Audiobook Review: 'Haunted Starlight'
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The next novel in the series of Star Wars Adventures Audible Originals has dropped! First there was Padawan’s Pride, whose release came as a total surprise, but then there was Seeds of Starlight, the first half of a High Republic Era duology completed by Haunted Starlight. Set on the ocean-covered world of Eiram, Haunted Starlight picks up a few weeks after the events of Seeds of Starlight, and sees Padawan Cam Lindon, Master Eve Byre, Younglings Tep Tep and Kildo and a few other allies forced to confront the Drengir menace lurking in the fallen Starlight Beacon. Today, CultureSlate has its review for this newest work from author George Mann, voiced by Todd Haberkorn.
WARNING: The following review contains LIGHT spoilers about Star Wars Adventures: Haunted Starlight.
As mentioned earlier, Haunted Starlight takes place just a few weeks after Seeds of Starlight. The setting is the same, as are many of the locations, and many of the characters are familiar. A few new faces do appear, and we get greater exploration of some characters from the first half of this duology. But, on the whole, this book is a continuation of the world crafted in Seeds with only a few new elements.
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One of the new things in this story though, is a proper look at the Great Progenitor. She appears at several points, and is given far more character than her comic book appearances from Phase 1. Because of this, we learn more about the nature of the Drengir, and their Root Mind. The other major addition is a secondary villain, whose story is boiling in the background of the main narrative until it bursts to the forefront. We’ll avoid spoiling further details, but there are one or two details about their part of the plot we wish we’d have learned more about, especially their backstory. Even so, their narrative is important and enjoyable.
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As for the returning cast, a complaint from our review of Seeds has been completely solved. Tep Tep makes many connections with animals in this story, and played a major role because of that connection, elevating her POV sections. Cam Lindon remains a good POV character himself, and we even get a brief section from Eve Brye, something missing in the last audiobook altogether. But the issue with POV remains Kildo, and his lack of development.
With Phase 3 almost done, and us generally aware of where each character from across The High Republic is going to be placed in the final stories, Kildo has felt like a character robbed of depth. He is continuously the class clown, goofy, serious when the need arises, but we get little information on his true feelings or thoughts. We also get no acknowledgement of his romantic relationship with fellow Jedi Youngling Gavi, heartwarmingly established in Escape from Valo. These two are meant to be a couple, but Phase 3 has seemingly chosen to ignore this critical personal connection. It is particularly baffling because there is a moment in the story when Tep Tep and Kildo talk about home and Valo, yet Gavi is not brought up. In summation, it would have been really beneficial if, so close to the end, Kildo got a bit of time to shine.
That being said, Haunted Starlight is still a great listen on Audible. It deepens our knowledge of many of its existing cast of characters, it features a gripping narrative and captivating locations, and its ending helps set up events that will be critical to the final Wave of Phase 3. We implore fans of the High Republic to give this story a shot, as it will help explain a key detail likely to appear in certain upcoming stories. We also hope to see more of Eve Byre and Cam Lindon in the finale to come.
Review: 8/10
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