Star Wars: The Fallen Star (The High Republic)
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- Create Date：2022-01-06 04:19:32
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Claudia Gray
- ISBN：B099YZD3NR
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Reviews
Meredith England
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claudia gray i am going to FIGHT YOUliteral screaming sobs w this one
Liv Sol Lilith Oschlag
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This was a HEAVY read。 Really heavy。I don't know what to say。 I feel like this book is impossible to talk about meaningfully for me without going into spoilers， which I won't （I can't wait for my friends to read it so I can ~SCREAM~ about specifics with them， but at the moment， I feel way too drained to write。。。 anything）。 I'll just say that it will take some time for me to recover emotionally from this story。 But I'm very excited to see where The High Republic will go from here。 This was a HEAVY read。 Really heavy。I don't know what to say。 I feel like this book is impossible to talk about meaningfully for me without going into spoilers， which I won't （I can't wait for my friends to read it so I can ~SCREAM~ about specifics with them， but at the moment， I feel way too drained to write。。。 anything）。 I'll just say that it will take some time for me to recover emotionally from this story。 But I'm very excited to see where The High Republic will go from here。 。。。more
TheGeeksAttic
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Star Wars: The High Republic: The Fallen Star was written by New York Times best-selling author， Claudia Gray。 This is the 3rd High Republic novel published by Del Rey。 （A big thank you to Del Rey for sending out this copy for me to review。） The Fallen Star is the 3rd and final novel for the first phase of The High Republic。 SUMMARY: Starlight Beacon， the Republic's physical symbol of peace and loyalty， is the next target of the Nihil。 Marchion Ro has spread the Nihil across the galaxy to strike Star Wars: The High Republic: The Fallen Star was written by New York Times best-selling author， Claudia Gray。 This is the 3rd High Republic novel published by Del Rey。 （A big thank you to Del Rey for sending out this copy for me to review。） The Fallen Star is the 3rd and final novel for the first phase of The High Republic。 SUMMARY: Starlight Beacon， the Republic's physical symbol of peace and loyalty， is the next target of the Nihil。 Marchion Ro has spread the Nihil across the galaxy to strike at random， to cause discomfort and fear。 Many Nihil victims have made their way to Starlight Beacon for medical aid and ship repair as it hangs in space above the planet Eiram。 Soon， chaos will irrupt on Starlight Beacon as Marion Ro sends a crew to sabotage the station and unleash a Jedi killing， force hungry beast。 The light of Starlight Beacon… will be snuffed out！CHARACTERS: I’ve picked two characters to briefly mention。The controversial Vintian character， Geode， brings in some comic relief。 While the rock character does provide a few laughs， this living rock’s abilities alter an important plot point that we spend a lot of time with… by just sweeping the climax of said particular plot under the rug。 It was a funny thing， but also a let down。 Bell Zettifar shines in this tale。 While he’s still mourning the loss of his master， Loden Greatstorm， he doesn’t hesitate to jump into action when the world is burning around him。 He and the wookie padawan， Burryaga， have become great friends and work well together。 OVERALL THOUGHTS: So far with the High Republic， I’ve really enjoyed the Del Rey novels。 The era has been pretty hectic as the villains， the Nihil cause disaster throughout the galaxy。 The previous novels introduced excellent characters with simple plots but excellent details。 This novel， I hoped I wouldn't have had to say it。。。 falls short of my expectations。 Here's why。。。It truly feels that Claudia Gray could not break the mold of the YA novel structure。 The one thing this story lacks more than anything else， would be details。 There are no aspects of the story that are heavily detailed， so there are a few situations that happen in the book that are muddled down and slightly confusing， because the details aren’t there！ The story is shallow and simple。 The characters did not feel consistent with who they were in previous books， not just original characters created by Gray， but the characters created by the other authors writing in the High Republic Era。 Claudia Gray brings in a few characters from her previous YA novel， Into the Dark such as Affie Hollow and her crew。 Some of my favorite characters in the High Republic are Stellan Gios and Elzar Mann。 However， sadly， I wasn’t thrilled with either one of them in this book。 They lacked the leadership and strength they displayed in past novels。 Elzar has disconnected from the force for fear of sinking into the dark side。 He comes across as too fearful and weak， I understand that he， as well as all Jedi， are students of the Force; they are always learning and growing。 Elzar acts like a first time force user。 Stellan Gios is suddenly very prideful and a tad spiteful。 He is acting by Marshal of Starlight Beacon， replacing Avar Kriss。 He has this childish grudge against Avar that doesn’t feel appropriate to his character in previous stories。 