A Test of Courage is Justina Ireland's junior-grade entry into the High Republic, following Jedi Knight Vernestra Rwoh and others as they find themselves stranded on a dangerous jungle moon. Spending time on the moon together tests the tenacity of Vernestra and the other members of their diverse group, as they attempt to survive and find a way off the moon.

While being promoted as a novel aimed for younger viewers, I found the themes and main story to be surprisingly heavy. Grief is a strong theme that carries throughout the book, and was by far the most interesting aspect to read about. How are Jedi supposed to react when hit with a large amount of emotions? Should Jedi openly express grief, even if it is against the Jedi code? What happens when you try and bury your emotions as a Jedi? These questions are explored in depth within the novel, which I found fascinating.

The story is fairly self-contained, but for good reason. With Into the Dark, the setting drives what the characters experience and where they go. In contrast, the story in A Test of Courage focuses largely on how characters feel and the interactions between each other.

A Test of Courage lives up to its name in many ways. In a difficult situation, the Jedi are pushed to the brink while also dealing with their own fears and internal conflicts. There's not much more to say; with Into the Dark and this novel being self-contained, I'm hoping that Light of the Jedi is the sweeping epic that brings all the stories together.

A test of courage is a Jr novel that centers around a padawan, 2 non force sensitive humans, a fresh Jedi Knight, and a modified nanny/body guard droid. When disaster strikes, this crew is stranded on an unfamiliar planet but soon realize that being stranded is the least of their worries. This book goes over what it truly means to be a Jedi, how to handle emotions like grief and fear. Most importantly, it reminds us that mistakes happen, but it's what we do after that matters the most.

A Test of Courage is the perfect introduction to the High Republic for younger audiences, displaying its ability to stand alone, while also providing an enhanced introduction to the era for older audiences who’ve read Light of the Jedi. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and I love the characters introduced! There’s a good amount of foreshadowing to potential future obstacles for the Jedi in this era as well as nods to things that come to fruition in the future; this could be a cool introduction to the rise of certain technologies becoming exploited in the eras of Star Wars we’re familiar with if the opportunity is taken. To me, I felt like this story slightly tapped into more of the spiritual side of the Force and the Jedi’s relationship with it, and this is the kind of stuff I love and have wanted to see more of. As much as it’s a good read for any younglings in your life, it’s a fun read for all ages and I can’t sing enough praise for this book.

A much longer time ago than Star Wars fans may be used to but still in a galaxy far far away, Star Wars: The High Republic: A Test of Courage is one of the first publications in phase one of The High Republic multimedia production. Published by Disney Lucasfilm Press, A Test of Courage is written by New York Times best-selling author Justina Ireland with illustrations by Petur Antonsson. Ireland, who is no stranger to the world of Star Wars novelizations with her work on Lando’s Luck and Spark of the Resistance, brings fans a story marketed toward a middle-school-aged audience. Despite the younger audience focus, A Test of Courage is suitable for fans of all ages as the story follows a young Jedi Knight and a ragtag bunch of children following a great tragedy.

Set 200 years before the events of The Skywalker Saga, A Test of Courage opens with a prologue featuring two Nihil pirates plotting to destory the Steady Wing, a High Republic luxury liner. The Nihil are been the main villain for the High Republic and Jedi during this time period. Ireland wastes no time in letting readers know that these are not moral people. Klinith Da, a human woman, and Gwishi, a male Aqualish, disguise themselves to board the High Republic vessel bound for the dedication of the Starlight Beacon, a station designed to bring security to Outer Rim. Given the marauding nature of the Nihil, it is clear that the group does not want any more systems joining the Republic. The Nihil aim to spread fear throughout the region by planting explosives on a starship filled with high profile individuals.

