Michael

Pages to Fill is a short story to add a little bit of backstory to Viv’s old team she would adventure with, it’s an interesting piece of extra characterization for the gang but because it’s set before L&L it means a lot of what you read the original for isn’t present here at all. It really just reads like a normal fantasy for the most part.

There are hints of the tone of the original at times, the wonder of Viv entering the Gnome Athenaeum put a smile on my face, there’s always a joy going into a library/bookshop for the first time.

The bounty plot was fairly standard but with a satisfying enough conclusion for a short story of this length and having the chance to walk around Azimuth was fairly interesting; seeing the tiny city described through the lens of seven foot Viv lead to some solid comedic moments.

A solid extra chapter to the original and I’m still very much looking forward to getting to the next book by Baldree soon after.

This one is from the pile of books i’ve been receiving from Polish scammers for free and just read it on a whim to clear down the TBR honestly so I might not have gone into this with the most enthusiastic mind, but it’s also just generally not the sort of book I'd read anyway.

I do think it’s good for stories for this to be told though. It’s just that as a kids book, there's not much to be gained from it now for me. It’s the sort of thing I'd rather read an article on than a story like this as it doesnt give the time to get attached to anyone.

Probably great for a kid who’s first learning about issues such as Apartheid but didn’t grab me at all. You get the basics like the Pass Law and segregation of buses to whites only but not enough is really said about them apart from one admittedly good scene of the police at the train station rounding up innocent people who forgot their pass.

An interesting setting for a fantasy such as this with its upper-class, old school faux-British background. The book is full of fun British-esque location names which I enjoyed for some reason such as Scirland & Gostershire.

Isabella herself is clearly the standout of the book. Her constant state of enthusiasm about all things dragon is really endearing to follow. The way she will explain how she feels in terms of dragons just creates a contagious level of passion to learn alongside her.

There is quite a slow start and the book does take a rather long time to get going but once they start the expedition in Vystrani, I was definitely invested in the journey and just as excited to learn more about these creatures and solve the mysteries they came across.

The final act of the book surprisingly turns into somewhat of a whodunnit as all of the pieces start coming together that while I still enjoyed it a lot, was not what I was expecting and would have maybe liked more focus on the dragons themself rather than humans.

Maybe the strongest thing I can say is that the world had me so invested that each time Isabella would bring up a research paper or book she had read, I just wished it actually existed and could read it myself which I think marks a very strong connection to the book.

After the first couple of chapters, I fully expected a tale of a grumpy old woman softening over time, similar to Ove, you must understand. That’s not what Britt-Marie ended up being.

Her story was a lot sadder than that. A story of a woman without purpose who's been taken for granted and ignored for her 60+ years, and the run down town for her to belong. Britt-Marie isn’t some grumpy old woman, she just has to find the confidence to follow her own thoughts away from the people that never “needed” her.

Britt-Marie is a joy to follow throughout. Her little quirks like the way she says what she thinks, for better or for worse, with all the sincerity that she thinks it comes across as. The way she sticks to her lists and methods and ideals throughout and these aren’t treated as a flaw to be fixed but rather just a part of her.

I definitely was not expecting it to turn into such a sport focused story, with a lot of the situations throughout surrounding football but I am by not means disappointed. There’s some classic Backman tear jerker moments at times that landed well and I finished the book thoroughly loving everyone in that town (especially Sami, but not Kent).

Go Together was a fun opening story. Joss and Pikka, while not having much page time, still appear quite consistently through phase one so it’s nice to get to see more of their relationship. Getting more perspective on the battle of Kur is great as well as one of my favourite space battles.

First Duty was a bit tougher to get invested in, due to all the new characters but ended up being a fun little whodunnit mystery that also looked at the political consequences of having so many opposing cultures on board Starlight which was interesting.

Hidden Danger was fairly weak. Sticking with Velko now and Avon popping up was cool but that's about it, and she didn't really do anything either. Pretty forgettable plant based story.

Past Mistakes was fun. Part 1 felt like a classic Hondo moment with the knock off merch being sold and part 2, although a lot more serious, was enjoyable with a decent enough twist that left it compelling.

Shadows Within was a sombre way to end the short stories. Good bit of dramatic irony that we know about the Ghirrah twist but also that noone else can know at this point setting up for just a sad end for Tarpfen.

Yep, cozy fantasy DOES really sum it up well. A book that just makes you feel all warm inside to read. I don’t even like or drink coffee but it made me want to boil the kettle and make myself some.

Viv and Tandri are great and their relationship was super cute towards the end. Their joy of slowly building up the shop was infectious, especially when faced with another treat from Thimble (best character).

