– Minor Spoiler Review –
As part of The High Republic’s Phase II: Quest of the Jedi’s first wave of content, The High Republic – Convergence is the first adult novel of the new Phase. Marking Zoraida Córdova’s THR debut, Convergence follows Jedi Knight Gella Nattai as she, and seemingly the rest of the galaxy, get wrapped up in a high stakes peace summit to bring the Forever War of E’ronoh and Eiram to a close. As the prince and princess of the warring worlds draw closer, so too do all the forces conspiring to keep the planets apart, a small-scale struggle with greater galactic meaning, making Convergence an often intriguing, exciting, and character-focused next great entry in Phase II.
While most of the galaxy is at peace some 150 years before the start of Phase I, E’ronoh and Eiram, two planets with only a moon between them, are not, locked in a Forever War that its current combatants on either side can’t quite remember why it all started in the first place. As a ceasefire looks to crumble as both sides desperately reach out to the galaxy to replenish dwindling supplies, and outside forces are working in the shadows to ensure war resumes, Jedi arrive to help Eiram per their requests, but the seemingly random appearance of Chancellor Mollo of the Republic, one of two in this era, begins a series of irreversible events that could change the system for ever. The Princess Xiri Al’lbaran of E’ronoh crashes on Eiram, where she’s saved by the Prince of Eiram, Phan-tu Zenn, and the negotiations between the two sides for Xiri’s return lead the two young heirs to see a new path forward: marriage, in the name of peace. Will it be enough? And can the Jedi help them make it to their wedding day, as the forces against them grow in desperation?
Convergence features a relatively large cast, jumping POVs often, even multiple times in a chapter, though besides some side characters who feel more like they exist only to tell us more about the main ones, the depths and variety Córdova manages to provide makes each of the main cast memorable, unique, and ones you can get attached too. Her descriptions of both Eiram and E’ronoh, which we haven’t visited before but have dealt with in Phase I, painted visually distinct worlds with opposing features that aren’t that dissimilar when you think about it, like the great desert seas of E’ronoh and the great actual sea of Eiram, helping to show how on the surface this battle against one another is frivolous. Despite Convergence being all about securing peace, there is plenty of action as different factions attempt to halt the proceedings, and while these scenes didn’t always feel cohesive at times, especially when switching POVs, they are overall easy to follow and bring plenty of excitement to the novel. There were also some moments in the prose that I had to reread a time or two due to how things were worded, while a surprising demeanor change for a character later made sense, but the initial moment felt too out of left field and some motivations weren’t always the clearest even by novel’s end, though never even to take me out of the book. Otherwise, I loved how instead of this being around a big event like some of the previous adult novels, it is more about the characters affecting a situation and how they navigate the consequences; between this and Path of Deceit, and even The High Republic – Phase II comic, this Phase certainly feels more intimate and it’s really paying off, especially since we have a shorter time in this Phase so all this character focus helps endure them to us quicker. Overall, this isn’t Cordova’s first Star Wars and it shows, and while this might be her first THR entry, she slips into the era as if she’s been in it from the start, and I’m glad to know there’ll be more Star Wars from her in our future!
Jedi Knight Gella Nattai, who graces Convergence’s cover, is struggling with her place in the Force. While the details remain light at the start, we learn she’s been assigned to Jedi team bringing Eiram supplies because her last mission with a Pathfinder team didn’t go so well. What’s supposed to be an easy mission, drop off supplies and return, feels like a punishment by the Order for what went wrong, though it quickly gets complicated when they find the tentative peace between the worlds is shattered by an out-of-control ship. She’s impulsive and doesn’t wait for others to follow along, listening to the first thing the Force tells her and going for it, so she often leaves the other Jedi behind, like she does in the opening to go out and assist the unfolding situation. Despite her fears of failure, of needing to learn to work with others, she’s impressively skilled, pulling off a levitation trick she learned from a different Force religious group, and confident in those gut calls from the Force. Her time interacting with the other Jedi of the story, like Master Creighton Sun, Master Char-Ryl-Roy, and Padawan Enya Keen, gives us a glimpse at her knowledge and control, but both hints at how she wants to be and how maybe she shouldn’t be as a Jedi. I really enjoyed her character overall, as well as the journey so goes on to eventually come to terms with her failures and find greater faith in her connection with the Force, and it all comes from her interactions with the Chancellor’s son, Axel Greylark, and the two heirs Xiri and Phan-tu, as they team up to start a tour across E’ronoh and Eiram to distribute supplies and show the people a united front in these burgeoning peace talks around the young couple’s betrothal. Axel and Gella share a common issue with what they perceive as personal failures in their pasts, something that draws them together and begins to bond them, even after certain revelations come to light. With Xiri and Phan-tu, Gella sees how leaders act, not only individually like she does already, but together and with the team around them, helping guide her path to overcome her past and find her future. The novel ends with Gella making an exciting choice and I hope, unlike with a character in Phase I, we get to explore this a little before the next incident, but regardless I’m looking forward to the next step of her journey in Phase II.
