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    Star Wars: Darth Bane: Path of Destruction: A Novel of the Old Republic
    Unavailable
    Star Wars: Darth Bane: Path of Destruction: A Novel of the Old Republic
    Unavailable
    Star Wars: Darth Bane: Path of Destruction: A Novel of the Old Republic
    Audiobook12 hours

    Star Wars: Darth Bane: Path of Destruction: A Novel of the Old Republic

    Written by Drew Karpyshyn

    Narrated by Jonathan Davis

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    Once the Sith order teemed with followers. But their rivalries divided them in endless battles for supremacy. Until one dark lord at last united the Sith in the quest to enslave the galaxy-and exterminate the Jedi. Yet it would fall to another, far more powerful than the entire Brotherhood of Darkness, to ultimately realize the full potential of the Sith, and wield the awesome power of the dark side as never before.


    Since childhood, Dessel has known only the abuse of his hateful father and the dangerous, soul-crushing labor of a cortosis miner. Deep in the tunnels of the desolate planet Apatros, endlessly excavating the rare mineral valued throughout the galaxy, Dessel dreams of the day he can escape-a day he fears may never come. But when a high-stakes card game ends in deadly violence, Dessel suddenly finds himself a wanted man.

    On the run from vengeful Republic forces, Dessel vanishes into the ranks of the Sith army, and ships out to join the bloody war against the Republic and its Jedi champions. There, Dessel's brutality, cunning, and exceptional command of the Force swiftly win him renown as a warrior. But in the eyes of his watchful masters, he is destined for a far greater role in the ultimate Sith plan for the galaxy-if he can prove himself truly worthy.

    As an acolyte in the Sith academy, studying the secrets and skills of the dark side at the feet of its greatest masters, Dessel embraces his new Sith identity: Bane. However the true test is yet to come. In order to gain acceptance into the Brotherhood of Darkness one must fully surrender to the dark side through a trial by fire that Bane, for all his unquenchable fury and lust for power, may not be strong enough to endure . . . especially since deception, treachery, and murder run rampant among the Sith disciples, and utter ruthlessness alone is the key to survival. Only by defying the most sacred traditions, rejecting all he has been taught, and drawing upon the long-forgotten wisdom of the very first Sith can Bane hope to triumph-and forge from the ashes of that which he must destroy a new era of absolute dark power.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateOct 30, 2012
    ISBN9780385361828
    Unavailable
    Star Wars: Darth Bane: Path of Destruction: A Novel of the Old Republic
    Author

    Drew Karpyshyn

    Drew Karpyshyn is the New York Times bestselling author of Children of Fire as well as the Star Wars: The Old Republic novels Revan and Annihilation, and the Star Wars: Darth Bane trilogy: Path of Destruction, Rule of Two, and Dynasty of Evil. He also wrote the acclaimed Mass Effect series of novels and worked as a writer/designer on numerous award-winning videogames. After spending most of his life in Canada, he finally grew tired of the long, cold winters and headed south in search of a climate more conducive to year-round golf. Drew Karpyshyn now lives in Texas with his wife, Jennifer, and a variety of four-legged companions.

