Let’s go with something far easier to explain than my last review, and look at Justina Ireland’s The Acolyte: Wayseeker Star Wars novel. This novel takes place 160 years before the battle of Yavin and about 30 years before the events of the Disney show The Acolyte.
The Acolyte
I enjoyed the Acolyte show, but I don’t think you need to have seen it or even liked to enjoy this book. It follows Jedi Master Vernestra Rwoh and the young Jedi Knight Indara (both appeared in the show) as they do the Jedi thing of stopping the bad guys.
It has more in common with the High Republic novels than the later show, even if it does share two of the main characters.
The Characters
While I’ve read a few of the High Republic books, my only introduction to Vernestra’s character was the tv show. I found her a lot more likable in the novel, as she has quite the personality and doesn’t always do what you’d expect from a Jedi.
She’s a Wayseeker here and frequently does not answer to the Jedi Council’s calls. She’s older and wiser than Indara’s character, andI liked her as a mentor. We could all do worse than to have someone like this in our lives, and the Jedi Order did do worse by not having more of this type of free thinker around to argue against the Clone Wars.
Indara was, of course, awesome in the Acolyte. The novel shows her when she is much younger and far less confident. However, it doesn’t paint her as the incompetent sidekick, either. She manages multiple violent and dangerous confrontations independently, even before meeting up with Vernestra.
She is definitely more of the prototypical, expected Jedi with her response to problems and views on the Order. I love that her backstory includes a crummy master; nice to see not everybody had Qui Gon Jinn level experiences in that department.
The Story
The characters really are the highlight of this story. The plot isn’t bad, but the bad guys didn’t hook me so their bad guy plan didn’t provide a perfect counter to our awesome Jedi. I guess not everybody can be Sith!
It does well to start to fill in the gaps between what we think the Jedi Order was before and what the Jedi Order became by the time of the Acolyte and the prequel movies. The freedom to follow the Force versus the apparent need to support the Republic runs through both characters.
It also does something unique, though not unappreciated, with the POV. Vernestra’s chapters are all in first person. Indara’s parts are in third person. I think this could be a risk in some cases, but I was halfway through the novel before I noticed.
Verdict
I loved this book and have started a second read through. The characters are compelling, and I want to see more of them. I’ll probably re-watch the Acolyte as a result. It is making me think about taking another look at all the High Republic novels again.
What did you think of it? Let me know in the comments.
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