Audio Review: The Princess and the Scoundrel by Beth Revis

The Princess and the Scoundrel by Beth Revis
Narrator: Marc Thompson, Saskia Maarleveld
Series: Star Wars Disney Canon Novel
Published by Random House Audio on 2022-08-16
Length: 12 hours and 45 minutes
Reviewing Audiobook from Audible
Rating:
Reading Challenges: 2023 Audiobook Challenge, COYER 2023

You are cordially invited to the wedding of Princess Leia Organa and Han Solo.

The Death Star is destroyed. Darth Vader is dead. The Empire is desolate. But on the forest moon of Endor, among the chaos of a changing galaxy, time stands still for a princess and her scoundrel.

After being frozen in carbonite, then risking everything for the Rebellion, Han is eager to stop living his life for other people. He and Leia have earned their future together, a thousand times over. And when he proposes to Leia, it’s the first time in a long time he’s had a good feeling about this. For Leia, a lifetime of fighting doesn’t seem truly over. There is work still to do, penance to pay for the dark secret that she now knows runs through her veins. Her brother, Luke, is offering her that chance—one that comes with family and the promise of the Force. But when Han asks her to marry him, Leia finds her answer immediately on her lips . . . Yes.

Yet happily ever after doesn’t come easily. As soon as Han and Leia depart their idyllic ceremony 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, are a lightning rod for all—including Imperial remnants still clinging to power.

Facing their most desperate hour, the soldiers of the Empire have dispersed across the galaxy, retrenching on isolated planets vulnerable to their influence. As the Halcyon travels from world to world, one thing becomes abundantly clear: The war is not over. But as danger draws closer, Han and Leia find that they fight their best battles not alone, but as husband and wife.

What a read! The Princess and the Scoundrel by Beth Revis is the first Star Wars book I’ve read as an adult, and now I’m wondering why I’ve waited so long. I am a life long fan of Star Wars, meaning that I cannot tell you the first time I ever watched it because it has just always been. Princess Leia, Luke, Han, Chewie, Threepio, and R2 are a part of my childhood and will always be what influenced my love for sci-fi. Because of this, I’ve always been hesitant to read books set in their world. Lucas got it perfect in my opinion. I am so glad that my husband finally wore me down enough that I agreed to buddy read this one with a fellow book lover (thanks Kristen!).

The Princess and the Scoundrel begins the same night the Death Star exploded. We find Princess Leia celebrating on Endor and beginning to process what this means for the new government as they can no longer call themselves rebels. In the midst of this inner turmoil, she finds peace with Han. She spent a year looking for him and then rescuing him from Jabba the Hutt. She had a full year to love this man, grow without him, and fight for him. When he proposes, the answer is immediate and feels so natural. Seeing as this couple was my original OTP, I was in my element reading about their honeymoon 😀

For Han, it’s been one week since he awoke from being frozen in carbonite. The last thing he remembers was the princess telling him she loved him and then pain. Since then, he was promoted to general and led an assault on Endor, and now the war that had barely started for him is over. It’s a lot to cope with, and to be honest he is struggling. Like Leia though, he finds peace with her. He’s ready to start a new life, whatever that may look like, as long as she is in it. What he as yet to come to realize is what that means.

I loved seeing the beginnings of their relationship here. These are two people that come from completely opposite worlds (both literally and figuratively), and they have to find a way to cope with that. Han’s frustration with Leia is true to life as he deals with her always putting everyone above her own needs. She’s a diplomat, an ambassador, but she also has a large heart. She empathizes with and feels the grief of others deeply. For Han, he has to find a way to support her and make her see she is no longer alone.

The plot of this one is character driven, but also there is a lot happening. We get a glimpse of life after the fall of the empire. Leia and Han are sent on a honeymoon on the Halcyon, a luxury star cruiser who is going on its first voyage free of the empire. Here we see both sides coming together, those that supported the empire and those happy to be free of it. Leia is in more danger than she’s ever been, and Han isn’t comfortable with that as he realizes just how much. When they find themselves on a frozen moon as part of the cruise, they must find a way to work as a team to help its citizens.

If you can’t tell already, I loved The Princess and the Scoundrel. I could ramble on for several more paragraphs about why I loved it so much, but I’ll stop here 😂 Fans of Star Wars will love seeing Han and Leia as the begin their lives as husband and wife with the remnants of the empire looming around every corner. Exciting and thrilling read!

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