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Rule of Two (Star Wars: Darth Bane, Book 2) [Mass Market Paperback]

Drew Karpyshyn
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (140 customer reviews)

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Book Description

October 28, 2008
In the New York Times bestseller Darth Bane: Path of Destruction, Drew Karpyshyn painted a gripping portrait of a young man’s journey from innocence to evil. That man was Darth Bane, a twisted genius whose iron will, fierce ambition, and strength in the dark side of the Force made him a natural leader among the Sith–until his radical embrace of an all-but-forgotten wisdom drove him to destroy his own order . . . and create it anew from the ashes. As the last surviving Sith, Darth Bane promulgated a harsh new directive: the Rule of Two.

Two there should be; no more, no less.
One to embody the power, the other to crave it.

Now Darth Bane is ready to put his policy into action, and he thinks he has found the key element that will make his triumph complete: a student to train in the ways of the dark side. Though she is young, Zannah possesses an instinctive link to the dark side that rivals his own. With his guidance, she will become essential in his quest to destroy the Jedi and dominate the galaxy.

But there is one who is determined to stop Darth Bane: Johun Othone, Padawan to Jedi Master Lord Hoth, who died at Bane’s hands in the last great Sith War. Though the rest of the Jedi scoff at him, Joshua’s belief that there are surviving Sith on the loose is unshakeable.

As Johun continues his dogged pursuit of the man who killed his master, Zannah, faced unexpectedly with a figure from her past, begins to question her embrace of the dark side. And Darth Bane is led by Force-induced visions to a moon where he will acquire astonishing new knowledge and power–power that will alter him in ways he could never have imagined. . . .

Frequently Bought Together

Rule of Two (Star Wars: Darth Bane, Book 2) + Dynasty of Evil (Star Wars: Darth Bane, Book 3) + Path of Destruction (Star Wars: Darth Bane, Book 1)
Price for all three: $21.57

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Brilliant" SFX Magazine --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Drew Karpyshyn is the New York Times bestselling author of Star Wars: Darth Bane: Path of Destruction and Mass Effect: Revelation, as well as several other fantasy and science fiction novels. He is also an award-winning writer/designer for the computer game company BioWare, where he was lead writer on Mass Effect and the blockbuster Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic video game. He lives in Canada’s hinterlands with his wife, Jen, and their cat.

Product Details

  • Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
  • Publisher: LucasBooks; Reprint edition (October 28, 2008)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0345477499
  • ISBN-13: 978-0345477491
  • Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 0.9 x 6.9 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 9.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (140 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #11,645 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Drew Karpyshyn is the New York Times bestselling author of Star Wars: Darth Bane: Rule of Two, Star Wars: Darth Bane: Path of Destruction, and the Mass Effect novels Revelation and Ascension, as well as several other fantasy and science fiction novels. He is also an award-winning writer/designer for the computer game company BioWare, where he was lead writer on Mass Effect and the blockbuster Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic video game. He lives in Canada's hinterlands with his wife, Jen, and their cat.

Customer Reviews

Drews writing style tells this story better then any other author I can think of. Greg Lunsford  |  13 reviewers made a similar statement
It lacks the story and character development of the first book. Michael Carrier  |  7 reviewers made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
22 of 25 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars A good read; leaves me anxious for a third Bane novel February 1, 2008
Format:Hardcover
The second Star Wars novel by Drew Karpyshyn set in the Old Republic, Darth Bane: Rule of Two picks up immediately after the climactic events of the first book Darth Bane: Path of Destruction. The detonation of former Sith leader Lord Kaan's thought bomb has devastated the Jedi and Sith remaining on the planet of Ruusan. Darth Bane has survived and has just chosen a new apprentice, a girl named Rain who has recently killed two Jedi in a fit of rage. Her cousin Tomcat, who was brought to Ruusan with her originally to help the Jedi war effort, is also still around; turns out his Force powers were too weak for him to be greatly affected by the thought bomb.

