Product Description
Performed by Luke Perry
Five CD's, 5 hrs. 15 min.

He returned to enthrall his fans all across the world with his second triumph, THE LOOP, proving that here was a master storyteller of enduring power and appeal.

Now, the acclaimed author delivers a searing new novel of love and loyalty, of guilt and honor. In a story set against the epic backdrop of wilderness firefighting and frontline photojournalism, he gives his many listeners another hero...


In THE SMOKE JUMPER, Nicholas Evans delivers his most powerful novel to date, a story of two best friends and the woman they both love. When a terrible mountain fire forces her to choose between them, all three lives are changed forever. Here, Evans explores the territory he has carved out as his own: raw but complex emotions set against a vast landscape. Writing unflinchingly about the yearnings of the human heart and the painful quest for self-discovery, he gives listeners a story of three fine people forced to walk the flames of passion and guilt, and to make the devastating choice between love and honor.


THE SMOKE JUMPER combines pulse-pounding suspense with an unforgettable love story that his listeners all over the world will avidly embrace.
Amazon.com Review
New York born and bred, Julia Bishop has no warning that spending the summer counseling troubled teens in Montana will change her life forever. Happily in love with smoke jumper and musician Ed Tully, she looks forward to spending the summer weekends with him in Missoula and is stunned and disturbed by the instant connection she feels to his best friend, Connor Ford. Connor, a Montana rancher and smoke jumper, loves fighting fires almost as much as he loves photography, and before the summer is barely started, he loves Julia Bishop just as deeply. The bond between the three is strong but the work of a smoke jumper is fraught with danger and the trio soon face death by fire. Survival changes their lives forever and places them on paths that divide Julia, Ed, and Connor just as surely as their individual journeys bind them irrevocably together. The Smoke Jumper is a tale of loyalty and guilt, honor and selfless love, and the human cost of choices made. --Lois Faye Dyer ... Read more

Customer Reviews (122)

The Smoke Jumper
What a great writer!Wonderful symbolism and foreshadowing and depth to this novel.Lots of action and informative as well.I had no idea that smoke jumpers even existed before I read this book. This is the type of novel we would STUDY in a literature course in college.

weak, weak book
Not to be overly critical, but this is a very poor book from the author of a very good one (Whisperer). There is nothing that could be done with this manuscript because every single sentence is so mediocre. The book starts with a poor decision, opening with a runaway called Skye who is not a very important character in the book. (She should be, but she isn't.) The book should have started with the Ed bar scene, and Julia stealing his parking space. From there, the book only gets worse, empty sentences, half-hearted action -- even the finale, when Julia and Connor see each other, In Africa, they'd be running toward each other, they wouldn't be TALKING. Just a really poor book.

Worst book I have ever read
This was by far the worst book I have ever read.I will never read another of his books and I think he should quit writing.

He jumps around so much in the story and it truly isn't about smoke jumpers.It is about a photographer being in Africa.The end was very predictable between Connor and Julia.

The language in the first three chapters and a couple towards the end was uncalled for. Those chapters would have been better without all of the swearing.

The Smoke Jumper brought me to tears
The story goes all over the place, geographically and emotionally, and there are a lot of instances where narrative tells what dialogue could have better showed (a good editor could have remedied this in the revision stage with the author) but Nicholas Evans is still a wonderful storyteller. I liked the book very much. The Smoke Jumper features a realistic love triangle, but one that always stands true to honor first, always a good thing because then the characters really shine. There is excitement, love and loss, lots of danger and plenty of poignant moments that will have you grabbing for the tissue box. The details of smoke jumping were interesting, and although the book takes a turn away from that theme, it will be important later on in the story. Nothing could have prepared me for how much I liked all three of the characters. The bond of friendship was very well done and the story had me so immersed that I finished the entire (long) book in a single day. The pacing was uneven, but all in all, a good book with characters painted well and the strength of their love and respect for each other, a shining thread throughout.

It's not often that a romance with a love triangle can come out with a happy ending, but Evans delivered it believably and with suspense at the end.

The Smoke Jumper
Fire fighting as a smoke jumper is a controlled way of playing with fire. There is always the chance of getting burned.
The story is your classical love triangle story but with a twist.
Two friends, both smoke jumpers, are in love with the same girl. Both men battle the raging fires in the forests and the fires burning inside their hearts. The lines between love, friendship, loyalty, and the meaning of life become blurred and hard to distinguish. When fate blinds one of the men, the girl decides to marry him and life changes forever for the trio.
The story is made mesmerizing by the way it's told, with detailed descriptions of places and events. You can almost feel the heat of the fire and the smoke stinging and burning in your lungs.
This action packed story is written in a straight forward way and it captured my interest and held it to the last page. ... Read more

