Today at New York Comic Con, Del Rey announced two big new upcoming books in the Star Wars universe: one which will reveal a story that’s gone untold for decades, and one which will be helmed by a writer responsible for one of the most acclaimed science fiction books of the past three years.
John Jackson Miller will tackle Kenobi, which details the Jedi’s life right after the events of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. In the author’s words:
Kenobi is a sweeping story that’s part epic western, part high-stakes drama, part romance — but it’s all Star Wars, taking place in the early days of Obi-Wan’s exile to Tatooine. I’ve been working on this concept for years and the basics are pretty simple. The greatest hero in the galaxy faces his toughest challenge yet: He must stop being Obi-Wan — and learn to live as Ben.
Kenobi is set for release in late 2013.
The other big announcement was the reveal of a third book in the upcoming “Rebels” standalone novels, all of which focus on the main characters in the original trilogy and which take place between Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back.
The new book, focused on Han Solo, will be written by James S. A. Corey, otherwise known as Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck, the authors of the well-received space opera Leviathan Wakes (and its recent sequel Caliban’s War).
Other tidbits from the Del Rey Star Wars books panel, gleaned by Aaron Goins:
- Crucible won’t be the final adventure for the big 3 (Leia, Luke, and Han) but it will be a big adventure and will change them forever. A passing of the baton.
- Dan Wallace is 80% done with the new Essential Guide to characters. Won’t retread a lot of characters done before.
- New post-“Fate of the Jedi” series “Sword of the Jedi” is not just a Jaina series. Will heavily feature Jag, Tahiri, Ben, and Allana.
Goins has more details at his Twitter account, linked above.
Stubby the Rocket is the mascot of Tor.com. Stubby the Rocket knows what Obi-Wan was up to all those years and it begins with the word “drink” and ends with the word “ing.”