"Kindred Spirits" by Christie Golden

     "Kindred Spirits" by Christie Golden is a prequel short story to the novel Dark Disciple found in Issue # 159 of the "Star Wars Insider" released in Aug/Sep of 2015. But how it actually functions as a prequel, I'm unsure. It's been quite a while since I read Dark Disciple, but I can't see much of a connection between this story and it, except for the inclusion of Asajj Ventress as one of the two main protagonists.
     Regardless, it was a rollicking tale, and Hondo Ohnaka made an appearance! He is by far my favorite space pirate. His dialogue was written perfectly for his odd and smug way of speaking. I could absolutely hear his voice as I read. Oh, and side note, Ventress apparently hates Weequay.
     As for the plot, I'm honestly unsure of what exactly was going on. The first few paragraphs were confusing enough that I had to read them several times and still wasn't all that sure about the premise. What I did manage to gather was that Ventress had been hired to protect a cargo shipment on the Steady On and that cargo got hijacked by a band of pirates. Then a second band of pirates came to hijack said cargo and Ventress was the only one left alive amidst a bevy of dead star fighters. The leader of this second crew was Lassa Rhayme. Ventress and Rhayme then team up to recover the stolen cargo with the condition that Ventress gets back the one box she was hired to protect. Then the story begins in earnest as Rhayme and Ventress enact a plot to get the cargo back from Hondo's band of pirates.

     Maybe it's just been a long time, but I do not remember Ventress having a yellow lightsaber in Dark Disciple. And what an odd choice. The only two people with lightsabers that aren't blue or green or red are Mace Windu with a purple saber and Ahsoka Tano with white sabers. Mace because he's Mace...and Samuel L. Jackson lol. And Ahsoka because her kyber crystal was a Sith crystal that she healed. How Ventress is so special I'm unsure, but it didn't sit well with me. Also described in the text of the story, see her pictured to the left with her yellow weapon.
     Overall, I enjoyed this story, especially when they were all fighting. It held my attention and was a fun read. I just wish it had tied in more with Dark Disciple since it was advertised as a prequel. Y'all know me and how I love connections between things. But for the little taste of Hondo, it is definitely worth a look see.