Star Wars: A Test of Courage was written by New York Times Bestselling Author, Justina Ireland. This is the second tale within the High Republic Era. A Test of Courage is a young readers book and is published by Disney-Lucasfilm Press.

SUMMARY: A few members of the Nihil are at Port Haileap, with a plan to infiltrate the luxury liner ship, the Steady Wing. They want to cause chaos, to instill fear in the republic, and most importantly, to make a name for themselves and impress one of the Tempest Runners, which is one of the leaders in the Nihil.

There are many people on the Steady Wing, all headed to the Starlight Beacon's opening ceremony. When the Nihil's plans for the Steady Wing come to fruition, a young group of survivors find themselves alone on a moon, far off from space lanes. The group consists of two young Jedi, the son of the Dalna Ambassador, and another child with the familiar name in the Star Wars comic line, Starros. The group must figure out how to survive on the terrifying moon, and somehow reach out to someone among the stars to rescue them.

Will the youth survive? Will the young Jedi stray from their path and give into fear? What more does the Nihil have planned? You'll have to read the book to find out!

CHARACTERS: We have a few characters to talk about, I'll mention one character I found a little interesting and another I was annoyed by.

Vernestra Rwoh is a green skinned Mirialan. She’ a prodigy within the Jedi Order, passing the Jedi trials at the age of just 15, one of the youngest Jedi Knights around. She’s not too thrilled with her first mission as a Jedi Knight, spending time on the planet Dalna. She’s keeping an eye on an ambassadors daughter, making sure she’s kept safe. She’s good with a lightsaber, but still a little unsure of herself. She’s young for a Knight, and must face some difficult decisions when she’s thrust into an unexpected disaster.


Honesty Weft, son of the Dalna Ambassador. Honesty does not want to be on the Steady Wing, he’d much rather find out what vocation would suit him best, he’d like to be a warrior, to join the Dalna military. Even though the planet hasn’t had a full scale war in a century. But, his father wants Honesty with him, to witness diplomacy first hand as they attempt to join the Republic. Honesty is a very emotional young man. Who cry’s about absolutely everything.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: This book was fine. It’s a young readers story, and for some reason I find the young reader books pretty tedious. The story isn’t bad at all, it's just very simple and straight forward. The book definitely has a mature theme, with a lot of death and some violent moments. For a kids story, I'd think if it were a film, it would still have to be PG-13. There are some really dark moments.

The characters are written well. Honestly, I found only two characters interesting, the others I could have done without. The idea that one of the young Jedi is a prodigy was a bit silly, I think the story would have been more interesting if the cast contained not 1 Padawan, but 2 or maybe even 3. The Nihil didn't seem to intemidating in the book, of course they did a dark deed, but they were just dumb villians, I would say that's most likely due to the targeted age group for the book, then again... the book was packed with death and other dark points.

The dialogue was well written. Some of the plot points were really interesting as one of the youth turns toward a darker path. We get a good tease at some of the lore of the Jedi, and their conflict with the Sith. Like I said, the book was fine, it wasn't bad at all, but I wouldn't say it was great.

Do I recommend you pick up Star Wars: The High Republic: A Test of Courage? If you are a completest, yes. If you could care less about young reader books, I think you could pass on this one.

RATING: I give this novel an B-

Meet some of the new characters of the High Republic in the first Middle Grade story set in this new, unexplored era.

Sixteen-year-old newly minted Jedi Knight Vernestra has just been given her first mission: accompany the precocious Senator Starros’s daughter Avon and her droid to the new Starlight Beacon station for it’s opening. Along with a shy ambassador’s son, Honesty, and an eager Padawan, Imri, they are the youngest passengers on the Republic sent cruise ship. But when the ship is unexpectedly damaged en route, Vernestra and the rest of the young passengers find themselves the sole survivors of a tragedy. Stranded on a remote and inhospitable planet with limited supplies and no communications, they soon figure out that it was no accident that destroyed their ship. It was an act of sabotage, and the saboteurs don’t want any survivors. It will take all their skills for them to survive,outsmart the dangerous pirates, and report back to the Republic with the truth of what happened.