Product Description
A miniature biography of the hot, side-burned star of Beverly Hills 90210 features a description of Luke's childhood, his rise to stardom, and his likes and dislikes and color and black-and-white photographs. ... Read more

Product Description
Walking with Jesus in the Gospel of Luke is the first in the Devotional Journey Series. This Devotional is meant to take you into the experience and witness of the Gospel of Luke. Each day you will encounter a fresh breath from God, as you walk with Jesus in the various stages of His life and ministry. This book is an open door to the God that desires to be known. ... Read more

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishings Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the worlds literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

Product Description
Chapters: Luke Urban, Gordy Soltau, Franklin Clarke, Lowell W. Perry, Jack Zilly, Tommy Mcdonald, Buddy Dial, Bob Carey, Walt Kichefski, George Wilson, Preston Carpenter, Jimmy Orr, Jim Colclough, Bill Groman, Shipwreck Kelly, Carroll Dale, Bo Roberson, Paul Dekker, Boyd Dowler, Glenn Bass, Joe Biscaha, Riggie Dwyer, Frank Jackson, Dutch Dwyer, Terry Barr, Carl Mulleneaux, Del Shofner, Dorne Dibble, Jerry Tarr, Johnny Morris, Aaron Thomas, Bill Hewitt, R. C. Owens, Jack Smith, Willie Richardson, Charles Grube, Al Krueger, Gail Cogdill, Don Currivan, Bill Swiacki, Dan Edwards, Harlon Hill, Paul Windiz, Nate Abrams, Luke Johnsos, Don Norton, Gary Barnes, Red Mack, Bob Boyd, Billy Howton, Joe Gibson, Paul Salata, Don Looney, Charley Ferguson, Sam Goldman, Gary Knafelc, Bud Sherrod, Perry Schwartz, Woodley Lewis, John Shirk, Steve Meilinger, Frank Liebel, Chuck Kassel, Frank Budd, Dave Middleton, Jim Keane, Charley Malone, Cowboy Wheeler, Bobby Joe Conrad, Jim Poole, Ray Renfro, Bill Stribling, Dick Humbert, Richard O'donnell, Bob Nussbaumer, Harold Crisler, Paul Moss, Art Decarlo, Ed Cifers, John Siegal, Bill Cox, John Greene, Malcolm Kutner, Alyn Beals, Pat Studstill, Tom Miller, Bob Mann, Jim Johnston, Cecil Souders, Bolo Perdue, Angelo Coia, Jim Phillips, Paul Mcdonough, Fred Dugan, Dave Sherer, Nolan Luhn, Sandy Sanford, Chuck Braidwood, Art Gob, Bob Masterson, Roy Kurrasch, Al Frazier, John Kovatch, Bobby Walston, Sam Morley, Ray Mathews, Max Padlow, Ralph Schilling, Gary Wisener, Bill Smith, Ed Barker, Herschel Ramsey, Bob Coolbaugh, Bill Sortet, Ted Lapka, Ben Smith, Herb Shoener, Joe Carter, Paul Mckee, Charley Frazier, John Batorski, Charles Barnard, Bernie Scherer, Clyde Goodnight, Charlie Behan, Mac Cara, Bob Motl, Tom Nash, Al Mitchell, Steve Pritko, Clyde Conner, Frank Hanny, Jerry Hennessy, Chet Ostrowski, Bob Mcchesney, Dick Duden, Versil Deskin, Ike Frankian, Lynn Bomar, Pete Marcus, Tod Goodwin, Bill Walls, R...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=25082339 ... Read more

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Jason Priestley, Luke Perry, Shannen Doherty, Brian Austin Green and more. packed with photos and filled with facts. ... Read more

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Miss Jennie Baxter, with several final and dainty touches that put to rights her hat and dress--a little pull here and a pat there--regarded herself with some complacency in the large mirror that was set before her, as indeed she had every right to do
... Read more

Product Description
Darth Vader joins forces with Xizor, an ambitious and ruthless Underlord of a criminal organization called Black Sun, to target the young Jedi knight Luke Skywalker, while Princess Leia launches a desperate campaign to free Han Solo, frozen in a carbonite slab. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (341)

Great book.
What can I say, it's a great book!

The ending was a little disappointing, but I think that's because we know how it must end. It sets the stage for Return of the Jedi and it ends just before ROTJ begins.

The very best thing about this book? You get a look into Darth Vader's head. We get to see the twisted being he really is, how he really feels (something we don't get to see in The Empire Strikes back novel) and how really terrified he is of going against the Emperor's wishes. You get to see how he feels about his son. I would go into this further, but I don't want to spoil anything, so I will stop there.

If you like Star Wars, I recommend this book to you.

