Star Wars: The High Republic: The Light of the Jedi, written by Charles Soule and published by Del Rey with cover art by Joseph Meehan is the first adult novel set in a new era for Star Wars, the High Republic. Set about 200 years before The Phantom Menace, the new novel finds the Republic on the verge of diplomatic and governing expansion into the Outer Rim, a territory of the galaxy previously excluded from the Republic’s unified vision of peace and prosperity. Starlight Beacon is set to be both a symbol and practical place of outreach, until a Great Disaster, an anomaly from hyperspace, threatens everything. The Jedi and the Republic must discover the cause of this anomaly and ensure hyperspace remains safe from it happening again, lest the people of the Outer Rim, and the Republic’s expansion there, be put in grave danger.

Light of the Jedi launches the highly anticipated High Republic publishing initiative, the first major project of Del Rey, Marvel, IDW, Disney Publishing, and other partners since the end of the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy. It is also the first adult canon novel to explore an entirely new era of Star Wars. While a few previously-known characters make brief appearances, virtually nothing is known about this time period. So, unlike nearly every other Star Wars book in the canon, there is no dramatic irony or previous knowledge to draw upon to know what direction the book may go. It’s all brand new territory. Needless to say, Light of the Jedi needed to make a serious splash.

Fortunately, I would more than say it does. Light of the Jedi offers readers so much of what no other canon book really has yet: Jedi. In a time where thousands upon thousands of Jedi were active throughout the galaxy, Soule spends a lot of time illustrating the great diversity of thought among the Jedi and the different ways they understood and enacted their roles as agents of the light side of the Force. He also shows a Jedi Order somewhat different from that of the Prequel era. The Jedi here are not necessarily more monastic or less orthodox or anything like that, but it is clear from the language they use and the actions they do and do not take that the Order had some different priorities and ideals during this time.

Perhaps my favorite exploration of the Jedi though was the book’s emphasis on the unique way each and every Jedi perceived the force. For example, Jedi Master Avar Kriss conceptualizes the Force in terms of music. Meanwhile, others see an endless sea, a great storm, a tree with endless roots, or interlocking gears. All of the ways that Jedi interpret the Force in Light of the Jedi feel personal and are just so beautifully described.

The Jedi also exhibit incredible powers, some of which had me yelling out loud they were so cool. None of them feel farfetched or outside of the scope of how Star Wars fans may have imaged the Jedi capable of using the Force. Yet, I could never have imagined some of the feats the Jedi accomplish together in Light of the Jedi, or the interesting and spectacular individual powers some of the characters possess.

Among the coolest additions to the High Republic era are some of the starships and vehicles, which themselves have connections to the Force. The Jedi’s Vector starfighters are controlled by their lightsabers, which act as both key and throttle. It’s a small thing, but the concept alone struck me as very cool, and the various moments throughout the book where the Vectors get to show off are all captivating. I am also seriously looking forward to getting to see a rendition of the Vanguard/V-Wheel.

The action in Light of the Jedi is simply so well-written. The entire first part of the book was one long, incredible, non-stop action sequence that, while a tad choppy with how short the chapters are and how none of them offer more than one perspective at a time, had me completely locked in and captivated for the full third of the book it takes up.

By the end, the sequence’s conclusion was so beautifully written that it completely left me in tears with its gorgeous prose. I know I cry easily but I have never had the simple beauty of how a moment is described in a book move me as powerfully as the conclusion of the first act.

Some of the ways that Soule writes are a bit too poetic though. I had many occasions where I wanted to introduce him to the concept of a period. His sentences are occasionally twisted into strange parts of speech and forced me to reread them a few times over. I questioned whether a few were just typos before realizing they were just being poetic and then rolling my eyes.

