In terms of sci-fi, Star Wars is probably the one series anyone can recognize. This is both a blessing, because there is a ton of Star Wars novels today, and curse, since most of them are not really all that good. However, back in the early 1990’s there were not many Star Wars novels at all, and publisher Bantam Spectra decided to test the waters. Of the explosion of Star Wars novels that came of this, there are only two series I will recommend, and of those two, X-Wing: Rogue Squadron is probably the easier read.
To put it mildly, X-Wing: Rogue Squadron has all the things you would expect from a proper Star Wars story: X-Wings, Stormtroopers, and gratuitous space battles. Taking place months after the events of Return of the Jedi, the Rebel Alliance is slowly making progress in defeating the Empire planet by planet. Even though the Emperor may have taken a one way vacation to the bottom of the second Death Star’s vent system, the Empire itself remains together under the rule of Imperial officials on the capital world of Coruscant. In order to take the fight to this fortress world, an elite team of fighter pilots are assembled under the command of Wedge Antilles, that guy you may remember as Luke Skywalker’s wingman who missed the Death Stars vent in the first movie. As the squadron trains, fights, and deals with losses, the characters come to life and make the novel fun and interesting.
This novel and the following series are not like Revelation Space with a dense and complex plot, or Foundation with its groundbreaking ideas, but it is still a fun read that makes the pages fly by.
SDSU Sci Fi 