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ajaxb's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Had a good time with this one, tons of action and tense moments, also more development from some characters we’ve both seen and haven’t seen. However, the multi-POV can get very confusing at times and doesn’t give us as much time as I would like to connect with the main cast. I also found myself getting flustered at the sheer number of characters the book introduces. Overall, it’s a good sequel that improves on the first and shows the Jedi how big a threat the Nihil really are.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Murder
Minor: Injury/Injury detail
astropova's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Very cool. I thought the pacing was really good, and the author does a good job of setting up both twists and their payoffs. I also like seeing both the good guy and the bad guy POVs.
Spoilery summary of the main points, but I can't spell any names because I did the audiobook:
The Nihil attack the Republic's fancy new ship. There are differing opinions on whether to continue with the giant expensive fair that promotes unity, but Chancellor Soh decides to keep it going because she wants the Togruta to ally with the Republic.
Meanwhile, Marchion To is having power struggles with Pan Eyta. Ro goes to a secret planet to find a piece of an ancient artifact and also a beast frozen in the ice. The beast is particularly powerful against force-sensitives. He brings both back with him.
Elzar Mann is struggling because he had nightmarish force visions. Bell Zettifar is struggling because apparently his master Loden Greatstorm got killed by the Nihil, but really he is imprisoned and tortured by them. Stellan Geos is struggling because they just made him a Council Member and he doesn't know how to feel about it.
The fair goes ahead and is obviously attacked by the Nihil. A lot of people die and it's a catastrophe, but the Jedi manage to beat them back together. Also there is a reporter named Rill Dyro(?) who gets a distress call out and the Togruta come to help. The Chancellor and the Togruta Queen work together to save civilians and stuff. Then the Chancellor is gravely wounded. Stellan Geos almost gets killed by Lourna Dee. Also Ty Yorrick is a former Jedi or something, we don't know her story yet. She gets over her mistrust of Jedi to help Elzar save the day.
Everyone is alive, and the Togruta Queen says they will ally with the Republic. Then they set a trap for the Nihil, eliminating Pan Eyta's fleet but he escapes, though he is dying due to being poisoned by Ro and semi-saved by Dee. The Jedi follow a Nihil back to Ron's base and Bell finds Loden there again. Elzar has another crazy nightmare vision. Loden escapes from Ro, but Ro activates the crazy weapon/beast combo. Bell is traumatized and Loden gets turned to stone and disintegrated.
Spoilery summary of the main points, but I can't spell any names because I did the audiobook:
Meanwhile, Marchion To is having power struggles with Pan Eyta. Ro goes to a secret planet to find a piece of an ancient artifact and also a beast frozen in the ice. The beast is particularly powerful against force-sensitives. He brings both back with him.
Elzar Mann is struggling because he had nightmarish force visions. Bell Zettifar is struggling because apparently his master Loden Greatstorm got killed by the Nihil, but really he is imprisoned and tortured by them. Stellan Geos is struggling because they just made him a Council Member and he doesn't know how to feel about it.
The fair goes ahead and is obviously attacked by the Nihil. A lot of people die and it's a catastrophe, but the Jedi manage to beat them back together. Also there is a reporter named Rill Dyro(?) who gets a distress call out and the Togruta come to help. The Chancellor and the Togruta Queen work together to save civilians and stuff. Then the Chancellor is gravely wounded. Stellan Geos almost gets killed by Lourna Dee. Also Ty Yorrick is a former Jedi or something, we don't know her story yet. She gets over her mistrust of Jedi to help Elzar save the day.
Everyone is alive, and the Togruta Queen says they will ally with the Republic. Then they set a trap for the Nihil, eliminating Pan Eyta's fleet but he escapes, though he is dying due to being poisoned by Ro and semi-saved by Dee. The Jedi follow a Nihil back to Ron's base and Bell finds Loden there again. Elzar has another crazy nightmare vision. Loden escapes from Ro, but Ro activates the crazy weapon/beast combo. Bell is traumatized and Loden gets turned to stone and disintegrated.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death and Torture
Minor: Confinement and Fire/Fire injury
melsage1823's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
An action packed heartbreaking tear jerker of a story that builds up the threat of the Nihil very well.
Incredibly absolutely incredible. I don't know how Cavan Scott managed to pull it off but he's created a story that's just as good as Light Of The Jedi maybe even better. I was on the edge of my seat reading every chapter. It's clear all the writers of Project Luminous have sat down and planned the story together. This built on from Light Of The Jedi and the other books in the series really well. Most fans said it was worth the hype and it is.
The writing here is masterfully done. I couldn't find anything that really bothered me apart from maybe the inconsistent pacing and chapter lengths. I wish that some chapters were longer to develop certain characters but Scott managed to do his best despite so much going on. I hope some of his other stories are a little better with pacing. The pacing as I said is more a nitpick as I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish as well as cried.