"Stand back.Let's see if it will stop a lightsaber."
"Stand back.Let's see if it will stop a lightsaber."
Han Solo is locked in carbonite, in the possession of Boba Fett.Luke, Lando, Leia, and Chewie are desperately searching for the bounty hunter, in the hopes of rescuing Han.Meanwhile, Prince Xizor of the Black Sun is angling to destroy his rival and destroyer of his family, Darth Vader.
NOTE: Based on the audiobook and what I remember of the novel I read years ago.

I Liked:
Steve Perry is given a difficult task: bridge the gap between The Empire Strikes Backand Return of the Jedi.This is difficult because he has to write an interesting book, yet keep continuity.Most authors just have to write a plausible future Luke, Leia, and Han; this job is far more difficult.And for the most part, Perry does an impressive job.
The characters were fairly strong, namely Luke and Leia.I liked how Perry lead Luke into being the sedate Jedi we see in Return of the Jedi, making him grow from the brash apprentice in Empire Strikes Back.One moment I particularly was fond of was Luke returning to Obi-Wan's hovel to build his lightsaber.I loved this little bit of continuity.Leia was also well done, conflicted about her feelings to Han, wondering how he felt, nervous, yet still strong even in the face of Prince Xizor's advances (which were fine to me as he was using pheromones on her--in fact, I thought it made her look stronger to be able to withstand his biological advances).
As for our bad guys, we rarely get to see Darth Vader in the helmet, and at the time, this novel was novel (har har) in that we got a Vader point of view.Since most Bantam books were strictly post-Jedi, Vader got omitted completely, which was a shame, as he was such an interesting character.Here, I enjoyed how Perry had Vader try to use the Dark Side to heal himself, but always fail, as his joy for being healed won out.
Lastly, I oddly liked how it was unclear whether or not Prince Xizor died (at least, that's the way I heard it).

I Didn't Like:
The first thing I didn't like was how much Dash Rendar was like Han Solo.Now, I've heard that the character was created for the game, so maybe Perry had very little choice in how Dash was supposed to be.Okay, I understand that.But still, couldn't Perry have tried a wee bit harder to make Dash unique and not so much like Han?I couldn't help but wince when I read him in a scene.
Xizor is often uplifted as this really great villain, and I am just unsure why.Sure, he plots and schemes in this book, but, partly because he is doomed to fail, nothing happens of it.All he does is exercise, change clothes, and seduce women.I wish Perry had allowed Xizor some way of winning something, just so I could be assured he was a real threat, instead of a dandified playboy.And I almost didn't even want to start reading the novel when Xizor miraculously knows that Vader is Anakin Skywalker.No one knows that!How does he?
Another problem I have is how this book feels like filler.Other than a few nice tie-ins (Leia getting the Boushh costume, the thermal detonator, Luke's lightsaber, the Bothan spies), the whole book is just filler.We all know the outcome, there is little suspense, there is little to engage us.It doesn't help when circumstances keep repeating themselves (Leia gets kidnapped to lure Luke to Coruscant, like done in Empire, Dash Rendar returns to help like Han returned to help Luke in A New Hope, Luke and Lando hide in a surprisingly dense asteroid field, and so on).

My last complaint is about Perry's writing style.I found it quite juvenile, filled with simple, embarrassing sentences.Here is one such example:
[Luke] "Stand back.Let's see if it will stop a lightsaber."
The door would not stop a lightsaber.They went through and continued to climb.
Not only does the above excerpt contain an unnecessary and embarrassing line of dialogue made of pure cheese, the narration is boring, uninspired, and uninteresting.I have no idea how Luke sliced the door, where, if he cut a chunk or the whole thing off, if there were people right behind him or anything.In fact, all this scene does is give us filler, more padding to drag out the big escape.

Dialogue/Sexual Situation/Violence:
Light to none spattering of mild profanity.
Prince Xizor fancies himself a player and makes the moves on Leia.
We have space battles, attempted murders, lightsaber battles, rescues, kidnappings, etc.

Overall:
One of the better Star Wars novels out there, Shadows of the Empire is entertaining but not hugely memorable.Not a bad book to put on your reading list, but I wouldn't rush out to read it anytime soon.

Brought to you by:
*C.S. Light*

Entertaining entry in the Star Wars series
During the time period between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, Leia Organa and Luke Skywalker - who don't yet know that they are sister and brother - set out to find and rescue the carbon-frozen Han Solo before Boba Fett delivers him to Jabba the Hutt. Darth Vader has his mind set on locating Luke, the son whose existence he only recently discovered, so he can convert Luke to the Force's dark side. The Emperor believes Vader wants to do that in his service, but Vader has a different and secret plan. Vader also has a rival for his place as the Emperor's favorite: Xizor, an alien who heads the impossibly wealthy criminal organization called Black Sun. When Xizor sets a trap for Luke using Leia as bait, Vader has to find a way to both keep his son alive and vanquish his rival.

