Crimson Climb is a young-adult novel written by E. K. Johnston about Qi'ra during her time with the criminal syndicate Crimson Dawn, revealing more of her backstory.[3] At San Diego Comic Con 2023, it was confirmed the book would cover about a year and a half timespan, starting when Qi'ra was separated from Han Solo and ending directly before she first met Maul.[4] The book was published on October 10, 2023.[1]
Publisher's summary[]
New York Times bestselling author E. K. Johnston, author of the Queens series starring Padmé Amidala, brings fans an untold story about Qi'ra, portrayed by Emilia Clarke in Star Wars: A Solo Story. [sic]
Not everyone gets to be the hero.
Qi'ra listened to the dreams and promises of a boy with a reckless smile, only to be torn away from him and returned to the White Worms gang while Han made his way to freedom. Now freedom seems like a luxury she can't afford while she concentrates on survival and despairs of ever leaving Corellia. But her fortunes seem to turn when a representative of the crime syndicate Crimson Dawn plucks Qi'ra from captivity and brings her to the syndicate's leader, the mysterious and mercurial Dryden Vos. Vos offers Qi'ra an opportunity she's never had before: the chance to build something resembling a comfortable life if she can prove her worth to his organization. With failure meaning certain death, Qi'ra knows she must immerse herself in the merciless, murderous world of Crimson Dawn. What she doesn't know is just who she will be if she survives….
Plot summary[]
Purgatory[]
Following her unsuccessful escape attempt, Qi'ra is summoned before Lady Proxima who punishes her by ordering her White Worms to beat her with shockstaffs. A 14-year old female scrumrat named Ema, who has aspirations of succeeding Qi'ra as Proxima's handler, takes a sadistic delight in beating the disgraced Qi'ra. Following her beating, a bruised Qi'ra is stripped of her privileges, personal possessions and given the barest rations. Qi'ra is still on talking terms with the scrumrat Jagleo, who warns her that Ema wants to purge the other older scrumat by sending them to be killed in a big raid. Jagleo strikes a deal with Qi'ra by sharing her rations with her.
As punishment for her betrayal, Lady Proxima decides to sell Qi'ra as a slave to a Corellian trafficker named Sarkin Enneb. While Qi'ra is fitted with a tracking chip on her wrist, Enneb doesn't take Qi'ra into his custody immediate since he still has to carry out a job for Proxima. In Enneb's absence, Proxima sends Qi'ra and Jagleo to work as part of a scavenging crew in Coronet's industrial district. Qi'ra is expected to tithe whatever she earns to her new master Enneb. Working together, Qi'ra pretends to cry while Jagleo steals wallets from pedestrians. As a reward for her successful "find," Proxima rewards Qi'ra by gifting her an old coat. Qi'ra's success angers the upstart Ema, who thinks Qi'ra is undermining her leadership of the other children.
Later, Karsot sends Qi'ra to join a salvage crew to obtain data chips from navigation computers built into a fleet of new Corellian-made ships. The salvagers are supervised by Imperial Manager Veteri and her stormtroopers. After six days of working in the salvage crew, Qi'ra reluctantly gives some of her wages to Karsot but hides some in her pockets. Pleased with her work, Proxima assigns Qi'ra to a mission to steal control boards from a Coronet shipyard warehouse.
The warehouse heist[]
For the warehouse heist, Qi'ra and Jagleo are assigned to Moloch's team while Ema and the older scrumrats were tasked with preparing the bolt-holes and dead drops for the operation. Qi'ra tells Jagleo that Proxima's plan is for Moloch and the other lieutenants to attack gate three of the warehouse in order to divert the security guards away. She and Jagleo are tasked with breaking into the unguarded gate two and unlocking the warehouse where the control boards are being stored. The transport team would then come and steal the boards.
Prior to the operation, Qi'ra learns from two boy scrumrats Broon and Fixit that 1,000 Imperial stormtroopers have been assigned to guard the warehouse. Realizing this could compromise the heist, she heads to Lady Proxima's chamber but is blocked by Ema. When Ema refuses to let her in, Qi'ra knocks her out and relays the boys' message to Lady Proxima. Proxima dismisses the report and thinks that the stormtroopers have come for a training exercise or some flight school.
