1) Catalyst: A Rogue One Story
Hitting stores two months before the first anthology film, Catalyst is a prequel to Star Wars: Rogue One. Yes, that would make it a prequel to a prequel. We have virtually no information about it though, to the point that the author has not even been made public. The absolute only thing that publisher Del Rey has said of the book is that it will be a “thrilling, must-have prequel.”
Based on the title alone, though, we can assume it probably deals with the Rebel Alliance putting in motion their mission to steal the Death Star plans. There are a lot of new characters in Rogue One, including Felicity Jones’ Jyn Erso, so this will presumably function similarly to Before the Awakening by showing what these people were up to prior to the movie’s opening scenes. The only difference is that this is being released months before Rogue One, whereas Before the Awakening came out after The Force Awakens.
Is that because Disney is not as concerned about spoilers being leaked this time, considering we all already know how Rogue One ends? Or could it be that they feel there is crucial information in this book that fans should learn before watching the film? Let the conspiracy theories begin….