These events were originally told in the Dark Horse comics series Jedi vs. Sith. In the first book, Karpyshyn retold part of that comic series, giving it a more realistic and grittier feeling (i.e., unlike the comics, Lord Valenthyne Farfalla wasn't literally a satyr in the novel and his ship, while described as like an ancient sailing vessel, still didn't sound as ridiculous as the actual imagery of it in Jedi vs. Sith was.) Apart from altering the feel of the comic series, though, Karpyshyn stayed largely faithful to its events. He completes the re-telling of the comics in Rule of Two, quickly sweeps in his own version of the older short story Bane of the Sith, and around one-third of the way into this novel finally has the opportunity to cleanly tell a brand new story of his own.

After some setup, the story takes a ten-year leap forward, so that Rain, now known as Darth Zannah, can become the young adult apprentice of Darth Bane and we can see how his plans for the new Sith Order of two individuals are progressing. Karpyshyn does not linger over Zannah's training; some is told in flashbacks but from those short sections, I believe he made a wise decision to jump forward. The few flashbacks he does include are powerful and give a potent sense of what Zannah's training has encompassed.

I find it interesting with Bane's character that as power-hungry as he clearly is, he is willing to sublimate his immediate desires for a longer-term view of building a Sith legacy. Instead of scheming to rule the galaxy a la Darth Sidious, Bane focuses on building holocrons, acquiring forgotten Sith lore, and training Zannah in the ways of the Sith. I'm unsure as to whether Palpatine represents the culmination of the order Bane was trying to build or not; he certainly metes out revenge to the Jedi Order, but Palpatine was consumed by his own power and ambition, showing little concern for empowering the Sith that should come after him.

Rule of Two may be the goriest and most violent Star Wars novel published to date. Telling a tale focused on a Sith Lord and his apprentice will naturally require a certain amount of this, but there are some scenes that may surprise readers who are used to the heroic tales of Luke Skywalker and his friends. The orbalisks covering Bane, taken from the Bane of the Sith short story, are a grotesque but fascinating concept, and Zannah's scheming to convince her master to remove them and the protection they grant is quite interesting.

The Jedi characters in this novel are a bit enigmatic. I felt there was a bit of an uneasy balance in trying to make Johun Othone into a fully-realized character while focusing on the story of Bane and Zannah. He and his allies acquire some distinguishing characteristics as the story progresses, but in the end Bane and Zannah are the memorable characters here.

The worlds featured in this novel are largely unused in other Expanded Universe stories and make a welcome change from the norm. The devastation on Ruusan underscores the impact of the Jedi and Sith battles waged there; we briefly visit Dxun and Onderon, introduced in the comic series Tales of the Jedi; there's a stop at Serenno, future home of Count Dooku; and there's a fascinating and intense sequence on Tython, a Deep Core world legendary for being the supposed birthplace of the Jedi Order.

My concern with Rule of Two is it feels like the middle novel in a trilogy. There is less resolution than I had hoped for, and while the characters evolve some, there's not nearly the progression that we saw in Bane in Path of Destruction. If Karpyshyn gets the chance to write a third Darth Bane novel, it may make me view this one a little more favorably as a transition; however, if this is the conclusion of Bane's saga, I had expected to learn more about him and the eventual handoff of his power to his successor. Rule of Two is an entertaining novel but I hope there is more to come.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars The Beginning of the (Jedi) End... January 2, 2008
By Kolya
Format:Hardcover
Having really enjoyed the first Darth Bane book, my eyes lit up at the sight of this book on the shelf and I knew exactly what I would be reading for the next couple days. I'd have to say that, as with even good sequels, this one contributed well to the continued story of this monumental Sith Lord, but wasn't quite as good as the first book. As always I enjoy when Star Wars books give you the author invented characters to interact with the established ones. In this case it is the previously unnamed Jedi Johun. Unlike past Star Wars books however there wasn't really much to his character and his involvement in the story was very minimal, but in this case I think it worked better to allow more story time for Bane and his apprentice. My one gripe was that I had hoped to see more about the next step in the Sith Order, the official "handing down" from Master to Apprentice and for the Apprentice to then become the Master...but I can see why they chose to end it where they did. The only thing I can say is that I hope they go with the Star Wars tradition and make this at the very least a trilogy.
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12 of 15 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars A solid continuation of the Darth Bane tale December 28, 2007
Format:Hardcover
Like most EU books of late, this is a quick read...but it is definitely enjoyable. The first Darth Bane book was one of the better EU books to come out in recent years, so I was hoping that this would follow suit. For the most part, it does.

