Path of Destruction (Star Wars: Darth Bane, #1) in The Expanded Universe

Mar 15, 2014 D rated it really liked it

A solid 3.5 stars (rounded up) and a good start to what I am hoping proves to be a very interesting series (my first reading of Drew's work). As a fellow Canadian writer who happens to be a fan of the EU, and considering we live in neighboring provinces, I really looked forward to reading this book :)

I think Path of Destruction starts out extremely strong. Bane's beginnings and character arc on Apotros was probably my favorite element of the book. Very tight writing and excellent pace. The middl ...more

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Oct 16, 2014 Jamble rated it it was amazing

Path of Destruction, in short, is basically the story of a man who came from nothing and claimed an ultimate seat of power. The way Dessel came about this power is extremely uncommon, highly unpredictable, and intensely fascinating.

Without delving into spoiler territory, Dessel was born to an abusive father, working since 13 in deep, nearly poisonous mines to create plating used by the Republic. After a chance encounter and a few surprising bad breaks, he's forced to escape republic space and j Path of Destruction, in short, is basically the story of a man who came from nothing and claimed an ultimate seat of power. The way Dessel came about this power is extremely uncommon, highly unpredictable, and intensely fascinating.

Without delving into spoiler territory, Dessel was born to an abusive father, working since 13 in deep, nearly poisonous mines to create plating used by the Republic. After a chance encounter and a few surprising bad breaks, he's forced to escape republic space and join the Sith military. I'm sure the title of the book leaves it as no surprise that he eventually climbs through the ranks and becomes the exalted Dark Lord of The Sith. However, where this book excels, is in the journey moreso than the culmination of said journey.

Bane's story, past, present, and potential future, as this is a three-parter, are all so gloriously engrossing that even knowing where he ends up from the beginning, you can rarely guess what's going to happen to assure or hinder his progress. He's a large man, physically intimidating compared to some of the greatest Sith, as well as being intensely strong in The Force. What earns him his coveted title however, is the flood of knowledge he gains in many different forms about the Dark Side, as well as those he seeks to take down in his quest to domination, or his path to destruction if you will (Am I a stinker or what?)

Dessel uses the arts of manipulation and deception to near perfection near the culmination of his rise. It becomes an absolute joy to watch his mind work, to see the pieces fall into place, to laugh sinisterly along with him, knowing how thoroughly and expertly he's duped his foes, and sometimes being shocked as you find out said deceptions go even deeper than you'd first presumed. Bane is easily among my favorite Star Wars characters after reading this book. Drew Karpyshyn was ably to create a ruthless and calculating master of evil that even an overly nice, awkward, unfunny dork like myself can genuinely relate to and understand to the point where you feel like you may have taken a similar path in his shoes, though chances are you wouldn't have been quite as successful.

Anyone who loves Star Wars lore, a story of a man going from being less than a particle on the universal scale to someone of immense power and domineering through his own willpower above all else, as opposed to plowing his way through his foes like none of us could, or just the journey of a staunchly intriguing character, I don't think you can do much better.

p.s. Between this and Knights of the Old Republic, I may have a deeper love for Star Wars because of Drew Karpyshyn than because of George Lucas himself. I love Lucas, but this man adds so much depth to the universe that it's unreal, and he creates some of the greatest characters I've ever witnessed.

p.p.s. READ IT!! ...more

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May 24, 2013 Andy rated it really liked it

Just finished this today. I really liked seeing more of the Sith side of the story in this one. Another thing I like is how Drew switches points of view fairly often to see just how interesting other characters are in this story. The only lame part is how easily his Sith name came to be. Daddy issues and all.

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Feb 17, 2013 Doug rated it liked it · review of another edition

I am a big Star Wars fan and have read many EU books. I found the perspective of this book very interesting, however I could not really care much for the characters or what happened to them. I enjoyed it, but did not love it.

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