Star Wars: Path Of Destruction: The Essential Legends Collection Book Review
“Star Wars: Path Of Destruction” is one of the best Star Wars novels.
Originally released in 2006, “Star Wars: Path Of Destruction” (the first book in the Darth Bane series) is now no longer canon. Thankfully, Del Rey is paying tribute to this popular Legends book with a new tall paperback line of books dubbed The Essential Legends Collection.
Written by Drew Karpyshyn, “Star Wars: Path Of Destruction” takes place in the Old Republic in which a battle between the Republic/Jedi and the Sith is raging on. The Sith are led by the Brotherhood of Darkness which is founded by Sith Master Lord Kaan while Lord Hoth is the hero of the Jedi and the leader of the Army of the Light. The story, however, focuses on a cortosis miner named Dessel. He’s a muscular, tall, smart, angry, force sensitive man who is paying off debts. After getting in trouble and becoming a wanted man, Dessel joins the Sith army as an escape. Eventually, he rises up the ranks and is sent to Korriban where he catches the eye of the Sith Masters. He begins to train under the Sith and soon changes his name to Bane. Not only does Bane become more powerful, but he begins to learn Sith history which may alter the course of both Bane and the Sith. Elsewhere in the story there is a crucial storyline involving a Jedi defector who joins the Sith named Githany. She’s manipulative and deceptive but forms a bond with Bane.
There’s more I want to say about the plot, but I’m not here to spoil the contents of the book. Yes, the book is now 15 years old, but there may be readers out there who are picking this new edition up for the first time. I myself had not yet read any of the Bane books until now. It’s long been on my list, but after the new canon started, I have been keeping up with that (which is time consuming). Anyway, I can safely say that I certainly waited too long to dig into this series. This is easily one of the best Star Wars novels. Author Drew Karpyshyn has crafted a true page turner that you won’t want to put down. The way he explores the mythology of the Star Wars Old Republic universe all while building up a Sith character who has fast become a fan favorite is nothing short of superb. I have no idea if Karpyshyn will ever return to the Star Wars world, but I hope he does. His writing, his voice, and his storytelling is something that needs to be in canon.
As I mentioned above, the world building and character building is the novel’s greatest strength. You don’t need me to tell you that Bane changes the Sith order, but seeing the story of how that happened is so engrossing. It’s not often in Star Wars that we see the POV of the villain so the story feels fresh in that respect. Some readers may scoff at having a novel from the antagonist’s POV, but to each their own. The world building was also captivating as I find the Old Republic era to be very involving. Any era in which there are Jedi and Sith present is automatically more interesting.
About the only drawback of this novel to me was the cheesy Thought Bomb. I understand why it was included, but it felt like a convenient plot device more than anything else.
The book concludes with acknowledgments, a Legends timeline and an excerpt from “Star Wars: Rule of Two.” The Essentials version of ‘Rule of Two” is due out September 7, 2021.
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