Because the first part is such non-stop action, it didn’t leave much room to get to know the bevy of new characters. While this is a Star Wars book, there are (nearly) no familiar characters. So the fact that we never get to spend more than a few pages at time with any of the new Jedi, military folk, government officials, or otherwise made it hard to remember who was who for much of the book. I spent a lot of time on Wookieepedia attempting to parse the different characters. It also didn’t help that there were a few chapters here and there about characters whom we would never, or rarely, hear from again.

In fact, in an odd sort of way, those brief moments sometimes connected me more strongly to characters who I would never see again than some of the book’s actual main characters. They were so incredibly well-written and fleshed out that it made the stark lack of personality in some of the main characters early on more apparent. The story moves so quickly between characters in the first part that I actually couldn’t tell who was meant to be a main character, who we would only see again in other High Republic media, and who were just secondary or tertiary characters in Light of the Jedi. It took me much of the book to discern the main characters from secondary characters or characters who would appear in other High Republic stories, especially given who gets more pages about them and who is on the front cover of the book.

The two characters that did stand out the most were Master Jedi Avar Kriss and Padawan Bell Zetifar. Master Kriss, aside from her incredible and gorgeously written Force powers, interests me because she starts the book seemingly stoic. You would mistake her for the ideal Jedi who bears no emotions and is guided only by the will of the Force. However, as the story progresses, you start to see small hints of how perhaps she does not meet these ideals after all, especially as her connections with fellow Jedi Stellan Gios and Elzar Mann become apparent.

Zetifar on the other hand excites me because he strikes me as having the same sort of aloofness that I love in Anakin Skywalker, as well a relationship with his master Loden Greatstorm that could one day rival that of Anakin and Obi-Wan. Plus, he has a pet dog that breaths fire, a charhound named Ember, so, how can you not love him?

One thing Light of the Jedi suffers from is a severe exposition dumping problem. There were so many times throughout the book where a character just explains outright in explicit detail something so obvious to the person they’re speaking to and in such unrealistic detail. For example, at one point a character seeks out an explanation about certain aspects of hyperspace from the galaxy’s foremost hyperspace expert only to proceed to explains how hyperspace works to them themself. And then point out “as you already know.” I absolutely appreciate that Light of the Jedi may be some folks’ first Star Wars book and certain concepts, especially hyperspace given its prominent role in the book, deserve an explanation. But this type of raw and clunky exposition happens many times throughout the book, taking me out every single time.

It did also take me out of the story, at first, whenever familiar names would be mentioned. Some of the very oldest members of the Jedi Order from the Prequel Era were certainly around during the High Republic in various roles. While it certainly makes sense that some of them would have roles to play in this story, it still always felt odd when absolutely nothing else about the plot of the book was remotely familiar.

A similar feeling occurred when familiar planet names were constantly name-dropped. In a galaxy filled with thousands of inhabited planets, especially with so much of the book’s focus on the Outer Rim, it just feels weird to have the same 25 or so that we already know from previous Star Wars stories happen to be the ones involved in the story. The Core and even some Mid-Rim planets are one thing, but the Outer Rim ones just get to feeling uncanny eventually. Sometimes these name drops served as little nods to readers of the vast library of canon Star Wars books, like when Eriadu comes into play or the constant civic strife on Mon Calamari, but still, it felt like a bit much with how often it happened.

Lastly, the Republic’s quest to expand into the Outer Rim and its slogan “We are all the Republic” are pretty uncomfortable. I’m sure that the huge colonialism vibes it gives me are intentional, and that future stories will continue to explore this. However, I wish that the book’s villains, the Nihil, expressed a more direct contempt for the colonialism and forced assimilation the Republic seems to be really into. It’s not that they don’t hold contempt for the Republic’s expanding into their home, but it comes more from a selfish place of wanting to continue to get rich raiding people than it does from anything deeper. Not that everything needs to be deep all the time, or that every villain needs grander plans than self-preservation, but it does make the Nihil a whole lot less sympathetic.