Following the prologue, readers are introduced to one of those individuals, Jedi Knight Vernestra Rwoh. Vernestra passed her trials at only fifteen years old, which is very young even for Jedi in The Skywalker Saga era. The sixteen-year-old Mirialan first charge as a Jedi Knight is to supervise eleven-year-old Avon Starros. Daughter of a High Republic senator, Avon springs into the story as a rambunctious inventor who is clearly fond of getting into trouble with her tinkering and love of science. Avon is also accompanied by J-6, a repurposed bodyguard droid that serves as Avon’s nanny. Through some tinkering on the part of Avon, J-6 has some slight self-actualization, making her the perfect snarky protocol droid for someone as mischievous as Avon. Other main characters are introduced as the chapters progress that round out the ragtag bunch of characters on who A Test of Courage will focus.

Then there is Honesty Weft, a son of a Dalnan ambassador who is not happy to be on the trip to the dedication of the Starlight Beacon. The eleven-year-old would much rather be completing trials of his own as he hopes to pursue a career in the military. The people of Dalna rarely leave their homeworld and with the recent tragedies with ships exploding in hyperspace, Honesty is not eager to go on this adventure with his ambassador father. All of the characters in A Test of Courage are unique. What starts off as troupey characterizations—the straight and narrow one, the unruly one, the shy one, and the uncertain one—quickly gives way to interesting character dynamics later in the novel.

A Test of Courage truly begins as the Wefts, Vernestra, Avon, J-6, and other ambassadors that may possibly join the Republic are joined by Jedi Master Douglas and his padawan Imri for dinner on the Steady Wing. Imri, only a couple of years younger than Vernestra, does not have the talent of the young Mirialan Jedi Knight. But, he has Force abilities that become integral to the story. Even as a padawan, Imri seems to have an uncanny sense of perception that extends past just sensing general emotions. While we have seen different uses of the Force in other media like The Mandalorian and The Sequel Trilogy, it’s much different to read what the Jedi are experiencing during their Force usage. It adds an extra level of mystique while still explaining what it truly means to reach out with the Force.

Given the demographic of A Test of Courage, there is not a whole lot of exposition on the state of the galaxy at this time. However, it’s clear that the Nihil is a force to be reckoned with. Even with the younger audience as its demographic, author Ireland does not shy away from the kind of ruthlessness the Nihil are capable of. The marauders certainly stay true to their nature from the get-go with no real care for innocent lives. There are hints of a hierarchy that makes the Nihil we meet in A Test of Courage look like mere pawns in a much larger scheme despite the duo’s ability to destroy a High Republic spacecraft. I immediately want to know more about the threat they pose to the Jedi and the galaxy at large.

The Nihil plot appears to be successful. Vernestra, Avon, J-6, Honesty, and Imri are able to limp away in a maintenance shuttle right before from the Steady Fast explodes. Honesty’s father, Master Douglas, the other ambassadors, and all the of the crew are gone. This is where A Test of Courage begins to shine.

At only sixteen, Vernestra is the oldest of the children and must assume the role of the leader in a dire situation after the destruction of the Steady Wing. The shuttle the group escaped in is damaged. With no way to communicate, no usable hyperdrive, limited supplies, and no life signs anywhere in the area, the children are stranded and alone. Yet, despite their age, the group is far from helpless. Avon is very smart and approaches all situations with a problem-solving mentality. Imri, despite losing his master, is still a capable wielder of the Force. Honesty, despite losing his father, is trained in types of survival that not even the two Jedi can boast. And of course, they are rounded out with J-6 who doesn’t provide much comfort given her personality but is still a wealth of knowledge in her databanks. Together, the group must find their way to safety.

The rest of A Test of Courage follows the group’s attempts to be rescued and uncover the plot behind the destruction of the Steady Wing. Each chapter follows the perspective of each one main character, given the reader a deeper insight into how they are handling the situation set before them. I can certainly see many young readers seeing themselves in the characters in A Test of Courage. Further, I was surprised how deeply Ireland covered the emotions the children are feeling given the demographic of the novel. Avon dealing with being sent away from her family. Honesty losing his father and the regret that comes with his interactions before his father died. And there is Imri losing his master as a young padawan and the feelings of loss, which Star Wars fans know is never a good sign. To get through this ordeal, the children have to come together despite their differing personalities and approaches to life.