The relationships between the Jedi， as slightly mentioned already （with Stellan & Aver） all seemed out of line， with the exception of Bell & Burryaga。 The dialogue wasn’t that bad， but there were many tacky lines and， much like the story structure， shallow。 Previously， we’ve had a galactic disaster， billions have lost there lives during the events of Light of the Jedi， thousands more in The Rising Storm… but Chancellor Soh believes that the destruction of Starlight Beacon is the most tragic event in the history of the Republic？ Yeah she believes that。 I’m bummed out too that what was building up to some very intriguing political happenings in The Rising Storm， was completely absent in this book。Do I recommend this book？ Yes。 Even with all the negative things I had to say about it， it is the continuation of a much larger era。 This is the final adult novel in the first phase of the High Republic。 RATING: This book receives a C minus。 。。。more
Maggie Lovitt
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To quote Jonah Hill in This is the End: “Something not that chill happened。” In a lot of ways， Claudia Gray’s The Fallen Star is the end—at least， the end of the first phase of The High Republic。 For the past year， the Project Luminous team has been delivering new novels and comics， creating top-notch stories and compelling characters that we couldn’t help but grow attached to。 With the ominous poster that accompanied the release of The Fallen Star， death was anticipated， but the death toll was To quote Jonah Hill in This is the End: “Something not that chill happened。” In a lot of ways， Claudia Gray’s The Fallen Star is the end—at least， the end of the first phase of The High Republic。 For the past year， the Project Luminous team has been delivering new novels and comics， creating top-notch stories and compelling characters that we couldn’t help but grow attached to。 With the ominous poster that accompanied the release of The Fallen Star， death was anticipated， but the death toll was far higher than any of us could have expected。The Fallen Star marks a pretty considerable shift in the status quo delivered in the previous adult novels。 Where Light of the Jedi set the scene for the glory of the Jedi， and The Rising Storm started to chip away at their perfection， The Fallen Star delivers a pretty devastating blow to not just the Jedi Order as a whole， but to the group of Jedi that have been the central focus of the story。 The stakes are significantly higher and the losses—both physically and as a crisis of faith—will undoubtedly have a long-lasting impact on the future of The High Republic。 We have passed the point of no return and from this moment forward， the scene has been set。Gray does quite well with balancing a vast array of characters and their own unique voices; switching seamlessly between world-weary Jedi Masters， victorious Nihil， and the young cast of characters that have been a guiding light throughout this first phase。 Gray was tasked with quite the challenge， and she succeeds in wrapping up an entire year of multi-media publishing while setting the scene for the next author to pick up the baton。As a warning， this review will contain spoilers from this point forward。 It is nearly impossible to discuss The Fallen Star without revealing some specific details。 However， I have endeavored to paint with broader strokes here and not get too deep into the minutia of the novel。 Regardless， read forth at your own peril。（view spoiler）[At the start of the novel， we are reintroduced to Elzar Mann who is still actively struggling from his brush with the dark side。 While he is in a markedly better headspace thanks to Stellan Gios’ quick thinking and the assistance of Orla Jareni， Mann has not quite found his way back to stable ground。 Given how things really spiral out of control for him towards the third act of the novel， including losing one of his main support systems， I’m keen to see how his journey plays out in the next phase。 Perhaps we should have listened to the theories that the fallen star wasn’t just about the Starlight Beacon’s destruction， but the death of a pretty stellar Jedi。Throughout the novel， Claudia Gray utilizes a really clever literary allusion to symbolize the relationship between Elzar Mann， Avar Kriss， and Stellan Gios。 Particularly with Stellan， it is said that he saw his connection with Elzar and Avar as a constellation of stars; and in the end， Avar reflects on this by saying that he is now their polestar。 It’s a beautiful， and ultimately， bittersweet comparison， given the way things work out。 I’m a sucker for any comparison to celestial bodies， but at what cost？Speaking of Elzar Mann and Avar Kriss， I’m not sure what to make of their relationship anymore。 I appreciated how Claudia put to words how the Jedi—in all of their “no attachments” nonsense—have gotten away with having intimate relationships。 With the devastating loss of the Starlight Beacon， it will be interesting to see if this duo will lean on each other for support and I hope it will explore where that might lead。 We have seen what happens when romantically-inclined Jedi incur painful losses （looking at you Anakin Skywalker） and I really do worry that Elzar is headed down a similar path。 