*Star Wars: The High Republic: Tales of Light and Life* is a captivating anthology that explores the rich and expansive era of the High Republic. Each story, written by various talented authors, delves into the lives of beloved characters, offering fresh perspectives and deepening the lore of this vibrant period in the Star Wars universe. It's a must-read for fans eager to experience new adventures and insights within the galaxy far, far away.

This is book full of fun short stories from the Star Wars High Republic series, its a brilliant and great read that I totally and completely recommend for fans of this series of Star Wars books.

Each story is complete and interesting to read, each adds it's own voice to what has so far been an incredible and very large series.

Highly recommend....

The High Republic novels have been an absolute treat for Star Wars fans. Taking when the Jedi were at the height of their power and influence.

These short stories bring you closer to that world and give you more of what High Republic fans love.

Star Wars: The High Republic: Tales of Light and Life is a really great collection of short stories about the characters we have met in previous books and some new characters that I am sure we are going to meet soon. I found this collection a little hit or miss, some of the stories were really strong and others not my favorite. I think its a personal thing because I really like everything around the Starlight Beacon and so the stories in that era stand out to me the most. But it is definitely worth the read.

Star Wars: The High Republic; Tales of Light and Life is a collection of short stories by all of the High Republic, previously known as Project Luminous, authors to date. Each author has a chance to provide us with a short story of a character that they have had a chance to develop throughout their other projects, or to preview the stories that will be upcoming in the third and final phase of the publishing initiative. Stories span both of the phases that have already been published and also begin to create a bridge into the remaining phase. Overall, the collection was amazing, as everything in the High Republic to date has been, but it makes sense to talk about each of the stories individually.
"The Queen's Bloom" by Zoraida Cordova is the earliest story in the collection and takes place prior to the events of Phase 2. It follows a younger version of Cordova's character, Axel Greylark, through an unintended heist. The story is a really fun bit of backstory and exposition for a character that is one of my favorites from Phase 2, and provides excellent motivation for who his character eventually becomes and his motives moving forward.
"A Closed Fist Has No Claws" by Tessa Gratton is absolutely stunning in execution, and features another of our favorite characters from Phase 2, Marda Ro. For anyone who finished Phase 2 wishing that they had a chance to see how the Path of the Open Hand would become the Nihil, I think that this is the perfect transitional material. The style is different and feels almost like a diary or a story that is being told to you, but it's absolutely perfect and Tessa Gratton can do no wrong in the High Republic, as far as I am concerned.
George Mann's "Shield of the Jedi" is the third and final piece in the Phase 2 timeframe from one of three of the authors who penned their first novels in the second phase. This story centers on the Jedi Trials of Padawan Rooper Nitani, and provides an excellent look at how these Trials are tailored to each of the Padawans and their paths as Jedi. Rooper needs to complete a relatively simple task, but quickly determines that there is much, much more complexity to any problem than can be seen at first glance.
"The Lonely Traveler is Home" by Daniel Jose Older is a personal favorite, even as it feels like the youngest and silliest story in the bunch. This story is set in the middle of Phase 1 and centers on my absolute favorite Padawan, Ram Jomaram. Like everything DJO writes for the High Republic, this story is funny and goofy and full of heart, while centering themes like friendship and self-care and I adore it with my whole heart.
From fun and silly to incredibly somber, Claudia Gray's "After the Fall" brings us back to the Vessel Crew following the events of her final adult book of Phase 1. This book, like many of the others that follow, begin paving the way for what we can expect to see in Phase 3 and I am beyond excited. Seeing people who have become heroes of sorts figure out what they need to do to take care of a galaxy in chaos and turmoil is incredibly powerful, and Gray's gravitas definitely lends itself to this story.
If Gray's story is powerful, Justina Ireland's "The Force Provides" is equally profound. While it masquerades as an escort story, it is really about Jedi Knight Vernestra Rwoh and her coming to terms with her world disintegrating around her. Will Vernestra remain a Jedi? Will she become something else entirely? Can she even trust the Force anymore? I don't know and I need to see her in Phase 3 stat just to make sure she's okay.
Speaking of making sure that things are okay, you will not be okay when you read Charles Soule's "All Jedi Walk Their Own Path" which is an absolutely heartrending introspective look at Bell Zetifar following the events of Phase 1. And, honestly, Bell needs this introspection. He becomes a fisherman and refuses to give up on the people that he cares about, and I just need this poor boy to be taken care of. Plus, this is probably the most important story of the collection in terms of the information that it provides us regarding what happened to a certain character at the end of The Fallen Star.
Cavan Scott chooses to take us to a new location and center his story on some unknown characters for his contribution, "Light in the Darkness" which makes sense, because Cavan's work does tend to be more experimental and risky in Star Wars publishing, and I am not sure if this one pays off for me as much as some of the others, but that is just because the others are so, so incredibly good. That said, it does give us a good idea what the galaxy looks like just before the start of Phase 3 and eventually lets us check in on a favorite character from his comic run.
The final story in the collection, Lydia Kang's "The Call of Coruscant" introduces us to brand new characters who are expected to play a larger role in Phase 3. The story centers on Amadeo Azzazzo, a Padawan who isn't quite sure that this whole Jedi thing is for him, as he enjoys a wild night out on Coruscant. This story, along with Midnight Horizon's flashback scenes, convince me that all Jedi need to do a Jedi rumspringa of sorts to figure out how to be people before they commit to being Jedi.
As a final note, while this version of the book does not include it, the Barnes & Noble special edition includes an additional story, "Rogue Element" by Alyssa Wong, and can I just say, I am more excited than anything to see them joining the team for Phase 3, and I absolutely adored this story that brings back old favorites, Alys "Crash" Ongwa and Svi'no Atchapat, but also introduces a rogue former Jedi named Ruu that I am incredibly interested in seeing more of down the line. This was probably my favorite of the bunch, and I am so sad that not all readers get this story in their editions.

