Length 295 pages
Format softcover
Published 2017
Series Star Wars
My Copy I bought it
I’d suggest reading Canto Bight after watching the Last Jedi. The film
gives some context and perspective to the casino town which is hard to imagine
from the limited exposure the 4 novellas offer. Whilst good in their own right,
the lack of a predefined visual aide dampers the atmosphere in the novellas –
the casino town is not Las Vegas nor does it compare in the film to it as such,
so having a preconceived notion of the cityscape is recommended.
The first novella, Rules of the
Game by Saladin Ahmed is a great way to open the collection. The story centres
on a lowly long term employee (who had clocked up 102 years for the company)
who finally wins the coveted employee of the year award which in turn provides
him a holiday to the casino town. He’s promptly swindled out of his cash and
luggage before nearly being killed. His innocence is a joy to read and I really
felt for the character. The cityscape is used well, providing a glimpse into
greater playground for the rich outside of the scenes from The Last Jedi.
The Wine of Dreams by Mira Grant
didn’t feel like a star wars story or a story which used the setting of the
Casino world Cantonia at all. Contained largely to a night club and primarily
focused on the sale of a rare wine of a little known and largely elusive
vintage, the novella’s saving grace is the characters which are well defined
and unique. Canto Bight is more an afterthought than critical element to the
story and it’s this aspect that ultimately lets it down.
The third novella, Hear Nothing,
See Nothing, Say Nothing by Rae Carson puts the collection back on track.
There’s also some nice connectivity with The
Wine of Dreams with the night club owner being named dropped on occasion. This
story is centred on a masseur and former hitman who gets roped into murder for
hire once more in order to save the life of his adopted daughter.
The last novella by long time Star Wars scribe John Jackson Miller, The Ride, is perhaps the most ‘casino’ based
of the collection. Despite the story not having much depth, we do get a decent
look at the various gambling outlets Canto Bight has to offer. The crux of the
plot: a gambler loses money owned by an underworld figure and has one night to
win it all back, luckily for him; he stumbles upon three aliens who have a
strange knack for winning, and winning big. I liked this one.
My rating: 3/5 stars. Whilst the stories themselves are well written
and entertaining, I would’ve liked more exploration of Canto Bight.
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