Long before the First Order, before the Empire, before even The Phantom Menace…Jedi lit the way for the galaxy in The High Republic.Padawan Reath Silas is being sent from the cosmopolitan galactic capital of Coruscant to the undeveloped frontier—and he couldn’t be less happy about it. He’d rather stay at the Jedi Temple, studying the archives. But when the ship he’s traveling on is knocked out … out of hyperspace in a galactic-wide disaster, Reath finds himself at the center of the action. The Jedi and their traveling companions find refuge on what appears to be an abandoned space station. But then strange things start happening, leading the Jedi to investigate the truth behind the mysterious station, a truth that could end in tragedy…Enjoy more adventures from the all-new era of storytelling of the glorious High Republic:Star Wars: Light of the JediStar Wars The High Republic: A Test of Courage – perfect for kids 8-12 years oldStar Wars The High Republic: The Great Jedi Rescue – perfect for kids 5-8 years old
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Into the Dark is the introduction of the High Republic era for the young adult genre. Like A Test of Courage, this book coincides along with part two of Light of the Jedi. You do not need to read it in order to understand this book, but I highly recommend it for a richer experience in the current state of the galaxy. Personally, I enjoyed this book more than Light of the Jedi. The pacing of the book stayed steady and was medium (not too slow or fast) and I could get into more of the characters.
Reath Silas is a Jedi Padwan who is not like what we are used to seeing. Instead of adventure, he is more of the scholarly side. He enjoys his time within the archives of the Jedi library instead of practicing different lightsaber techniques. His Master, Jora Malli, tries to encourage him to be balanced in both the scholar and adventure, and takes a permanent position on the Starlight Beacon, the Republic’s shining new outpost on the edge of known space. And this begins Reath’s adventure and puts the knowledge he learns in the archives, to the test. Reath is a well-written character and one I am looking forward to reading during this era. He grows so much in this book and, as a reader, you can clearly see it from beginning to end.
Along with Reath Silas, there are three more Jedi that get their introduction into this era: Jedi Master Cohmac Vitus, Jedi Knight Dez Rydan, and Jedi Wayseeker Orla Jareni. All three characters are well written and have grabbed my attention. I can not wait to read more about their adventures. Jedi Master Cohmac Vitus, like Reath, is a scholar and a mystic and someone who Reath looked up to during this voyage without his Master. He was very unsure of himself, even toward the end of the book. I believe it has something to do with a failed mission he and Orla Jareni had experienced in their past.
Jedi Knight Dez Rydan is a charismatic knight. He took a hard hit on this journey. Toward the end of the book, he was not the same Jedi and most likely never will be. Jedi Wayseeker Orla Jareni is a character I am most excited about. She had left the Order to explore an unknown region on her own. I believe Wayseeker is the new form of Grey Jedi from the legends canon. One who walks their own path, neither light nor dark.
Besides the Jedi, the author introduces readers to the crew of the Vessel: Leox Gyasi, Affie Hollow, and Geode. All three are part of the Byne Guild. Leox is a skilled pilot, showing his skills when he had to sneak past a Nihil Cloud without expending enough power to show up on their sensors. Affie is Leox’s co-pilot and adopted daughter of Scover Byne, the head of the Byne Guild. She is a smart character and wants to prove herself and the guild she can take over one day when Scover retires.
I love the father, daughter thing going on with Leox and Affie. The two are perfect for each other and Leox is a great mentor for Affie. I love these two characters and hope for more of them in the future. Geode is the navigator and a rock. Yes, you read that right, a rock. In all honesty, I do not know the point of this character besides his role towards the end. I think he supposed to be a funny, but I felt like he was a pointless character. Maybe he will have a bigger role in future books.
There are two antagonists in this book. The author reintroduces the Nihil and introduces the Drengir. The Drengir are sentient carnivorous plants and, as readers, we learn they are connected to the Dark Side and use it to mind-control their prey. I have to say, so far I am not impressed with any of the antagonists in this era so far. I am hoping the more I read this era, the more this will change for me.