And they kind of need the sympathy at times to keep me interested in them, at least for a lot of the book. The Nihil have a big Mad Max: Fury Road vibe to them and while their structure as an organization is compelling and their leaders, many of whom I feel like I came to know more about as characters than any of the heroes are rather interesting, they ultimately left me questioning whether they could sustain an entire series as its villains. At least for most of the book.

While by the end of the book I can see how they might be able to hold my attention as big bads beyond a single book, their one-note story of self-enrichment just doesn’t jive with how I pre-conceive Star Wars big bads. Maybe that’s just on me for having pre-conceptions in the first place, and only time will tell. The end of Light of the Jedi does set up the potential that by book two, the Nihil will have some new motivations revealed. Regardless, their relationship to hyperspace is so interesting and I absolutely cannot wait to continue exploring that as the series continues.

Despite these nitpicks, Light of the Jedi is a fantastic introduction to the High Republic. While I wish that I knew some of its characters better for having finished it, I am excited by just how many characters I will hopefully have the opportunity to meet and come to adore as I read the rest of the first wave of High Republic content and anticipate the next wave this summer. The Jedi are as powerful and interesting as ever, the era is ripe for exploration, the burgeoning themes are titillating, and the set pieces all fit excellently. I am more than looking forward to continuing to explore the High Republic.

Light of the Jedi is everything a Star Wars fan would desire. Charles Soule has written an amazing blockbuster movie in the form of a novel, which has nothing to envy to the most famous names in modern fantasy.

Thanks to a compelling and layered story, which is developed through spectular action sequences, galaxy-wide intriguing investigations and dark misteries, Light of the Jedi will make you stick to its pages until the end. Readers may only suffer from a too long first act.

The character cast, for what concerns both the Jedi and the Nihil, is rich and well made, and all the characters are - at least for me - already iconic in the Star Wars.

Soule style is fluent, rich in details and inspiring metaphors, yet very solid during action sequences. The rythm is also well managed.

I loved Light of the Jedi and cannot wait to read more from The High Republic.

This book was AMAZING! Such a great kick off to the High Republic! Every chapter was perfect, and having the first person create a sense of urgency was so cool- I couldn’t put this book down. I can’t wait to see what else this initiative has in store!

If your idea of the Jedi from the prequel trilogy amounts to lots of standing and sitting, prepare yourself, as the first adult novel in the High Republic publishing initiative from Lucasfilm looks to recreate the Jedi in a new light, so to speak. We were given access to the first three novels in this new era to review. Light of the Jedi, written by Star Wars comic veteran Charles Soule, is set some 200 years before the events of The Phantom Menance and starts with such intensity that you’d swear that the beginning of the book was the end. Within the high stakes and lightning-quick developments, we see how the Jedi operated in their prime and see the advent of a new threat to the galaxy.

I particularly enjoyed the first act of this novel, which takes place over the course of a few hours. It’s lightning-fast and there’s a sense of urgency and intensity that really hooks you in early. On the Hetzal System, an alarm is triggered, and it’s revealed that debris is hurtling towards the planet and its moons at near-light speed, with hours until impact. Minster Ecka issues a system-wide alert and pleads for help from any nearby system. By chance, a republic cruiser housing hundreds of Jedi, The Third Horizon, was nearby after they attended the dedication of the Starlight Beacon, a new space station that will link the Outer Rim territories to the core worlds, while also serving as a waystation and Jedi Temple.

Each chapter in this act opens with how much time is left until the system is utterly decimated and Soule has written the story with little in the way of downtime. Instead, he gives us a lot of new characters to meet in this crisis and we bounce between the likes of Avar Kriss aboard the ship to Jedi Master Loden Greatstorm on the ground with his padawan, Bell Zettifar and three Jedi aboard tiny starships around the planet, the Duros Te’Ami, the Ithorian Mikkel Sutmani and the Wookie Burryaga Agaburry, just to name a few. As you can see, the Jedi are plentiful and diverse in this era. They all feel distinct from one and other and interesting in their own like. The story is quite the busy one and there’s no set protagonist; instead, we bounce from one point of view character to another. It can be a lot, especially at first, but this is the first step in a new chapter after all. Thankfully, there’s enough time to flesh these characters out enough that we care about them, but overall this is a plot-heavy book, not one moved by its characters, which there are many.

