Why you should read Light of the Jedi

There have been numerous Star Wars fans, both in our club and in general, who have been getting into books and comics recently. Often times it’s overwhelming, as there are hundreds of books and it’s difficult to know where to start. In addition to this, a lot of people want to see something new with Star Wars — while content surrounding the Skywalker Saga is enjoyable, something with a new era and a new cast of characters is a nice change of pace. To that, I highly recommend Light of the Jedi as the starting point.

Light of the Jedi is the first adult novel in the High Republic, a publishing initiative that takes place over 200 years before The Phantom Menace. At this point in the galaxy, the Jedi are at the peak of their power — they’re not fighting a war against the Sith, they’re just focusing on expanding to the Outer Rim and ensuring the stability of the Republic. However, a new villain faction called the Nihil emerges, and the Jedi are forced to track them down and restore peace to the galaxy.

I enjoyed this book for numerous reasons, here’s some of them:

• The Jedi’s Portrayal — in this novel, we truly see the Jedi Order at the height of their power. They pull off a feat in the opening third of the novel that’s unlike anything we’ve seen the Jedi do, because we’ve never seen the Jedi Order work together to this extent in Star Wars. These aren’t like the prequel Jedi — these Jedi are almost medieval in their aesthetic, flying fighters that are activated by lightsabers and wearing golden robes — but overall, they’re peacekeepers, not soldiers, which was very cool to see.
• The Cast — during this novel, we meet Jedi such as Avar Kriss, Elzar Mann, Bell Zettifar, Burryaga Agaburry, Loden Greatstorm, etc… It’s quite a large cast, but something that Charles Soule did to make them all stand out was to describe how each Jedi experiences the Force. Avar sees it as a song, Elzar sees it as a vast ocean, Bell sees it as a flame, Burryaga sees it as a vast tree, and it works really well in characterizing each Jedi as soon as you meet them.
• The Nihil — without going into spoilers, the way in which the Nihil are introduced and the politics and the power structure of the Nihil is incredibly interesting, as they’re more than just a group of pirates. They’re a threat to the Jedi not because they have an army of Sith or they can use the dark side of the force, but because they’re unique. They’re unpredictable. They have access to a tool that hasn’t been seen before in Star Wars and can get around the Jedi in very cool ways.
• Marchion Ro — the leader of the Nihil is one of my favorite Star Wars characters of all time, and it’s honestly because he’s unlike any other Star Wars character I’ve seen. He’s a genuinely unique villain with interesting motives who you want to know more about, and he poses a very creative threat to the Jedi.
• The Novel’s Structure — the chapters in this book are very short, which works to its strength, as we get to see perspectives from numerous characters. During a disaster sequence, we not only see the Jedi working to save civilians, but the point of view of the civilians, Republic pilots, and planetary leaders. We get perspectives of Jedi Masters, Jedi Knights, Jedi Padawans, cannon fodder Nihil soldiers, Nihil leaders, hyperspace prospectors, hyperspace scientists, and more, which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Overall, I would highly recommend this novel as a starting point for new Star Wars book readers. No prior knowledge of other books/comics is required, but once you finish this one, you’ll definitely want to continue with the High Republic books — it’s one of the best Star Wars stories!