Book Review: The Last Order

One of my most anticipated Star Wars books in 2025 was Kwame Mbalia's The Last Order, and it was definitely worth the wait! While the marketing of the book (in my opinion) over-promised it as a post-The Rise of Skywalker story because the book is mostly flashbacks to Finn and Jannah's time as stormtroopers, it's still one any fan of these characters would enjoy! We get a strong arc for Finn that explores more of the damage that the First Order did to him and his convictions as a leader, as well as one for Jannah where we learn the never-before-seen story of her defection from the First Order. In addition, while the book is primarily those flashbacks we do get a little bit of that promised post-The Rise of Skywalker story that ties directly in to the two main flashback arcs. But if you're looking for some wider insight into the state of the galaxy after the events of Episode IX, you won't really find them here.

If you love Finn and/or Jannah, a character-driven story or just want to learn a little more about the life of a First Order stormtrooper, then this is definitely the book for you. Pick up your own copy here!

Spoilers ahead for The Last Order by Kwame Mbalia!

The book is split into three plotlines that we switch between throughout, sometimes every chapter and sometimes every few chapters. One follows a young Finn in the First Order (FN-2187), one follows a young Jannah (TZ-1719), and one with both on a mission following the Battle of Exegol, from the perspective of a young original character.

Finn's arc was the one that I was most wary of going in, because out of him and Jannah his past in the First Order has been the most explored. We obviously saw the moment he left in The Force Awakens, and we got some stories before then in books like Before the Awakening or comics like Age of Resistance. It puts his arc in the tough spot many books focusing on main characters of the movies or shows find themselves in- how do you make his story in this book feel strong and meaningful without bumping into the other stories in a way that can feel repetitive or contradictory?

I can confirm that, in my opinion at least, The Last Order succeeds with Finn's story in that way. His arc feels important and formative to the Finn that we know in the films (both how we meet him and the man that be becomes by the end of Episode IX), while not running into any of the issues that I was concerned about (simply reiterating his Before the Awakening arc or making him ready to leave the First Order too early before the events of Episode VII).

Finn's arc in The Last Order explores many of the facets we know we have within himself, including those he grows into throughout the events of the films. We see that Finn is deeply, in his core, a compassionate and caring person with a strong sense of justice. This pulls him in two different directions- on one hand, he is really susceptible to the proclaimed mission of the First Order. They have morale sessions where they claim they are fighting for peace, order and justice, which sound great to someone who cares about people and doesn't know the truth. This leads Finn to nearly hero-worship Major Gohl, who is behind the morale sessions and turns out to be the primary antagonist in Finn's plotline.

On the other hand, this pulls Finn away from the First Order's regimen. Not just in the obvious way like what we see in The Force Awakens, but also by showing compassion to his fellow troopers, stopping to help them or support them when First Order training says its better for the strength of the squad to leave them behind. And its ultimately Finn's deep-seated sense of justice that leads him to making the consequential choice to leave Major Gohl to his death, which drives the "present" plotline.

We also see the manifestation of Finn's leadership skills. He of course has a drive for personal growth and climbing up the ranks of the First Order (becoming a squad leader or a mountain trooper), but he never lets that drive turn him selfish. He clearly wants his fellow troopers (even ones he doesn't really get along with) to succeed as well. But what make Finn such a strong leader that will serve him well years later in the Resistance is that he understands the importance of letting someone "fight their own battles." As a leader, he won't solve your problems for you but he will give you a little push and some guidance to steer you on the right path.

All in all, if you're a Finn fan like me then you will adore the way that his character is explored in this book. It feels both like a fresh, new angle on his character while fitting very smoothly in what we know about him from the films and other books that he's been in.

Now as much as I love Finn, Jannah's arc was what I was most anticipating going into this book, simply because we know so little about her! I really loved getting to know her so much better in this book. We get to know her squad members and their personalities, but what's most important is how they all clearly care for and respect each other. And Jannah gets the most of that respect as their squad leader. But like Finn, Jannah is a good and compassionate leader. She respects each member of her squad (really, her friends) as much as they respect her, values their opinions and pays attention to the little things about them- what they like, what bothers them, and when something is off with them.