Following her short meeting with Proxima, Qi'ra realizes that the control board heist is a cover for another operation that Proxima has not revealed to her and Jagleo. She also deduces that Proxima is knowingly sending the child thieves to be killed by the stormtroopers. Qi'ra doesn't tell Jagleo the truth about the warehouse heist and reassures her colleague that the Imperial stormtroopers are not there to guard the warehouse.
As planned, Moloch and his team stage a diversion outside the second gate, drawing the guards away. Jagleo incapacitates the two remaining guards with a dart gun. The two girls then climb the wall of the shipyard and reach the warehouse. Qi'ra then sabotages Proxima's cover operation by triggering the alarms, forcing another figure who had been loading crates of control boards onto a repulsor sled to flee. Qi'ra and Jagleo steal several boards and flee. Before leaving, Qi'ra signals for the transport team to enter the warehouse. The team is ambushed by stormtroopers, who pursue and kill them. Qi'ra and Jagleo manage to escape the complex by climbing a wall near gate five. Qi'ra then abandons Jagleo and flees into the Bottoms suburb, where she has safehouse. She hides there for the rest of the night.
Outplaying Proxima[]
Due to the botched warehouse heist, most of the older scrumrats above the age of 14 are killed or captured. When Qi'ra returns to the Den of the White Worms, she finds Proxima addressing the younger scrumrats, telling them that the older ones sacrificed themselves to save the others. In private, Proxima asked why the warehouse alarms went off. Qi'ra claims that she and Jagleo discovered another figure inside the warehouse, who triggered the alarm. Qi'ra reveals that the warehouse heist was a cover for Moloch and his team to steal an entire shipment of Imperial credits and that the stormtroopers were escorting the payment. Qi'ra gives Proxima the three control boards she managed to steal. Proxima vows to recruit more scrumrats and expresses regret that she sold Qi'ra to Sarkin Enneb.
After exiting Proxima's chamber, Qi'ra is pursued by Ema, who seeks revenge against Qi'ra for sabotaging the warehouse operation last night. Qi'ra leads Ema through the tunnels into the Corellian hounds' pen. Before Ema can kill her, Qira uses the master control mechanism to unlock the hounds' cages. The ravenous Corellian hounds maul Ema to death.
Two days later, Qi'ra is summoned to a meeting with Lady Proxima and her new master Enneb, who interrogates her about the sabotaged warehouse heist. Qi'ra tells Enneb that she had learnt about a large Imperial presence at the spaceport. When Proxima accuses Qi'ra of lying, she explains that she came up with her own backup plan. Enneb tells Qi'ra that had been the distraction and that the real target had been Imperial credits, which would have been used to pay off part of Proxima's debts to him and other parties including the crime lord Dryden Vos. Qi'ra offers the three control boards she stole but Enneb tells her that they are insufficient for paying Proxima's debts to Vos. Sarkin chastises Proxima for attempting to pin the blame for the failed operation on Qir'a. When Proxima vows to punish Qi'ra, Sarkin reminds her that she had already sold Qi'ra to him. Enneb vows to break Qi'ra before departing with her on his starship.
Property of Sarkin Enneb[]
While traveling to Sarkin Enneb's lavish Corellian estate, Qi'ra reflects on her impoverished childhood in the Silo. She vows to live and escape. While pickpocketing, she is captured by Moloch, who takes her to Lady Proxima and the White Worms. In his service, Enneb forces her to wear a black skin-tight jumpsuit and a green skirt. Her job consists of carrying a tray while he meets with petitioners and visitors. When she makes mistakes, Enneb beats her. On her fourth day, Qi'ra is purchased by Corynna, a representative of the Crimson Dawn crime syndicate.
Joining Crimson Dawn[]
Qi'ra accompanies Corynna aboard her shuttle. During the journey, Corynna tells Qi'ra that she bought her to save her from the "tender mercies" of the cruel Enneb. Corynna's shuttle reaches a large yacht. After an Imroosian servant named Margo cleans Qi'ra and fits her with a new uniform, Qi'ra is introduced by Corynna to her new master Dryden Vos, the leader of the Crimson Dawn syndicate. When Vos warns Qi'ra not to cross him, she counters that neither Enneb nor Proxima could break her. Vos responds that he only needs to "beat" her.
