“Why can no Jedi cross the Kyber Arch alone?”

Into the Dark, set during the golden age of the Jedi, known as The High Republic era, is part of the Disney Star Wars Canon. It follows Reath Silas and several other Jedi after a catastrophic galaxy-wide calamity.

Reath Silas, padawan, would much rather be in the archives reading about adventure than being physically in it. When he is tasked to join his master to explore the Outer Rim, he is reluctant but goes ahead. When a galaxy-wide disaster occurs on the way, many vessels are left stranded in Space. With hyperspace no longer safe, Reath and the other Jedi must protect those they can. While they do, an ancient danger emerges.

“Sometimes we all need a reminder to focus on the good things in life.”

Admittedly, this is my first Star Wars novel. As much as I’ve always been a fan of the movie series, I found the sheer expanse of the lore overwhelming to know where to start. When I saw that Disney were starting a new canon series, I took this as my opportunity to start digging into the books. Being my first Star Wars novel, I found exploring characters I didn’t know but in places I knew well, quite exciting. Getting to read about small details in the Jedi Temple and Coruscant was a highlight.

At times, I enjoyed the writing. Other times, I found parts of it a little repetitive, especially the dialogue. Occasionally the characters had dialogue explaining a thing the reader already knew, making the dialogue somewhat redundant and could have been removed. I’m interested in reading more from the Disney Canon to see if the editing improves.

Reath isn’t a gifted Jedi, but he is a hard worker. I really liked this quality about him, as many of the famous Jedi from the movies have oodles of natural talent and don’t often need to strive to achieve. For Reath, that’s not the case. But he’s only as good as he is, due to his work ethic and perseverance.

“To be a Jedi is to serve”

I got a few misty-eyed moments while reading, especially in scenes where Reath is self-discovering what it means to be a Jedi. Reading Reath’s personal growth as a padawan as he begins to understand his master’s teachings. The camaraderie, the courage against adversity and the call to justice has always fascinated me about the Jedi Order.

This is definitely a good book to ease into the High Republic and not a bad starter book for the Star Wars reader. I can’t wait to delve further and see how this universe and the lore grows in this new era.