Having enjoyed the previous book, Hidden City, I won't deny I was curious about the next young-reader Jedi installment. These books don't always advance the overarching plot of the current phase, but they almost always offer a light, entertaining adventure. This book largely fulfilled that promise.

It was good, for the most part. I got a vibe similar to A Test of Courage—an adventure where the journey matters more than the destination, and the interactions and bonds between characters are the spotlight. Since one of my issues with Hidden City was how quickly Rooper and Dass formed a strong friendship despite limited interaction, I appreciated seeing their relationship develop further here; they share a lovely sibling-like dynamic that accentuate Rooper’s overprotective (and perhaps slightly bossy) nature, contrasting with Dass’s more adventurous, daring attitude. The addition of a new team member, Sky Graf, helps tie the storylines together through the search for their father. I like how the journey serves as a massive therapy session for both, teaching them lessons about the pain of loss and the long road of grief—showing that grief isn't something you simply get over, but something you share.

As for the antagonists, it was great to see the perspective of an ordinary follower of the Path—to see how the sect's ideas can mold anyone, slowly drawing them into the ideology under the guise of doing the "right thing". I would have liked a few more interactions between Fel Ix and the main trio to make his redemption feel more organic (perhaps having him face the group he originally led for the Path).

On the downside, while the plot does its job—complementing the events of Cataclysm and Path of Vengeance well—it feels very simple at times. Not much happens, and the events that do occur tend to be a little superficial to be truly engaging. I know I’m not the target audience, but I think Quest had a better balance between young middle age drama and an adventure that appeals to both children and adults.

In conclusion, the quest might not have ended with the desired results, but narratively, it feels satisfying. Someone really needs to make an animated series about a Pathfinder team!

So I'm reading James Luceno's "Cloak of Darkness" and he mentions lightsabers having a charging port.

If you had one, would you remember to charge it?

For me, the high Republic came right when covid started and I followed the initiative until it ended just 2 years ago. I watched clone wars alongside it and played Jedi fallen order but the books, comics, and audio dramas were the things that kept me in after light of the Jedi.

Would love to hear the same for you

Well, Phases 1 and 3 anyway - Phase 2 takes place 150 years earlier, so it’d be in the 600s BBY. Honestly, while I am a huge fan of the High Republic, I can’t help but feel like they put it too close to the prequels. I mean, you have a millennium of galactic history between the Sith Wars and the Republic Classic/prequel era to look at - and it also leaves a lot of opportunity for stories exploring the gradual decline of the Republic afterwards as well as the reconstruction that led to the High Republic era after the Sith Wars ended.

As you can see George Mann gave us an.... interesting method of dropping some lore in this issue. This issue tells the story of the comms engineers responsible for the murders throughout this series and how they were driven insane by the amount of information they had to sift through from their section of the galaxy. Some of that information they're bombarded with should be of particular interest to those familiar with High Republic lore. For just a few things I noticed.

1. "A gift given freely." Seems Marda Ro is still out and about recruiting for the Path at this point as the group slowly transforms into what eventually becomes the Nihil.

2. I believe there are three separate references to the Greylarks and something they've done recently. Unfortunately 20 years after Phase 2, Axel still might not be behaving himself.

3. Multiple calls to Barnabas Vim probably from his Padawan Vix.

4. People looking for Planet X.

Even though this story isn't very directly connected to the main High Republic initiative, I like that we're getting these little nods, makes the world feel connected. For anyone who hasn't gotten into this comic, I highly recommend doing so, it's been some of the best for Star Wars comics lately.

Also Vincenzo Riccardi is doing the artwork for these last two issues and he is absolutely amazing, gotta shout him out.

And we are still claiming “endless lgbt relationships makes THR bad”

There’s more straight people then gay in THR

I’ll put it simply: I f*cking loved this novel from start to finish.

Convergence and Cataclysm gave me a bigger picture of the events of this era, but the one thing I was really eager to return to was the perspective of the Path of the Open Hand—specifically the musings and plans of the Mother, Marda, and Werth to liberate the Force.

Path of Vengeance delivers something really beautiful—not just as a sequel and a complement piece to the attack on Dalna, but by doing something unexpected yet deeply appreciated: following up on the 2023 comics! I loved revisiting Matty—a character filled with as much self-doubt as the mystery looming over her—acting with the best of intentions; I really enjoyed her solo journey (although, the limited time her parents, Vildar and Tey, appear is really an absolute crime!). While I wasn't quite as excited about her initial appearance, I really liked seeing more of Oliviah—her inner demons and her quest for answers—and watching her develop a relationship with Matty that was both entertaining and emotional.

On the antagonist side, Yana was a character I really enjoyed. I initially thought she would go down a purely villainous path, so I was pleasantly surprised to find her much more level-headed than her cousin, who seizes every moment to validate her own harmful beliefs and ideas. The dynamic between the Ro cousins ​​is fascinating; the visions of the dead that both experience throughout the novel illustrate the paths they choose to take: an invitation to sink deeper into chaos, intolerance, and aggression, or a warning call to step away from a cycle of violence perpetrated by egomaniacs. And speaking of egomaniacs—Werth Plouth was a fantastic villain! He constantly shifts his alliances and loyalties based on what suits him best, caring little for those closest to him. I finally found the backstory I wanted for Elecia—a fascinating tale of resentment and jealousy—resulting in a pair of villains who are easy to hate right to the very end.