An ancient space station is the primary setting of this novel. There is an eerie and off feeling about the location, as if there are many secrets. It was well developed and as a reader; I have a feeling this will not be the last we see this station. There has to be a bigger part for this station with the secrets we learn.
Into the Dark was a good book and, so far, my favorite in this era, but not my favorite Claudia Gray Star Wars novel. Like I said in the beginning, Light of the Jedi, Test of Courage, and Into the Dark are introduction books for this era in their age groups. There are a lot of character and world building. My interest in this era has not faltered. I would recommend this to anyone who likes Star Wars and the era way before the Phantom Menace. This is also good for those who like space adventure books.
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Found myself hooked and unable to put the book down.
This has been my favorite book from The High Republic era so far. Mostly because I adored Reath and that he is so different from other Jedi we have met previously. He has zero desire for adventure and just wants to read his books and learn. It’s a nice change of pace. The secondary cast of characters were great too and I really hope we see them again. Really enjoying this new era of Star Wars.
“It doesn’t matter how far we run, or in what direction,” Master Cohmac replied. “In the end, we always come back to the beginning.”
‘Star Wars: The High Republic: Into the Dark’ by Claudia Gray is the lastest release in the brand new era of stories which lays out the path of the Jedi prior to The Phantom Menace.
Gray is one of a select handful of Star Wars universe authors chosen for this set of books. Already known for other stories within the franchise history such as ‘Leia: Princess of Alderaan,’ ‘Lost Stars,’ and ‘Bloodline,’ she’s also released her own series.. the Firebird novels.
Charles Soule authored the first of The High Republic era novels.. ‘Light of the Jedi,’ which was released in January and ‘The Rising Storm’ by Cavan Scott is due to arrive in June.
“How can we split the Force in two? How can we justify such an act of violence–and it is violence, such a dividing, even the darkness divided from the light.”
‘Into the Dark’ follows a padawan named Reath Silas who prefers the scholarly side of the Jedi Order. Most of his days at the Jedi Temple in Coruscant spent in the Archives studying, his Master takes an assignment in the undeveloped frontier in hopes it will broaden his interest in adventuring and help him achieve the much needed balance that’s central to their practice.
When the ship he’s traveling on are forced to drop out of hyperspace due to a galactic-wide disaster, it’s only the first in many things that begins to upend their plans.
As the Jedi and their traveling companions have to take refuge on what appears to be an abandoned space station, the Jedi themselves begin to feel something at work within the Force that unnerves them. They suffer strange visions and feelings they can’t explain.
“Let me never forget,” he thought, “that it is another living creature standing opposite my blade.”
Whether you’re a Star Wars fan like myself or you just enjoy great sci-fi storytelling, there’s nothing not to love about this book. It’s filled with all the angst, mystery, and betrayal that the franchise has come to be known for throughout the years and the story itself is crafted expertly. There were things I expected to occur that never did and things I never saw coming until they were upon me.
I express enough how rare those kinds of occurences are for me in any kind of media consumption.. but here we are.
The dynamics between the characters are wonderfully fleshed out, especially within the smaller groups that have more familiarity with one another. The natural instincts to fall back on those they often knew best.. before the others.. sometimes worked against them and I feel the story constantly pushed each of them to see beyond their biases.
“If you use your defeat to learn the path to victory, it was no defeat at all.”
Of course, it wouldn’t be a Star Wars story if it didn’t make me well up with tears at least once.. and that certainly held true here. Gray did such a great job of weaving a connection between the characters and myself as a reader.. that I felt no indifference for anyone involved.. I was either deeply invested in their survival or their end.
What I often love about this franchise is that even the ‘heroes’ are not infallible. They often suffer grave setbacks, question even the most desperate choices they’re forced to make, and mourn the actions they eventually succumb to taking. It doesn’t hurt, that Star Wars has taught me not to take even their most popular characters for granted.. because anyone can be lost, one way or another.. just as anyone can persevere, even if maybe we wish they wouldn’t.
(I received this title as an ARC. All opinions are mine and freely given.)