While a servant aboard Vos' yacht First Light, Qi'ra makes three unsuccessful escape attempts. During her first attempt, she tries to steal a shuttle but is caught. During her second attempt, she attempts to escape down a turbolift while the yacht is docking but is captured and beaten by a Hylobon guard. During her third attempt, Qi'ra kills a guard but finds herself unable to kill a fellow servant named Ottilie. Ottilie serves her food and reveals that she is happy to serve Vos. Seeing potential in Qi'ra, Vos decides to promote her to be his assassin and gives her better quarters.
A year later, Vos tasks Qi'ra with killing a Quarren in his office. Qi'ra complies and shoots the Quarren dead. Having passed her test, Vos inducts Qi'ra into Crimson Dawn by tattooing the crime syndicate's symbol onto one of her arms using the dead Quarrens' facial ink. Corynna and Margo watch as Vos injects her with a syringe that causes the tattoo to form on her arm. Vos then gives Qi'ra a new assignment and tasks Margo with telling her what to pack.
Posting on Thorum[]
Qi'ra is dispatched to the jungle planet of Thorum on her first major posting for Crimson Dawn. At the Crimson Dawn safehouse in the main city Calda, Qi'ra is introduced to her colleagues Trinia and the crew leader Cerveteri Slane, whom Qi'ra had recognized as Manager Veteri from the Corellian shipyard. Slane reveals that she was the unidentified person that she and Jagleo had encountered inside the warehouse, and that the Crimson Dawn had been doing a parallel operation to the White Worms' money and control board heist. Satisfied that Qi'ra has proven herself by leaving poverty-stricken Corellia, she enlists Qi'ra in the Crimson Dawn's operations on Thorum, which consists predominantly of loan collection, protection money payments and some scams.
Having grown up in poverty and squalor in Corellia, Qi'ra is taken back the luxurious accommodation at the Crimson Dawn's Thorum safehouse. Slane also introduces Qi'ra to her fellow associates which include two human girls named Myem and Noyio, the Mon Calamari Thallia and the Zabrak Hilst. During the meal, Qi'ra deduces that Slane is looking for cracks in relationships between her subordinates in order to exploit them. She vows to put a front as a shy loner in order to ascend through the ranks of the crime syndicate.
For Qi'ra first assignment on Thorum, she accompanies Myem, the Rodian Qorsha and the Twi'lek Eleera on a mission to extort protection money from a local human businessman named Tobin, who owns a pulp family business. Following a visit, Tobin agrees to pay up the credits that he owes them for the month. Since Tobin has been late on payments for the past three months, Myem tasks Qi'ra with using a flamethrower to burn a tree in the middle of Tobin's workplace while Qorsha distracts Tobin and his employees by spray-painting a Crimson Dawn insignia on the front widow.
As time passes, Qi'ra is assigned more small jobs. She also receives combat lessons from Eleera in return for giving an account of how the Grindalids took over the Corellian criminal underworld. For her next major assignment, Qi'ra accompanies the Twi'lek slicer Lopie and Slane on a mission to steal four protocol droids from the local headquarters of the InterGalactic Banking Clan, which is now under Imperial control. After infiltrating the building disguised as workers, Qi'ra helps convince the protocol droids to come with them by posing as droid liberation activists. As a reward for their services, Qi'ra and Lopie receive gifts, with Qi'ra's gift consisting of a gold necklace with the Crimson Dawn's symbol.
Taking out the competition[]
Cerveteri Slane later tasks Qi'ra and her associates with eliminating a local competitor, the Hammers, who have acquired a large number of starships. The Hammers have been underbidding their transport partners, which has made it difficult for their partners to pay them money. Slane tasks Qi'ra, Thallia, Lopie and Eleera with sabotaging the Hammers' fleet. Qi'ra and Eleera are sent to the Hammers' shipyard disguised on a scouting mission to gather information on the location.
