Brief Book Review: Star Wars: The High Republic "Midnight Horizon"
Spoiler Alert Ahead: Plot and themes
When I sought to make this page dedicated to Star Wars content, I knew I was signing up for a sizeable task. Between the movies, television series, video games, and books, there’s a Galaxy’s worth to choose from. It will take me a while, but I’m determined in my lifetime to cover it all (though I have certainly have my preferred mediums and will lean in those directions… and of course, I need the funds to pull it all off.) I’ll have to backtrack to review my two dives into the Star Wars book collection in other posts, but for now, I’ll fixate on the audiobook version of Midnight Horizon by New York Times Best-Selling author Daniel José Older.
The audiobook (released in 2022) sits at a little longer than 10 hours to listen through, but flys by at Starship speed thanks to writing that flows well from chapter to chapter. As an audiobook advocate, there’s rarely an instance where I wish I’d consumed the paperback instead, but in this instance, I wish I had. There are a ton of new characters to enjoy in this book, but at times it’s hard to follow who is talking because a few of the voices for different characters sound very similar. With audiobooks, the performance is just as much a part of the review as the writing, so that confusing element did impact my overall rating.
In terms of actual plot, the story explores love, marauder factions, wrestling with all that it means to become or stay a Jedi, the resilience of people from different star systems, and so much more.
The highlight of the book, I believe, comes at the end with a raging battle featuring a security detail and a group of Jedi (including a pleasant appearance from Master Yoda) facing the Nihil, an anarchy-driven marauder group who has made numerous appearances in Star Wars literature.
If you want a pleasant, easy submergence into the High Republic period of Star Wars history, Older gives you that, and also offers a grand pathway into the vast world of Star Wars books. I’m more excited to dive into Star Wars literature than ever before.
With that being said, I believe that while Star Wars surely is for kids as well as adults, I found Older’s portrayal of some of the adolescent characters to lean into the quirky and nearly cartoonish end of the spectrum. It’s not that there is no place for that anywhere, especially in Star Wars, but the contrast between the head being eaten off of a Nihil leader and some socially awkward padawan yelling out “wizard!” as a catchphrase feels a little too daunting. Star Wars is surely a place for both the innocence of a socially isolated teenager figuring out humor and horrific deaths, but in this instance, it came across a little forced.
All that being said, an enjoyable read.
⭐ : 3/5