Getting to know each of the regulars, one by one, just made the shop come alive; from the awkward bard, Pendry, to the at-first annoying scholar Hemington, to the cryptic old gnome, Durias, and finally Hob, the lovely old grouchy craftsman. All of them were so lovable that by the end they felt a bit like a family.

My favourite part would probably be each time the menu would get updated and we’d get to read the whole thing, slightly longer every time. Always put a smile on my face to see that on a page. ~Finer tastes for the working gent & lady~

Murasaki’s diary is an interesting read, it gives a glimpse into a time we rarely learn about with direct recollection. There was a good amount I found interesting about the life of people like her and Murasaki’s feelings being injected onto these situations made the whole thing feel more real than simply reading an article on it.

I do feel like a lot of the enjoyment I got from the book however was from the first 20-30 pages that were a more general look into life at that time and the family trees and history of Japan as a whole before the diary actually began.

That's not to say the diary itself is without merit though as there were definitely parts I enjoyed that were only possible from her perspective. One that sticks out is when Murasaki sends off a poem passage as a message to Lady Koshosho and by the time she receives a reply, she can’t remember what was originally sent so replies in a vague manner. Little moments like that really help the era being written about feel lived in.

It’s unfortunate then, that this may only be a smaller part of a larger diary and we don’t know for sure how much of it is lost today because as is, it kind of just ends, as well as the fact that a lot of the actual poetry isnt included due to language barriers and poetry being especially hard to translate across.

You are only alive, because you remind me of what the Nihil must never become. That is your purpose, that is all you are.

I really liked EoD, finally getting back to the phase one characters that I missed so much felt like a comforting school reunion, however this reunion does come at the cost of feeling a bit more lost and meandering in nature compared to the other novels of the series. More like a catch up on the state of the galaxy a year after, and honestly I'm not against that too much because I do enjoy these guys so much.

It's nice to have Avar take the lead in another book. Her and Porter are great in this and watching her mental state post the fall of Starlight is great. Porter acts as a great piece of connective tissue between phases one and two with his knowledge of the past and connection to one of the new antagonists.

Bell and Burry are always nice to see but kind of felt like they didn't need to be in this one, I wont lie.

A terrible idea executed brilliantly has to be better than a brilliant idea executed terribly. I mean, look at pelicans!

Tress of the Emerald Sea was my first taste of a Brandon Sanderson book and what is apparently the Cosmere Universe(?) and I have to say I am very happy with this as an entry point. Im already a sucker for pirates, One Piece is my favourite story of all time, and the absolute coziness I felt reading this was great!

Tress and the crew that we follow here are all great. Tress herself is an optimistic and naive joy to follow early who slowly grows into a more capable leader to this ragtag bunch. For the crew itself, Fort is an easy standout with how much I loved the guy and his big brother energy as he supports Tress through his trades.

The world that's built up here I found really interesting with how much was done with a simple "what if ocean but spore" idea. The different colours of ocean and spore were fun to learn about and there interactions with water made for fun ideas like not being able to cry tears of joy on deck for fear of growing the spores, just a bunch of fun little ideas.

I was instantly sold on the relationship between Tress and Charlie at the beginning so was a bit sad to see them separated for so much of the book but what we did get was still good. Hoid i’m split on though, I enjoyed him as a tongue-in-cheek narrator but any time he was in the story I was just annoyed at him and his humour fell flat for me.

I like it!

Anthologies generally aren't my thing. Never enough time to get invested into characters. It helps that we know a lot of these people going into their stories though but i'm still left at the end of each one wanting more. I guess you could see that as a positive though.

While the stories around phase 2 are nice and I really enjoyed the one about Rooper's Jedi trials, the real star of the show here are the teases we get of the start of phase 3. Getting that initial look at the headspace of our favourite from the first few books.

Standout stories for me would be:

• The Force Provides - Justina Ireland
• All Jedi Walk Their Own Path - Charles Soule
• Shield of the Jedi - George Mann

The face collapsed in on itself, the entire husk crumbling to dust before his eye, and for the first time since he was a child, Stellan Gios was afraid...

The best thing about the Rising Storm is that the battle of the fair (which makes up like half of the book) really succeeds in creating a great sense of claustrophobia through the use of the Nihil war cloud. It makes every chapter therein feel like a desparate struggle only to be given one of the most satisfying moments to read so far, where Stellan finally gets into contact with multiple Jedi, all calling in one by one and proving that the strength of the Jedi truly is their unity.

But then when you think you're finally out of the death surrounding the book, the High Republic team really through a curveball and have the nerve to end the second book with the very same heartbreak as the first but now even worse. How dare they!

I give this a five out of ten with the MOST enthusiasm possible. At times I really enjoyed Le Morte d’Arthur, the whimsical, straight forward nature of the group of knights is endearing in all the best ways as they bumble around for hundreds of pages on end, but I couldn’t say I would recommend someone read it either.