These are some of the most engaging themes that have been explored in The High Republic and it’s fun to see these authors approach the Jedi with nuance and expose their infallibility。Our fallen star of the Jedi is not the only casualty of this terrible attack—in fact， it would almost be easier to list off who survived the ordeal。 Some of which were cut down without a lot of character work or backstory， while others， like Stellan， felt just at the beginning of their arc。 Stellan in particular had such a beautiful storyline throughout The Fallen Star。 He’s grappling with newfound responsibilities， trying to cope with everything he’s been through， and trying to keep it together for Avar and Elzar’s benefit。 There’s some great storytelling that Gray employs as she picks at Stellan’s conflict with Avar and， in doing so， exposes some of the issues I personally have with Avar。 Her actions feel led by self-righteousness， and she has been acting out both irrationally and vindictively。 The wrong Jedi remained on the Starlight Beacon and I do wonder if Avar will show any sign of feeling that way in future stories or if she is too self-absorbed to see it that way。There are some moments of hope in the final act， at least where Burryaga is concerned。 While the Wookiee Jedi appears to be dead， there was no body， and Bell Zetifar is determined to confirm that he is actually one with the Force before mourning his loss。 While Burryaga’s fate may be unconfirmed and this cliffhanger could very easily be setting Bell up for another devastating loss， it was written in a far less definitive way than Stellan’s death。 With a death toll as high as The Fallen Star’s， it’s nice to at least have one character we can hope for a miraculous survival from。The Nihil may have a significant presence as the architects in the destruction of the Starlight Beacon， but they don’t actually appear very often in The Fallen Star。 Gray makes some interesting choices with the Nihil， including developing Nan further， who she first introduced in her young adult novel Into the Dark。 Rather than being an adoring and loyal follower of Marchion Ro， her story takes a new direction as a prisoner of the Republic， where she is forced to work with Chancey Yarrow to get off of the Starlight Beacon and survive the Nihil’s plot to destroy it。 Her fealty to Marchion remains， but on a much more subdued level。 I really liked Nan when she was first introduced and I hope she gets a chance to really shine in the upcoming novels and phases。 I’m not sure if she’ll remain loyal to Marchion Ro， but it feels like she may。 Star Wars only has a handful of female characters and even fewer morally grey ones， so Nan makes for a refreshing deviation from the status quo。Speaking of Marchion Ro， I was rather intrigued by the arrangement that he has with Senator Ghirra Starros， not just because the Nihil having a spy in the Senate is fascinating， but because we get confirmation that it’s not just the Jedi getting action in The High Republic。 It’s also rather indicative of where Marchion’s headspace is—he could care less about her， he only cares about power and revenge。 We also see much of this relationship （if you’d call it that） through the eyes of Thaya who， in a lot of ways， fills the void left by Nan， however， she doesn’t wax and wane philosophically about Marchion’s hair and skin。 I hope Thaya continues to work alongside Marchion Ro， as their dynamic was just as intriguing as his ploy with Starros。Marchion Ro’s “screen time” in The Fallen Star may be limited in the novel， and certainly， some of his scenes felt a little surface-level in detail， but that’s likely because it’s building to something larger for him and， perhaps， it will be paid off in Charles Soule’s upcoming Eye of the Storm comic book series。 This novel gave a great look at how he’s dealing with the ramifications of Lourna Dee’s mutinous actions and how he is spiraling a little to maintain control of the Nihil。 Not to get to “I miss Ben Solo” on this review but Marchion Ro has a very similar vibe—he feels like a scared boy in a mask， spinning out of control as he tries to make a name for himself and prove everyone wrong。 It would be endearing if he wasn’t the cause of so much death in this book。I do think that The High Republic has made a few minor missteps， which are perhaps only blatant to readers who spend the majority of their time embedded in the fandom。 The era has heralded itself as one of inclusion and representation， but the death toll in The Fallen Star primarily encompasses characters that have been pushed to the forefront because of what they represent。 The crew of the Vessel nearly loses their heroic ace pilot—who is literally ace—whose fake-out death is played up for shock value and equally seems improbable。 Chancey Yarrow， a triumphant Black woman in STEM is killed pretty horrifically by one of “the good guys。” And finally， we are still uncertain about the fates of Ceret and Terec—two of the three non-binary Jedi in the era—and they’ve been essentially fridged for the time being。Obviously， a character’s identity shouldn’t be plot armor， and The Fallen Star makes it clear that no one is safe， but it still leaves me a little frustrated that these characters have been paraded in front of fans who were desperately looking to see themselves in the galaxy， only to watch their stories get cut down before they ever go anywhere。 