If You’re a Star Wars Fan, You Should Read Lost Stars by Claudia Gray

Though Lost Stars by Claudia Gray is a Star Wars novel marketed as a young adult novel and the classification has probably turned away many long-time Star Wars fans from reading it, Lost Stars is neither a young adult novel nor a story to be taken lightly. I’ve been a fan of Star Wars since I was little and I almost didn’t read Lost Stars because I figured it was a kids book, but after I read the description about a couple on two sides of the Galactic Civil War, I decided to give it a try. I couldn’t put the book down. It’s the perfect Star Wars book if you’re looking for a different perspective of the events of the original trilogy, and it sets up the interim time between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens.

The Characters

Lost Stars follows two characters who do eventually fall in love. It’s not cheesy though. We follow Thane Kyrell and Cienna Ree from the moment they meet and become best friends as little kids, to going to the Imperial Academy together, to joining the Empire as Imperial pilots, to one of them deciding to join the Rebellion. My wife and I were best friends before we started dating, so the journey of these two characters going from being best friends to being in love resonated with my own experience.

The Events of Star Wars from a New Perspective

Because we see such a long period of their lives, it’s odd to classify this story as young adult. It’s actually a very gritty exploration of life in the world of Star Wars with Palpatine and Darth Vader in control of the galaxy. In the original trilogy, we see things from one side, the side of Luke Skywalker and the fight for a world where Jedi protect the galaxy again. But Lost Stars is a reminder that after the Clone Wars and the execution of nearly all the Jedi in the galaxy, for most people, the Jedi are an old myth, and the Force is only something trusted by a few. For many, the Empire is a good thing. It’s order after the corruption of the Old Republic. It has its flaws, but it’s better than anarchy.

The War…Within and Without

For Ciena Ree in particular, the Empire is an opportunity to serve the galaxy, and she gives an oath to serve it well. Like many, she doesn’t realize what Palpatine really is. She doesn’t realize the Old Republic collapsed to be replaced by something much more corrupt and oppressive. But she’s a person of honor. To her, the Rebellion is a terrorist group. After all, many good people serve the Empire. When the Rebellion kills, it kills innocent as well as guilty because it’s the nature of war. But Ciena knows some of those innocent, and her honor turns her against the Rebellion.

But she’s also bound by honor to Thane Kyrell. First as a friend, then as the man she’s given her heart to. But Thane sees the corruption and the oppression and can’t stand by anymore. He joins the Rebellion, and the decision couldn’t drive the two further apart.

An Expanded Universe

The journey that we follow with Ciena and Thane is one that gets us front row seats to some of the biggest events in the Star Wars story. The destruction of the Death Star. The Battle on Hoth. Encounters with Grand Moff Tarkin, Darth Vader, and Palpatine himself. This is a novel that truly does expand the Star Wars universe and causes the reader to wrestle with serious questions about good and evil in that kind of world.

The World Building

As a writer, I loved the world building in Lost Stars. Of course, much of its already there because the Star Wars universe existed before this novel. But I loved the description of the planet of Jelucan and its customs. We get to see the Emperor’s palace on Coruscant. Even the living conditions of Imperial officers on a Star Destroyer.

Lost Stars Left Me Wanting More

Claudia Gray did a top notch job with this story, and I can’t wait to see what she does with Bloodline next. The only drawback I had with the novel is that I felt like it ended too soon. I was left wanting a sequel, but as far as I know, there’s no sequel in the works. Other than that, Lost Stars was a fantastic journey to The Force Awakens.