The more I read this series, the more I wonder why people dismissed it as being boring and uneventful. The storyline of this novel does divide into 3 arcs, with the Anakin arc being the most interesting as it concerns his love interest with Tahiri Veila. The fight scenes, both in space and hand to hand, are well written and intense. The birth of Ben Skywalker is also intriguing as I know that my new favorite character (young Solo) doesn't make it to the end of the series. I'm almost certain that Ben will become what Anakin has become since the start of this series: a hero.