While Gella’s a memorable new Jedi character, it’s Axel Greylark who steals the show in Convergence for me. To most of the galaxy, he’s Chancellor (one of two) Greylark’s son, a pompous, rich, glamorous, celebrity of sorts, but to those who aren’t so interested in watching reality holos, he’s likely to owe them more credits than he’s actually worth. I really liked how Convergence shows us Axel at his worst to start, gambling away credits like he’s made of them, even though he knows he isn’t, drinking to forget nightmares from a memory which always haunt him. He talks about how the holos believe he is, what the galaxy thinks he is, and it’s certainly a stark difference from how he really is, but those hints of the charming, handsome son of Chancellor come out as he joins the crew on their mission across the two planets. The masks he wears are hard for people to discern, even his own mother, but even harder for him to keep separate as he bonds with the royals and Gella specifically, their time together forcing him to face the choices he’s made through the grief he’s suffered. His arc overall, as Convergence starts with his worst and ends with him at his own personal best, though everyone rightfully has opinions on his ultimate choices here, remains a fascinating one and the most intriguing of the novel, his fate and next steps the most enticing thread I want to see continued in Phase II. I also really enjoyed his little emotional support/therapy droid Quinn, who offers Axel calming lights and a flask, like any good therapist should! Their connection and bond was a neat undercurrent to the story and Axel’s actions and emotional journey.
As for the couple to be, both Xiri and Phan-tu are complex characters with various obstacles to get over from their planets and their planets’ pasts, including coming to admit the growing feelings they have for one another. Xiri, the daughter of E’ronoh’s Monarch, a spiteful man who seems only interested in dragging on the war, especially thanks to the whispers of his Viceroy in his ears, has had enough with the fighting and the dying and can’t muster the same hate for Eiram like her father. She’s proud of her planet and wants to help the people but knows there’s another way. Phan-tu, who was adopted by the Eiram Queen and her consort, came from nothing and cares most about his people, eager to do whatever it takes to help them, even if it means marrying the E’ronoh’s princess despite her holding a blade to his throat after he rescues her from their sea. As they go on the mission to deliver supplies and show the planets they really mean to bring an end to the all the fighting, the two struggle with their feelings for one another, buried behind decades of resentment built in by cultures, and watching them come to express their real feelings despite all the baggage was a highlight of their partnership. Their budding relationship isn’t without strife, be it the depth of E’ronoh’s isolationist factions and the lengths they’ll go to keep the war going forever or Eiram’s hidden plans for a failsafe if this peace breaks, these truths testing the resolve of both sides to keep the union and peace alive. Overall, their plan to marry echoes Rose’s famous line from The Last Jedi, about saving what we love, not fighting what we hate, a powerful message one would hope could resonate more across our own world and nations.
As I mentioned earlier, as expected some side characters don’t feel as fully fleshed out, more there to help Córdova pull back the perspective and fill us in on events if she skips time, be it for character injuries or help keep the plot moving, and I enjoyed these little moments setting the table or getting readers up to speed especially thanks to the change of tone/perspective at times. Of the side characters, some of the villains against the peace treaty and wedding felt vague in some cases, where it wasn’t always clear why one faction wanted a certain item Eiram has or the E’ronoh who don’t want peace were two dimensional, but it doesn’t diminish the fun or stakes of the novel. Otherwise, I particularly enjoyed Chanceller Mollo, a Quarren, the second of the two chancellors of the era, who roams the galaxy to be with the people while Axel’s mother rules from Coruscant. His desire to see peace, and be the one who provides it, covers an interesting array of reasons and I’m hoping we’ll get a little more about how these two chancellors work together while furthering their own goals. Two characters operate from the shadows on behalf of the Path of the Open Hand, the Force cult introduced in Path of Deceit (which reveals some intriguing ties to Phase I), and their desire for devotion or promotion from the cult adds even more concerns to the group and what chaos it’ll cause throughout Phase II. The way these characters talk about the Mother, the cult’s leader, compared to one character shows she’s not as persuasive as she’d like to think, but Convergence only scratches the surface of what she’s all up to. Jedi Master Creighton Sun and Padawan Enya Keen are great juxtapositions to Gella while rounding out all the various ways Jedi act in this era compared to the ones in the films; Sun with his commanding voice and measured attitude, and Enya with her eager and unburned world-view, continued THR’s trend of a more supportive Order, especially as Gella tries to figure out how to move forward after her failure.
You didn’t Converge on this review just for spoilers, did you?!
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Here are a few other things:
- If you’re curious where some of these story threads and characters will go next, look no further than The Battle of Jedha audiobook (out January 3, 2023) and its blurb, plus the cover of Cataclysm, the next adult novel of the era, which has a character and items on it I’m not even sure how it could happen after finishing Convergence.
- We keep our release calendar on the THR page as updated as possible, so here’s a few of the following items to come in Phase II: The High Republic Adventures #1 – Phase II kicks off on Nov 30; The High Republic – Phase II‘s third issue arrives December 21; The High Republic – The Blade #1, The High Republic Adventures – The Nameless Terror #1, The High Republic Adventures #2 – Phase II make for a great year end gift; while The Battle of Jedha audiobook is the perfect way to begin the new year!
- The Star Wars version of roulette, as far as concerned in this book, is such a fun idea I’d probably end up like Axel and be in deep debt too.
- Eiram and E’ronoh’s peace, even if it makes it to the end of Phase II, doesn’t persist, as 25 years prior to Phase I (so 125 years after these events), the planets are at odds again, as seen in Into the Dark’s flashbacks. And Eiram, well, it becomes the final home to a famous station from Phase I, as seen in The Fallen Star.
The High Republic – Convergence by Zoraida Córdova continues Phase II’s character heavy focus to fantastic effect, making a larger scale conflict feel intimate and engaging, with a great cast of characters I’m interested in seeing more of as Phase II continues.
+ The complicated life of Axel Greylark
+ From Gella to the heirs, great main cast always in focus
+ Intimate story despite the galactic stakes
+ Great pace
– Threats remain murky or are destroyed before they get their due
– Some characterization issues which eventually even out
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website on Twitter @MynockManor and Instagram @mynockmanor.
DISCLOSURE: I received a copy of this novel from the publisher at no charge in order to provide an early review. However, this did not affect the overall review content. All opinions are my own.