Into the dark

Gr 7 Up--Gray drops readers into a perfectly spine-chilling survival story in this "High Republic" YA novel. Two hundred years before the Skywalker Saga, Padawan Reath and his Jedi Master Jora are assigned to Starlight, a beacon for the Republic in frontier space. Before they and the rest of their companions get there, the ship is forced out of hyperspace and dropped into an unknown system. With disaster imminent and communication almost impossible, the Jedi take charge of the survivors and seek shelter in a mysterious, abandoned space station--only to realize as they explore that the Dark side got there first. The station's arboretum has overgrown most of the complex, which is ominous enough, but there are also mysterious idols hiding in the tangled vines and disturbing the Force. Gray's worldbuilding and characters are "Star Wars" at its best, introducing readers to the familiar canon with High Republic flavor. The work is told from multiple points of view and in two time lines. Reath is indisputably the protagonist, working his way from recalcitrant archivist to stalwart Knight. The novel features not one but two burgeoning supervillains, and Gray manages the stakes and the emotional tension of the heroes flawlessly. Reath is white; there is non-alien diversity in the secondary characters. VERDICT Perfect for even casual fans, this novel is action-packed with adventure and mystery. With "Star Wars" interest at an all-time high, this is recommended for general purchase.--Emmy Neal, Lake Forest Lib., IL

When sudden disaster shuts down hyperspace travel across the galaxy, four Jedi and the crew of a shipping vessel find themselves stranded on an ancient space station haunted by the dark side. Unlike many Jedi who long for danger, Reath, a 17-year-old human Padawan, thrives in the Archives. However, when an unexpected assignment calls him to the frontier, he has no choice but to follow orders. This unwanted adventure takes a treacherous turn when Reath and his traveling companions make an emergency exit from hyperspace to a remote sector of the galaxy with intense solar flares and an abandoned space station. To make matters worse, the survivors from other ships who are also seeking refuge have little interest in cooperation, and an insidious dark-side presence looms aboard the station. Within each chapter, third-person perspectives shift among multiple characters, including interludes with flashbacks. The plot (set in an era before ThePhantom Menace) maintains a fast pace with exciting twists, but jargon litters the worldbuilding without much clarifying physical description or explanation, requiring in-depth Star Wars knowledge from readers. Primary human characters are assumed White or have tan or golden skin. Queer representation appears in the background with a same-gender couple and an asexual character. A suspenseful adventure but a hollow expansion of the Star Wars universe. (Science fiction. 13-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.