Star Wars: The Mask of Fear starts a few months after the creation of the Galactic Empire. Mon Mothma spearheads a movement to prevent Emperor Palpatine from having absolute power over the Senate.
Reign of the Empire: The Mask of Fear is a part of a planned trilogy, written by Alexander Freed. It will be available in audio, physical, and digital formats on February 25th, 2025. We received an early copy of the book for review.
This review does NOT INCLUDE story spoilers.
The Clone Wars aftermath
Reign of the Empire: The Mask of Fear happens just a few months after Order 66. The war is behind but times continue to be difficult. Bail Organa is still grieving the loss of his friend, Padmé Amidala, and the entire Jedi Order.
The Senator is fully aware of what happened and how the Jedi were labeled as traitors after being massacred and that is something he refuses to accept. One way or another he will try to make things right.
Mon Mothma tries to have the Senate recover a portion of the power that was taken from them after former Chancellor Palpatine was given emergency powers during the Clone Wars. Going directly against the Emperor is a very dangerous endeavor.
Meanwhile, Saw Gerrera continues his war against his enemies. His radical approach and strange charisma have earned him quite a reputation while also increasing his followers and resources. In his search for new allies and weapons, he finds something that could either turn the tide in his favor or doom his existence.
Exploring the intricacies of politics
Politics and Star Wars have always been heavily tied together. George Lucas made sure that his work replicates many of the issues that have troubled the world for decades—armed conflicts, trade wars, corruption, hunger, unworthy leadership, and so on.
However, these issues are not always the focal point of games, series, movies, or books. Many stories revolve around the Force and people capable of wielding it. It is seen as a superior power and an entire mythology has been built around it.
The millennial conflict between the light and the dark side is the topic that some of the biggest Star Wars stories cover. Compared to that, the lives and struggles of common people seem meaningless. The struggles of a regular family are nothing compared to the fate of the entire galaxy.
As much as I enjoy reading Jedi or Sith stories, it’s refreshing to read something that tells the stories of people who are trying to do what they believe is best for their people. Whether it’s an Imperial employee, a politician, a guerrilla leader, or just a simple citizen.
Reign of the Empire: The Mask of Fear is a novel that focuses on the political apparatus of the recently formed Galactic Empire and some of its players.
The best thing is that we get the perspective of multiple sides. Imperial Intelligence, Mon Mothma, Bail Organa, Saw Gerrera, and a brand new character.
There is no right or wrong
During the conflict between the Galactic Republic and the CIS, politicians could propose bills that could change the course of the conflict.
Whether it was authorizing aid for multiple systems, or granting Palpatine special powers, it was a way for representatives to have some meaningful impact.
Mon Mothma has always been a very vocal member of the Senate, her defiance is one of the things that both her allies and enemies respect. There is something she is trying to do, hoping to reduce the Emperor’s power.
This is not an illustrated novel. The images you see are from other Star Wars projects, used here to expand the context.
To do so, she requires the help of different allies; senators, friends, and even strangers. It’s very cool to see what she has to do and how far she is willing to go in order to accomplish her goals. This also applies to Bail Organa, he has a different goal a more idealistic one, and is willing to risk everything to achieve it.
The two senators have always been portrayed as two of the most respectable politicians. However, we get to see a new side of them. The entire system is against them, and even with all of their resources, they have to resort to things that you’d never expect from them.
Politics aren’t black or white, there are so many variables and things that can change the situation in a matter of seconds. The line between what’s right or not is very blurry when the stakes are so high.
Everyone has to make sacrifices, whether it’s money, ideals, consciousness, or someone’s life. It’s very similar to what Luthen Rael says in his iconic speech but certainly not as extreme as what he does.
I really enjoyed how everyone committed to their own cause while also questioning how much is “too much”. It’s not easy to make difficult choices that will make you change your own self-image. Something like taking a life could be trivial for some but for others, it is what sets them apart from the evil.
But as I said before, things can’t be seen as black or white. The characters are presented with dilemmas that could bend anyone’s determination.
It changes from character to character depending on their allegiances and moral compass but considering this is the first of three books, I think that these tough choices are only going to get more common as the story progresses.