The Jedi in particular here feel incredibly powerful. Some of the things they do are unimaginable, but this is the Jedi in their prime, without being clouded by the Dark Side like the in the prequels. But unlike the prequels, the Jedi here aren’t warriors or generals: they’re peacekeepers first and highly spiritual ones at that. A lightsaber is a tool, not a weapon, and the taking of life is very much a last resort. When the Jedi arrive on the scene, it feels like a big deal, as the sense of professionalism and trust in each other permeates throughout the writing. These Jedi are so intuned with the Force that they don’t even need to communicate reactions or directions to each other. They can fly their small ships, called Vectors, together as a swarm (often compared to leaves or flower petals in the wind), without the fear of collision. Likewise, some of the powers and feats they perform over the course of the book are awe-inspiring and jaw-dropping and there’s often a comparison to nature when talking about them, whether it be an ocean or a field etc. One Jedi even sees the Force as music.
While we’re introduced to a big cast of new Jedi, we get a decent amount of time with the new enemies of the High Republic era, The Nihil. They’re described as space pirates and marauders and I think comparing them to Vikings is fair. They have their own great hall full of tables and plunder, pillage, kill and take to their heart’s content. But what separates them from regular old scum and villainy? Why are they such a threat to the Jedi and the Republic? That, you’ll have to find out for yourselves, but the Nihil culture and characters, particularly their leader Marchion Ro, are fresh, layered and brutal and by the end of the book, I was left entranced and wanting more.

Because the events of this book and the other High Republic stories are so far removed from the films, it feels like a blank slate where the authors and Lucasfilm were able to paint a brand new canvas that carries weight. It’s absolutely fascinating that this brand new era of Star Wars is making its debut in books and comics, as opposed to a movie or show. The Republic is also an interesting entity in the novel. “We are all the Republic” is a mantra that’s repeated a lot in the book in the face of peace and expansion into the Outer Rim. But there are those who see the Republic as a controlling force, taking away freedoms. We know that the Republic has no presence in the Outer Rim by the time the events of Episode I play out, so it’ll be interesting to see what happens to the wildly ambitious plan that is the Starlight Beacon.

If there’s one thing I would recommend to Del Rey in the future, and this is a minor thing, but I think opening the book with a dramatis personae (akin to the old Legends novels), would be beneficial, as to have an easy to resource to remind readers what species all these new characters are. Too often I was trying to imagine what a few of these Jedi or Nihil characters looked like and I couldn’t just jump back to a designated page to remind myself. These are all new characters, so being able to familiarize ourselves with them easier would be a great asset.

Light of the Jedi is a high stake, adrenaline-inducing thrill ride that’s a welcome change for Star Wars. It feels like a movie but in book form. It has weight, stakes and brand new characters that will likely become fan favourites for some time. This is only the first book in the first phase of this new publishing initiative and I can’t wait to jump back into it in summer 2021. Star Wars has a bright, new frontier to explore and you should definitely go along for the ride.

Light of the Jedi will be available on January 5th, 2021. Also, there’s going to be a livestream event on January 4th on YouTube and starwars.com, where “fans can look forward to fresh insights into the characters and events of The High Republic, along with new announcements and reveals of what’s to come. “

Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi, was written by Charles Soule. He's written stories for the Star Wars Comics, and he's written his first Star Wars Novel.

This novel kicks off a brand new era in Star Wars canon, going back 200 years before the events of the Skywalker Saga.

SUMMARY: The galaxy is peaceful, war is a thing of the past. The Republic is strong. The Chancellor, Lina Soh coined the phrase, "We are all the Republic."