One part adventure story, one part survival, everyone brought a skill to the table or felt unsure of their abilities. For Vernestra, it was her first mission and she was apprehensive about proving herself to the council and whether or not the modifications she’d made to her lightsaber were a good thing or not. For Honesty, he was disappointed he was missing out on a graduation type ceremony back home and had to learn to trust his skillset and deal with grief. Imri had to deal with the grief of losing his master and the anger towards those responsible. Avon used her piloting skills to initially save them and her tech skills to fix the ship’s communications. It was Honesty who’s survivals skills found them fresh food; Avon who piloted them to safety and found the scout droid they used; Vern’s modified saber helped clear a path in the jungle and fight off the bad guys; and both Vern and Imri learned a valuable lesson on the Dark Side and their own abilities as Jedi, and will continue to learn and grow together as Master and Apprentice (despite only a two year age difference).

At the end though, Avon still hadn’t completely learned her lesson about taking tech apart. Her curiosity about lightsabers and kyber crystals got the better of her and I suspect it will have consequences later. We all know what kyber will eventually be used for, and while her intentions are pure and she believes “science will thank me later”, she doesn’t yet realize that not everyone will use science for good. She was also billed as a STEAM heroine in the promotion, but this aspect didn’t figure into things as much as I thought it would. So I hope we see her again and she has a chance to use those tech skills more.

What’s in a Name

While a Middle Grade book, the cast of characters ranged in age from twelve to sixteen giving it more of a crossover appeal. With Vern being a fully fledged Knight despite her young age, and Imri being fourteen, I can definitely see the potential to see these two again in either a YA or Adult novel with the rest of the Jedi. As for Avon and Honesty, I can see them getting another full length Middle Grade adventure too or appearing in the Star Wars Adventures comics.

However, those names. From the moment I first read the name Avon, all I could think about was the makeup. You know those Avon catalogs your mom gets with the makeup and perfume? Yeah, those. So I couldn’t help but chuckle and cringe every time I read her name. As for Honesty, that reminded me of how the Puritans used to name their children after the virtues they wanted them to possess. Seeing as how his people, the Dalnan, live beyond the borders of the Republic and have a different type of society, I’m guessing this was intentional. But Avon? Really? And Master Douglass probably has the most “normal” name in Star Wars besides Luke.

Justina Ireland is the bestselling author of the Dread Nation YA books. Her previous Star Wars credits include Lando’s Luck and Spark of the Resistance. She is part of the group of authors who will be contributing to and crafting the High Republic era and the stories surrounding it.

All in all, I liked this outing. It was fast paced and full of adventure. Recommended for readers 9-13 or grades 4-7.

A great adventure that middle grade readers will love because of the Jedi and heroes their age.

Thank you Disney, Lucasfilm and NetGalley for the e ARC!

LOVED IT! It spun off of a nice tie-in at the end of Light of the Jedi. The characters are amazing and I can’t wait to get to know them more!

"A Test of Courage" written by Justina Ireland was written for middle readers, ages 8-12, and it is set in the High Republic Era of the Star Wars Universe immediately after the events of "The Great Disaster" around 200 years before the "The Phantom Menace." The story follows newly knighted Vernestra Rwoh and her companions (Honesty, a Delnan ambassador's son; Avon Starros, a Republic Senator's daughter; J-6, Avon's droid; and Jedi Padawan Imri) as they learn to trust one another and struggle to survive when their ship is destroyed by Nihil pirates.

Although the author does a good job of attempting to show the struggles of teenage kids stranded on a moon, the story as a whole falls flat in its emotional believability. Vernestra, a Jedi prodigy who has excelled in all of her previous training, seems to lack the emotional maturity of a fully knighted Jedi, yet she is the de-facto leader of the group solely because she is the oldest and "most experienced." This creates many problems as the others in the group find it difficult to follow her lead and, instead, proceed with their own agendas. Her lack of maturity leaves the reader wondering what in the world the Jedi Order was thinking when they deemed her worthy of passing the trials.

Overall, despite the absence of an emotional connection with the audience, the book was a fun read. It did not provide more than a soft introduction to the High Republic, its Jedi, and their struggles with the Nihil during the fallout from The Great Disaster. For Star Wars fans looking to get into this new era, it is a forgettable must read, but for the casual observer who is mildly interested in Star Wars, it is a hard pass.