First thing you’ll have to get used to is the way its written, it’s very “old time english” and at first is very difficult to get into. Once you do, I think the flow of it can be charming but it is a barrier to entry. Secondly at times it can drag A LOT. There is a whole midsection of the book (books 8-10) which are much longer then any other section and are also just filled with endless nothingness that made me put the whole book on hold for half a year.

There’s also what feels like a lot of repetition in events throughout, almost every book contains multiple joust tourneys where inevitably Lancelot will disguise himself as someone so he can fight against the round table.(happens so often, Gawaine calls it out in book 19). The most egregious moment is when Malory writes out the names of 86 knights back to back that show up to help someone. It goes on and on.

Probably best to stick to an abridged version. There's a lot to enjoy here to me but A LOT to sludge through as well

Midnight Horizon is a mixed bag for me. I think the character work is really solid with some great dynamics at play (mostly from pre-existing characters) but the actual story feels a bit all over the place and messy at times.

Ram and Reath’s friendship is the saving grace here. They are great together as a true pair of dumb and awkward teens out in the city for the first time. Ram’s constant optimism and enthusiasm plays well with Reath who is a bit more serious but still up for the journey and every scene they are in together is genuinely a joy to read. At the same time, Kantam and Cohmac are also a good pair bringing a more serious and mature side to the book while grounding it more into the wider THR storytelling.

The new characters are a bit of a mixed bag. I liked Crash but I felt like her crew was introduced way too quickly with such out there names that it was hard to keep track of them and their personalities.

Just like Into the Dark, I can’t say im a fan of these interspersed flashback chapters with Kantam. Slows the pace down and didn’t add much for me.

"I'm like... just a big huge ball of attachments" she moaned

"I'm attached to being alive"

This is sadly one of my least favourite High Republic books. There are some aspects I like but it just feels like it meanders a lot of the time. Ram is a great addition though, love that lil guy and his mechanic jedi vibe.

My main issue here is the Drengir, it felt like here they took the aspects of them that didn't work in Into the Dark and made that the only part of them. (more understandable since it is a middle grade book to be fair) The crossover with the High Republic Adventures characters is nice since that's a fun series, but not a book I ever really want to come back to and can easily be skipped over.

“You’ve gotten in my way for the last time, you idiot rock.”

Geode didn’t react. The guy put up a good front

There's a lot of good in here, first and foremost being the crew of The Vessel. Leox, Affie, and Geode might just be the most lovable trio of characters in Star Wars. Geode especially is an interesting case because his concept is so outlandish that under another author I could see him being very dumb to get through and annoying, but the way Claudia Grey writes every Geode encounter just somehow never gets old and stays hilarious.

My main issue with the book however is the flashback chapters relating to Orla every now and then. I did appreciate them more on reread, knowing more about the Eiram-E'ronoh conflict from phase 2 but in general it just didn't feel like they flowed too well in the concept of this book specifically.

This is the story that introduces the Drengir aswell, which are a new Star Wars creature that I do like quite a bit but I dont think they work to their best potential here in written form. Personally they work much better as visual horror to me in the setting of the High Republic Marvel comic run.

Fallen star is a great conclusion to the first phase of the High Republic that mostly sticks the landing (pun intended). It’s a powder keg of dramatic irony as well all know how it will end and we’re forced to just sit and watch the disaster unfold.

No one feels safe at any point, characters are getting death flags left, right, and centre and not just the ones who do die so none are too predictable by the end and the characters that do die are all done effectively and really gives it this larger than life feeling. I do have some issues with how the fall of Starlight has been handled in books/comics after this but none of that is the fault of Fallen Star.

The fact that pretty much the entire book takes place in this one location with very little happening outside the station gives the book great flow and a focused sense of direction that results in time flying by when reading.

Even with all the disaster and tension, Fallen Star does still manage to make room for levity at times though. New jedi, Regald Coll was a great introduction who’s attitude had me laughing quite a bit and of course the return of the Vessel crew, especially Geode, continue to be expertly written by Claudia Gray to deliver the funniest, most brilliant character in all of Star Wars. I will genuinely never tire of Geode based humour i think.

NO SHIP FOR YOU. YOU ARE A TERRIBLE PILOT, VERNESTRA RWOH, AND I WILL NOT LET YOU RUIN WHAT IS LEFT OF MY FLEET

Out of the Shadows is the Star Wars book that, for me, comes the closest to just being a comfort book. It's just such a comfy read. The first half of the book is so slow and just takes it's time to settle us into Vern's day to day and how her relationship with Imri is growing. I could read a whole series of books about those two just interacting with everyone on Starlight Beacon and just them hanging out, its all great.