Jannah is not only a compassionate leader and highly skilled warrior, but also dealing with some really deep trauma in the book. We never see it ourselves, but throughout the book we learn about a massacre that Jannah was made to not only witness but play a part in. Especially in early sections of the book it really impacts her as she relives those moments, both awake and asleep, and refuses to do or interact with things that may remind her of it. The trauma also impacts any drive she may have to climb the ranks of the First Order. Unlike Finn, she has no desires to gain honor from the officers above her, looking for a quieter patrol instead.

This not only gives a great contrast between Finn and Jannah's chapters in the book, but also aligns with what we know of their post-First Order lives. Jannah and her squadron are found living a quiet, peaceful life in The Rise of Skywalker, but being easily convinced into joining forces with the Resistance to take the First Order head-on. Finn, on the other hand, immediately finds himself swept up in adventure and gaining respect among the Resistance, as much as he initially tries to resist it and simply run away.

Jannah's curiosity plays a big role here as well. Both she and Finn are investigating something they find suspicious and following the cracks in the First Order's facade, but the path that Jannah and her squadron follow lead to a much greater collapse than Finn's in the novel. Jannah finds herself working with people who were personally impacted by the massacre that traumatized her, working with them on their altruistic mission behind the First Order's back. This culminates in Jannah and not just her squadron- but her entire company being ordered to fire on the innocent people and take their children. Jannah very publicly refuses, and this public refusal inspires her company to follow suit- leaving them all to defect and go into hiding.

My favorite little moment that Jannah has is at the very end of her flashback arc, where she picks her name- not one based on her number, which she was referred by the entire time, but a real name. She ends on Jannah, of course, after a beautiful flower that she was fond of on the planet her squadron was patrolling in the beginning of the book. The book introduces her flashback arc with her admiring Jannah flowers, which is certainly partially so that we know who TZ-1719 is, but it does become a really lovely full circle moment at the end.

Both Finn and Jannah's arcs are filled with slowly unraveling mysteries that I didn't get into in too much detail here, and I think if that's your thing then you won't be disappointed by picking up this book. I'd rather not spoil it all, but I wanted to give a shoutout to how well every detail and bit of foreshadowing all comes together in the novel. All three storyline fit together to make one big picture without ever feeling confusing or like there's a piece missing somewhere.

Which does bring me to the "present" timeline in the book, the shortest of all three. We read these chapters through the eyes of a young Resistance hopeful named Coy, who comes from a tea-farming family. He took his family's worn out ship to help the Resistance fight back on Exegol, and is now both looking for the next adventure and also wondering when he will be able to return to the comfort of home. Its through Coy's eyes we see the slight chaos of the Resistance base after the First Order's fall as well as Finn, Poe and Jannah, now war heroes.

A woman named Niila asks them for help with rescuing some young First Order recruits from Major Gohl. Given both Finn and Jannah's histories they obviously feel an obligation to do so, taking her up on the mission. All of our characters learn a bit about each other, adn Coy and Niila even grow a fondness for each other on the journey. The cruel twist of fate, however is when Niila reveals her true intentions- she is the sister of the late Major Gohl, and was Jannah's cruel Lieutenant Shroud during her time in the First Order. Niila is hellbent on getting revenge- specifically on Finn, who left her brother to be torn apart by some of the very people who he wronged.

This leads to a tense confrontation when Jannah realizes who Niila was after Niila says a phrase that accidentally gives her away. Things come to a violent head- only to be defused by young Coy, who reminds all of our characters the importance of grace and forgiveness. It's an incredibly well-written scene that echoes those core themes of Star Wars that we've had since the very beginning of the franchise.

One really great part of both Finn and Jannah's dual storylines in this book is that we get to learn more about what life in the First Order. We've gotten some of that over the years through books like Before the Awakening or Phasma, but it's always great to learn more. We see more of the structure of the life of a First Order cadet, the variety of training they go through and what paths they can take. My favorite thing that I learned however, was a saying that the young stormtroopers have- N.O.T. or "no old troopers." Reminding the poor young cadets that the lifespan of a stormtrooper is not a long one. It's both a reason to take a risk and a solemn reminder that this is all (they believe) there is to their lives.

All in all, I do recommend The Last Order as a great Star Wars read. And if you are a fan of Finn, intrigued by Jannah and/or are interested in learning more about the First Order then I simply cannot recommend it enough!