It is possible to simply adore the characters in a book, but be totally turned off by the plot? That’s exactly how I felt about this book. Vernestra, a fifteen-year-old Jedi who is tasked with watching over Avon Starros, a trouble-making young aspiring inventor and J-8, her wacky droid. They are well-crafted and form the core of the story… and it is these young , strong characters that kept me reading.

The basic plot: A new space station called Starlight Beacon is about to be dedicated. It will become a key communication and supply relay between Coruscant and the Outer Rim. Thousands are on their way to the big party! The characters in A Test of Courage are on a luxury liner headed for the big event… but on their way a series of explosions rips the vessel apart and a spare maintenance ship enables them to escape the wreckage. They find themselves floating in deep space until a habitable moon is located. Is it deserted? Will the mystery be solved…

My biggest beef with this book is that I never felt a connection to this new High Republic. Some distinct things are mentioned, but none of the reveal I was expecting. I wanted to see and hear The Time of the Jedi… only to ultimately get a lost-on-a-deserted-planet plot. As I said above, the characters were great… each flashback and interaction gave me better insight into their lives and personalities, but I never saw they connect to the new whole.

I’ll try not to pan this one too much because I think Ireland’s writing is damn good… Read it for a decently fun adventure and some good characters… a book which I think will be a delight for new readers of the SW Universe.

3 out of 5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley, Disney Books, and the author for an advanced copy for review.

With "A Test of Courage" Justina Ireland did a great job: the junior novel is easily and fast readable, Ireland's writing is pleasant and all the characters are well described and in-depth analyzed. Everyone has something important to say and, in the 240 pages, a great character development.

The novel manages also to touch important thematics as grief, loss, personal insecurities: they are very relevant and well written into the story. The final twist of the novel is also related deeply to these thematics and it is able to both surprise the reader, as well as to open new roads for the characters here established.

The only minor flaw of the novel is that its central chapters are a bit slower than the daring, beginning ones. However this slower pace is obviously necessary to develop characters as explained before.

Vernestra’s first mission as a young Jedi Knight is to keep Avon safe as she travels to meet her mother on the new space station, Starlight Beacon. After the cruiser has been sabotaged, Vernestra finds this to be a much more difficult challenge than she’d thought.

This is such a fun and exciting adventure! The High Republic takes place long before Anakin’s story in the Star Wars saga. There is a nice variety of young characters, including two strong and intelligent females in Vernestra and Avon. Readers won’t need a Star Wars background to understand or enjoy the story. I look forward to more stories of the High Republic.

Ok, I have many thoughts. Let’s preface this review with some quantifying statements.
This is technically a middle-grade book, I don’t often read middle grade and thus don’t have much to say in regards to that aspect of the book.
I am a huge Star Wars fan. I have read several of the books and am well versed in the universe.
Quantifying the previous statement, Jedi are not my favorite element of the Star Wars universe. So this book does have to stand outside of Jedi being cool.

These things being said, let’s start the review. I loved this book. I had such a fun time reading this book. I also got so into it you don’t understand. While reading I was highlighting elements in different colors and making notes. I never do this when reading fiction books, I’ve only ever done it in some nonfiction books, that is how into this book I got.

As a Star Wars fan, I was so excited by the setting this new sub-series is covering. The universe outside of the Skywalker saga and the Skywalkers holds so much potential. There is so much potential in this unexplored time in the galaxy.

Going back to the intended age range I do believe that this book is in some ways able to transcend the stereotypes of that descriptor. Of the middle grades that I have read after exiting the target age range where you would expect one to read them, one was another Star Wars middle grade. Comparing the two without really comparing them, I feel that this one has a much wider appeal. This book goes into some complex topics and deals with some pretty heavy stuff. There were only a few times when I felt the influence of middle grade seep into the story. I feel like everyone could enjoy this book.

Moving on to how much fun as a star wars fan I had spotting references, let’s put that at a 7 and an 8 for those more well versed in different species and planets.

This book was also really funny. There were several lines that I had to save because they brought a smile to my face.