Even though the novel is aimed at a much younger audience than I am apart of, A Test of Courage is deep. Through much of A Test of Courage, each one of the main characters reflects back on the teachings of their elders and the ones they have lost. The children use these teachings to reconcile with their situation and move forward. I even highlighted in my book many of the sayings that Ireland provides because they are thought-provoking and useful. A Test of Courage quickly turns from just a Star Wars novel into one that teaches valuable lessons. This novel would be a great way for younger readers to learn lessons, from dealing with grief to problem-solving in difficult situations, to working with others who are different than you.

For older fans, there is plenty to get out of A Test of Courage. There is insight to be gained for how different the galaxy is 200 years before fans see it in The Phantom Menance. The Outer Rim is more unruly than ever. The understanding of the Force and its uses are detailed nicely. The weapons that the Jedi use in the novel are not what we are used to. Hyperspace travel is not as easy and we see why. We see how ruthless the Nihil can be even in a children’s novel. There were many times where my eyes widened at the nuggets that are dropped throughout. I am more excited than ever for The High Republic and it only took a novel written for middle schoolers to get me there.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read an ARC of this book!

It was...fine. It's about a group of kids, including a Jedi Knight, a padawan, and two other kids who escape from their exploding ship and land on a nearby moon. They figure out who blew up their ship (not a spoiler since the prologue sets up who blows up the ship explicitly) and it all ties up well. Most of the book is spent talking about the various characters' feelings about what happened to them and about their relationships with people who were aboard the exploded ship. In other words, nothing much happens in the book, and the characters aren't interesting enough for me to care particularly about all of their angst.

This is yet another very mediocre Disney Star Wars book. With each new series, I keep thinking that something mindblowing is going to happen, and it never does. The High Republic doesn't excite me in the way that the non-Disney canon Old Republic did, and I feel like Disney just can't manage to make a Star Wars book with new characters that I really care about. The writing style in this book was good, since Justina Ireland is a good writer, but good writing is not enough to make a book interesting. Unfortunately, this one was a miss for me.

Star Wars: A Test of Courage was written by New York Times Bestselling Author, Justina Ireland. This is the second tale within the High Republic Era. A Test of Courage is a young readers book and is published by Disney-Lucasfilm Press.

SUMMARY: A few members of the Nihil are at Port Haileap, with a plan to infiltrate the luxury liner ship, the Steady Wing. They want to cause chaos, to instill fear in the republic, and most importantly, to make a name for themselves and impress one of the Tempest Runners, which is one of the leaders in the Nihil.

There are many people on the Steady Wing, all headed to the Starlight Beacon's opening ceremony. When the Nihil's plans for the Steady Wing come to fruition, a young group of survivors find themselves alone on a moon, far off from space lanes. The group consists of two young Jedi, the son of the Dalna Ambassador, and another child with the familiar name in the Star Wars comic line, Starros. The group must figure out how to survive on the terrifying moon, and somehow reach out to someone among the stars to rescue them.

Will the youth survive? Will the young Jedi stray from their path and give into fear? What more does the Nihil have planned? You'll have to read the book to find out!

CHARACTERS: We have a few characters to talk about, I'll mention one character I found a little interesting and another I was annoyed by.

Vernestra Rwoh is a green skinned Mirialan. She’ a prodigy within the Jedi Order, passing the Jedi trials at the age of just 15, one of the youngest Jedi Knights around. She’s not too thrilled with her first mission as a Jedi Knight, spending time on the planet Dalna. She’s keeping an eye on an ambassadors daughter, making sure she’s kept safe. She’s good with a lightsaber, but still a little unsure of herself. She’s young for a Knight, and must face some difficult decisions when she’s thrust into an unexpected disaster.


