Han and Leia Tie The Knot and Venture on Their Honeymoon, What Could Go Wrong?

Princess and the Scoundrel by Beth Revis brings a change of pace to the Star Wars reading material in an unexpected, interesting direction: romance. It's not often that we get novels that lean more in the romance genre, so for romance enthusiasts out there who enjoy Star Wars, this one is for you. Picking up immediately after Return of the Jedi, our heroes are celebrating their latest victory over the Empire and are preparing for the fight of their lives to run out the remaining Imperial remnants throughout the galaxy. Meanwhile, Han and Leia decide to tie the knot, and instead of staying with the Rebels to plan their next moves, Mon Mothma gifts the newlyweds a stay on the Halcyon, but leave it to Han and Leia to wind up fighting the Empire on their honeymoon.

Princess and the Scoundrel is a slow-burn, only picking up near the final act, but most of the book is intricate character exploration, political fiasco, and of course, romance. Revis' characterization of Han and Leia is wonderful, and I enjoyed exploring sides of these characters we haven't seen. For instance, underneath all that scruffiness, Han has a sweetness to him and a willingness to change his life for someone he loves. It's no secret that Han runs away from his problems, but it's evident that he is tired of running away; rather, he doesn't want to run away from Leia. Despite Han's dialogue falling flat in some instances, understanding the emotion and complexity of Han's thoughts makes up for it. Additionally, we see parallels of softer moments with Leia as she ponders her lineage, the future of the galaxy, politics, her relationship with the Force, and love. Overall, various quiet moments between characters truly stand out and are ones to pay attention to, especially Leia's conversation with Luke. Moreover, there are various connections to other content within the Star Wars universe, so if you have been keeping up with canon, you will be pleasantly surprised and left feeling rewarded for your time spent consuming the other content.

It's no secret that the main destination of the novel is none other than the Halcyon, and it's also no secret why it's in the book. Despite artful motivations for including the Halcyon, I thought it was done fairly well; though, the intentions behind doing so are still glaringly obvious. Revis uses the Halcyon not only as a main focal point of the story, but also as a means for the Rebels to strategically communicate it is safe for the rest of the galaxy to return to a sense of normalcy, like the pre-Empire days. Sure, this does come at a cost of the romance aspect of Han and Leia's honeymoon since it is partially a political charade, thanks to Mon Mothma, but it helps make all the pieces come together. I will give some credit to the creators calling this ship the Halcyon, which means indicating a time in the past that was idyllically happy and peaceful, since there has yet to be a lasting calm, pleasant experience on this ship without things going awry - the irony is very much appreciated by this reader.

Final Thoughts: Princess and the Scoundrel by Beth Revis explores Han and Leia's love while further developing their characters through processing internal strife. While not a necessary read for the larger canon, Princess and the Scoundrel fills in some gaps with our favorite original trilogy characters. The audiobook, narrated by Marc Thompson as the voice of Han and Saskia Maarleveld as the voice of Leia, is delightful just as the others; both actors are phenomenal and the sound effects are superb as always. Regardless which route you choose to enjoy Princess and the Scoundrel, there is something in there for everyone.

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