When I was first introduced to Choose Your Destiny-type stories in my childhood, they were themed around a certain medieval role-playing game with monsters and mazes—A game that I was not allowed to play. So I was immediately drawn to the magical world they occupied, throwing myself fully into the adventure that I could choose. They filled hours of my life as I tried to seek out the best possible outcome…never winning the treasure on the first try and having to go back and learn from my mistakes to optimize my decisions.
Of course, the format fits perfectly with a Star Wars theme, and what could be more appropriate than Han Solo and Chewbacca as the pair of protagonists that the reader must follow and direct? That’s exactly what Choose Your Destiny: A Han & Chewie Adventure is.
The beauty of these books rests in the difference between what we think the character should do and what they actually need to accomplish to be successful. Is Han a skilled enough liar to fool the Empire over radio? Or does his charisma only work in person? Does he always rely on deception, or is honesty the best policy?
Author Cavan Scott, writer of comics and novels across the sci-fi galaxy, pens a very convincing Han. His wit, his mischief and his speech all seem like it has jumped right off the big screen. Combine that with our mind’s eyes portrayal of Han, and I enjoyed this book as much as I did any Saga Film or Star Wars Story focused on Han.
The weakness of the Choose Your Destiny format is that, after two or three attempts, the early choices become less interesting to read, and that can send the reader forward without really committing to the nuance of the story. It could even tempt the reader to skip those chapters and simply jump back to their last poor decision. This would go hand in hand with actually peeking ahead to see if THE END appears on the page, then jumping back under the guise of “I didn’t really want to go there…” I suppose that is the playful nature of these books.
Whatever your approach—by the rules or a more fluid structure—make sure to take the time to appreciate Scott’s very well written approach to these popular characters and their adventures that fit well between the films we all know and love.