The High Republic: Quest For Planet X - Spoiler-Free Review

A spoiler-free review of Tessa Gratton's Quest For Planet X, part of the High Republic Star Wars book series.

April has been QUITE the month for Star Wars books so far. Yeah, we’re not even done yet. First we had Cataclysm, and on the same day, Kristin Baver’s 100 Objects, and on the SAME DAY AS THOSE, Tessa Gratton’s middle-grade High Republic Phase 2 Wave 2 book Quest For Planet X.

That’s the book we’ll be diving into today. It’s a shallow dive. There’s only so much you can say about a middle-grade book without spoiling it because it’s a little story with a very big heart. But as always, I will do my best to convince you to purchase your own copy without giving away any secrets about the plot.

But first a little about Tessa Gratton, who is not new to Star Wars or The High Republic but has now written she first solo High Republic story! She wrote the short story “Masters” in Stories of Jedi and Sith and also co-wrote Path of Deceit with Justina Ireland.

As I’ll discuss in a few minutes, Tessa Gratton was a wise and wonderful addition to the team of Luminous authors crafting The High Republic. She’s a true master of storytelling geared toward younger audiences and her character work is captivating. I want to read more stories she’s written, in fact, I think I’ll do just that … after I finish writing this review, of course.

A trio of adventure-seekers set off to find the legendary Planet X and save the galaxy as they know it!

Despite rumors of conflict between the Jedi and the Path of the Open Hand, two of the Republic's most powerful prospecting families announce a contest to chart new hyperlanes.

Under the guise of joining the competition, Dass Leffbruk and Sky Graf recruit Jedi padawan Rooper Nitani, only to reveal their real plan: find the mysterious and legendary Planet X. The trio's quest takes an unexpected turn when they meet members of the Path of the Open Hand, forcing the heroes to put their goals aside to help the Jedi—and the galaxy—before it's too late.

I first have to say, because I didn’t realize this until I started reading the book–if you haven’t read Quest for the Hidden City yet and you want to read Quest for Planet X, I HIGHLY recommend reading Hidden City first. Being familiar with Dass’s character adds a little emotional weight to the story, and having read George Mann’s book first really made me enjoy Planet X even more.

Quest For Planet X is especially great at what all the High Republic middle-grade books have really excelled at over the past few years: Showing the harsh realities of a dangerous, uncertain galaxy through the eyes of children. If you’ve ever spent time with tiny humans you know they are often unapologetically and sometimes brutally honest about the things they see, think, and feel.

Dass, Sky, and Rooper are exactly this. They’re still young enough to see the galaxy not through the lenses they’ve been taught to see it through but instead as it really is: Fascinating, scary, overwhelming, unfair. And they’re still young enough to have faith in their dreams–to be a prospector, or to make their Jedi Master proud.

In this book they’re all on one joint mission – to find Planet X, in case the title didn’t already give it away–but they’re also on their own separate smaller journeys of bravery and self-discovery and learning where they fit among the stars. How they want to be remembered. Who they want to be remembered by.

A lot of you have already asked about this and I actually have a proper answer now–in terms of the timeline, Quest For Planet X does technically take place before the events of Cataclysm conclude. BUT I still do recommend reading Cataclysm first, if you’re following the timeline chronologically, one because you’re going to need a palette cleanser after that masterpiece and two, even if you do read Cataclysm first, it’s not going to mess with your understanding or enjoyment of Planet X.

This book is fast–you could finish it in less than a weekend, possibly even an afternoon–and it’s heartfelt. It’s fun. It’s important. It’s about three kids who bond over their shared desire to make the galaxy a better place. When you see The High Republic through their eyes, you realize just how tragic it is that their lives are about to be disrupted by a cult who wants to ‘free the force.’ It’s a middle-grade book, you know these characters are going to make it out alive. But the Path of the Open Hand isn’t messing around. It will do anything, threaten just about anyone to get what it wants.

But as we see in this book … some members of the Path may eventually find there are more important things to them than seeing to the Force’s freedom.

Sometimes all it takes is a few kind hearts to change someone’s perspective.

Star Wars: The High Republic: Quest For Planet X by Tessa Gratton is available now wherever you get your Star Wars books.