Three days later, Slane assembles her team. Qi'ra and the pilot Noyio are tasked with stealing the Hammers' best starship while Drex and another Rodian are tasked with stealing a second target ship. The rest of the team will sabotage the vessels under the direction of slicers. While Olio and Myem infiltrate the guard post and take out the security, Qi'ra and Noyio infiltrate one of the Hammers' starship and steal it. While downloading the navigational data, they discover that the Hammers have a map of the Karthakk sector. Qi'ra deduces that the Hammers have a contact within Crimson Dawn territory.
In response to the data breach, Slane is forced to give oversight of the mission to a senior leadership team led by a Mizi woman. Mizi comes up with a plan to infiltrate the Hammers. While Olio and Thallia are tasked with infiltrating the rival syndicate disguised as low-level recruits, Qi'ra is tasked with posing as a buyer to ascertain how the Hammers negotiated their lucrative deal in the Karthakk sector. Once Qi'ra has completed her mission, the Mizi will send teams to take out the leadership of the Hammers.
For her mission, Qi'ra poses as Elessa Norre, a wealthy grain buyer from the Mid Rim world of Galara. She meets the Hammers gang leader Dennet Clyde and his sister-in-law, who is his secretary. Qi'ra seeks to purchase Clyde's entire supply of delweed crop without going through a broker and claims she has the starships to carry them. Qi'ra tells Clyde that she will return the following day to consider the contract. During the visit, Qi'ra befriends the secretary, who is being bullied by Clyde. Meanwhile, the other Crimson Dawn operatives monitor the gang leaders and their financial transactions.
The following day, Qi'ra returns to Clyde's office where she befriends a servant droid, who recognizes her as someone who had liberated several droids from the InterGalactic Banking Clan a few weeks ago. Having gained the droid's trust, Qi'ra convinces the droid to disclose how the Hammers secured a trade deal in the Karthakk sector. The droid reveals that a Crimson Dawn insider leaked the trade routes and suggested the Karthakk sector due to its low importance. In return, the droid convinces Qi'ra to perform a memory wipe on that information. Qi'ra removes more memory space than was agreed.
After signing the contract with Clyde, Qi'ra tells the gang leader that the credits will be transferred to his account within several hours. She then leaves and rendezvous with the Mizi leader, who reveals that the Crimson Dawn have dispatched hit squads to take out the leadership of the Hammers gang. Qi'ra reveals that a Crimson Dawn mole had leaked the trade routes to the Hammers and convinced them to target the Karthakk sector. Feeling sorry for Clyde's secretary, Qi'ra suggests that she could help them. However, the Mizi reveals that the secretary and Clyde were killed during a bomb attack. When the Mizi asks Qi'ra how she obtained information about the leak, Qi'ra lies and tells her that the secretary divulged that information. Mizi remarks that "they always ignore the girls in the back right up until they can't."
Dryden Vos takes charge[]
Following the elimination of the Hammers, the Crimson Dawn's leader Dryden Vos visits Thorum to deal with the traitor. He questions Cerveteri Slane, whom Qi'ra rightfully suspects is the traitor. Slane instead pins the blame on the slicer Thallia, who had spent a week pretending to work for the Hammers. Thallia pleads her innocence but is executed by Vos' guards. Vos orders the Thorum team to wrap up their affairs on Thorum and to prepare to depart offworld tomorrow.
In private, Vos compliments Qi'ra for her work as a criminal operative. He confides that he knew Thallia was innocent but that he needs evidence to eliminate the true traitor. He promises to groom her for leadership and to provide more training aboard the First Light. Later that night, Slane attacks Qi'ra in the kitchen and blames her for sabotaging her Corellian operation. Slane, who is jealous of Qi'ra, accuses her of stealing her operations on Thorum and vows to frame her for the data leak. Qi'ra later meets with Vos, who tells her that she is on the right trail.
In a flashback scene, Qi'ra reminisces on her memories of Han Solo, who uses his charm and gregariousness to endear himself to other children and youths. Based on her adventures with Solo, Qi'ra concludes that teams break when the times get tough and that the only person she can rely on is herself.
Later, Qi'ra learns the Teräs Käsi martial arts from Vos, who personally trains her. After Vos leaves with the Hylobon guard Aemon Gremm to attend to a matter with the Empire, Trinia attends to Qi'ra and bathes her in the sauna. Later, she meets with the Mizi agent, who compliments her for ascending up the ranks of Crimson Dawn over the past four months.