There's so much I could praise about this book but without spoilers I'm gonna pick out only a few. First the character arcs. Elzar, Stellan, Ty, Lina Soh, Bell, Lourna, Pan and Marchion are a few of many well developed character arcs in the book. Every character felt like they had a purpose even the new ones and that their presence was nesscary for the story to progress. Which is an impressive achievement in itself since these Adult stories love to include such a large cast of characters. There was also well incorporated foreshadowing about where we might find some of the characters by the end of the story. Bell and Elzar's character arcs especially hit close to home as I thought it showed how reaching out when mourning is important and that asking for help shouldn't be a shameful thing. The character development is the glue of this story and it really pays off especially if you've read Light Of The Jedi.
Secondly the stakes. I have never been shaken for a book a I have The Rising Storm. From the start this book is none stop action with people back stabbing each other, villians that don't know when to stop and menacing surprises that shocked me. Whilst Light Of The Jedi introduced us to several characters and made us feel attached to the era as a whole Rising Storm makes you attached to all the characters and worried for their lives every five seconds. With some characters actually dying. This book does not play it safe at all it shows you how deadly the Nihil andnameless . A good action or war story should build up suspense and high stakes and Rising Storm does that very well. Nobody is safe at all!
Finally the multi-pov narrative. People have said in their reviews that the bombardment of characters ruined things for them but for me it worked super well. The High Republic writes in a multi-pov style that adds to the mystery and intense action. Through the fast pacing of chapters and sudden pov switches Scott communicates not only the danger but also the chaos of the situation. It showed the wide scale conflict of the story and how intense things get. You could be with one character fighting on the ground before you instantly cut to the chaos in the skies. And some of the pov cuts are actually necessary.
Overall the best way to describe this story would be like if you were watching a deadly game of chess. It's intense, emotional and an absolute rollercoaster. A perfect well earned sequel to Light Of The Jedi that will leave you reeling by the time you finish the story. Cannot recommend enough.
Incredibly absolutely incredible. I don't know how Cavan Scott managed to pull it off but he's created a story that's just as good as Light Of The Jedi maybe even better. I was on the edge of my seat reading every chapter. It's clear all the writers of Project Luminous have sat down and planned the story together. This built on from Light Of The Jedi and the other books in the series really well. Most fans said it was worth the hype and it is.
The writing here is masterfully done. I couldn't find anything that really bothered me apart from maybe the inconsistent pacing and chapter lengths. I wish that some chapters were longer to develop certain characters but Scott managed to do his best despite so much going on. I hope some of his other stories are a little better with pacing. The pacing as I said is more a nitpick as I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish as well as cried.
There's so much I could praise about this book but without spoilers I'm gonna pick out only a few. First the character arcs. Elzar, Stellan, Ty, Lina Soh, Bell, Lourna, Pan and Marchion are a few of many well developed character arcs in the book. Every character felt like they had a purpose even the new ones and that their presence was nesscary for the story to progress. Which is an impressive achievement in itself since these Adult stories love to include such a large cast of characters. There was also well incorporated foreshadowing about where we might find some of the characters by the end of the story. Bell and Elzar's character arcs especially hit close to home as I thought it showed how reaching out when mourning is important and that asking for help shouldn't be a shameful thing. The character development is the glue of this story and it really pays off especially if you've read Light Of The Jedi.
Secondly the stakes. I have never been shaken for a book a I have The Rising Storm. From the start this book is none stop action with people back stabbing each other, villians that don't know when to stop and menacing surprises that shocked me. Whilst Light Of The Jedi introduced us to several characters and made us feel attached to the era as a whole Rising Storm makes you attached to all the characters and worried for their lives every five seconds. With some characters actually dying. This book does not play it safe at all it shows you how deadly the Nihil and
Finally the multi-pov narrative. People have said in their reviews that the bombardment of characters ruined things for them but for me it worked super well. The High Republic writes in a multi-pov style that adds to the mystery and intense action. Through the fast pacing of chapters and sudden pov switches Scott communicates not only the danger but also the chaos of the situation. It showed the wide scale conflict of the story and how intense things get. You could be with one character fighting on the ground before you instantly cut to the chaos in the skies. And some of the pov cuts are actually necessary.
Overall the best way to describe this story would be like if you were watching a deadly game of chess. It's intense, emotional and an absolute rollercoaster. A perfect well earned sequel to Light Of The Jedi that will leave you reeling by the time you finish the story. Cannot recommend enough.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Death of parent, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Torture, Medical content, Kidnapping, and Medical trauma
Minor: Animal cruelty
draven_deathcrush's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I really liked most of the book, but some points kinda made me uncomfy, but I think that was just me. I cried at the end tho.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Child death, Sexual content, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Addiction and Drug use
jenny_librarian's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
YES! This is what I'm talking about! I absolutely loved this book. Everything about it was so well executed and developed.
I am now an Elzar Mann fangirl. That man is my new favourite and I will take no criticism on his character. He is perfect in deep imperfections.I really thought he'd turned when they tricked Amarant and I was fully prepared for a deep dive into dark side Elzar fanfiction, though I am happy he didn't fall any further. His story mirrors Anakin's a bit ("The Nihil were acting like animals, and like animals they'd be put down"!!!!), which is probably why I've latched on to him so hard.
