Poe Dameron: Free Fall – Alex Segura

Disney Lucasfilm Press | Hardcover | August 4, 2020

Crime writer Alex Segura turns back the clock to add another layer of backstory for fan favorite Poe Dameron and takes a swan dive into the galaxy’s vast and complicated criminal underbelly. Sixteen-year-old Poe is a gifted pilot and is desperate to get off his home planet of Yavin 4. He yearns for adventure and since the death of his mother a riff the size of a parsec has grown between Poe and his father as they both continue to grieve in their own ways. Poe’s desperation leads him to volunteer to help a group of travelers escape Yavin 4, only to learn later that they’re actually the infamous Spice Runners of Kijimi. 

Free Fall is nothing short of an action-packed adventure that’s driven by the tongue-and-cheek dialogue Star Wars fans have come to know and love. Characters like Zorii Bliss and Babu Frik also make an appearance. And overall it’s the kind of wild backstory one would expect from Poe Dameron. The downside to the plot-driven storyline is that Poe is forced to be more reactionary than acting with a sense of purpose and agency, which at times can leave his character feeling a little two dimensional. Nevertheless, given his own writing background, Segura doesn’t shy away from the gritty and often horrifying consequences that comes with a criminal lifestyle, which offers Poe multiple opportunities to reflect not just on the mess he’s gotten himself into, but also further explore his moral values and define his ethical code––a journey that many of today’s young readers will certainly find relatable .