Honesty Weft, son of the Dalna Ambassador. Honesty does not want to be on the Steady Wing, he’d much rather find out what vocation would suit him best, he’d like to be a warrior, to join the Dalna military. Even though the planet hasn’t had a full scale war in a century. But, his father wants Honesty with him, to witness diplomacy first hand as they attempt to join the Republic. Honesty is a very emotional young man. Who cry’s about absolutely everything.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: This book was fine. It’s a young readers story, and for some reason I find the young reader books pretty tedious. The story isn’t bad at all, it's just very simple and straight forward. The book definitely has a mature theme, with a lot of death and some violent moments. For a kids story, I'd think if it were a film, it would still have to be PG-13. There are some really dark moments.

The characters are written well. Honestly, I found only two characters interesting, the others I could have done without. The idea that one of the young Jedi is a prodigy was a bit silly, I think the story would have been more interesting if the cast contained not 1 Padawan, but 2 or maybe even 3. The Nihil didn't seem to intemidating in the book, of course they did a dark deed, but they were just dumb villians, I would say that's most likely due to the targeted age group for the book, then again... the book was packed with death and other dark points.

The dialogue was well written. Some of the plot points were really interesting as one of the youth turns toward a darker path. We get a good tease at some of the lore of the Jedi, and their conflict with the Sith. Like I said, the book was fine, it wasn't bad at all, but I wouldn't say it was great.

Do I recommend you pick up Star Wars: The High Republic: A Test of Courage? If you are a completest, yes. If you could care less about young reader books, I think you could pass on this one.

RATING: I give this novel an B-

Meet some of the new characters of the High Republic in the first Middle Grade story set in this new, unexplored era.

Sixteen-year-old newly minted Jedi Knight Vernestra has just been given her first mission: accompany the precocious Senator Starros’s daughter Avon and her droid to the new Starlight Beacon station for it’s opening. Along with a shy ambassador’s son, Honesty, and an eager Padawan, Imri, they are the youngest passengers on the Republic sent cruise ship. But when the ship is unexpectedly damaged en route, Vernestra and the rest of the young passengers find themselves the sole survivors of a tragedy. Stranded on a remote and inhospitable planet with limited supplies and no communications, they soon figure out that it was no accident that destroyed their ship. It was an act of sabotage, and the saboteurs don’t want any survivors. It will take all their skills for them to survive,outsmart the dangerous pirates, and report back to the Republic with the truth of what happened.

One part adventure story, one part survival, everyone brought a skill to the table or felt unsure of their abilities. For Vernestra, it was her first mission and she was apprehensive about proving herself to the council and whether or not the modifications she’d made to her lightsaber were a good thing or not. For Honesty, he was disappointed he was missing out on a graduation type ceremony back home and had to learn to trust his skillset and deal with grief. Imri had to deal with the grief of losing his master and the anger towards those responsible. Avon used her piloting skills to initially save them and her tech skills to fix the ship’s communications. It was Honesty who’s survivals skills found them fresh food; Avon who piloted them to safety and found the scout droid they used; Vern’s modified saber helped clear a path in the jungle and fight off the bad guys; and both Vern and Imri learned a valuable lesson on the Dark Side and their own abilities as Jedi, and will continue to learn and grow together as Master and Apprentice (despite only a two year age difference).

At the end though, Avon still hadn’t completely learned her lesson about taking tech apart. Her curiosity about lightsabers and kyber crystals got the better of her and I suspect it will have consequences later. We all know what kyber will eventually be used for, and while her intentions are pure and she believes “science will thank me later”, she doesn’t yet realize that not everyone will use science for good. She was also billed as a STEAM heroine in the promotion, but this aspect didn’t figure into things as much as I thought it would. So I hope we see her again and she has a chance to use those tech skills more.

