I threatened to write an elaborate thinkpiece on this book, and since no-one talked me off the cliff, here it is. I think I’m going to go full spoiler here, because I doubt I need to talk anyone into reading the 9th book in a series I’ve been recommending for a year. If you haven’t read the book, don’t read on unless you want me to ruin the ending for you.
The end has come.
In Message for the Dead, I thought the end was upon the galaxy, but Goth Sullus used his connection to the Crux to stem the tide, vanquishing the murderous and hateful Cybar and binding them to his will. Alas, it turns out that his victory was to be short-lived, and he would not succeed at building an Empire to last a thousand years. At the very moment of his triumph, his dreams turned to ashes in his mouth, and his power deserted him.
Unfortunately, despite his advanced age, Goth Sullus forgot to heed the advice of the venerable 100 Tips for Evil Overlords #22, “do not consume an energy field bigger than your head, no matter how much power is at stake”. [on a side note, I see that the author of the evil overlord list’s last name is Anspach. Coincidence?]
Of course, I am kidding. Goth Sullus pretty clearly knows most of these things. Sullus did not make any cartoonish mistakes. He was just undone by his moral failings, as nemesis follows hubris. It would be easy to condemn Sullus as a monster, which he is, but he is also genuinely a great man. Thus his end, when it comes, is all the more tragic.
I wish to focus here on Sullus, in part because I am fascinated by his character, but also because in retrospect, the entirety of the first nine books of the Galaxy’s Edge series turns upon Goth Sullus and his actions. Even the Battle of Kublar was but the preamble [with the collusion of X] to his campaign to bring justice to the galaxy.
If we now turn to the events of Retribution, one of the key threads is the final temptation of Goth Sullus. In Message for the Dead, the dread secret of the Cybar was heavily hinted, but here in Retribution, the truth is laid bare: the Cybar are but manifestations of demons and devils seeking to invade and despoil the galaxy.
Blinded as he is by pride and ambition, Sullus cannot see this. Even though preventing this was why Sullus went seeking power! As surprising as this may seem, given his history, the temptation of Goth Sullus proceeds in a plausible fashion. Like the target of the apprentice devil Screwtape, the ultimate masters of the Cybar proceed from flattery, to practical advice, to offers of service, to demands of fealty. Reading this, I thought it felt about right. The whisperings of temptation do sound like this. From my own small experience, this felt real.
I had hoped for redemption for Sullus. In the end, he had spent far too long indulging his fantasies of power and revenge to act in time. Goth Sullus was vain-glorious and prideful, easy pickings for the masters of deceit. Casper might have resisted, but that persona was long diminished by the time he had completed his transformation into Sullus. Once he [Sullus] realized his danger, he [Casper] was too far gone to resist effectively. Virtue is simply what we habitually do, and for Sullus, his habits betrayed him in the end. When Wraith walked up and put a bullet in his head, it was the best thing that could have happened to him at that point. We can perhaps nonetheless hope that his final resistance will count in his favor at the final judgment.
The end of Goth Sullus brings a fitting end to the first season of Galaxy’s Edge. Most everyone who deserved a bullet has gotten one. Order, of a sort, has been restored to the galaxy. Things will never be as they were, but life will go on.
There are just enough loose threads left for the authors to spin up another round of books, but I felt satisfied at the end of this. Each book in the series had its own feel, its own good moments, and then in the end it all came together cleanly. This was a hell of a good read, and I hope everyone else enjoyed the ride as much as I did.
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From the Publisher
Hold on, you’re about to make the jump to light-speed in Galaxy’s Edge.
Leap into a living universe of war’s heroes knee-deep in dark intrigues, blasters and bots in blind alley combat, and scoundrel captains looking to coax one more smuggling run out of their broken-down freighters.
Each book in the Galaxy's Edge series is an essential piece of an interconnected whole. Fight alongside Lieutenant Chhun and Victory Company through the deserts of Kublar in Legionnaire. Join the roguish Captain Keel and notorious bounty hunter Tyrus Rechs as they chase the same target in Galactic Outlaws. Continue to Kill Team to see how all these characters find their place on the galactic stage together, along with Legion Commander Keller, Dark Ops, and the mysterious secret agent X... then brace for a civil war initiated by the enigmatic Goth Sullus in Attack of Shadows.
And that's only the beginning.
Gripping Audiobooks!
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Galaxy's Edge Part INarrated by award-winner R.C. Bray, Galaxy's Edge Part I combines the first two books of the series (Legionnaire & Galactic Outlaws) into one riveting listening experience. |
Galaxy's Edge Part IIPart II consists of Kill Team and Attack of Shadows, with R.C. Bray delivering another commanding performance! |
Galaxy's Edge Part IIIPart III continues to provide listeners two books per volume, capturing the moment when the series begins to thread all portions together: Sword of the Legion & Prisoners of Darkness. |
A Self-Contained and Expansive Universe!
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Galaxy's Edge Season OneThe primary story arc detailing how the legionnaires of Victory Company found themselves at the center of a galactic-wide crisis more sinister, violent, and underhanded than they could possibly imagine!
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Tyrus Rechs: Contracts & TerminationsA series of action-adventure thrillers following the Galaxy's most notorious bounty hunter, Tyrus Rechs. This series sheds more light on Rechs's place in the galaxy, and the events leading up to the Battle of Kublar. |
Compelling Stand-AlonesGalaxy's Edge is rich in its own history, with virtually every character having a detailed back story, just waiting to be told. Imperator tells the origins of Goth Sullus, the would-be ruler of the Republic. Tin Man provides a touching tale of a repurposed war bot. |
More to come!The galaxy is a dumpster fire, and that fire still burns! Still scheduled for release are series detailing the SAVAGE WARS, Kill Team Victory, Wraith's Dark Ops Mission, The Order of the Centurion winners and more! |
Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on November 26, 2018
Reviewed in the United States on February 12, 2022
Reviewed in the United States on October 20, 2023
Reviewed in the United States on November 3, 2018
Top reviews from other countries
Ian Kelland
Great end to a great series
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 11, 2020
JD (Baen Fan)
It's the final battle between the Legion and the Black Fleet. KTF, Leejs!
Reviewed in Australia on September 17, 2019Soulsmith
Really enjoyed this book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 9, 2018