The High Republic team once again delivers with an all-encompasing collection of short stories spanning the entirety of the High Republic timeline, with some hinting at what is to come in Phase III (and I'm scared.) In most anthologies there are often weak links but I felt that every story in this collection was strong in its own right. That being said, there were ones I definitely enjoyed over others but each were great and had something unique to offer and I really appreciate the High Republic team really going into the "have a format for everybody" thing.

As a Star Wars movies fan who is very unfamiliar with the books, The High Republic: Tales of Light and Life was actually a great (if a little confusing) introduction to the High Republic. I really loved seeing so many different perspectives, far beyond what we normally get in the movies and even television series. I particularly appreciated Claudia Grey's "After the Fall," which really gave me insight into the Jedi and their mission. I also loved George Mann's "Shield of the Jedi," which was much lighter than the other stories, while still being meaningful. It definitely made me want to read more of the High Republic books and I can't wait to pick some others up.

Really good! Some of these are up there with the best of the stories in THR so far and help fill in some of the gaps between Phases 1 and 2 as well as helps setting up Phase 3. The Burryaga focused story in particular was a personal favorite. It was nice to have a collection of short stories that show off the varied writing styles of all of the authors that work in the THR universe.

The final phase of The High Republic is approaching soon, and just as Phase II has ended with more questions and a desire for more stories from the outstanding Star Wars publishing initiative, Tales of Light and Life arrives. This anthology made of nine tales from all of The High Republic authors (with the Barnes & Noble edition adding one more from Alyssa Wong who just joined the team) covers pretty much everything that was left unsolved from the first two phases. Usually, Star Wars anthology books provide some interesting yet not-so-impactful stories mostly because of storytelling constraints that come from film and television, but since The High Republic has so far only been part of publishing, the authors have the opportunity to make each story count.

Tales of Light and Life begins by exploring a younger version of Axel Greylark with Zoraida Córdova creating a story that is intriguing and character-defining; Tessa Gratton then delivers arguably the most pivotal tale of the anthology, revealing the evolution of the Path into the Nihil by Marda Ro’s hands; George Mann takes his character Rooper Nitani on an important quest to become a Jedi Knight; Daniel José Older brings comedic relief in a tale featuring Ram Jomaram and Zeen Mrala; the Vessel crew finds new purpose in a story by Claudia Gray; Vernestra Rwoh decides to take a new path to heal after the fall of Starlight Beacon in Justina Ireland’s story; Charles Soule writes another incredibly crucial tale from Phase II with Bell Zettifar on a search for his lost friend Burryaga; Cavan Scott contributes to Tales of Light and Life by creating a story of hope and light against darkness from a different perspective; and finally Lydia Kang concludes the anthology (not counting Wong’s tale) introducing new characters while exploring Coruscant’s nightlife.