What’s in a Name

While a Middle Grade book, the cast of characters ranged in age from twelve to sixteen giving it more of a crossover appeal. With Vern being a fully fledged Knight despite her young age, and Imri being fourteen, I can definitely see the potential to see these two again in either a YA or Adult novel with the rest of the Jedi. As for Avon and Honesty, I can see them getting another full length Middle Grade adventure too or appearing in the Star Wars Adventures comics.

However, those names. From the moment I first read the name Avon, all I could think about was the makeup. You know those Avon catalogs your mom gets with the makeup and perfume? Yeah, those. So I couldn’t help but chuckle and cringe every time I read her name. As for Honesty, that reminded me of how the Puritans used to name their children after the virtues they wanted them to possess. Seeing as how his people, the Dalnan, live beyond the borders of the Republic and have a different type of society, I’m guessing this was intentional. But Avon? Really? And Master Douglass probably has the most “normal” name in Star Wars besides Luke.

Justina Ireland is the bestselling author of the Dread Nation YA books. Her previous Star Wars credits include Lando’s Luck and Spark of the Resistance. She is part of the group of authors who will be contributing to and crafting the High Republic era and the stories surrounding it.

All in all, I liked this outing. It was fast paced and full of adventure. Recommended for readers 9-13 or grades 4-7.

A great adventure that middle grade readers will love because of the Jedi and heroes their age.

Thank you Disney, Lucasfilm and NetGalley for the e ARC!

LOVED IT! It spun off of a nice tie-in at the end of Light of the Jedi. The characters are amazing and I can’t wait to get to know them more!

"A Test of Courage" written by Justina Ireland was written for middle readers, ages 8-12, and it is set in the High Republic Era of the Star Wars Universe immediately after the events of "The Great Disaster" around 200 years before the "The Phantom Menace." The story follows newly knighted Vernestra Rwoh and her companions (Honesty, a Delnan ambassador's son; Avon Starros, a Republic Senator's daughter; J-6, Avon's droid; and Jedi Padawan Imri) as they learn to trust one another and struggle to survive when their ship is destroyed by Nihil pirates.

Although the author does a good job of attempting to show the struggles of teenage kids stranded on a moon, the story as a whole falls flat in its emotional believability. Vernestra, a Jedi prodigy who has excelled in all of her previous training, seems to lack the emotional maturity of a fully knighted Jedi, yet she is the de-facto leader of the group solely because she is the oldest and "most experienced." This creates many problems as the others in the group find it difficult to follow her lead and, instead, proceed with their own agendas. Her lack of maturity leaves the reader wondering what in the world the Jedi Order was thinking when they deemed her worthy of passing the trials.

Overall, despite the absence of an emotional connection with the audience, the book was a fun read. It did not provide more than a soft introduction to the High Republic, its Jedi, and their struggles with the Nihil during the fallout from The Great Disaster. For Star Wars fans looking to get into this new era, it is a forgettable must read, but for the casual observer who is mildly interested in Star Wars, it is a hard pass.

It is possible to simply adore the characters in a book, but be totally turned off by the plot? That’s exactly how I felt about this book. Vernestra, a fifteen-year-old Jedi who is tasked with watching over Avon Starros, a trouble-making young aspiring inventor and J-8, her wacky droid. They are well-crafted and form the core of the story… and it is these young , strong characters that kept me reading.

The basic plot: A new space station called Starlight Beacon is about to be dedicated. It will become a key communication and supply relay between Coruscant and the Outer Rim. Thousands are on their way to the big party! The characters in A Test of Courage are on a luxury liner headed for the big event… but on their way a series of explosions rips the vessel apart and a spare maintenance ship enables them to escape the wreckage. They find themselves floating in deep space until a habitable moon is located. Is it deserted? Will the mystery be solved…

My biggest beef with this book is that I never felt a connection to this new High Republic. Some distinct things are mentioned, but none of the reveal I was expecting. I wanted to see and hear The Time of the Jedi… only to ultimately get a lost-on-a-deserted-planet plot. As I said above, the characters were great… each flashback and interaction gave me better insight into their lives and personalities, but I never saw they connect to the new whole.