The Nightsend party[]
Later, Dryden Vos summons Qi'ra to his courtroom. The crime lord has been meeting with an Imperial Army officer named Lieutenant Maximilian Veers, whose meeting has facilitated an unspecified partnership between the Empire and Crimson Dawn. Vos assigns Qi'ra with accompanying him to a party with representatives from the Five Crime Syndicates on the harsh planet Nightsend. For the meeting, he instructs Qi'ra not to bring any weapons. The two are accompanied by Aemon and three other Hylobon guards. The group travel in a shuttle to the venue, a mobile platform on the planet's nightside located away from the local spaceport.
The party is hosted by the Falleen Verelea Xhorrun, the leader of the Black Sun crime syndicate, a member of the Five Crime Syndicates. Vos tells Qi'ra that Crimson Dawn is a member of the Five Crime Syndicates, which is lead by a mysterious overseer, who allows them a degree of independence provided they don't violate his rules against infighting and vengeance. The party is also attended by representatives of the Pyke Syndicate, Crymorah Syndicate and the Hutt Cartel. Vos also takes the opportunity to introduce his new lieutenant Qi'ra to the other underworld factions.
Near the end of the party, a Black Sun faction led by Xhorrun's brother Alorium stages a coup against Xhorrun for control over Black Sun. Xhorrun warns Alorium that if he or his mercenaries kill her, her death will deactivate the emergency environmental systems, causing the platform to crash into the frigid nightside of Nightside. When Vos confronts Alorium, the Falleen reveals that he plans to secede Black Sun from the Five Crime Syndicates and become independent. To avoid having witnesses, Alorium shoots his sister. He and his mercenaries then flee the doomed platform, intending to leave the other witnesses to die when the platform crashes.
While the Hylobon Enforcers protect Vos and his party, Qi'ra tends to the mortally wounded Xhorrun and attempts to revive her. Unable to save Xhorrun, Qi'ra flees with Vos and the Crimson Dawn. Margo manages to slice the automated doors, allowing Vos' party to flee aboard their shuttles. During the escape, Aemon lends Qi'ra his helmet, allowing her to survive the cold. Though the Crimson Dawn delegation escapes back to First Light, numerous delegates from the other Five Crime Syndicates are killed when Xhorrun's platform crashes.
Power and intrigue[]
Following Xhorrun's death, Vos introduces Qi'ra to Tallaria, the sister of Xhorrun and the new leader of Black Sun. Vos orders Qi'ra to resume her investigation into the leak of Crimson Dawn's trade intelligence. Tallaria explains that she has lost money in her Thorrum tertiary investments, which Vos believes its linked to the leak that Qi'ra had uncovered. Due to their shared interests, Vos agrees to help Tallaria secure control over Black Sun.
After meeting with her team mates from Thorrum, Qi'ra comes up with a plan to frame the Rodian Olio for leaking Crimson Dawn fleet schedules to the Hammers in order to lure Cerveteri Slane out. Later, Vos summons his subordinates to a meeting at the top level of First Light. While Vos commends Qi'ra's efforts, he publicly executes Olio by hurling a petar at his brain, killing him instantly. As a reward for her loyalty, Vos promotes Qi'ra. Tallaria is also present at the meeting.
Three days later, a frustrated Slane ambushes and assaults Qi'ra. Slane tells Qi'ra that Vos will not discover her treachery. Qi'ra allows Slane to beat her but manages to kick her to the ground. Later, Aemon catches Corynna in the act of poisoning a meal that was about to be served to Vos' guards. As punishment for her treachery, Vos slits her throat, causing Corynna to bleed to death. Vos then promotes Margo as his new concierge. Later, Qi'ra reflects on her failed escape attempt with Solo and resolves to keep Han's dice as a memory of her friend.
As Qi'ra rises through the Crimson Dawn hierarchy, she accompanies Vos to several meetings and parties. Her colleagues are also promoted. Noyio and Drex learn to fly the shuttle while Hilst works with the new concierge Margo. Karil and Eleera are also invited to Vos's parties while Lopie joins the engineering department. Myem and Qorsha are also given command duties while Trinia is assigned to ship operations. By contrast, Slane is snubbed and relegated to guard duty in Vos's office.
