Most casual Star Wars fans don’t think of the book spinoffs as being an essential part of the story. These novels, they assume, are essentially glorified fan-fiction rushed onto store shelves in order to cash in on the success of the movies. Besides, even if a person hypothetically wanted to become immersed in this expanded universe, where would they start? Over 200 Star Wars books have been published throughout the past several decades. Talk about impenetrable, huh?
Good news, though! When Disney purchased the rights to Lucasfilm back in 2012, they wiped every one of the existing novels out of canon, deciding to start fresh with a new series that would tie directly into the sequel trilogy. Catching up on the published material is now more easily accomplished than ever, and a few of the recent books are absolute must reads for anyone who loved The Force Awakens.
Indeed, Episode VII left us with dozens of lingering questions, but many have already been answered. When did Finn begin to question the First Order? What’s the deal with all the downed Star Destroyers on Jakku? What happened in the aftermath of the Battle of Endor? All of this information is readily available at your local bookstore at this very moment.
So, for those wishing to learn more about the galaxy far, far away, here are 8 new novels that are essential for all Star Wars fanatics.
