The Star Wars Legends series is still alive, despite its divergence from the canon timeline in 2014. Earlier this year, Del Rey announced it would be re-releasing some of these classic novels as paperbacks with brand-new covers and, in some cases, new audio components. Several of these books are already on the market with more to come sooner rather than later.
The first wave of these re-releases officially dropped on June 15, 2021, with Shatterpoint (and an accompanying unabridged audiobook), Heir to the Empire, and the first book in the Darth Bane trilogy.
A second collection of books hits shelves this September with Dark Force Rising, The Last Command, Darth Bane: Rule of Two, and Rogue Squadron, the first book in the formerly titled X-Wing Legends book series.
We’ve known for a while that there would be more Legends re-releases down the road. Rumor has it that the next novels might bring more sequels and a stand-alone favorite.
Star Wars News Net reports the next wave of novels will include a few popular favorites: Darth Bane: Dynasty of Evil, X-Wing: Wedge’s Gamble, Kenobi, and Darth Plagueis, the stand-alone James Luceno novel that expands upon the story Palpatine told Anakin in Revenge of the Sith.
The report speculates these books will release on April 5, 2022.
While these books contain the same original stories as the originals, they’re being made largely with book collectors in mind. The books are printed in a larger standard size than the common mass-market paperbacks readers can get for cheap these days and include a special banner on the cover labeling them as part of the essential collection.
While long-time fans can enjoy these reprints, the Essential Legends Collection also offers a unique opportunity for new Star Wars Legends readers to dive into the expanded universe for the very first time. The books selected don’t require prior reading (aside from sequels like Rule of Two) and feature characters Star Wars fans will likely already be familiar with.
While these specific titles aren’t officially confirmed by Del Rey as of this reporting, the Essential Legends Collection has the potential to continue re-releasing already existing titles for many years to come.
The next wave of Legends Essential Collection titles releases Sept. 7, 2021.