A temple of doom[]
Later, Vos assigns Qira and her team for a retrieval job on a planet. Taking leadership of the mission, Qi'ra assigns Noyio and Drex piloting duties. Prior to departing on the mission, Trinia warns that Slane will be armed. Qi'ra reassures her that she will stop Slane when she strikes. The group travel in a hauler called the Crimson Reach. After the team including Slane board the hauler, Noyio takes the ship into hyperspace.
Qira's team lands on the uninhabited world. After traveling through the pine forest, the group reach an abandoned temple that is surrounded by four walls. Unable to find a door or anything that will allow them to scale the walls, Qi'ra sends Eleera, Noyio, Myem and Hilst to find an alternative way. Qi'ra and her team find a damaged stone in the wall. Trinia also finds the remains of an armored figure near a tree, whom she believes to have been a member of a religious order.
After touching the weathered stone, Qi'ra senses a strange energy flowing through her and the door unlocks. Qi'ra orders Hilst and Drex to guard the entrance while the rest of the team explore the temple. Trinia briefs the group about the history of a conflict between the ancient Jedi and Sith. As the Crimson Dawn team venture deeper inside the temple, they navigate a passageway lined with sharp blades. Continuing farther, they step onto a giant trapdoor, which opens over a chamber full of razor-sharp metal spikes. Most of the group survive byt Noyio and Qorsha are impaled to death on the giant spikes.
Continuing down the passageway, Karil and Myem are killed by flaming gas, leaving only five team members inside the temple. The survivors reach a room with a raised stone platform in the center. On the platform, Qi'ra activates a hologram recording left by a Jedi, who warns them that not to remove the artifact, which he describes as a device built to find darkness in the Force. The Jedi says that he built the device to help his fellow Jedi weed out corruption but that it instead nearly destroyed them all. He implores them to abandon their quest if they value their lives.
After some debate, Qi'ra and her team decide to retrieve the artifact. Beneath the platform, they find a tomb containing the remains of the Jedi who had made the holorecording. Qi'ra finds the artifact among his skeletal remains. By removing the artifact, Qi'ra triggers a mechanism that causes the ceiling to descend. Lopie, Eleera and Trinia flee through the door. Qi'ra attempts to follow but Slane blocks their path and demands that she give her the box containing the artifact. As the ceiling descends, Qi'ra fights back using Teräs Käsi, and breaks her knee bones. Eleera manages to pull Qi'ra and the box to safety before the ceiling collapses. Slane is crushed to death.
After emerging from the temple, Qi'ra and her team mates discover that Drex has murdered Hilst. Drex had made an arrangement with Slane to betray the rest of the group. Drex shoots Lopie dead with his blaster. Qi'ra manages to use her martial arts skills to knock Drex's blaster out of his hand. Eleera then subdues Dex and kills the traitor. While walking back to the Crimson Reach with Eleera, Qi'ra opines that Vos was unaware of the traps inside the temple but was testing them.
Ascension[]
During the return journey, Qi'ra discusses their recent mission with Trinia. Trinia thinks that Qi'ra is different from the rest of them, which made Slane jealous of her. She adds that these qualities made Vos choose to elevate her. Trinia tells Qi'ra that she is reliable and has a knack for finding solutions. Qi'ra admits making a bad call in the past which almost cost her everything. Trinia reassures her that she is still optimistic. When Qi'ra asks Trinia how she can deduce what she is really thinking, Trinia replies that she is good at reading people's faces.
The three surviving Crimson Dawn operatives Qi'ra, Eleera and Trinia return to the First Light where they receive an audience with Dryden Vos, who is joined by the Mizi and a giant with pincers. Vos and the Mizi are pleased that the trio have completed their trial successfully. The Mizi describes Qi'ra as a smart pick. Eleera believes that Slane was planning a hit and expresses relief that she died during the retrieval mission at the temple. Vos sends Eleera and Trinia to be refreshed by Margo.
In private, Qi'ra briefs Vos about the mission to the temple. She explains that it belonged to a religious cult who believed in the Force. While most of the team were killed by traps, only Drex and Hilst perished because of Slane's coup. While Qi'ra briefs Vos, he arranges for a tray of appetizers to be served. Vos informs Qi'ra that Crimson Dawn had carried out the mission to the temple on behalf of the mysterious leader of the Five Syndicates. Vos says that this leader will be very pleased with Qi'ra.
