Kathleen Kennedy of Lucasfilm was adamant in the build up to the release of Rogue One that there would be no sequel to the film, which at the time befuddled fans. And then, once everyone saw the actual movie…well, we kind of knew why she said that. Nevertheless, there is a sequel to Rogue One on its way, although not in the traditional sense, and not on the big screen.
Lucasfilm and have announced Inferno Squad, a new novel from author Christie Golden, which is set to hit on July 25. Not following any of the main characters from Rogue One (obviously), instead this book will be about an elite Imperial squad and their mission following the events of Rogue One, and subsequently, A New Hope. Below is the official description of the novel, via StarWars.com:
The Rebellion may have heroes like Jyn Erso and Luke Skywalker. But the Empire has Inferno Squad.  After the humiliating theft of the Death Star plans and the resulting destruction of the battle station, the Empire is on the defensive. In response to this stunning defeat, the Imperial Navy has authorized the formation of an elite team of soldiers, known as Inferno Squad. Their mission: infiltrate and eliminate the remnants of Saw Gerrera’s Partisans. Following the death of their leader, the Partisans have carried on his extremist legacy, determined to thwart the Empire — no matter what the cost. Now, Inferno Squad must prove their status as the best of the best and take down the Partisans from within. But as the danger intensifies and the threat of discovery grows, how far will Inferno Squad go to ensure the safety of the Empire?
Since the Imperials will seemingly be the protagonists of this novel, and since we clearly don’t hear about Saw Gerrera’s more militant band of rebels in the original trilogy, I’d say that this book will feature the Imperials “heroically” eliminating the terrorist threat once for all. After the events of Rogue One and A New Hope where they get humiliated, they need some kind of victory, right?
Although this is hardly the first Star Wars novel to be told from the bad guys’ point of view, it will be interesting to see how they manage to create sympathetic Imperial characters this time, especially in the immediate wake of their committing genocide on Alderaan. But then, writer Christie Golden has experience with making villainous characters sympathetic, after writing the in-canon Asajj Ventress novel Dark Disciple.
Star Wars: Inferno Squad hits on July 25th, 2017.
What are you hoping happens in the pages of Inferno Squad? Let us know down below in the comments.
Images: Lucasfilm
