Book Review: Star Wars: The High Republic: Path of Vengeance

Marda Ro and Yana Ro are still reeling from their losses and adjusting to the dynamic shift in the Path of the Open Hand. Marda, renewed by her elevation to the role of The Guide but haunted by her lost love, Jedi Padawan Kevmo Zink, and Yana, newly awake to the duplicitous nature of the Paths matriarch, The Mother, walks a fine and treacherous line as she realises just how dangerous the Path is becoming.

I’ll be honest, this was my most anticipated book of 2023. Kicking off Phase 2 Tessa Gratton and Justina Ireland’s Path of Deceit was such a surprising and unique Star Wars book that stayed with anyone that had the pleasure of reading it. Path of Vengeance, this time written by the notorious killer of dreams Cavan Scott, follows that book directly and you wouldn’t notice the change in author at all. This is Scott’s first prose The High Republic novel since series highlight The Rising Storm and it does an exemplary job of honouring what came before whilst keeping to Scott’s signature style of densely plotted popcorn action underscored by a pervading sense of dread.

If you’ve been wondering why Yana, Marda and The Mother have been mostly absent from Lydia Kangs Cataclysm and George Mann’s The Battle of Jedha then this book is why. It covers events from their perspective all the way up until just after the Night of Sorrow/Battle of Dalna. It’s dark, emotional, exciting and the perfect way to end Phase 2. It also answers all the remaining questions you may have had following Cataclysm and adds a whole slew of new ones. I can comfortably say that it’s the best High Republic book since The Rising Storm and is possibly only rivalled by it’s predecessor.

Marda and Yana are such brilliantly complex and endlessly readable characters. The exist firmly in the grey as both have the best intentions but ultimately commit questionable and almost villainous acts. I wouldn’t feel comfortable calling them inherently bad or good. Marda in particular is fascinating, as she’s presented initially as the archetypal wilting flower, innocent and sugar sweet and ends up as something far, far removed from that. Her arc is one of the most fascinating in The High Republic, and I really hope we get more stories about her.

The protagonists of the book are Scott’s own comic book characters Padawan Matthea “Matty” Cathley and Knight Oliviah Zeveron. They move seamlessly from one medium to another and Matty in particular leaves a bigger impression than some of the other YA and Junior protagonists of late. Scott clearly has a lot of affection for these characters and it’s his one self-indulgence. A lot of The High Republic authors will move their own characters into the spotlight when they take up a project and it’s always a mixed bag of results. Here it works and it makes me wish Matty had her own series of Junior novels.

This is a spoiler free review so I won’t go too deep into plot but will you laugh? Yes! Will you cry? Most definitely. Will you curse Cavan Scott’s name through an andrenaline fuelled bout of hysteria? Oh, for sure.

The High Republic continues to be a rollercoaster of emotions but I think we’ve left the theme park behind now and we’re on the one that gets the kids lost in Dungeons and Dragons.