Rule of Two continues the tale of Darth Bane and Zannah, starting mere hours after Path of Destruction's end. The book follows several different storylines, all of which come together in the last 50-60 pages with a great finale. The new characters are all well-developed and interesting, compared to some other recent EU books (e.g., Death Star).

On the negative, this definitely has the feel of being a bit rushed, as the author notes in his forward -- there were a few minor spelling and grammatical errors throughout. Additionally, some plot devices seemed contrived and repetitive (e.g., yet another Sith holocron).

Still, the characters continue to develop well, the action is exciting and fast-paced, and I look forward to a third book in this series.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars i was sent the wrong book.
when I got the book I didn't even realize it because it was the third book in the darth bane series, and it had the cover to this book over the cover of a completely different... Read more
Published 28 days ago by jerry b
5.0 out of 5 stars If you've read the first one stop reading the review! Do you know...
Drew Karpyshyn's writing is what you've come to expect from the Star Wars saga. All in all just a damn good lead up to the conclusion of this trilogy.
Published 1 month ago by Draco
4.0 out of 5 stars Good
If u like the dark side of the force u will enjoy this book. Shows how weak the Jedi are in this time period.
Published 1 month ago by Larry Bridwell
5.0 out of 5 stars I was not disappointed.
After reading this book, Darth Bane became my favorite Star Wars character ever. I loved Path of Destruction, and I loved this book. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Ran
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic
I love this whole series!Wonderfully written in every way and is a must read for any Star Wars fan out there.
Published 1 month ago by dplagueisthewise
4.0 out of 5 stars An Interesting Character Sketch.
Within the fullness of Star Wars, Darth Bane was important in establishing the Sith "Rule of Two. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Matthew M. Tobin
5.0 out of 5 stars great book
the darth bane series of books is really great. i read all three back to back and couldn't put them down.
Published 1 month ago by mjohns19
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent conclusion
This is the best book of the series. I was a little worried after the second book that they were going downhill, but this was a tremendous finish.
Published 2 months ago by ACZ
3.0 out of 5 stars Very slow read
This book took a real long time to get in to anything interesting. I struggled to get through the first 12 or so chapters, finally though it started getting exciting and turned... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Glenn A. Schneck Jr.
5.0 out of 5 stars Star Wars
I am a big fan of Star Wars Novels and I shop Amazon for the best deals. This was a great book!
Published 2 months ago by Thomas B McKee
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is your Darth Bane: Rule of Two missing pp161-209? Be the first to reply
*** SPOILER ALERT *** Question on the ending
probably just an oversight on the author's part, but the thing that annoyed me the most about the ending was, are the jedi idiot's? they just see tomcat, assume he's a sith, say 'well, case closed' and turn around and go home? it just absolutely makes no sense. they didn't search the area,... Read more
Mar 19, 2008 by L. Stephen Dowdy |  See all 8 posts
Darth Bane: Rule of Two for the Kindle?
There is a way to request it for the kindle and from what I hear it has been effective in the past. On the page for the book under the picture, there should be a "request this book to be made available on the kindle" or something like that.

I too am waiting for this book to be out on... Read more
Sep 4, 2008 by Christopher Teater |  See all 5 posts
Darth Bane. Other referances?
Not yet but keep an eye out for future book releases in the Star Wars universe. Odds are someone will publish a book about the further adventures of Darth Bane, Zannah and the people of the "Old Republic"
Jan 20, 2009 by Outlaw Star 5805 |  See all 2 posts
Darth Bane: Rule of Two
I'm pretty sure it takes off where Path of Destruction ended. It seems like the person previewing it here might not have had all the facts straight.
Oct 23, 2007 by Jared Ingham |  See all 5 posts
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