Path of Deceit Review

"As our ancestor did, long ago."

"As we were taught. All of us."

Phase II: Quest of the Jedi, Wave I

Whilst Phase I of the High Republic was drama filled, escalated tension, heart breakingly devastating, and fresh…It left something to be desired with its huge cast which felt unfocussed at times. Mainly in Fallen Star which was the culmination of Phase I’s comic run, Laurna Dee’s story, Marchion Ro’s adventures, and the woefully underdeveloped Starlight Beacon. Even with that the High Republic offered something that not even George Lucas would’ve offered: a collaborative event of more than one brain uniting under a banner to flesh out this thing that they loved. Going back several hundred years prior to the Phantom Menace to actually expand the Jedi for much added context for the prequel trilogy, the writers, architects, and fans have created the best era in Star Wars that is getting its own show and video game in the very near future. And with the prominent success of Phase I, we begin Phase II like all Star Wars media, going backwards.

The end of Phase I left Starlight crashing into a world with Stellan Gios on board. With many of the Jedi dead and shattered from Marchion’s use of the Leveler (The Nameless), and his extraordinary tact at betrayal to conceal identities, the height of the Jedi had never seemed lower. Then comes the prequel to the prequel - Path of Deceit. Path of Deceit written by Justina Ireland (Lando’s Luck, Spark of the Resistance, Out of the Shadows, Test of Courage, and Mission to Disaster) and Tessa Gratton (“Masters” - Stories of the Jedi and Sith, and the High Republic: Quest for Planet X” and takes place in 382BBY, approximately 150 years prior to the first phase of the High Republic. It prominently takes place on the planet Dalna in the Outer Rim with our main cast of characters being short and firm.

We are greeted initially with a stumpy and stinky pilot known as Sunshine and a woman known by few as Elecia (or Mother). It doesn’t take long to learn that there’s something oddly enticing about the leader of the Path of the Open Hand, a Branch Davidian-esque religious group, and it takes only a short glance into the Mother’s eyes for him to fawn over his new partnership. The Path of the Open Hand is also divided into sects of sorts. The Children, the most prominent and secretive, are tasked by Mother to “spread the word of the Path” when in actuality they’re stealing force artifacts in nature. There are ceremonies for naming. Biblical-esque tunnels that map its way for true followers. An under-reliance on technology. But the most important thing is believing that the force is an ocean of sorts: when you use or “abuse” the force, then you’re ridding it of the natural order and thereby rendering a consequence elsewhere in the galaxy. That’s where the theft of these force artifacts come into play. Nobody embodies this belief or ignorance more than Marda Ro.

The Evereni is a new Star Wars species. Ultimately optimized by Marchion Ro and now being solidified by Marda Ro. The Evereni are a rejected and outcast species due to their violent crimes against people. But for Marda, and her cousin Yana, the Path of the Open Hand was a palate cleanser. For Marda, she signifies the David in the Branch-Davidian. For Yana, she signifies the violence that still accompanies her species. The two at odds. Never openly acknowledging it until it’s too late. Marda, her unwavering love for Mother and the belief in the Path, grants her passage as the most ignorant character. While Yana is granted passage for being the most unwilling character. But their relationship isn’t the focal point. It’s the Jedi. Jedi Master Zallah Macri and her Padawan Kevmo Zink.

The two Jedi are dispatched to Dalna to investigate the Path of the Open Hand for possible stolen force artifacts and before you can even blink the Jedi are introduced to the Path. This is where Phase II might become my favorite Phase. Though Jedi Padawan Kevmo and the Path’s Marda are clearly at odds with their interpretations of the force, their star-y eyed love seeps through in such a pleasurable way that it moved me as much as Claudia Gray’s Lost Stars. Kevmo’s kind demeanor takes Marda’s opinions into consideration, while also tip-toeing around the clearly naive Marda, is a wonderful thing to read and watch grow. The expansion of the force through the ideas of the Convocation on Jedha, which enlists the Jedi, Path of the Open Hand, the Guardians of the Whills, etc, is one of the coolest things in Star Wars. Marda’s naive passion for wanting to spread the Path of the Open Hand reminded me of religious groups not being to escape the Church in spite of their beliefs; the lack of belief in themselves over a self-imposed Prophet. Perhaps I’m reading too much into that, but wizards and mystics….Come on.

The most guttural and prominent moment in the book comes from a…Deceiving moment that puts everyone at odds with each other. I’ll admit, about 240/291 pages in (or prior to Chapter 24ish) the book kept building up on the foundations it built. I was waiting for a moment, any moment, to propel the story forward, and right around Chapter 25 is when IT happened. So I went to the last page, read the last line, and it was basically ripped from the Rising Storm. So something had to happen that equated to pure devastation…And, well, it did. The character development that I looked forward to basking in simply recoiled. The character I fell in love with and wanted to see more of withered away. It’s by no means terrible storytelling. But my hopes and dreams kind of shattered and I wanted to stop reading. I didn’t! But there’s a part of me that wanted more. I needed more from the characters outside that circumstance. Marda Ro suffered most in my opinion. The growth that she experienced hardened and washed away. There was a moment, two moments, I thought that the Evereni’s were going to have their moment and it…Never came. Instead it opted for the “one day” approach despite telling us how violent their species were or informing us how much they actually cared for loved ones. It just felt…Hollow.

In conclusion…

Path of Deceit is a phenomenal book. I have the Rising Storm at #1…But I think this beats that. I’m enjoying the smaller casts, more intimate moments, and therefore the more painful moments. Kevmo and Marda’s relationship sung through the force and it was amazing to see a different perspective of the force. Never enjoyed hating a character more than the Mother. I do not like her. There’s this weird endearing charm to Marchion, but the Mother is straight vile manipulation and vitrial. Justina Ireland and Tessa Gratton really ground themselves in the moments and relationship. I could almost feel like Justina acted as a certain character while Tessa responded and they developed the chemistry naturally. You could feel this passion of growth in their writing and I could tell that they enjoy writing this more personal approach. But seeing the origins of fear, or at least in mass conception, was unexpected. Painful, even.

This is as much of a Phase II book as it is a sequel to the Rising Storm.