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    Reviews for Star Wars

    4/5

    279 ratings20 reviews

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    • 4/5
      I enjoyed reading this more than I thought I would (so, okay, Kevin, you were right). The plot is well-paced and exciting, and the writing, although not amazing, is decent enough not to distract much from the plot.
    • 2/5
      Good for illustrating history of the Old Republic. Mostly brain candy. Are all of the Star Wars books like this?
    • 5/5
      Path of Destruction is the ancient untold story of the Sith. The Republic and the Sith are at the height of the war and Bane is caught in the middle. In his journey to become the ultimate wielder of the force, he encounters obstacles that could end his search for power and enlightenment.In the original Star Wars series the teachings and life style of the Sith were illusive. This is part of the Old Republic series. It gives a thorough insight to the ways of the dark side of the force. Also, you get the full version of the Sith's motive to fight in the first place. Quite frankly with their reason I would join the dark side.Drew Karpyshyn somehow makes the Sith look like the good guys. And their not following the true nature of the dark side. He wrote this book in a way that there is only one true Sith. Drew takes on a journey from mines on an outer rim planet to the battle ground. Drew Karpyshyn made an exellent addition to the Star Wars universe.
    • 5/5
      An amazing start to an amazing series. This novel contains so much story and character development that it is somewhat surprising how far Bane has come by the end of the book. This novel s also very key to reading many other books about Sith Lords since Bane is referenced time and again as the possible Sithari and as the founder of the Rule of Two. The story follows the end of the Jedi-Sith war of the Old Republic and the subsequent revitalization of the Sith that began a thousand-year-long plan that ends with Sidious in Episode III. A great read from beginning to end and a book that is worth multiple rereads. Just a whole lot of fun all around, cover to cover.
    • 4/5
      Darth Bane is easily one of my favorite characters in the Star Wars universe for the way he was developed as well as him returning to the old ways of the Sith. Hunger for power in my opinion is an integral part of the Sith. Great story, and very good action. Enough intigue to keep you interested in where Bane will go. This book is a good way to introduce people to the dark side and maybe help some understand how they came to be they way they were in the prequels.
    • 5/5
      This book is Star Wars story telling at it's finest. It has all the action and intrigue you would expect from a Star Wars tale. The author really draws you in and the back story for Darth Bane is excellent. In my opinion the Darth Bane trilogy are the best Old Republic novels to date and are certainly some of the greatest of all the Star Wars novels ever written.
    • 4/5
      In the era of the Old Republic emerges a Sith apprentice, who realizes that his masters abandon the ancient Sith wisdom and his task will to give his order his old power back. But it takes sacrifices....
    • 4/5
      Taking place hundreds of years before the end of the Old Republic and the reign of Palpatine, the first book in the Darth Bane trilogy explores the origins of this pivotal Sith, his early instruction in the force, his study of Sith history, and the origin of his path for the Sith, the Rule of Two that will slowly bring down the Jedi Order and the Republic. Alternating between Bane and the leaders of the Jedi and the Brotherhood of Darkness during the last great war between Jedi and Sith armies, the novel moves quickly while providing a new cast of characters from an ancient time and granting new insights into the force, the Sith, and Bane himself.
    • 5/5
      Karpyshyn hasn't written many books in the Star Wars Universe but this is a fantastic leap into the deep end exploring some of the nuances of the Sith and the history of them. It picks up slowly and continues to hold your attention.
    • 3/5
      My Review: 3 - Not My Cup of TeaThis is a tough one to rate, because honestly, I feel it has a lot in common with Star Wars: Galaxies: The Ruins of Dantooine, in that both main characters are Mary Sue/Marty Stu. I gave Dantooine a "2 - Below Standard," and I had to think hard about this rating, because again, a lot of this book really felt like wish fulfillment to Stu-ish levels (and I'm allowed to apply that term to media tie-ins, because they are, by nature, authorized fan fiction). Of course, being the greatest Sith ever isn't exactly MY kind of wish fulfillment, but to each their own. And honestly, if this wasn't a Star Wars book, I probably wouldn't never finished it, let alone picked it up. Be that as it may, while it's clearly history of the Sith, I felt coming back to the fact that this just doesn't feel like the Star Wars universe in any form or fashion, not even the prequel era. Sure, this takes place LONG before said prequel era, but it just didn't click the way I wanted history to do so. Maybe it's because the story is primarily told through the Sith viewpoint, rather than the traditional Jedi one. We get a lot of telling instead of showing, a lot of summarization. The description often gets clunky, and there's ANOTHER PROPHECY!!! Which I'm sure applies to Darth Bane, because why would this trilogy feature him otherwise?I think the biggest problem with this book is it relies too heavily on what the reader brings to the book. You're expected to understand the conflict between the Sith and Jedi going into the book, which means the author really doesn't have to world-build like he would in an original novel and, you know, justify the war between the Sith and the Jedi and what they're fighting for and why. But even though I, as a fan, am armed with that knowledge (though let's be fair, this is yet another game spin-off, and I'm not and never have been a Star Wars gamer), I found the whole conflict to be weak and uninteresting. I was interested in learning more about the Sith, seeing how they came to be what we know and love in the prequel movies, but beyond that, I was pretty bored with the whole experience. I would not recommend this book except to the most hardcore of Star Wars fans, especially those fans obsessed with Sith legend and history. Everyone else, this is an easy pass. Newbies? Do not start here. The only reason this gets a "3 - Not My Cup of Tea" over a "2 - Below Standard" is because despite my issues with the writing, it doesn't make the same outright mistakes that Dantooine did, and it's a more solidly constructed story as a whole. Obviously, because I'm a glutton for punishment, I'll be reading the rest of the trilogy. I know, I'm insane. Fortunately, Darth Bane: The Rule of Two is several books away in publication order. :)