The new characters introduced here are also great, Sylvestri and Jordanna are a great pair and play off each other well whenever they're together and Xylan Graf is a great rich loser, I liked how the book went more into the concept of the Hyperspace Rush and the families that helped chart the routes out. I think that's such a fun idea in Star Wars.

Although it's mainly a chill read theres still a healthy amount of setup for future plot points, especially regarding Vern and her visions which I'm very interested to see where that goes.

I think Mission to Disaster might be my favourite of the middle grade novels between phases one & two and has benefitted the most from my reread of phase one.

It was really interesting to see the book as a sort of overdue epilogue for the events of phase two with the battle of Dalna and Night of Sorrows. To see the small growth in the relationship between the Dalnans and Jedi was good and how while the Path are no longer in power their effects on the people still linger in their distrust.

Vern continues to be great as usual, no surprise, but this is more of Avon’s story to be honest. Her side of the story, getting kidnapped by Kara Xoo’s tempest is the more compelling part with Avon showing how good she is under pressure but also balances just how afraid and nervous she is as a literal child in this situation.

Having read the Starlight Stories now as well it was fun to see the crossover their aswell with Velko and the disappearance of Ghal, reading those short stories definitely helped flesh out that side of things.

Looking forward to finally starting the Phase 2 reread now.

A Jedi and her kyber are linked through the Force. It sings to me and my spirit returns that call. It's not a mere energy crystal.

I'm not normally one to read to middle grade books for anything but the High Republic series are just a nice little treat, kind of like watching a good Clone Wars arc.

A Test of Courage introduces one of my favourite Jedi of the era, Vernestra Rwoh, as she and a small group get stranded after a collision caused in the previous story Light of the Jedi. It's small scale and much more standalone as a story but it's just a pleasant short read.

Vern is a strong lead and has one of the coolest lightsabers i've seen and the way she helps guide Imri, Honesty, and Avon is good to see as such a young Jedi Knight.

For this day, the light had prevailed. It was over...

Chapter 18

It was not over.

A brilliant start to the high republic era! A bold choice to being it all with such a long disaster setpiece but it pays off completely. Characters that we'll know throughout the series are introduced and their dynamics shown through frantic action which is really fun.

We get a look at individual Jedi and see how the see and feel the force around them which I found an interesting way to look at things, such as Avar seeing the force in music or Elzar seeing it as the waves of the ocean. Very cool!

Standout pair has to be Bell and Loden though, with their great chemistry and back and forth banter. Loden pushing his padawan as far as he can because he trusts Bell and believes in his potential (even if sometimes a bit extreme in his teaching)

Then there's the Nihil. Sometimes Star Wars has the issue of villians feeling a bit samey and in that aspect, the Nihil are such a nice breath of fresh air. The way the group are structured in chaos gives them instant appeal and their leaders are all different enough that you can sense the scale of their threat. Marchion's meek yet commanding presence is so good throughout. Love him the most.

Name one hero who was happy...They Never let you be famous AND happy... I'm going to be the first

I had a good time with this one. I think the best choice that Miller makes is definitely centering the book on Patroclus rather than Achilles. Doing so means we get this lack of understanding of Achilles himself which results in a sense of otherness from him giving him that feeling of being “more than” and slightly above humans like Patroclus. This choice did surprise me at first as I had assumed it would’ve been from Achilles POV and then towards the last few chapters was surprised that we stuck with the Patroclus POV.

Another benefit to the focus on Patroclus for me was that when you get to the section of the book that focuses on the battle of Troy, it’s a lot more grounded and smaller scale that you’d expect, focusing more on individuals at camp rather than the battle itself which I appreciated.

Following the stubbornness of Achilles and watching him struggle with the idea of his death and being remembered could be frustrating at times but you always understood where is was coming from and it kept things compelling throughout for me.

It’s impressive just how quickly Miller was able to make me hate Pyrrhus though. Pops up for the last chapter or two and is insufferable the whole time.

Island of Blue Dolphins was a short, fun time. While it starts off pretty serious with the instigating series of events, the majority of the read ends up being a pretty cosy, chill island survival.

It was just pretty pleasant to watch Karana’s transformation over the decades she was left behind from just “a village girl” to someone who’s mastered the elements and tamed most wildlife on the island.

The bonds Karana has with the wildlife especially was one of the highlights, Rontu and her together were super wholesome and connected with me in the most emotional moments.

The writing itself stays pretty basic throughout which makes sense as it IS at the end of the day a kids novel which does limit how much you can feel invested in the story being told but I did enjoy my time reading it by the end.

Caught me off guard at the end when i found out it was based on a true story though, Made me rethink how impressive the whole thing was.