I’ll try not to pan this one too much because I think Ireland’s writing is damn good… Read it for a decently fun adventure and some good characters… a book which I think will be a delight for new readers of the SW Universe.

3 out of 5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley, Disney Books, and the author for an advanced copy for review.

I haven’t read too many Star Wars junior novels to date. A large reason for this is because the ones that I have read came across as extended interludes that have little to no bearing on the bigger picture. That’s why it was a huge surprise and thrill to read Justina Ireland’s new junior novel, Star Wars The High Republic: A Test of Courage, one of three books we were sent in Lucasfilm’s new publishing initiative. This is a book that has weight, great characters and is appropriate for both younger kids and core adult fans as well. If you want to dive into as much High Republic content as possible, don’t sleep on this one simply because it’s a junior novel.

Set 200 years before the events of The Phantom Menace, The High Republic is an era where the Jedi are at the height of their power. They are plentiful, prosperous and respected. It’s a golden age, so to speak, and the Jedi are akin to Arthur and his Knights. There are no Sith active right now, as they’re in hiding, so the Jedi really are “guardians of peace and justice”, to quote Kenobi and the opening statement of the initiative. There’s the odd pirate raid here and there, or perhaps an uprising on a planet there, but there’s no galaxy-wide conflict-at least not yet.

This particular novel follows Vernestra Rwoh as she begins her first major task as a newly appointed knight: babysitting an ambassador’s daughter aboard an impressive cruiser en route for the dedication of the Starlight Beacon. Vernestra is only 16-years-old and passed her Jedi trials not a year earlier, making her the youngest Knight in ages. While not overjoyed with her first big assignment, she’s still confident and content about her appointment considering her age. But the assignment isn’t so breezy as she initially thought it would be. The ship was sabotaged by the new villains of this initiative, the Nihil, and two young Jedi, a young inventor, and a protocol droid whose personality is being reprogrammed, escape on a sad excuse of a shuttle and take refuge on a jungle planet.

What’s great about The High Republic publishing initiative is how free it is from the constraints of the Skywalker saga. Being set 200 years before the core narrative, in an unexplored era (even the old EU didn’t dabble in this period of time), the writers really do have carte-blanche for telling an original story that doesn’t feel restricted in any way. So while Spark of the Resistance left me wanting more as a prequel to The Rise of Skywalker, Ireland gets to do a lot more with this new cast of characters.

While this is a junior novel, it by no means feels like a “kids book”. It’s not a terribly long book, I breezed through it quickly, but it’s chock-full of adventure and high stakes. The bombing sequence near the beginning of the book is not only a compelling inciting incident but has deep emotional consequences for our young heroes. The concept of fear, anger and revenge are present in this story and it’s interesting to see those effects latch onto characters who are so young. Likewise, the few members of the Nihil in this story are pretty vicious, but to get a better understanding of who they are, be sure to read Charles Soule’s novel, Light of the Jedi.

But none of this would matter if we didn’t care for the characters and thankfully we do. Since we’re confined to a small cast of characters, many of them get time to shine and grow. The standout of the cast is Avon Starros, a 12-year-old genius inventor with a lot of opinions about droids, the Jedi and the Force. Things could be grim and dangerous, but Avon is always making notes about her experiment, the droid J-6. Vernestra is also a standout in the story as a young Jedi prodigy who helps Avon become a little less rebellious and guides the padawan Imri in times of doubt. Despite her age, she feels much more grown-up and responsible and fans of unusual lightsabers will relish what she’s done to hers.
If there’s one thing that did take me out of the story a bit is making the character Avon a direct ancestor to Sana Starros. Considering we dialled the clock back 200 years from the events of the prequels, including a character who has a connection to the Marvel comics set during the time of the original trilogy makes this new era feel just a bit smaller. While she’s a brand new character, and an interesting one at that, I would have preferred her to have no connections to the core saga. It doesn’t change much, but once I made the connection, my first thought was “what are the odds?”. Likewise, there’s a character named “Honesty” and due to the nature of his name, sentences can be a bit awkward when they’re directly talking to him or about him. I feel this character could have used a bit more development as well.

