Rogue One is my favorite Star Wars film mainly for its gritty, no-nonsense storytelling that fully displays the ugliness and unforgiving aspect of war, leading to the (SPOILER ALERT) ultimate demise of the movie’s primary cast.

One of my personal favorite Star Wars novels was Catalyst: A Rogue One Novel which features Galen and Lyra Erso during their days as Imperial enthusiasts and their evolution into the people we see by the time of Rogue One. Like Catalyst, Star Wars: Rebel Rising gives us Jyn Erso’s backstory, delving deep into the psyche of the character and all of the challenges she had to face growing up.

The picture the novel paints of the valiant young rebel is both depressing and heartwarming but it’s a complete picture nonetheless. We get to fully understand her relationship with Saw and how his fatherliness affected her life. We get to see Jyn enjoy a couple of years of peace in her mid-teens and fall in love. And we get to catch a greater glimpse of her time in prison and just what state she was in mentally before she was rescued and recruited by agents of the Rebellion.

Unlike the tales of agents of the Resistance which seem sugarcoated with pixie dust in comparison, these tales of the Rebellion versus the Empire are riddled with grittiness, sacrifices, and lots and lots of drama. Beth Revis, author of Star Wars: Rebel Rising, never fails to deliver a grim picture of the ugliness of war and all that are affected by it.

Now I’m feeling the serious urge to watch Rogue One. Oh, and it made me even more excited to see Andor too!

I’ll give this novel 4.5 out of 5 stars. It’s not absolutely perfect but it is pretty darn close.

I thank you for reading and I hope you have a spectacular day. May the Force be with you.