My second entry into the new Star Wars ‘publishing initiative’, Into the Dark by Claudia Gray is an intriguingly detailed and engaging Star Wars yarn which benefits from its relatable and interesting characters more than its arguably bare-bones narrative.

Although the novel collects a number of characters and subplots – Jedi masters, padawans, rogues, politicians and an apparently sentient rock creature – Padawan Reath Silas is our main protagonist, a young bookish Jedi in training who is about to embark upon a new assignment on the outer rim’s Starlight Beacon (the central linchpin of the High Republic books and comics). Reath is not a typical Jedi seeking adventure and thrills, but prefers instead to prioritise the understanding and knowledge to be found in the archives and libraries of Coruscant. To leave the hub of the Republic for the sticks of the outer rim is not an assignment he relishes, but one he must undertake under the instruction and authority of his Master, Jora Malli.

As one might expect, this doesn’t go to plan, and during his journey to the Starlight Beacon, the ship upon which Reath finds himself – alongside several other Jedi and the commercial haulers Leox, Affie and Geode – is left stranded as a result of the hyperspace disaster depicted in Charles Soule’s Light of the Jedi. From this central setup, Into the Dark settles into a story focused upon the discoveries and threats to be found on the Amaxine station, a seemingly abandoned space station that offers refuge for the travellers thrown out of hyperspace unexpectedly. But of course, not all is what it first appears to be.

Into the Dark is an enjoyable tale although, as previously suggested, the sparseness of its plot across some 400 pages leaves it feeling somewhat lacklustre, at least in terms of elaborating upon and exploring the fallout of the High Republic‘s central dramatic crisis initiated by Soule’s novel. That being said, Gray’s character detail, humour, and emotional understanding of this universe is rewarding enough. Moreover, Reath is a brilliantly realised character, and future stories which feature him would certainly draw me back to this corner of the galaxy.