Young Jedi Knights


Young Jedi Knights is a Star Wars young adult fiction series by science fiction writer Kevin J. Anderson and his wife Rebecca Moesta. It was published from 1995 to 1998. It covers the Jedi training of Jacen and Jaina Solo, the twin children of Han Solo and Leia Organa Solo. The series begins 23 years ABY, when the twins are fourteen years old.
Originally intended to cover six novels, the series eventually stretched to fourteen volumes. Another volume was added in 2003 titled Jedi Shadow, which featured the first three books. It spanned three distinct plot arcs:
  1. The first plot arc covers the young Jedi Knights' fight against the dark Jedi Brakiss and his Shadow Academy, which eventually builds in strength enough to attack the Jedi academy on Yavin 4. This plot arc also introduces the twins, as well as other [|supporting characters].
  2. The series became popular enough to support a second plot arc, consisting of the novels Shards of Alderaan to The Emperor's Plague. This series deals with the young Jedi Knights' fight against the Diversity Alliance, a group of non-humans seeking to take down the New Republic.
  3. The final three-part series details the young Jedi Knights' relationship with Anja Gallandro, the daughter of Gallandro, a gunslinger who died while fighting Han Solo a long time ago.
Because it is geared towards younger readers, the Young Jedi Knights series tackles issues such as racism and drug abuse that are relevant in both the Star Wars universe and the real world. It is also notable for introducing a new generation of Jedi who are featured heavily in later series such as the New Jedi Order, Dark Nest, and Legacy of the Force.

Characters

; Jacen Solo: Age: 14-16: Lightsaber: green: Personality: kind, philosophical, humourous.: Description: Jacen is the son of Han Solo and Leia Organa Solo. He has youseld brown hair.
; Jaina Solo: The teenage daughter of Han Solo and Leia Organa Solo. Like her father, Jaina is a talented pilot and mechanic.
; Lowbacca: The Wookiee nephew of Chewbacca. He is known to his friends as Lowie, and enjoys tinkering with computers.
; Em Teedee: Long form of M-TD, a miniature protocol droid that Lowbacca wears on his hip. Em Teedee also translates for Lowbacca. Since he is programmed by C-3PO, Em Teedee has a tendency to be long-winded.
; Tenel Ka: Is a young princess of Hapes, though she prefers to be known as a warrior of Dathomir.
; Zekk: The childhood friend of Jaina and Jacen, Zekk is adept at finding hidden things.
; Brakiss: A dark Jedi who creates the Shadow Academy, the dark Jedi analog to the Jedi academy
; Anja Gallandro: The daughter of the notorious gunslinger Gallandro, who was thought to have been killed by Han Solo in one of his earliest adventures.
; Other characters: Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia Organa, Chewbacca, Raynar Thul, C-3PO

Plot summaries

Book 1: ''Heirs of the Force''

