Canto Bight, Part I

     Canto Bight is a collection of four novellas centering around the casino city featured in The Last Jedi. This post covers the first two novellas and a future post will cover the last two. So far, these authors have done a bang up job bringing the city to life. I love that we have this book to bring us deeper and more fully into a world that only had a short amount of screen time in the movie. Definitely world-building at its best.

Rules of the Game by Saladin Ahmed
     This is an hysterical romp through the crazy world of Canto Bight from the perspective of a bumbling tourist from off-world. Kedpin Shoklop has just won VaporTech's Salesbeing of the Year and along with that, an all-expenses paid two-week trip to the casino city. He gets wrapped up in the criminal underworld by Anglang Lehet who is just trying to get out of his lifelong nefarious way of living. The ending is a wonderful twist that makes your heart smile.
     Kedpin is a Wermal from Werma Lesser and has nose slits, one eye, pink skin, and three hearts. He has lived for over 100 years and only seems to be at most middle-aged.
     Anglang is a Caskadag with a leathery crest protruding from an oblong head. He seems to be of a reptilian sort because he needs heat and revels in the Cantonica sun. He comes from a desert world. He also has lived for over 100 years and only seems to be at most middle-aged.
     Officer Brawg is a member of the Canto Bight Police Department and is a big bully who tortures the petty criminals that cross his path. He is two and a half meters tall with purple fur covering his body and two horns projecting from his temples. His species' name is never mentioned.
     The descriptions in this novella are beautiful and did a wonderful job of putting me right there in Canto Bight with Kedpin. The poor guy goes through all sorts of terrible ordeals and you really feel for him because he's so incredibly innocent and trusting. Whenever something good happens to the unlucky fella, you find yourself smiling at his good fortune.
     The end of this tale is heartwarmingly sweet and left me with a happy sunshiney feeling in my heart.

The Wine in Dreams by Mira Grant
     This is an ethereal tale that ropes you in with beautiful details and pretty words. Derla Pidys is a sommelier, or wine steward, who has come to Canto Bight to find the wine of dreams held by the Grammus sisters. They plan to meet in the club of Ubialla Gheal, a jealous woman, and so all does not turn out as intended. Chaos ensues courtesy of the sisters and we are met with a few surprises as the night progresses. The end of this novella is also quite wonderful and left a smile on my face.
     Derla Pidys has a bulbous head with no visible nose and a single, wide mouth at the center. She has two pairs of eyes, one above her mouth and one below. In contrast, her body is much like a human woman's. I don't recall her species ever being named. She loves the idea of spinning a wild tale and does this frequently with how she sells her wines. She is quite the crafty and knowledgeable woman.
     The Grammus sisters are twins from a world they say is beyond the known galaxy, somewhere beyond hyperspace itself. It seems they are most likely lying and crafting a brilliantly told tale to make themselves appear to be more mysterious and desirable company. They have skin the white of bleached coral, smooth, hairless skulls and frilled sensory organs.
     It is possible Ubialla is human but this is never made all that clear.
     This novella takes on the feel of a dreamy murder mystery (with a bottle of wine replacing the murder victim) and takes you on a wild ride that will leave you wondering what in the world is going on...but in a really good way.

     I'm loving this collection of novellas so far! They are brilliantly written and absolutely fascinating. I cannot wait to check out the next two in the collection!