STAR WARS: STORIES OF JEDI AND SITH
Tag: Star Wars
STAR WARS: CRIMSON CLIMB – E. K. Johnston
STAR WARS: TALES OF LIGHT AND LIFE – Various
STAR WARS: FROM A CERTAIN POINT OF VIEW: RETURN OF THE JEDI – Various
STAR WARS: INQUISITOR: RISE OF THE RED BLADE
Now a general on the front lines contributing to that chaos, she is often reminded: Trust in your training. Trust in the wisdom of the Council. Trust in the Force. Yet as the shadows of doubt take hold, Iskat begins to ask questions that no Jedi is supposed to ask: Questions about her own unknown past. Questions the Jedi Masters would consider dangerous.
As the years pass and the war endures, Iskat’s faith in the Jedi wanes. If they would grant her more freedom, she is certain she could do more to protect the galaxy. If they would trust her with more knowledge, she could finally cast aside the shadows that have begun to consume her. When the Jedi Order finally falls, Iskat seizes the chance to forge a path of her own. She embraces the salvation of Order 66.
As an Inquisitor, Iskat finds the freedom she has always craved: to question, to want. And with each strike of her red blade, Iskat moves closer to claiming her new destiny in the Force—whatever the cost.
STAR WARS: PATH OF VENGEANCE
So this is kind of it, the last full length novel in Phase Two of The High Republic. There’s still a handful of issues of the different comics to come, THE EDGE OF BALANCE: PRECEDENT (the manga, which I feel like I’ve been waiting my whole life for!) is out in like a week, and there’s also the upcoming YA short story collection.
But as far as any full length novels of any type, Cavan Scott has the last word with PATH OF VENGEANCE. I loved this one a whole lot, and I’ll obviously get into the reasons why. I definitely couldn’t help but feel like I had a slight hangover from the outright masterpiece that was CATACLYSM.
Additionally (and this one is on me, because I knew what I was getting into), I do kinda wish I had waited until the Marvel comic was finished before reading PATH OF VENGEANCE. As I’m writing this, I think there’s just one or two issues left, but PATH OF VENGEANCE is set after the events of the Marvel comic. And so while the trade-off for me was outstanding (having Matty, my fav character from the comic being one of the main characters in PATH OF VENGEANCE), it did feel a little odd/spoilery jumping ahead in time like this, before actually reading the conclusion of the comic.
BUT ANYWAY!
The heart of this story was always going to be the relationship between Yana and Marda Ro. And while there are of course big moments in this book that were set up in other books/formats, this aspect of the story really picks up where PATH OF DECEIT left off.
There’s this sort of relentless push & pull, a wavering of loyalties where Yana and Marda are concerned. As The Mother has gotten more & more…let’s say unhinged, things just feel super tumultuous within The Path of the Open Hand. There’s a lot of anger & grief & resentment & feelings of helplessness boiling inside Yana, and it all comes to a head in some really emotional ways.
All roads lead to Dalna, and as I mentioned, it’s characters from the Marvel comic leading the way here. Matty Cathley has been far & away my favorite new Jedi from the comics, so for her to get main character status in this book meant the world to me. She’s just such a vibrant character, kind of the best of the Jedi, while also being a bit of an awkward & relatable mess. I loved getting a deeper look at her character, something the comics don’t necessarily allow for.
Same goes for Oliviah Zeveron, another fav of mine from the comic. Oliviah & Matty team up in PATH OF VENGEANCE, and it felt like we really got to know them both so much better. There’s almost a standoffishness to Oliviah that gets explored, something that’s not really even hinted at in the comic. Comic readers will know that Oliviah is Going Through Some Shit, and it just felt right having Matty along for the kind of chaotic & upbeat support she provides.
I started this review quite awhile ago & in the meantime, have been hit with some profoundly awful news & so this really isn’t coming together the way I’d hoped. All that said, this is of course essential High Republic reading & a really incredible way to close out (for the most part) the second phase of this epic Star Wars publishing initiative.
New we wait for Phase Three news/cover reveals and I am READY!
May the Force be with you!!
STAR WARS: CATACLYSM
With time—and answers—in short supply, the Jedi must divide their focus between helping quell the renewed violence on Eiram and E’ronoh and investigating the Path. Among them is Gella Nattai, who turns to the one person she believes can unravel the mystery but the last person she wants to trust: Axel Greylark. The chancellor’s son, imprisoned for his crimes, has always sought to unburden himself of the weight of his family name. Will he reconcile with the Jedi and aid in their quest for justice and peace, or embrace the Path’s promise of true freedom?
As all roads lead to Dalna, Gella and her allies prepare to take on a foe unlike any they’ve ever faced. And it will take all of their trust in the Force, and in one another, to survive.
STAR WARS: JEDI: BATTLE SCARS – Sam Maggs
On what should be a routine mission, they meet a stormtrooper determined to chart her own course with the help of Cal and the crew. In exchange for help starting a new life, the Imperial deserter brings word of a powerful, potentially invaluable tool for their fight against the Empire. And even better, she can help them get to it. The only catch—pursuing it will bring them into the path of one of the Empire’s most dangerous servants, the Inquisitor known as the Fifth Brother.
Can the Imperial deserter truly be trusted? And while Cal and his friends have survived run-ins with the Inquisitors before, how many times can they evade the Empire before their luck runs out?
STAR WARS: CHAOS RISING
The peace of the Ascendancy, a beacon of calm and stability, is shattered after a daring attack on the Chiss capital that leaves no trace of the enemy. Baffled, the Ascendancy dispatches one of its brightest young military officers to root out the unseen assailants. A recruit born of no title, but adopted into the powerful family of the Mitth and given the name Thrawn.
With the might of the Expansionary Fleet at his back, and the aid of his comrade Admiral Ar’alani, answers begin to fall into place. But as Thrawn’s first command probes deeper into the vast stretch of space his people call the Chaos, he realizes that the mission he has been given is not what it seems.
And the threat to the Ascendancy is only just beginning.
STAR WARS: CONVERGENCE – Zoraida Córdova
On the close-orbiting planets of Eiram and E’ronoh, the growing pains of a galaxy with limited resources but unlimited ambition are felt keenly. The two worlds’ hatred for each other has fueled half a decade of escalating conflict and now threatens to consume surrounding systems. The last hope for peace emerges when heirs from the planets’ royal families plan to marry.
Before lasting peace can be established, an assassination attempt targeting the couple tilts Eiram and E’ronoh back into all-out war. To save both worlds, Jedi Knight Gella Nattai volunteers to uncover the culprit, while Chancellor Kyong appoints her own son, Axel Greylark, to represent the Republic’s interests in the investigation.
But Axel’s deep distrust of the Jedi sparks against Gella’s faith in the Force. She’s never met such a puffed-up, privileged party boy, and he’s never met a more self-serious, relentless do-gooder. The harder they work to untangle the shadowy web of the investigation, the more complicated the conspiracy appears to be. With accusations flying and potential enemies in every shadow, the pair will have to work together to have any hope of bringing the truth to light and saving both worlds.
Grimdark Dad 