None of this feels malicious， but I do hope The High Republic continues to be mindful of these choices。As the first in the three final installments of Phase I， The Fallen Star sets the stage for more devastation， pretty seamlessly paying off the build-up of the last two waves， and the comics， while delivering heartfelt and heartbreaking storytelling。 The High Republic as a whole has been a glorious tapestry of stories， which have now been torn asunder。 I look forward to seeing where the Jedi go as they shift into the Jedi Quest phase of Project Luminous， but I’m equally excited to see how Marchion Ro’s newfound power suits him。 Will the power go to his head and will he be the next to fall？ Ultimately we know the world state of the future of the galaxy， but there are still centuries to go and decades of mayhem to wreak in the meantime。 （hide spoiler）] 。。。more
Jakob Wesner
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Review following soon！
Jay Gabler
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Thank you Random House for the free book。 It’s a total page-turner as the iconic Starlight Beacon comes under attack while hanging above a remote planet。 AND the author turns a literal rock into a suave hero。 Space opera！
Owen Carlisle
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I liked this book。 The book kept my interest throughout。 How the Nihil conducted the attack was well thought out。 However， it did not give me what I wanted。。。 I wanted more at this point in the series。 More on the creation of the Nihil & Marchion Ro。 The scope of the book was rather small and confined。 The significant changes to the Nihil in young adult novel "Out of the Shadows" and "Tempest Runner" were not talked about in this book。 Avar's story should have been told more in this book， （the b I liked this book。 The book kept my interest throughout。 How the Nihil conducted the attack was well thought out。 However， it did not give me what I wanted。。。 I wanted more at this point in the series。 More on the creation of the Nihil & Marchion Ro。 The scope of the book was rather small and confined。 The significant changes to the Nihil in young adult novel "Out of the Shadows" and "Tempest Runner" were not talked about in this book。 Avar's story should have been told more in this book， （the book is short ishh ， so should not have been a problem to include this side）。 Regardless， I was happy with the read， and will continue with the series。 The ending had a great pace， escalation and conclusion。 I enjoyed most of the characters， Elzar Mann， Bell， Stellan & Geode。A note on the writing style。。。 The author switched scenes too often and two quickly for me。 This interrupted my reading flow， not allowing me to settle and get into the zone - it took me out of the book。 But this is my personal preference， others might like this style。 It does help with story pace。 。。。more
Patricia
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3。5 stars The Fallen Star by Claudia Gray was undoubtedly my most anticipated The High Republic work yet。 An author who showed us the effects of the galactic war on two best friends turned lovers （Lost Stars） and who delivered a stunningly accurate characterization of Leia across multiple books， now working on an adult novel in my favorite era of Star Wars … what could possibly go wrong？ Well， sadly， quite a few things。 The Fallen Star is not a bad book。 It is， quite honestly， one of the most in 3。5 stars The Fallen Star by Claudia Gray was undoubtedly my most anticipated The High Republic work yet。 An author who showed us the effects of the galactic war on two best friends turned lovers （Lost Stars） and who delivered a stunningly accurate characterization of Leia across multiple books， now working on an adult novel in my favorite era of Star Wars … what could possibly go wrong？ Well， sadly， quite a few things。 The Fallen Star is not a bad book。 It is， quite honestly， one of the most intriguing page-turners I’ve read in my life。 All I wanted was to keep going， and going， and going and every page left me yearning for more of the story。 Which is， ironically， exactly what led to the book’s downfall in the end。Characters to die forBefore we get into the things I felt like I was missing， let’s talk about how great this book was at times， though。 The first 5-6 chapters， maybe even the first third of this story， were truly fantastic。 Gray sets up interesting character constellations that I never would have seen coming， but they work surprisingly well。 If there’s one thing the author excels at， it’s characterization。 These first chapters had everything I wanted the entire book to have – emotional depth， fast-paced battles， a hint of romance， touching dialogue and just the right amount of humor。 Some of these things Claudia Gray manages to keep going throughout the entire novel。 Without spoilers， I can only mention how amazing Stellan Gios’ internal journey in this book was。 The way Stellan interacts with other characters， one of them bravely facing his own problems and being on a beautiful journey himself， felt true to character and thoughtfully written。Gray also manages to create a few quite iconic moments in The Fallen Star that I already know lots of readers are going to love。 