Del Rey Dynasty of Evil: Star Wars Legends (Darth Bane): A Novel of the Old Republic

Good book

A very good trilogy to start pre-prequals. Starts from very humble beginnings and goes to the very heart of sith ideology.

I've only read 6 of the expanded universe novels, the Thrawn trilogy and now the Darth Bane trilogy. I started with the Thrawn series as it seemed to come the most highly recommended of all the star wars novels. I read the trilogy, and was sorely disappointed. The story was grand and epic, and the entire universe is at stake again, but the characters were boring and flat. The characters from the movies like Luke, Han, Lei, etc, were just shadows of the movies, with no new character development, often repeating their iconic lines from the movies with sort of a wink and a nod to the reader. A lot of the plot devices from the Thrawn trilogy were cheap and lazy. The only remotely interesting character was Mara Jade, and she was poorly executed most of the time. I thought to myself, if this is the best the best of the star wars books, then we are in trouble. I searched out a different story, hoping it would redeem the poor effort of the Thrawn series, and I decided to give the first novel of the Darth Bane series a shot. I always though the dark side of the force was lacking in depth from the movies, and I wanted to see if anyone was capable of giving that angle new life. I'm very pleased to report that the Darth Bane trilogy is far more compelling, and is overall a really great story. In contrast to the Thrawn trilogy, the physical scope of the novel is far more narrow. The galaxy is not in any immediate danger after the conclusion of the first novel, and there are no clone armies threatening to destroy the republic and there is no death star blowing up planets. This trilogy is all about the small first steps the Sith will take to the eventual galactic domination that culminates in episode III, and thus the action is far more focused and localized to discrete areas of the Star Wars galaxy. Bravo to the author for not falling into the trap of bigger is better. I won't launch into an exhaustive review, but suffice to say, the main characters are very dynamic and interesting. Bane is obviously the main focus of the novels, and getting to see the transformation that he undergoes really gives you a better sense of what Yoda and the crew were fighting against. From the movies, you sometimes get the sense the dark side of the force is just lightning bolts and intimidating names. This series really delves into the philosophy of the Sith, and how it is so different from the Jedi, and gives you a better idea of what powers the dark side offers, besides silly lightning bolts. The story moves at a great pace, and the story itself falls into place without the need to rely on the cheap plot devices that I detested in the Thrawn trilogy. This is a far more subtle and nuanced trilogy. I'm giving the trilogy a 5 because the characters are very compelling and the story feels like a cornerstone to the whole Star Wars universe. It's not perfect, of course, but it's a very strong trilogy that is definitely worth a read.

Another fine Star Wars book where the Sith are the heroes for a change. Darth Zannah is one of the coolest characters in the Expanded Universe, right up there with Mara Jade and Jaina Solo. This book is completely original. The first book in the series was based on a graphic novel (The Golden Age of the Sith, by Kevin J. Anderson). Having read the graphic novel already, I found that book less fun. This is not happening here, in the third book. What I really like about Mr. Karpyshyn's books is that they make it all logical. The Sith do not appear as one-dimensional bloodthirsty monsters ruled by nasty impulses. They appear as logical persons who face difficult odds and still manage to win (from time to time) through courage, skill and intelligence. So nice to see things from this perspective too. I love this new trend in Star Wars. Kudos to James Luceno and Matt Stover, btw, for starting it in Labyrinth of Evil and Revenge of the Sith. The book's ending begs for a fourth book, IMO. That's good, I can hardly wait for the next installment in the series.

Dez anos se passaram desde os eventos ocorridos no fim da segunda parte (Rule of Two). Bane envelheceu rápido devido aos traumas sofridos e começa a mostrar sinais de fraqueza - mesmo tentando os esconder de sua aprendiz. Os Sith se estabeleceram em Ciutric IV, onde assumiram identidades de ricos irmãos mercadores, Sepp e Allia Omek. Constantemente treinando e estudando, os dois evoluíram em suas habilidades com o lado negro da Força. Mas mesmo com seu desenvolvimento, Zannah ainda não desafiou seu mestre pelo título de Dark Lord dos Sith, o que preocupa Darth Bane. Estaria esperando sua deterioração física para só então confrontá-lo? Se fosse esse o caso, o futuro dos Sith estaria em perigo, visto que a atitude de Zannah iria contra a regra dos dois - que tem o intuito de manter apenas os fortes. O mestre precisa de uma alternativa. Ele a encontra em escritos antigos que o levam a encontrar o holocron de Darth Andeddu - e os segredos da transferência de essência. Em paralelo aos acontecimentos dos Sith - e posteriormente em conjunto -, o planeta Doan se encontra inquieto. O mundo, coberto por "cicatrizes" deixadas pelas atividades mineradoras (relembrando Apatros, da primeira parte da trilogia), se encontra em conflito. Mineiros contra as famílias ricas. Nesse conflito um jedi é morto, dano colateral de uma caçadora de recompensas conhecida como "The Huntress". Ainda em Doan, a princcesa é Serra, que assumiu nova identidade após ordem de seu pai Caleb (curandeiro que por duas vezes salvou a vida de Darth Bane). Ela ainda está de luto pela morte de seu marido e é protegida por Lucia (que serviu ao lado de Bane no exército dos Sith), sua guarda costas e melhor amiga. Os eventos se desenrolam, cada personagem com sua motivação, culminando na batalha final entre Bane e Zannah em Ambria, onde apenas um sairá digno do título de Dark Lord dos Sith. O livro faz um ótimo trabalho trazendo de volta vários acontecimentos dos volumes anteriores. A questão psicológica causada por esses retornos é muito boa. A narrativa, em si, é envolvente e bem escrita. Obviamente obrigatório para quem leu as outras duas partes. O livro físico é, como os outros, pocket americano, portanto, frágil. Trilogia em inglês da Del Rey: Parte 1: Path of Destruction: A Novel of the Old Republic Parte 2: Rule of Two Trilogia em português da Universo dos Livros: Parte 1: Star Wars. Darth Bane. Caminho de Destruição Parte 2: Star Wars. Darth Bane. Regra de Dois - Volume 1