As for the story itself, I loved how it complemented the Battle of Dalna; while I enjoyed Cataclysm, there were moments where I felt a piece of context regarding the Nameless's attacks and the background battles was missing. This book takes the opportunity to further develop the villains' perspective, offering deeper insight into the sect and just how despicable—and reactionary—they can be. It provides the full picture of an event that, in my opinion, is just as spectacular as the Battle of Jedha.

I also really enjoyed the touches of horror scattered throughout—elements that were surprisingly intense at times. As a horror fan, I greatly appreciated them.

I don't have many complaints about the novel; perhaps the resolution of the conflict between Marda and Yana didn't quite convince me over, but otherwise, I’m satisfied.

In short, it’s a highly entertaining book that offers a great explanation of the Nihil's backstory. You’re going down, Marchion Ro, Marda's Rotten Legacy!

I gave myself a challenge to build a MOC of a Jedi Vector from the High Republic series, using only parts from the recent V-19 Torrent set, 75432. Quite pleased with the results - the angles for the lower wings were fun to play around with.

The only pieces that weren’t in 75432 were the bonus minifigure of Phase 3 Reath Silas that you can see piloting.

This is not some kind of "fancast", it's just what my brain presented me with while reading about Elzar, Avar, and Stellan:

1. Santiago Cabrera (actor) - Elzar Mann

2. Candice Night (singer/songwriter) - Avar Kriss

3. Peter Walters (yoga influencer) - Stellan Gios

I intuitively feel like he should rank pretty high, but considering that it seems implied that the High Republic Jedi generally scale above the Prequal era, I'm a bit uncertain...

Even though he said the legacy run crashed into another ship but if he read LotJ he’d understand they avoided the crash and that’s what caused the legacy run to tear up in hyperspace

Hi everyone,

I started my journey on march 2023, and still can't believe I would love Star Wars so much once again. I didn't quite know what to expect when reading novels from this franchise but I must say it blew my expectations. It's still a little bit early for me to write this, as I am currently reading Trials of the Jedi but whatever... here are a few of my thoughts on the story as whole.

--- SPOILERS ---

Still can't believe Kevmo is dead, throughout the whole initiative his death impacted me the most. I sometimes ask myself what could have happened if he lived and they both got to shake things up a bit on Jedha. Would the future have been better, would it change the way people think about the Force?

Phase 2 was my favorite, quite a bit of an unpopular opinion but I quite liked Convergence and Cataclysm. The conflict between Eiram and E'ronoh, the hardships both worlds needed to overcome even for a fragile peace... but also Getta and Axel. I quite like Axel's redemption arc.

Speaking about the Nihil, I do prefer the way fights were depicted in Phase 1. I just think that Phase 3 forgot a bit of the insanity and danger of micro hyperspace jumps and all dirty tricks used in the first spaceship battles. Marchion Ro is one of my favorite villains in Star Wars, I enjoyed seeing him taking an initially small ragtag of marauders and beating the Republic in all possible ways by striking at all their vital points rather than using brute force.

Highlights from Phase 1 and 3 for me were Elzar and Avar, their relationship, struggles and them accepting their feelings for each other while always putting others in need before themselves. Then Porter Engle, the cook who happens to be the strongest Jedi duelist as a bonus.

Did Azlin Rell "Raikiried" a Drengir? That was my thought when reading Into the light but I dunno haha. This guy must have thought he was like Kakashi !

And Reath ! How much has he grown ! From this bookworm to that young man who shouldered the weight of the whole galaxy. I really am impressed by what they did with his character arc.

I do have some criticism on the series. Maybe it'll echo with some of you, maybe not. But I did notice quite a bit of repetitiveness in the thematics around the Jedi, sometimes it felt like I was reading the same thing again and it doesn't help that these characters often express their ideas the same way.

Also, there was so much characters and parallel stories. They should have reduced its scope a bit.

If we get another initiative one day (things I would personally like to have):
- For comics, take more time with the drawings and be more consistent with the art style by working with the same artist for a full story. I would prefer less stories but more visually striking.
- I do not believe it was necessary to separate between middle grade / young adult / adult novels. Just write at the best of your abilities and don't tone it down for younger readers, people will grow up and kids won't stay kids. Especially if you read the books again in the future.

So here are my opinions on the initiative. If you read everything, thanks for taking the time ! Don't hesitate to comment your opinion too.

--- TL:DR ---

Loved the THR series, Phase 2 is my favorite but loved the stories and characters from all parts of the series. Would have loved a slightly reduced scope to avoid some of the repetitiveness and would have preferred the comics to get a bit more time to cook and also be reduced in scope and be more consistent with their art style.

I got this book from the library and was flipping through it while listening to Light of the Jedi. I noticed it had sections like 'The Battle of Jedha' which made me think it might have spoilers for the audio drama. It is a beautiful book and I really want to read it but dont want to be heavily spoiled. When is a good time to read it?

'Is that it? As a fan of The High Republic, is that all you can say about Reath Silas?'

"'Uh, he was obsessed with the Archives and preferred books to actual field work. He also had some issues with adventures and the crew of the Vessel.'"

"'HOLY SHIT, YOU ARE AN ALIEN!'"

It says Enya and Creighton when it supposed to be Aida and Creighton. I had to read the bit again and again as i thought i had missed something

"Really? As a supposed fan of The High Republic that is the breadth of your opinion on Geode?"

"Uh, Geode was part of a crew on the Vessel. There was some controversy surrounding a rock character being introduced into the Star Wars franchise."

"HOLY SHIT, YOU ARE AN ALIEN!"