Peace is tested when an unforeseen event that stems from a hyperspace lane branching out to the outer rim brings destruction and death on a massive scale. Tensions rise throughout as hyperspace lanes are closed off throughout the galaxy. The chancellor calls upon the Republic Defense Coalition (RDC) and the Jedi to investigate what exactly happened in hyperspace, what has the ability to cause planet wide devastation. The Republic was to open up a new outpost station called Starlight Beacon. It will be a Republic embassy, to serve as a fortress, security, medical facility, and even host the largest Jedi outpost outside the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. The Chancellor wants the RDC and the Jedi to resolve the mystery that caused such chaos before the grand opening of the Starlight Beacon.

A large group of killers, kidnapers, and raiders called the Nihil, have unintentionally put the spotlight on their regional shenanigans in the outer rim. The organization has a unique hierarchy, with three individuals that rule, and one that has the ability to provide secret pathways of hyperspace lanes, uncharted space-ways to sneak around throughout the outer rim. The Nihil wear masks to appear intimidating and remain anonymous. Their tactics are harsh and cruel, but the group must figure out a way to evolve into something more vile, more disturbing, to survive.

Wild events will test the Jedi, the Republic, and even the Nihil in the High Republic Era. Will the Jedi retain their peace and tranquility? Will the Republic stand strong? Will the Nihil overpower all that is good and conquer the galaxy? You should read the novel to find out.

CHARACTERS: There are so many wonderful characters I could pick from to talk about; Avar Kriss, Te-Ami, Bell, Lourna Dee, & even Chancellor Soh. But, I will only pick three characters I found most fascinating.

Elzar Mann is a Jedi Knight, who sees the force as a deep sea. Its depths are endless. Elzar doesn't approach the force the same way twice. He experiments with the force, diving into the sea of its expansive presence differently each time. Many Jedi are content with the way the force works and the way they can manipulate it. Elzar constantly wants to test its limits, He believes so much can be tapped into that no one else had ever thought possible. He's doesn't intend to be difficult, but always open to new ideas with how to call on the force. He believes his views have held him back from achieving the title, Jedi Master.

Marchion Ro is the Eye of the Nihil. The Keeper of the paths in which the Nihil use to creep through the galaxy. He's not quite the leader of the organization, but without him, the Nihil wouldn't be anything special. They'd have to use the same hyperspace lanes as everyone else. Marchion has his secrets. Some that would most certainly bring about an untimely death had the high ranked Nihil called the Tempest Runners, had they found out his big secret. Marchion's past is also shrouded in mystery. So much more could be said about this character, but after-all, this is a spoiler free review.

Porter Engle, (once known as the Blade of Bardotta) - He's an Ikkrukki, who's served in the Jedi Order over 300 years. He's held many positions in the Order. Now, with old age, he likes to cook in the small outpost of the planet Ephrona. He's wise, skilled, & cocky. He is ready and willing to give his spirit over to the force when his time is up.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: I enjoyed this book I thought it was a good story to tell to kick of a new era in Star Wars. Charles Soule does an excellent job writing new characters, planets, and planting a few little easter eggs throughout the novel.

Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi expands the Force and the Universe in the most impressive way.

The villains are complex and very interesting to read about. There are many layers to some of the characters, both hero and villain. I love that there are established characters in the book that aren't invincible. Many aspects of the story including character outcomes and plot points are unpredictable. But yes, there are a few things that are easily predicable. Still, the character development was extraordinary. I can't wait to read more about some of the Jedi we were introduced to in this book as well as what comes of some of the villains.

Light of the Jedi reveals new layers of the Force and adds Character's you're not going to get enough of!

Some story elements came across a little cheesy, but overall, it was really good. While Charles Soule does a great job with descriptions, dialogue, and character development, there are a few minor things that took me out of the Star Wars universe. This is me just being petty, but the use of words like gun & drugs, shouldn't be used. Let's just stick to blaster & spice. However, Soule had many poetic ways of saying things that I found most impressive.

Do I recommend you pick up Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi? Yes. A great way to introduce a new era in Star Wars

RATING: I give this novel an A