After cleaning up, Qi'ra travels with Vos in dark clothing to meet with this mysterious leader. Prior to the meeting, Qi'ra speaks with Margo, who compliments her potential for leadership. Margo thinks that the late Corynna underestimated Vos. The First Light travels to a red and black planet where the two travel down a turbolift to meet with the mysterious leader of the Five Syndicates. The book ends with Qi'ra reflecting on the end of the Galactic Civil War, and she is approached by a cloaked figure whom Qi'ra recognizes.
Development[]
Ahead of release, Johnston confirmed the novel will build off previous work on Qi'ra's character done by fellow authors Rae Carson and Mur Lafferty.[3] Johnson was determined to have a fun time writing the novel and reflected that she indeed did. The included reference to LEGO Star Wars was one example of something she had fun with.[5] She also enjoyed working with characters who had little knowledge of the Force but who then encountered things related to it,[6] such as when Qi'ra uncovers the corpse of a Knight of Ren. The body was not revealed to be from a member of the Knights of Ren until Johnson responded to a fan on Bluesky in 2025. She used the Knights of Ren, albeit without identifying them,[7] because she was not told she could not.[8]
Media[]
Editions[]
- ISBN 9781368093750; October 10, 2023; Disney–Lucasfilm Press; US hardcover[1]
Cover gallery[]
Appearances[]
| Characters | Organisms | Droid models | Events | Locations |
| Organizations and titles | Sentient species | Vehicles and vessels | Weapons and technology | Miscellanea |
Characters
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Organisms
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Droid models
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Events
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Locations
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Organizations and titles
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Sentient species
Vehicles and vessels
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Weapons and technology
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Miscellanea
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Sources[]
Lucasfilm Publishing: Stories from a Galaxy Far, Far Away... | Panel | San Diego Comic-Con 2023 on the official Penguin Random House YouTube channel (original link is obsolete)- "Launchpad" — Star Wars Insider 221
- 5 Behind-the-Pages Secrets of Star Wars: Crimson Climb on StarWars.com (backup link)
Notes and references[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2
Crimson Climb on Disney Publishing Worldwide's official website (backup link)
- ↑ Crimson Climb starts with the flashbacks seen in Solo: A Star Wars Story. Star Wars: Timelines dates the flashbacks to 13 BBY. The book carries on for about a year and a half, placing its ending round 12 BBY.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 E. K. Johnston (@ek_johnston) on Twitter (post): "Building off the excellent work of @raecarson and @mightymur, we'll get more of Qi'ra's backstory in CRIMSOM [sic] CLIMB this October." (backup link)
- ↑ Star Wars Explained (@StarWarsExplain) on Twitter (post): ".@ek_johnston says Crimson Climb covers about a year and a half, starting right after Qi’ra is separated from Han taking us up to the point where she is about to meet Maul for the first time." (backup link)
- ↑ E. K. Johnston (@ekjohnston.bsky.social) on Bluesky (post on April 8, 2025): "(this is also how i got lego star wars into crimson climb. i was determined to have fun, and i had SO MUCH fun.)" (backup link)
- ↑ E. K. Johnston (@ekjohnston.bsky.social) on Bluesky (post on April 8, 2025): "A fun part of Crimson Climb was describing Force things we all know from the POV of someone with extremely limited context for them. Thank goodness @raecarson.bsky.social wrote a character in Most Wanted who knew stuff, because that gave me a place to start." (backup link)
- ↑ E. K. Johnston (@ekjohnston.bsky.social) on Bluesky (post on April 7, 2025): "It's actually a Knight of Ren." (backup link) (In response to: Hey @ekjohnston.bsky.social , really quick Crimson Climb question, sorry to bother! At one moment, Qi’ra uncovers what I’m reading to be an Inquisitor helmet. Did you intend for it to be a known Inquisitor or a new Inquisitor character?)
- ↑ E. K. Johnston (@ekjohnston.bsky.social) on Bluesky (post on April 8, 2025): "My general policy is always "well, they didn't tell me I couldn't"." (backup link)
