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frozenjedi's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Convergence, while a decent book with characters I grew attached to, was still just alright.
Part 1 had me really engaged and I was invested in Xiri and Phan-tu's relationship plus the predicament of E'ronoh and Eiram. The plot looked a little predictable then, but at least I liked where it was going. But that waned in part 2.
There were certain plot points that while it wasn't complicated in simplicity, the way they were explained/acted out felt unnecessarily convoluted. And the overall plot felt too drawn out, which made part 2 of the book sluggish.
Not to mention, there were some great action moments. But with the way the author wrote them, the scenes usually ended with me confused on the outcome of everything. There wasn't any clarity in the action scenes. It felt like I skimmed over it even though I would reread it to understand what the heck just happened.
By the final act's main battle, I kind of gave up getting an actual clear picture of what was going on. That's a bit annoying considering this is a Star Wars novel.
But on the upside, I did enjoy the characters a lot. It was cool seeing how they grew to be a tight knit group, but their actual storylines were best in duos: Phan-tu and Xiri, Gella and Axel.
Though, the subtle romance between Axel and Gella felt too subtle. By the end you could definitely see there were feelings from both sides (which made the outcome of everything Axel did hurt) but majority of the book it seemed one sided. But idk, maybe that was just me.
Anyway, considering I've been reading this off and on for months, I have a lot of mixed feelings and thoughts about Convergence.
But I'm wayyy too invested in Gella and Axel's story at this point, so I guess I'm going to read the next book.
Part 1 had me really engaged and I was invested in Xiri and Phan-tu's relationship plus the predicament of E'ronoh and Eiram. The plot looked a little predictable then, but at least I liked where it was going. But that waned in part 2.
There were certain plot points that while it wasn't complicated in simplicity, the way they were explained/acted out felt unnecessarily convoluted. And the overall plot felt too drawn out, which made part 2 of the book sluggish.
Not to mention, there were some great action moments. But with the way the author wrote them, the scenes usually ended with me confused on the outcome of everything. There wasn't any clarity in the action scenes. It felt like I skimmed over it even though I would reread it to understand what the heck just happened.
By the final act's main battle, I kind of gave up getting an actual clear picture of what was going on. That's a bit annoying considering this is a Star Wars novel.
But on the upside, I did enjoy the characters a lot. It was cool seeing how they grew to be a tight knit group, but their actual storylines were best in duos: Phan-tu and Xiri, Gella and Axel.
Though, the subtle romance between Axel and Gella felt too subtle. By the end you could definitely see there were feelings from both sides (which made the outcome of everything Axel did hurt) but majority of the book it seemed one sided. But idk, maybe that was just me.
Anyway, considering I've been reading this off and on for months, I have a lot of mixed feelings and thoughts about Convergence.
But I'm wayyy too invested in Gella and Axel's story at this point, so I guess I'm going to read the next book.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death of parent, Murder, Violence, and War
whocop's review
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, War, and Violence
Moderate: Alcohol, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail
abigail_reads06's review
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death, War, Murder, and Gun violence
Moderate: Religious bigotry
akswhy's review
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I want to put Axel Greylark into a jar and carry him around in my backpack [begrudgingly affectionate]. This book is a wild ride with a mystery that leaves a little too much unsaid and unexplored, but the romance is fabulous and the world building is spellbinding. Let more romance authors write Star Wars!!!!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
billyjepma's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
There's a lot of fun stuff here, especially with the charming cast of characters, who are all very easy to spend time with. But for one reason or another, I just wasn't that invested in the story. If this is the formal beginning of Phase 2 for The High Republic, then it's not a very interesting one, at least when compared to the first. That may be an error of expectation on my part, admittedly. Still, the plot felt too slight and too often relied on story tropes I struggled to connect with, even if the execution of them was above average.
I don't know how to say this without sounding disparaging, which I don't intend to be, but the story feels like something you'd find in fan fiction. That's not usually something I mind, as those tropes are popular for good reasons, but they didn't click for me in this context. Despite my misgivings about the story around them, I'm still invested enough in the cast of fresh-faced heroes to want to see where they go next.
If this were a standalone series, I would be more forgiving, probably, but I'm also not sure how compelled to continue I'd be. As part of an ongoing storyline I'm already significantly invested in, it's disappointing. It makes me question more than ever whether the choice to have Phase 2 of The High Republic as a "prequel" series was the best, especially since this first outing has yet to establish a solid direction for the rest of the stories moving forward. I'm obviously in for the whole shebang, so I'm ready and willing to be proven wrong, but the momentum and investment I had in Phase 1 of THR have yet to translate over so far.
I don't know how to say this without sounding disparaging, which I don't intend to be, but the story feels like something you'd find in fan fiction. That's not usually something I mind, as those tropes are popular for good reasons, but they didn't click for me in this context. Despite my misgivings about the story around them, I'm still invested enough in the cast of fresh-faced heroes to want to see where they go next.
If this were a standalone series, I would be more forgiving, probably, but I'm also not sure how compelled to continue I'd be. As part of an ongoing storyline I'm already significantly invested in, it's disappointing. It makes me question more than ever whether the choice to have Phase 2 of The High Republic as a "prequel" series was the best, especially since this first outing has yet to establish a solid direction for the rest of the stories moving forward. I'm obviously in for the whole shebang, so I'm ready and willing to be proven wrong, but the momentum and investment I had in Phase 1 of THR have yet to translate over so far.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, War, and Violence
Minor: Injury/Injury detail and Death of parent
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