This tale provides plenty of action, and it holds true to its place in the Star Wars time line. Despite Han Solo's unavoidable absence from the story, it has plenty of humor and the usual rather corny Star Wars style dialog. Not the best book among the many spawned by the Star Wars franchise, but worth the read for most fans. I enjoyed it, anyway.

--Reviewed by Nina M. Osier, author of 2005 EPPIE science fiction award winner REGS

A great job with a difficult time period
Steve Perry does a wonderful job in this book of bringing interest and drama to a story that is carefully shoehorned into the gap between Empire and Jedi. To be honest I did not expect much from this book because I thought there wasn't much story to tell about this time period.Turns out I was wrong.

Luke, Leia, and Lando were quite busy while Han was being carted around the galaxy like so much cargo in Boba Fett's ship and being tacked up on the wall at Jabba's palace.There are some battles and some spying and intrigue and some buildings get blow up. Leia gets hit on by a crime lord. Luke builds a lightsaber.And Artoo and Threepio fly the Falcon at one point. Wonder if anyone ever got around to telling Han about what went on while he was frozen?

It was fascinating to me to see how Perry took the characters from where they are at the end of one movie to where they are at the beginning of the next. This had to have been a difficult task, to be hemmed in on both sides creatively - your beginning and your ending are set in stone.or, rather, locked on film.

I found myself engaged in the story all the way, even though I knew, of course, who had to emerge unscathed at the end. The interesting part was watching the characters from Empire grow and change through their adventures and end up as the people we see inJedi.

Luke, in particular, is a very different person at the beginning of Jedi than he was at the end of Empire, and Perry's story helps us understand how this happened. Especially because we've gotten used to Luke the Jedi Master - Perry gives us some insight into how the gawky farm boy from Tatooine matured into the Jedi who destroyed the Emperor. It's cool to watch his confusion and uncertainty melting away and watch his confidence grow to the point where he's ready to take charge.

It is also interesting to watch Luke grappling with his feelings for Leia and balancing this with the fact that she's obviously chosen Han. As most of the EU books take place outside of the film's timeline, we tend to forget that there was a time when Luke didn't know the truth about his father, or that Leia was his sister. So it's nice to see a glimpse into that part of his life.

It was also fun for me to see a side of Princess Leia that we don't see often. Perry takes us inside her head and it's intersting to watch her work her way through all the complications that life has thrown her lately.

After spending considerable time in their future of late (I finally caved in and am slogging my way through the NJO) it was fun to go back and revist the characters I remember in the time period I remember them.

I really enjoyed this book and it's one of only a handful of the EU novels (besides Timothy Zahn's marvelous Thrawn trilogy) that I've actually bothered to purchase after reading from the library. These days that's the highest compliment I pay to a book - owning it. Meaning, I plan to read it again.For fun.

Great Star Wars book. Fills the gaps between 5 and 6.
Great Star Wars book. I had read this when it first came out, and I recently revisited it. Lots of fun. Quick read. Awesome. ... Read more

Product Description
Chapters: Jamie Lyon, Luke Bailey, Brett Stewart, Brent Kite, Trent Barrett, Preston Campbell, Josh Perry, Brett White, Anthony Tupou, Anthony Laffranchi, Joel Monaghan, Glenn Stewart, Andrew Ryan, Anthony Quinn, Josh Morris, Luke Patten, Brett Kearney, Luke Covell, Phil Graham. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 80. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Jamie Lyon (born 24 January 1982 in Narrabri, New South Wales) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer currently playing for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles of the National Rugby League competition. He previously played for the Parramatta Eels and in the English Super League with St. Helens. Lyon has also represented New South Wales and Australia. Born in Narrabri in north-central New South Wales and growing up in Wee Waa, New South Wales, he played junior rugby league for the Wee Waa Panthers. Selected to play for the Australian Schoolboys team, he was part of the 1999 squad who went undefeated in their tour of France, Ireland and England. Parramatta Eels's club development officer at the time, Noel Cleal, saw potential in the young centre and managed to lure Lyon to sign with the Sydney club. He made his first grade début coming off the bench in the Eels round 21 clash against the newly merged West Tigers on 25 June 2000 becoming the 622nd first grader for Parramatta in the process. He scored his first try just three rounds later and he finished his début season with a try in Parramatta's 3224 defeat of the St George Illawarra Dragons. In 2001, Lyon found himself regularly in the run-on squad. By season's end Parramatta took out the J. J. Giltinan Shield as the minor premiers thanks in part to Lyon's 11 tries. After defeating the New Zealand Warriors and the Brisbane Broncos in the qualifying and preliminary finals respect...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=2725861 ... Read more