Oddly， all of these involve the same character， and yet they work every time。 Generally， this novel offers you an absolutely incredible time while reading it， making you go through pretty much every base emotion there is， but it’s when you close the book and put it down that the questions start pouring in … Hollow at its coreThe main issue I have with The Fallen Star is that it feels constructed rather than organic。 It feels like the metal beams of Starlight， not the lush Atrium and golden floors we know。 The station we’ve gotten to love over the span of an entire year suddenly feels empty， dead before we even board it。 What happened to the lively place we’ve come to love？ Where are all the people， the staff？ Why does the action take place in pretty much only two rooms and one cargo bay？ Had there been an explanation as to why we encounter no one in the hallways except for the few dwindling Jedi on board， this issue might have been less of a factor， but the Station is described to be packed with citizens and brimming with people in need。 And yet， they rarely come into play， making Starlight feel deserted and doomed already。 Nothing New （Gray’s Version）Another issue that made this book fall flat is that we aren’t offered anything beyond the obvious。 If you’ve seen any of the marketing， you’ve basically experienced the main part of this story already。 This isn’t Claudia Gray’s fault – the lead-up to this novel simply focused too much on the fact that Starlight would fall and we’d lose our favorite characters。 Which is exactly what happened， and considering the fact we were told what to expect so blatantly， the way it happened didn’t feel unique or satisfying enough。 Characters kept repeating mistakes， infuriating the reader as we already knew it would result in death multiple pages before it actually came to be。 Solutions seemed too easy or far-fetched。 We got what we were promised – and only what we were promised。 It ultimately leads to disappointment in the plot， leaving you wondering “Is this all we are getting？”The problem of self-referenceMuch like Starlight Beacon， the story of The Fallen Star floats in hollow space without any literal ties。 What we’re missing is a scope。 A sense of the galaxy。 The hyperfocus of this story robs of us any way of connecting to the downfall of the Beacon through human （or any species’） eyes。 The plot is quite literally being broken apart， split so that we only follow certain characters。 We do get snippets of the other characters， but not much more than a mention of “dead or alive”。 These snippets leave you longing for so much more， the tease of their journeys edging at downright frustration。 We only get half of the story in this novel， and you can feel it。 But it’s not just the lack of an actually gripping outside perspective， it’s also the fact that The Fallen Star builds very few bridges to other High Republic works。 While there is a neat connection to Trail of Shadows， this book sometimes feels like the larger galaxy doesn’t exist。 Gray is phenomenal when it comes to referencing her other works – these hints made me smile， knowing where they originated from felt rewarding as a reader。 However， these references mostly include Gray’s own works and characters， and at times I found myself wondering “Why isn’t this character thinking about that one person that means a lot to them， or the struggle they faced only a short while ago？ Why is that character not even mentioned？ Does no one have a single thought about the events from that previous book？” This creates a disconnect between the round and expansive storytelling we know from other High Republic works， making this book feel like it desperately wants to stand on its own two legs， but can’t manage to keep itself up without the support of its preceding works that it refuses to build upon。Crash and Burn or Rescue Dawn？The Fallen Star is a novel that sets off with an incredibly strong start， giving you everything you could hope for。 It’s when the plot starts to unfold that a lot of small issues add up to a larger amount of dissatisfaction。 What it offers in character development， it lacks in coherency and expansiveness。 What it touches upon only reminds you of the opportunities it didn’t use。 There is potential in every corner of this story， intrigue on every page of this fast-paced ride you race through – until you reach the ending and you’re left wondering why that potential wasn’t used。 In the end， I couldn’t help but feel confused about where the rest of this story was， where the astounding mastery of the first chapters of this book got lost， along with the 100 more pages this plot needed。 The Fallen Star is a rollercoaster of emotions， it moves you and makes you root for the characters all of us have come to love in just one year。 It is a book that leaves room for discussions and contains interactions I will forever treasure as some of my favorite moments of Star Wars storytelling。 But rather than the conclusion of a year-long Phase of intricately interwoven storylines， it builds up to a narrative Great Disaster of unused potential， leading to a novel that feels just mediocre， and I know Claudia Gray can do better than that。 。。。more
Shannon King
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