Overall though, this is a fresh, fun and exciting new frontier for Star Wars to explore. Even though A Test of Courage is written at the junior level, I think casual and core fans would even appreciate the storytelling and depth found in this book, regardless if they’re kids or adults. If you plan on reading the entire High Republic series, I would start reading Light of the Jedi first, as it takes place just before the events of this book and dives more in-depth with The Emergences, something only mentioned in this book but never witnessed first-hand.

With "A Test of Courage" Justina Ireland did a great job: the junior novel is easily and fast readable, Ireland's writing is pleasant and all the characters are well described and in-depth analyzed. Everyone has something important to say and, in the 240 pages, a great character development.

The novel manages also to touch important thematics as grief, loss, personal insecurities: they are very relevant and well written into the story. The final twist of the novel is also related deeply to these thematics and it is able to both surprise the reader, as well as to open new roads for the characters here established.

The only minor flaw of the novel is that its central chapters are a bit slower than the daring, beginning ones. However this slower pace is obviously necessary to develop characters as explained before.

Vernestra’s first mission as a young Jedi Knight is to keep Avon safe as she travels to meet her mother on the new space station, Starlight Beacon. After the cruiser has been sabotaged, Vernestra finds this to be a much more difficult challenge than she’d thought.

This is such a fun and exciting adventure! The High Republic takes place long before Anakin’s story in the Star Wars saga. There is a nice variety of young characters, including two strong and intelligent females in Vernestra and Avon. Readers won’t need a Star Wars background to understand or enjoy the story. I look forward to more stories of the High Republic.

Ok, I have many thoughts. Let’s preface this review with some quantifying statements.
This is technically a middle-grade book, I don’t often read middle grade and thus don’t have much to say in regards to that aspect of the book.
I am a huge Star Wars fan. I have read several of the books and am well versed in the universe.
Quantifying the previous statement, Jedi are not my favorite element of the Star Wars universe. So this book does have to stand outside of Jedi being cool.

These things being said, let’s start the review. I loved this book. I had such a fun time reading this book. I also got so into it you don’t understand. While reading I was highlighting elements in different colors and making notes. I never do this when reading fiction books, I’ve only ever done it in some nonfiction books, that is how into this book I got.

As a Star Wars fan, I was so excited by the setting this new sub-series is covering. The universe outside of the Skywalker saga and the Skywalkers holds so much potential. There is so much potential in this unexplored time in the galaxy.

Going back to the intended age range I do believe that this book is in some ways able to transcend the stereotypes of that descriptor. Of the middle grades that I have read after exiting the target age range where you would expect one to read them, one was another Star Wars middle grade. Comparing the two without really comparing them, I feel that this one has a much wider appeal. This book goes into some complex topics and deals with some pretty heavy stuff. There were only a few times when I felt the influence of middle grade seep into the story. I feel like everyone could enjoy this book.

Moving on to how much fun as a star wars fan I had spotting references, let’s put that at a 7 and an 8 for those more well versed in different species and planets.

This book was also really funny. There were several lines that I had to save because they brought a smile to my face.

For those interested in Jedi culture and mentality this book dealt with those topics pretty heavily. With two of the four main characters being force users a significant amount of the conflict present in this book comes as a result of dealing with your place as a Jedi. How you interact with the force and it with you. Jedi codes of conduct and rules are also frequently brought up and referenced. If you didn’t know about Jedi before reading this you definitely know how they operate by the end.

