Spoilers, obviously, so if you are like me and still catching up with THR years later, use caution.
Claudia knew what she was doing to us with this one. >!I always assumed Starlight was doomed. That's not the shock. But my two favorite characters from this phase took just devastating blows here. Stellan is dead?! I definitely wasn't prepared for this. I just assumed the golden trio were all surviving into Phase III. Maybe that was naive, but even if I was picking one of them to eat it in Phase I, it would have been Elzar, not Stellan.!<
>!And speaking of Elzar ... my boy is not doing well. Elzar is my overall favorite character across both Phases II and I so far (I read in chronological order, not release order). All the hope I had for his turnaround this book seems completely reset, but I guess he could still climb back. My sense is that he's still destined for a redemption arc here, despite the fake out. But it could really go either way at this point, especially once Avar finds out what he did.!<
Anyway, Happy May the 4th, gang! This is my ninth Star Wars novel finished in 2026, 12th if you count graphic novels and all but two of that count are from the High Republic.
EDIT: Spoiler tag added