The conception of the Rebel Alliance
We’ve seen the Rebel Alliance in different stages of its development. In the original trilogy films, Andor, and Star Wars Rebels. Their size, members, and short-term goals may vary depending on the era but their reason to exist is always the same, to fight back against the oppression and tyranny of the Galactic Empire and its Emperor.
Since the Republic is no more, everything is new and everyone is still adapting to the new government and the ways it operates. With the war finally over, the common citizens can sleep without worrying about being bombed by the droid army.
The current peace is just a facade to what is going on behind the scenes. Palpatine is slowly moving his pieces to consolidate himself as the undisputable ruler of the galaxy and every powerful or wealthy person is aware of it.
To fall in line hoping for the best, defy him directly or secretly try to undermine him are the three options that his opponents have. People with different values, perspectives, and approaches will have to unite if they hope to survive what is to come. The Rebel Alliance is still a few years away from being created but this is where we start to see the first seeds of it.
Palpatine is always ahead of everybody. The Jedi fell right into his trap and they paid the price for it. With them gone, there is no one who stands a chance against the Sith mastermind.
That doesn’t stop him from allowing things to move on naturally. He’s probably entertained by the futile attempts his enemies do to stop him. It doesn’t matter if it’s a new bill or a guerrilla bombing an important installation. In his eyes, no one can do a thing to stop him from getting what he wants.
Listening to the audiobook
I find Star Wars to be more immersive when listening to the audiobook while reading. Getting a better idea of character’s voices and personalities.
Add sound effects and music on the most intense parts and you get the most immersive experience possible, at least when it comes to books.
The Mask of Fear is a little different from most of the books I’ve reviewed recently. The music emphasizes suspense and drama rather than action.
While there are some intense chapters, this book’s highlights don’t revolve around great battles so if you compare it to other titles it might appear to be lackluster on that front.
However, the narrator is what makes the audio version so good. Every narrator does voice impressions, and when those characters are well-known it becomes a lot more important because doing a bad job can be so off-putting. January LaVoy does an incredible job at voicing Mon Mothma.
While we get a lot of different perspectives, Mon Mothma is arguably the most important character of the story. So it was a very pleasant surprise to hear someone I couldn’t differentiate from Genevieve O’Reilly herself. The audio version is about 16 hours long.
Final thoughts
After only one book I’m already convinced that this trilogy is going to be something unique. All the characters are deep, and this allowed me to get invested in the story and the fate of all participants.
As mentioned in another segment, this book explores the perspectives of multiple characters from different factions. This adds a layer of complexity, without making it hard to follow up.
The only downside of this is that I got frustrated when I realized that the answers to some of my questions would have to wait until I got back to a character. But this is a very popular trend these days, so we should not be surprised.
It’s been a while since I’ve had so much fun reading a story that has so little action. It’s a fantastic story but I recognize that it’s definitely not for everyone.
Betrayal, conspiracies, and politics are what make this book so fun. Compared to the High Republic stories or something recent like The Glass Abyss, The Mask of Fear is “slow”.
Lightsaber fights and armed conflict are always entertaining but it’s very nice to have something different for once. Alexander Freed is responsible for creating the Imperial Agent storyline in Star Wars The Old Republic. Out of all eight class stories, I believe this to be the best one by miles.
I know that not everybody has played SWTOR, but if you love shows like Andor or House of Cards, this book is definitely for you.
We have prepared a handy companion guide for you to read before you start The Mask of Fear. It gives you more background details of the main protagonists and helps you familiarize yourself with their actions leading up to the events described in the book.
This entire review as well as the summary in the review card below are all based on our own opinions as fans of the franchise. We would love it if you shared your thoughts.
Full Title:
Reign of the Empire: The Mask of fear
Author
Alexander Freed
Genre
Political Thriller
Era
Original Trilogy
Release
February 25th, 2025
Length
469 pages
16h 51 min
Similar
Imperial Agent Storyline (SWTOR)
Alphabet Squadron Trilogy
For
Fans of Andor
People who watched Rebels
The Good
A different side of Mon Mothma
New characters
Multiple perspectives of the same topic
Explores the origins of the Rebel Alliance
The Bad
Very slow build-up
Anticlimactic end of a main character
Ratings
Story
Character Depth
Surprise factor
Descriptiveness
Reading Pace
Audio Version
Final Verdict
4.2
Average of the first 5 categories
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