We also spent a suspicious amount of time in there talking about kyber crystals. It felt sort of out of place and like it was set up for future plots and events. These events are either going to tie back in with more high republic books or they could just be tying us to things like Rogue One.

I feel that one of the reasons I enjoyed this book so much was because of some similar elements it shares with the new Thrawn books. We are in star wars but we are outside of the familiar realm we usually operate in. This gives the story so much more room to roam and it shows at times. I also liked the imped bigger threat that will turn up again at a future date. Thrawn also had these, enemies, in the shadows just outside of the story but sure to impact it significantly.

On a final note, let’s talk about some things I wasn’t so jazzed about as no book is without some flaws. There was the bit about the kyber crystals I mentioned earlier but it’s not too big of a deal. The start of the book put me a bit off at first. It felt like we were switching between characters too much and it was hard to get into. There was this promise of excitement just around the corner but the intrigue was just a bit lacking. I also found the ending to be a bit rushed. The resolution to the stranding dilemma comes too easily and closure for the characters doesn’t really happen in a satisfying way. I can’t quite put my finger on everything in the ending that put me off but it was there and otherwise, I would have rated the book much higher.

I can’t wait to see how more of The High Republic plays out.

Part of the vast world of Star Wars novels and, in particular, the subset of those novels with an intended child audience. Kids with a high interest in Star Wars might be drawn in, but too little contextual information is provided to entice non Star Wars fans. All the main characters are 16 or younger and most of them are beset with the usual problems of the early and pre-teen set: determining who they are, fighting for authority over their own lives, and both wanting and fearing the future. As is common for Star Wars books trigger warnings for death abound, including key parental deaths in the early chapters.

As a Star Wars fan I’ve been mostly ambivalent about the whole High Republic era things, my preferred time period to read has always been post-RotJ, but this came up in NetGalley and I couldn’t resist taking a peak.

This book focuses on several young teens who get caught together after the ship they are on suffers sabotage. Jedi Knight, Jedi Padawan, Senator’s daughter, diplomat’s son, and a droid with personality make up the team that make it on a shuttle craft together.

I really enjoyed this story, it was a quick read, and scratches the itch of “I miss the YJK books”. And even if I miss Solo kids ok, this has that feel, only in some ways I feel like with more digging into Jedi philosophy.

Overall this was an enjoyable peek into this era and series, and I will probably check out more of them when they are released. Recommend for anyone who enjoys stories about Jedi, and as a fun adventure story for elementary/middle grade readers.

As a partisan for the prequel Jedi, I'm interested to see what the High Republic era has to say for itself. This was a pretty good introduction.

The idea of a sixteen-year-old full Jedi knight is a little bit odd, but it's Star Wars. We believe in giving teenage girls a scary amount of power. Other than that, this was a good, solid kids' adventure. It had enough philosophy, enough action, and enough emotions to make it all-around enjoyable.

This book was a wonderfully written middle grade to introduce the High Republic. The book follows a small cast of characters, which is perfect for middle schoolers (especially reluctant readers) looking for a fun Star Wars story. The characters are well written all have their own challenges and personalities. The book was well paced and action filled. It was fun to see how how the Jedi and apprentice relationships happened before the Empire. Really enjoyed this new time period.

(Review will not be published until Dec 14th)

Star Wars: A Test of Courage was a fun first foray into a new time period for the Star Wars universe. Justina Ireland did a great job setting the stage for more novels to come with good world building and very distinct exciting characters. Justina did such a good job with her characters that for the first time I was actually more interested and entertained by the “non-Jedi” characters than I was by the main driving force of Star Wars universe!

I did feel a bit at odds with the pacing of the book. I would have liked to see a bit more time spent on the conflicts (both internal and external) that took up the last 20% of the book as opposed to the large amount of introspection in the middle.

Their were plenty of Easter eggs for Star Wars fans and I am very excited to see how they play out across the High Republic publishing initiative.