    • 4/5
      What a book. Its kinda demented because your cheering for the dark side to win and kill everyone. All in all though well worth it. Very much like the Godfather. I wanted to reread this before I read the third book in the series.A decent plot though the war between the Army of Light and the Brotherhood of Darkness feels long and drawn out. It felt like it was added as an aside after the majority of the story was written. The war needs to be told but just wasn't told very well. And as for both army's battling over one planet. Well that just seems silly. If you like Star Wars and like a darker tone for a novel this is definitely for you. Also this is the second time i've read it since i bought it and it holds up well to another rereading. The main plots with Bane and some of the other students at the academy are worth while. The story line of General Hoth could have been left out. Killer book. All pun intended.
    • 5/5
      Starts slow, ends strong. The author also wrote for the games Knights of the Old Republic 1 and 2, and writes in a similar fashion here. The entire time I was reading this book, my imagination ran wild with what I thought his interpretation of the locations and scenes would look like. It took me a bit of time to read it because I was literally visualizing everything he wrote. Of all the Star Wars books I'd read to this point, this was easily the best in my mind.
    • 4/5
      Set nearly a thousand years before A New Hope, Darth Bane: Path of Destruction is a very interesting look into the Sith Academy on Korriban. During this time, the Sith believe that the more fully trained Sith the better. Bane learns differently.
    • 5/5
      An absolutely wonderful addition to the Star Wars universe. Very dark...perfect for the Sith legend. If you want to know where the Sith "Rule of Two" came from, you'll find it here. A nice addition to any Star Wars fan's shelf.
    • 3/5
      I've been a Star Wars fan my entire life, and started reading this book anxiously waiting for a story of an ancient Sith Lord. Unfortunately, this book fell well below my expectations, and I had a very sour taste in my mouth when I put this book down. Plot: (6/10) It seems like Bane was too willing to go and join the Sith, and the Republic soldiers were too willing to attack him in the first place. Then, the raise to power after that is supposed to make me feel chilled and sad like Anakin's, but I didn't at all. The plot was predictable and thus not very enjoyable to read. Characters: (4/10) Incredibly, incredibly weak. They were all paper thin and weakly executed. All of the "aliens" were nothing more than humans in alien skin, and the dialog coming from them was just as bad. The worst part of this book was an important part. Style: (5.5/10) I got a lot of information that I didn't need at all, and didn't care about any of the characters. If Bane died, I wouldn't have cared. Also, going to the Jedi at the end of the book was a chore, and really took me out of the book even more. This was well below my hopes, sadly enough. If you like Star Wars, then give it a look, but don't expect too much. Total: 15.5/30 or 2.5 Stars.
    • 5/5
      176/395 my SSR book-read the rest for quater 4 -219/395This books is about a man named dressel who is going through pain and hardship, and his struggle with the darkside. He eventually finds himself being open to the opportunity of becoming a jedi. As he goes trough his training he is tempted by the dark side. This book has many gorey and dramatic fights. Dressel feels he has to defend himself and also has his moments when he cares about people. I likes the part in the book when he fights with his jedi master and he defeats him and is fighting his way out of the accademy. This to me is a very exciting part of the book. I can relate to him in that he wants to protect the ones he loves. He fights to protect the girl he loves, but the jedi dont allow jedi's to be in love. So he has to keep it a secret. I would do the same to keep the ones i love close to me even if that means having to hide them. I really am enjoying this book so far because i am a huge star wars fan. I recommend this book to star wars fans and people who like graphic novels.
    • 4/5
      I really like the inverted perspective aspect that these Sith books offer. Jedi culture, philosophy, and worldview can become tiresome and predictable after a while. Even though the philosophical variety is limited to a hard duality (maybe tertiary if you include bounty hunters), it is refreshing to take a trip dark side once in a while... the author does a good job of expounding on Sith culture, politics, and even interpersonal relationships. And despite the fact that Bane IS a cold hearted MF, he still comes out a lovable antihero and purist champion of The Dark Side and Sith tradition. Definitely worth checking out for any would be villains or even those just beginning to flirt or experiments w the Dark Side.
      -C
    • 5/5
      Karpishyn is a masterful writer of sci fi. Disney shouldve hired him.
    • 5/5
      During a time of the Old Republic begins a journey of one individual bound to make a difference. Darth Bane has goals and plans for the galaxy, he alone foresees the destructive path of the Jedi through uniting the Sith as one. Begin the journey that is Darth Bane through Drew Karpyshyn’s book one of a Del Rey Trilogy, Star Wars: Darth Bane: Path of Destruction. Path of Destruction is filled with ground breaking beginnings to further stories and legends. A must have book and trilogy for any Sith at heart.
    • 4/5
      Karpyshyn, the writer behind the scenario and dialogue of the excellent game Knights of the Old Republic, turns his hand to novel-writing in the Star Wars universe, and proves quite adept. He gives us the perspective of a man who has wholeheartedly turned to the dark side of the Force: how he got there and how he thinks. Darth Bane’s worldview fits together well enough that his perspective remains sympathetic even as he plumbs the depths of evil— perhaps because he eschews petty evil even as he makes plans with galactic scope. Karpyshyn weaves his tale into the Star Wars history by providing the origins of the thought bomb on Ruusan, but his tale stands well enough on its own that it’s just a side note in the story of a determined man’s progress from cortosis miner to Dark Lord of the Sith.