Also Elzar/Stellan/Avar OT3 for the win! Give e a proper QPR with those three please! (Yes, I know what happens in The Fallen Star. Don't shatter my dreams.)
There were a few little Disney easter eggs that will probably get on people's nerves, but the United in Song thing made me laugh so hard! I think Cavan Scott has suffered through It's A Small World one too many times...
All in all, a magnificent book that I wish I'd been able to read before The Fallen Star, but am so glad I finally got around to. The High Republic books just keep on slapping.
I am now an Elzar Mann fangirl. That man is my new favourite and I will take no criticism on his character. He is perfect in deep imperfections.
Also Elzar/Stellan/Avar OT3 for the win! Give e a proper QPR with those three please! (Yes, I know what happens in The Fallen Star. Don't shatter my dreams.)
There were a few little Disney easter eggs that will probably get on people's nerves, but the United in Song thing made me laugh so hard! I think Cavan Scott has suffered through It's A Small World one too many times...
All in all, a magnificent book that I wish I'd been able to read before The Fallen Star, but am so glad I finally got around to. The High Republic books just keep on slapping.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical trauma, Murder, and War
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Gore, Kidnapping, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Addiction, Child abuse, Drug abuse, and Cannibalism
abigail_reads06's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, and War
Moderate: Gun violence, Sexual content, Medical content, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Drug use
phantasmaboo's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The Rising Storm by Cavan Scott is the second book in the High Republic Series. The book follows several characters introduced in the first book as they navigate the opening of the Starlight Beacon while under threat from the Nihil.
I very much wanted to love this book, and there were some highlights:
Diversity
As in the first book, the cast of characters is diverse. Although the text doesn’t delve too deeply into these areas, it was nice to have Black Jedi and LGBTQ characters highlighted throughout the text. There is a brief exposure to a LGBTQIA+ relationship.
Compelling Arcs
We see characters introduced in the first book really dealing with their demons in this one. Topics such as anger, grief, loss, and trauma are handled well. The characters’ flaws are on full display and, for the most part, we see them working through them.
There were, however, some issues with this text that made me rate it 3.5 stars instead of 4 stars:
Too Many Characters
Nearly every character in this book (and there are many) is treated as a main character. At last count, there were over ten major characters that the reader has to keep track of. Most of them were not even introduced in this book. I felt like I needed a notebook to keep track of who was who and who was doing what at all times. Moments of significant character growth and progression were lessened by the constant interruption of secondary characters. It was very frustrating to read.
Too Many Plots
There are several plots at play in the book, and I think that it overall weakened the experience. The two main plots were fine, but were weighed down by the remaining secondary plots. This is ultimately tied to the number of characters. Several significant plot points were not resolved, as if the author just kicked them down the road for the author of the next book to take care of (which they will have to).
Overall, the book was worth the read, but it was significantly weaker than the first book (which also had a touch too many characters). My experience was neither good nor bad. I am still thinking about some of the major revelatory plot points. I just hope the third book is more streamlined than this one.
My recommendation: Read this as soon as you are done with the first book. That way, you’ll h fully remember everyone and maybe your experience will be more positive .
I very much wanted to love this book, and there were some highlights:
Diversity
As in the first book, the cast of characters is diverse. Although the text doesn’t delve too deeply into these areas, it was nice to have Black Jedi and LGBTQ characters highlighted throughout the text. There is a brief exposure to a LGBTQIA+ relationship.
Compelling Arcs
We see characters introduced in the first book really dealing with their demons in this one. Topics such as anger, grief, loss, and trauma are handled well. The characters’ flaws are on full display and, for the most part, we see them working through them.
There were, however, some issues with this text that made me rate it 3.5 stars instead of 4 stars:
Too Many Characters
Nearly every character in this book (and there are many) is treated as a main character. At last count, there were over ten major characters that the reader has to keep track of. Most of them were not even introduced in this book. I felt like I needed a notebook to keep track of who was who and who was doing what at all times. Moments of significant character growth and progression were lessened by the constant interruption of secondary characters. It was very frustrating to read.
Too Many Plots
There are several plots at play in the book, and I think that it overall weakened the experience. The two main plots were fine, but were weighed down by the remaining secondary plots. This is ultimately tied to the number of characters. Several significant plot points were not resolved, as if the author just kicked them down the road for the author of the next book to take care of (which they will have to).
Overall, the book was worth the read, but it was significantly weaker than the first book (which also had a touch too many characters). My experience was neither good nor bad. I am still thinking about some of the major revelatory plot points. I just hope the third book is more streamlined than this one.
My recommendation: Read this as soon as you are done with the first book. That way, you’ll h fully remember everyone and maybe your experience will be more positive .
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Grief, Murder, and War
Moderate: Sexual content, Torture, and Injury/Injury detail
em_bryn's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Everybody stan my sweet baby Ember. But honestly a great adult sci-fi follow up to Light of the Jedi
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Blood