For those interested in Jedi culture and mentality this book dealt with those topics pretty heavily. With two of the four main characters being force users a significant amount of the conflict present in this book comes as a result of dealing with your place as a Jedi. How you interact with the force and it with you. Jedi codes of conduct and rules are also frequently brought up and referenced. If you didn’t know about Jedi before reading this you definitely know how they operate by the end.

We also spent a suspicious amount of time in there talking about kyber crystals. It felt sort of out of place and like it was set up for future plots and events. These events are either going to tie back in with more high republic books or they could just be tying us to things like Rogue One.

I feel that one of the reasons I enjoyed this book so much was because of some similar elements it shares with the new Thrawn books. We are in star wars but we are outside of the familiar realm we usually operate in. This gives the story so much more room to roam and it shows at times. I also liked the imped bigger threat that will turn up again at a future date. Thrawn also had these, enemies, in the shadows just outside of the story but sure to impact it significantly.

On a final note, let’s talk about some things I wasn’t so jazzed about as no book is without some flaws. There was the bit about the kyber crystals I mentioned earlier but it’s not too big of a deal. The start of the book put me a bit off at first. It felt like we were switching between characters too much and it was hard to get into. There was this promise of excitement just around the corner but the intrigue was just a bit lacking. I also found the ending to be a bit rushed. The resolution to the stranding dilemma comes too easily and closure for the characters doesn’t really happen in a satisfying way. I can’t quite put my finger on everything in the ending that put me off but it was there and otherwise, I would have rated the book much higher.

I can’t wait to see how more of The High Republic plays out.

Part of the vast world of Star Wars novels and, in particular, the subset of those novels with an intended child audience. Kids with a high interest in Star Wars might be drawn in, but too little contextual information is provided to entice non Star Wars fans. All the main characters are 16 or younger and most of them are beset with the usual problems of the early and pre-teen set: determining who they are, fighting for authority over their own lives, and both wanting and fearing the future. As is common for Star Wars books trigger warnings for death abound, including key parental deaths in the early chapters.

As a Star Wars fan I’ve been mostly ambivalent about the whole High Republic era things, my preferred time period to read has always been post-RotJ, but this came up in NetGalley and I couldn’t resist taking a peak.

This book focuses on several young teens who get caught together after the ship they are on suffers sabotage. Jedi Knight, Jedi Padawan, Senator’s daughter, diplomat’s son, and a droid with personality make up the team that make it on a shuttle craft together.

I really enjoyed this story, it was a quick read, and scratches the itch of “I miss the YJK books”. And even if I miss Solo kids ok, this has that feel, only in some ways I feel like with more digging into Jedi philosophy.

Overall this was an enjoyable peek into this era and series, and I will probably check out more of them when they are released. Recommend for anyone who enjoys stories about Jedi, and as a fun adventure story for elementary/middle grade readers.

As a partisan for the prequel Jedi, I'm interested to see what the High Republic era has to say for itself. This was a pretty good introduction.

The idea of a sixteen-year-old full Jedi knight is a little bit odd, but it's Star Wars. We believe in giving teenage girls a scary amount of power. Other than that, this was a good, solid kids' adventure. It had enough philosophy, enough action, and enough emotions to make it all-around enjoyable.

This book was a wonderfully written middle grade to introduce the High Republic. The book follows a small cast of characters, which is perfect for middle schoolers (especially reluctant readers) looking for a fun Star Wars story. The characters are well written all have their own challenges and personalities. The book was well paced and action filled. It was fun to see how how the Jedi and apprentice relationships happened before the Empire. Really enjoyed this new time period.

(Review will not be published until Dec 14th)

Star Wars: A Test of Courage was a fun first foray into a new time period for the Star Wars universe. Justina Ireland did a great job setting the stage for more novels to come with good world building and very distinct exciting characters. Justina did such a good job with her characters that for the first time I was actually more interested and entertained by the “non-Jedi” characters than I was by the main driving force of Star Wars universe!

I did feel a bit at odds with the pacing of the book. I would have liked to see a bit more time spent on the conflicts (both internal and external) that took up the last 20% of the book as opposed to the large amount of introspection in the middle.

Their were plenty of Easter eggs for Star Wars fans and I am very excited to see how they play out across the High Republic publishing initiative.