a shuttle for him, the Empire cuts all transport to and from the planet and Kelad is forced to sit the whole adventure out. He does, however, put his tractor beam knowledge to work in helping to stop the Big Bad from escaping and helping the planet afterwards.In the first excerpt to be released from Star Wars: The Princess and the Scoundrel, the new novel by Beth Revis arriving this August, Luke and Leia take a moment to survey the damage of the Galactic Civil War and consider the work yet to be done to topple the Empire...

Bystander Syndrome: Both Leia and Han run into this quite a bit once the cruise. Most of the rich patrons of the Halcyon benefited from the Empire's existence and stand to lose very little now that it's gone, and were comfortable enough during the war to put the suffering of others out of their heads - Leia notes that many of them would likely celebrate with just as much fervor had the Empire won rather than lost at Endor, and while she Leia is forced to smile and nod in their presence she feels no camaraderie with them. Han, meanwhile, runs into an inventor who created weapons systems for the Empire, but "doesn't care about politics" and just did it for the money and prestige. A Lasat (victim of Imperial genocide) in the same room angrily points out not everyone has the same luxury. In Courtship, Han shows his love for Leia by…well…kidnapping her. Yikes. That would not fly in today’s Me-Too strong society. This novel by Beth Ravis gives a far more humane and tender expression of Han’s love as shortly after the Celebration in the Ewok Village, Han approaches Leia and bluntly states “I want you.” This simplistic and brusque manner of a proposal may seem infantile. But it truly encapsulates who Han is. Non-eloquent and straight to the point. He ALWAYS shoots first.

Despite her agonizing, Leia will not reveal her parentage to the galactic public here and now, because she will be outed a quarter of a century later. Han’s proposal to Leia was surprisingly sweet and romantic. His reason for proposing so soon was that he lost so much time with Leia because of Vader that he didn’t want to waste another second. He decided to stop living his life for others and is finally doing things his way. Han had to learn how to build some walls, and Leia had to learn how to tear some down. StarWars.com: Hope was an important undercurrent in your book Rebel Rising, which explored Jyn Erso's life before the main events in Rogue One. What are some of the recurring themes readers can expect in this tale? Leia reflects on how Luke lost his family on Tatooine to the Empire just as much as she lost Bail and Breha to Tarkin. She then wonders if Owen and Beru truly were her family as well. The audience of course knows they were the Skywalker Family in-laws thanks to Clegg Lars marrying Shmi.

I like Disney Star Wars, I do prefer the Extended Universe/Legonds timeline, but in there there were a lot of things just accepted. It was almost known to everyone that Vader was Luke and Leia's father without any ramifications. Also the war riding and a new government raising. I like that these things are a bit more built up in the Disney universe.

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But happily ever after doesn't come easily. As soon as Han and Leia depart their idyllic ceremony on Endor for their honeymoon, they find themselves on the grandest and most glamorous stage of all: the Halcyon , a luxury vessel on a very public journey to the most wondrous worlds in the galaxy. Their marriage, and the peace and prosperity it represents, is a lightning rod for everyone in the galaxy–including Imperial remnants still clinging to power.