It’s been over a year since the fall of the Starlight Beacon space station, and both heroes and villains alike must face the consequences of their decisions. When Jedi Knight Reath and Padawan Amadeo Azzazzo are sent on a mission to test their theories about the Nameless, they’ll come face-to-face with the terrifying creatures once thought to be myth—and learn the true meaning of fear . . . fear that fallen Jedi Azlin Rell advised them to embrace if they have any hope of defeating the monsters . . .
This is going to be a weird one for me to write.
If it seems like the reviews on my blog are overwhelmingly positive, it’s kinda like…it’s not a bug, it’s a feature?
I’ve gotten really good at DNFing books over these last few years, and I have no interest in writing reviews for those books. I remove them from my Storygraph & generally just forget about them & move on.
There are also books that I read that I generally like (something I’ll give, say 3.5 stars to on SG) but either don’t have the time or energy to write a full review. Or, more likely…I just don’t have a whole lot to say about it.
So that’s why the books I review here, more often than not, are ones that I really enjoyed. Because right or wrong, those are the books I feel like I have more to say about. I’m really not looking to try & come up with 500-1,000 words to just say “This was fine.”
But then there’s Star Wars , and my stubborn commitment to writing full reviews for all the YA & adult novels. Which brings me to the point here, which is that I found TEARS OF THE NAMELESS to be just…fine.
And honestly, I’m shocked that this was my reaction. I have pretty much adored everything to do with The High Republic, but I am beginning to wonder if I’ve just got…High Republic fatigue? Maybe? Because at 500 pages, this one started to feel like a chore to me.
The one thing this book explores really well is the connection between the Nameless & the mysterious blight that’s been decimating worlds. Reath Silas is digging into things as only he could, and certainly this is the aspect of the book that held my interest most. George Mann also really leans into a creepy/horror aspect here, with Reath cautiously consulting with the unsettling Azlin Rell, who is being held in the closest thing to a dungeon that the Jedi Temple has.
There were some great scenes with Vernestra Rwoh, who has always been one of my very favorite characters in The High Republic. But it seemed like more of a cameo than anything from her.
I think that’s what ultimately really hurt this book for me…it just didn’t focus on characters that I’m all that obsessed with. Obviously nothing against characters like Amadeo Azzazzo, Mirro Lox, or Leox Gyasi, it’s just…this far into The High Republic, they just aren’t the characters I’m looking to spend the most time with.
Also, I’m screaming into the void here because I don’t really have anyone I can chat with who has read all of The High Republic, but the whole schtick about Geode? Has never worked for me. I felt like if I read one more joke about how Geode (a literal giant rock) maintained a stony façade or whatever, I was just gonna lose my mind. It’s just a joke that has been slowly kicked to death over the years. And I am ALL ABOUT Star Wars being fun. As I’m writing this, the first two episodes of Skeleton Crew have come out & I legitimately think it’s the most fun Star Wars has ever been, in any format, ever. Delirious amounts of fun, truly!
But yeah, oof. The Geode joke is extremely Not For Me.
Ugh, I dunno. I’m really hopeful that some of the rest of The High Republic will capture my heart & imagination the way the early stuff did. I just think some of it is in danger of overstaying its welcome. Even things I used to be obsessed with…like Daniel José Older’s THE HIGH REPUBLIC ADVENTURES comic, which seems to get more & more unfocused and meandering with every issue?
This was not the review I wanted to write & I really hope I can shake off the blah vibes this book left me with.
May the Force be with you!!
Grimdark Dad 
You’re not quite screaming into the void, I too have read everything in the High Republic apart from this particular title. I agree with you, the Geode stuff has got a bit old! Rolled my eyes when you mentioned that part. Having enjoyed all the early Phase III stuff I felt like things kind of became a bit static in Temptation of the Force, which was disappointing. However I have been looking forward to this one as for my money George Mann is one of the better more propulsive HR writers.
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