The Dark Lord Trilogy: Star Wars Legends: Labyrinth of Evil Revenge of the Sith Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader

I'll start by saying this: if you're not a big Star wars fan, not necessarily "hardcore" but just a avid fan, you might want to skip this. If you've dabbled in reading Star Wars books (EU to those in the know) the this is a must have. Like The Clone Wars is currently doing to bridge Episode's II and III this trilogy perfectly satisfies any hunger Star Wars fans have after watching Episode III and deserves a spot on your shelf. Labyrinth of Evil - 4/5 This is the prequel, if you will, to Episode III as it details the events prior to and leading up to the film. Anakin and Obi-Wan are fighting with their clones on the Outer Rim and must travel to Cato Nemodia to try and capture the slippery and elusive Trade Federation Viceroy Nute Gunray. The Clone War has already been raging for sometime at the start of this novel and for those who haven't seen the TV series this is great insight on the war we didn't' see in the films. While nearly capturing Nute Gunray, Anakin and Obi-Wan almost find out and capture the even more elusive and mysterious Darth Sidious. It's a great read and beautifully leads into Revenge of the Sith, whether you read the novel or see the movie. Revenge of the Sith - 5/5 Like all novelizations of Star Wars films, the books are even better than the movies. Not that Revenge of the Sith was by any means the worst of the prequels (here's looking at you Episode II) but where the movie simply couldn't elaborate the novelization does brilliantly. If anything it serves as a helpful supplement to the film, as Matthew Stover pumps a different kind of empathy into the novel. Each segment starts out with a solemn poem that accurately describes both the following segment and the overall tone and mood of the story. The elaboration is key however and to get a grasp of how in-depth Stover gets here's an example: the beginning of the film sees Anakin and Obi-Wan flying to Grievous' main cruiser, an sequence that takes at the most 15 minutes. That should equate to 15 pages (a minute for every page of action). However it takes Stover nearly 100 pages to guide us to the two Jedi landing in the docking bay of Grievous' cruiser. It's worth the price of the trilogy alone to get this book and it fits perfectly as both a transition to Episode IV and the middle piece of this trilogy. Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader - 4/5 Another brilliant book that works both as a stand alone and the final act of this trilogy. We've seen Anakin begin to turn, and then eventually turn but ROTS only spends mere moments (more in-depth moments in the novel) with Anakin as Darth Vader. Here we get Vader's first mission in the suit. After being horribly mutilated on Mustafar, Anakin -- now Darth Vader-- must learn to not only deal with what he's become but carry out the tasks of the Empire. This novel serves as an even more solid transition into the action of A New Hope as we not only have Vader first becoming the dark, twisted demon that he is but we have the first reminisce of what will become the Rebel Alliance. There is a large portion of the book that takes place on Alderaan and even suggests that Padme didn't die and is living in hiding to mentor Leia (who makes a significant appearance as a plot device). Basically this serves as a two parter as we have Vader coming into the Sith Lord we all know form the movies and the last of the Jedi trying to sort things out as they are in absolute chaos after the Purge. It's a truly entertaining story, one that I sill think about reading for the first time -- it just sticks with you. OVERALL: Again, if you are a Star Wars nerd get this book. It's a must own and is a significant and entertaining part of the chronology of the saga. If you're not a hardcore fanboy but simply want to know more about what happened before and after Revenge of the Sith this is an excellent buy that won't let you down at all. Both of these writers have turned out entertaining books in the past and thus have a track record of great Star Wars novels. Stover has dabbled in Clone Wars stories before there was a huge interest in it so he has helped establish a lot of the continuity. Luceno penned the Darth Maul prequel "Shadow Hunter" which lead into The Phantom Menace so he knows how to write a lead in novel and make it work as a stand alone and not a tie in. Trust me, you don't have to be hardcore to like this trilogy, after all it deals with the Saga's main character and it's most interesting and infamous. You won't be sorry you got this and you'll have trouble putting it down.

The Dark Lord Trilogy is a great trilogy of Star Wars literature. Labyrinth of Evil gives a great explanation as to why General Grievous is cruel and cold-blooded to Jedi. In fact, this novel within The Dark Lord Trilogy should have made Revenge of The Sith a two-part film since to really understand what happened before ROTS, you have to read Labyrinth of Evil and watch Star Wars: The Clone Wars (and Attack of The Clones if you haven't already watched it). The Revenge of The Sith novel, while being somewhat different from the film, provides more context and detail to the downfall of the Jedi Order and Anakin Skywalker's fall to the dark side. Not only that, but the novel also takes a different approach to Anakin falling to the Dark Side. Rather than becoming Darth Vader due to the Jedi Order failing him, he became Darth Vader because of his hubris and lust for power. He was possessive and arrogant, and force choked Padme for a different reason rather than assuming the worst when Obi-Wan comes out of his hiding spot on Padme's ship. Anakin even cracks some cold yet satisfying jokes as he's slaughtering the Separatists. I haven't read The Rise of Darth Vader yet though. I absolutely recommend this book to Star Wars fans and anyone who is interested in Star Wars in general. This is the Star Wars lore we needed, this is the ROTS we needed, and I wish an alternate version of the ROTS film was made using the ROTS novel.

This omnibus of three Star Wars novels are a must-read, with all technically considered part of the EU: "Labyrinth of Evil", "Revenge of the Sith", and "Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader". The fist book is a thrilling mystery/chase where Obi-Wan and Anakin, in the Unknown Regions go after a trail that might lead them to the identity of Darth Sidious. Unrest is on Coruscant, Grievous gets some cool backstory, and Palpatine is Palpatine. The second book is the novelization of Episode III and it is simply jaw-droppingly amazing! Absolutely amazing! A must-read that enriches the story we see in the film and makes it 10 times more tragic!!! Anakin's fall to the dark side also makes more sense by the sequence of events and his inner turmoil that we see in these pages. The final book takes place right after Episode III and features Vader's early days in service of the Empire, though he is mostly in the background, with the focus being on two Jedi who survive order 66 and are on the run. Great adventure here too!

Un buon libro, anche se l'inglese non è elementare.

Being a Star Wars AND Vader fan, I can say that this book is amazing, finally the 3 epic stories of Anakin turning Vader told in one book and for it's price it is a steal. If you don't know any of these stories don't wait and buy this book! Eventho two are legends now they are still great and the book of Episode 3 is a definitive read that any fans should do.

Le marché des éditions des livres Star Wars étant ce qu'il est ( pas de réédition prévue et certain volume épuisé qui font monté le marché de l'occasion ), je me suis rabattu sur les éditions originales. Outre le prix attractif, on a une Edition dans un format supérieur à 20 cm qui donne un vrai confort de lecture, le papier est de moyenne qualité comme souvent dans les éditions étrangères. Au niveau des 3 livres rassemblés, il y a la novélisation de la revanche des Siths mais surtout les 2 livres de James Luceno ( layrinth of evil et dark lord : the rise of darth vador) qui sont ceux qui nous intéresse le plus car ils apportent beaucoup d'informations sur la période pré Star Wars. Le niveau d'anglais est abordable pour ceux qui on l'habitude de lire des ouvrages contemporain anglais.

Brilliant trilogy if you love Star Wars and darth Vader be prepared to be taken into deeper look into his life

This is the best book I've read in a while. The parts are set before revenge of the sith, during revenge of the sith (obviously) and after revenge of the sith. The only negative I can think of is that the book arrived slightly damaged and it genuinely looks old and used. :/