Whether you are an avid High Republic reader or just getting into this all-new era of Star Wars, Tales of Light and Life is an essential read that you won’t be able to put down until the last page. Although it’s advertised as a book you can jump on without knowing anything about what’s been covered so far in Phase I and II, prior knowledge of the events of the first two phases is recommended as it will spoil a great deal—and maybe that’s why Tales of Light and Life is an important read, not to be skipped.

Are you ready to explore new tales from The High Republic? Then make sure to pick up a copy of Tales of Light and Life today, featuring a stunning cover by Tara Phillips and Jake Bartok!

“Nothing in this galaxy is freely given.”
- Marda Ro

Starlight Beacon has fallen. The Night of Sorrow has passed. But what comes next? What of our heroes? What of the enemies? Past present and future are all explored in this anthology.
Tales of Light and Life contains nine stories (ten if you get that Barnes and Noble edition) following characters spanning all phases of The High Republic! Each short story sheds light on questions and feelings that might be tugging at all of us after the events of both Phase I and Phase II of the High Republic. From Axel and Marda, to Zettifar and Vernestra! And maybe even friends we thought lost along the way…
The themes and growth in this story are brilliant. Plenty of threads to wonder about while we wait for Phase III. Even those unfamiliar with these characters will still find the stories and themes illuminating and familiar to the core themes of Star Wars storytelling.
This is a must-read for The High Republic fans looking ahead to Phase III but still not quite ready to let go of favorites from Phase II!

“We win by pushing back the shadows and lighting the way.”
- Keeve Trennis

You might also like:
The High Republic: Starlight Stories
Star Wars Myths & Fables
Star Wars Life Day Treasury
From a Certain Point of View: Star Wars

This anthology is the perfect way for readers to prepare for Phase III of the High Republic! Bringing together the stories of Phase I and Phase II characters, this spectacular team of authors takes readers on an intergalactic journey that takes place between each phase of the novels. Readers will get to join some of their favorite characters as well as some new friends as they navigate a galaxy far, far away before the events of Phase II, after the Battle of Dalna, and the Fall of Starlight Beacon. Tales of Light and Life is an essential read for High Republic fans and I can’t wait to read it again!

There are some super cool stories in here, but my biggest challenge is that this bounces from Phase to phase, and with us just finishing up phase 2, to have books that throw you back into phase 1 when the High Republic universe is so expansive.
I'm reallt having trouble remembering what happened and when, so this collection feels very disjointed- essentially I'm having to go back and remind myself what happened several times.
Some of the stories don't really add much value to the phases but act as nice fillers.

This is a fantastic collection of short stories set during The High Republic. Each provides further perspective on characters that the readers of the High Republic have grown to love. The stories are well-written; some were light-hearted while others dealt with deep dark emotions. This is a must-read for any THR fan.

A fun anthology that serves as a great memory refresher before heading into the upcoming Phase III of The High Republic. For fans who are newer to The High Republic, it would've been helpful to get a bit more context for the main arcs of Phase I and Phase II, whether through a story recap (similar in format to those included in Star Wars Timelines and Chronicles of the Jedi) or at least some annotations for each short story that indicates more specificity about when each one occurs in the wider High Republic timeline.

I will forever love books full of stories about Star Wars. I haven't delved as much into the High Republic Era so this was a really good starting point for that.

I really love Zoraida Cordova's writing and Star Wars, so this was obviously that story was exciting for me. But I also love an anthology as a way to explore new (to me) authors and maybe find new favorites. Plus the expansion of the Star Wars universe? Count me in.

This is a perfect collection of voices for readers who engage readily with the Star Wars universe. I appreciate both the range of creators and the continuing power of Star Wars to inspire young readers.

Tales of Light and Life is a showcase of why the High Republic Era is so beloved by fans. Each story brings something different to the table, each with a different character and different perspective that keeps the stories interesting. My personal favorite stories were George Mann's about Rooper and Silandra Sho and Zoraida Córdova's about Axel Greylark. But I am sure each person will have a different favorite story, and favorite character. This book has gotten me very excited for the upcoming books of the High Republic!