Review: Star Wars- The High Republic: Tempest Runner
Quick Summary
Pros: The flashback storyline is compelling on its own while also revealing a lot about Lourna Dee’s past. The flashback storyline also reveals more about the early days of the Nihil and gives the answer to one of the books’ main mysteries.
Cons: The present day storyline is lackluster and the way it interacts with the flashback storyline disrupts the flow of the work.
Overall: This is a solid book for readers who are already fans of the High Republic era. It tells a compelling story on its own while also expanding upon some of the lore of the High Republic era. Not everything about the book works well but, for the most part, the reading experience is positive. Overall, this book is for readers who want to learn more about Lourna Dee or who are looking for a companion piece to the main High Republic books.
Story
Star Wars The High Republic: Tempest Runner, by Cavan Scott, is mostly enjoyable. It tells an engaging story about Lourna Dee while also expanding upon the lore of the High Republic era.
Tempest Runner is at its best during its flashback scenes. These tell the story of Lourna Dee’s life, describing how she went from a hopeful child to a vicious pirate. Together, these form a compelling story that works well on its own.
Lourna Dee’s flashbacks also expand upon the overall events of the High Republic era. They show the earlier days of the Nihil, with a look at Marchion Ro’s father as Eye and Marchion Ro before grabbing power. In addition, the exploits of a few plans and Jedi are shown. Plus, the book gives the answer to a mystery that was introduced way back in Light of the Jedi (Review). In this way, Tempest Runner is a solid companion book to the main High Republic era works.
Unfortunately, the present day storyline is not nearly as good as the flashback storyline. While the flashback storyline is exciting and filled with character development, the present storyline is more mundane and uninteresting. The way these two interact doesn’t help, since jumping from one to the other feels choppy and gives the work a fragmented feeling. There are places where the present day portions connect to the past in ways that complete story arcs, which works out very well. However, outside of these places, scenes from the present range from being just alright to being downright boring.
Continuity
Star Wars The High Republic: Tempest Runner takes place sometime shortly after the events of The High Republic: The Rising Storm (Review).
This book also makes a few references to other Star Wars works:
- Many references are made to events from The High Republic: Light of the Jedi (Review). This includes Marchion Ro’s rise in prominence within the Nihil and the Great Disaster.
- Multiple references are made to the Nihil attack on the Republic Fair. This took place The High Republic: The Rising Storm (Review).
- Pan Eyta nearly died, but managed to escape, at the conclusion of The High Republic: The Rising Storm (Review).