Heirs of the Force is about the adventures of Jacen Solo and Jaina Solo during their time at the Jedi Praxeum. After spending a month of training to become Jedi Knights at Luke Skywalker's Jedi academy, Jacen and Jaina's father Han Solo arrives on Yavin 4 with gifts for the twins and a new Jedi trainee — Chewbacca's nephew, Lowbacca. Along with Tenel Ka — a seemingly humorless warrior girl who befriended them during the past month — the twins and "Lowie" become fast friends. To help Lowie communicate with his fellow students, Chewbacca and Han give him a small translator droid named Em Teedee, whose mannerisms bear an uncanny resemblance to those of the droid C-3PO.
After assembling the T-23 skyhopper that his uncle had given to him as a going-away present, Lowie takes it on a test flight. He spots a shiny object glimmering in the branches of a Massassi tree, and returns to the Praxeum, vowing to return as soon as possible. After missing evening meal, Lowie shares his discovery with Jacen, Jaina and Tenel Ka. The next day the four Jedi trainees set out in the skyhopper to investigate Lowie's discovery.
When they arrive at the site, Jacen, Jaina, Lowie, and Tenel Ka discover not just a TIE fighter's wing, but the rest of the TIE fighter as well. Somewhat envious of Lowie's skyhopper, and wanting to face the challenge, Jaina believes that the wrecked TIE fighter can be fixed. Scrounging up parts from the remains of the old Rebel base and the area surrounding the crash, the Jedi trainees go about the task of fixing the wrecked fighter. In addition to the repairs, Jaina decides to install an old hyperdrive unit onto the fighter as well.
Unbeknownst to the Jedi trainees, their work is being watched closely by Qorl, the pilot who had crashed the fighter during the Battle of Yavin. During the past 23 years he has been waiting the opportunity to return to the Empire and help obliterate the Rebellion.
One day while searching for more parts for the TIE fighter, Jacen finds an Imperial insignia that had come off of Qorl's uniform. He searches further, eventually discovering what has been Qorl's home for the past 23 years. He rushes back to the site of the crash and warns Jaina, Tenel Ka, and Lowbacca of the pilot's survival. Immediately thereafter Qorl appears, brandishing a blaster and telling the Jedi trainees that they are his prisoners.
Lowbacca escapes with his skyhopper and attempts to utilize its bulk in attempting to scare Qorl away. Qorl is unfazed, however, and uses his blaster to great effect, critically damaging the skyhopper. Lowie flies away and lands the skyhopper. Grateful that it doesn't explode, he begins to make his way to the Praxeum. In the process of getting there, Em Teedee is detached from Lowbacca's belt and has an adventure with a pack of woolamanders.
Lowbacca arrives at the Praxeum but no one can understand him because he lost Em Teedee. Frustrated, he recalls that Han and Chewbacca are still nearby, checking out Lando Calrissian's new GemDiver Station. He heads to the Praxeum's communications center and informs Han about the situation. Han tells Lowie that he will be back as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, Tenel Ka flees into the jungle. She is then attacked by a number of the two-headed beasts that the disembodied spirit of Exar Kun had sent to destroy Luke Skywalker's body in 11 ABY. She eventually stumbles upon a pack of woolamanders, which provides an effective distraction to the beasts that were hunting her. In the commotion she hears the voice of Em Teedee crying for help. She rescues him and uses his directional sensors to make her way back to the Praxeum.
At the crash site, Qorl marches Jacen and Jaina back to his home at gunpoint. Once there, he restrains them and gives them something to eat. Jaina and Jacen realize that Qorl has had absolutely no contact with the outside world and inform him of the current political situation in the Galaxy. The next day, Qorl marches the twins back to the crash site at gunpoint, ordering them to complete the repairs on the TIE fighter so that he may return to the Empire. The twins do so, and he blasts off, vowing to destroy the Praxeum before reporting back to the Empire.
Han Solo and Chewbacca arrive at the Praxeum in the Millennium Falcon. Shortly before taking off with Lowbacca to save the twins, Han allows Tenel Ka and Em Teedee to board the Falcon. Once they are airborne, they notice a TIE fighter making a beeline for the Praxeum. Qorl tries to fire his laser cannons, but it turns out that the twins didn't restore them to good working order. The Falcon chases him as he flies out of the atmosphere and escapes, using the hyperdrive that Jaina had installed on the TIE fighter.
Once the TIE fighter has made the jump to hyperspace, Han, Chewbacca, Lowie and Tenel Ka head for the crash site, finding that despite looking the worse for wear, Jacen and Jaina seem to be fine. A few days later the Falcon carries the damaged skyhopper back to the Praxeum. Lowie and Jaina immediately begin work on the airspeeder. The four Jedi trainees contemplate whether Qorl made it back to the Empire...

Book 2: ''Shadow Academy''

and Jaina are kidnapped by Imperial commandos and whisked off to a hidden station where are imprisoned in the "Shadow Academy" by a Dark Jedi.
The book begins with Lando Calrissian, Han's old buddy, inviting the young Jedi Knights to visit his GemDiver station, a mining facility orbiting the gas planet Yavin. All the Jedi agree to go to GemDiver station, except for Tenel Ka, who stays at the academy because her grandmother is coming to visit, and she does not want her friends to know that she is a princess on her homeworld of Hapes.
Meanwhile, at GemDiver, the twins go fishing for Corusca gems, indestructible jewels that can cut through the toughest armor. All are unsuccessful except for Jacen, who snags a small Corusca gem which he hides in his shoe. Suddenly, the GemDiver station is attacked by an unknown assailant, and Lowie and the twins are kidnapped. When they wake up, they learn they are on the cloaked space station called the Shadow Academy, a place for training Dark Jedi. They are soon introduced to the Dark Master Brakiss and his second in command, the beautiful Nightsister Tamith Kai of Dathomir. For the next weeks they put the young Jedi through vigorous and sometimes deadly training exercises, breaking their spirits, morale, and bodies. They try and turn the Jedi to the dark side of the Force and serve the resurrected Emperor, but the young Jedi Knights resist the temptation.
Meanwhile, Lando informs Luke of the twins' kidnapping, so Luke and Tenel Ka begin to track down the whereabouts of their friends. Their search leads them to Tamith Kai’s home planet of Dathomir, where the Nightsisters and the Singing Mountain clan, old enemies and friends of Luke and Han, reside. There they learn that the Empire is recruiting the Force-talented inhabitants of Dathomir and sending them to the Shadow Academy. Luke and Tenel Ka cleverly get themselves recruited, and then wait as they head towards the secret location of the Shadow Academy.
As Luke and Tenel Ka approach the now uncloaked space station, they take over the ship and fly it into the academy to rescue their friends. To escape, Jacen uses the Corusca gem that was hidden in his shoe to cut through his cell to the door controls, and then frees his twin sister and Lowie shortly afterwards. As they run towards the docking bay to leave, they are confronted by Tamith Kai and Brakiss. Luke and Brakiss exchange a few unpleasant words, while Tamith Kai and Tenel Ka thicken their rivalry with talk of doing battle. But in the end, the Jedi somehow escape without a fight, leaving Brakiss and Tamith Kai to explain their failure to the Emperor. As it turns out, they would not have escaped if it weren't for the help of their old nemesis, the imperial pilot Qorl...