Title: Labyrinth of Evil
Author: James Luceno
Pages: 362
Type: Thriller
Time: 20 BBY

Novel quality
Here we are. James Luceno his second novel in the timeline. I really enjoyed his first one "Cloak of Deception" so I was looking forward to this one a lot. The novel is a true prequel to "Revenge of the Sith", it sets up the action in that novel perfectly. It even ties directly into it, which makes it all feel like one big story. What exactly is the story about hen? After an attack on Cato Neimoidia Anakin and Obi-Wan discover a mechno-chair that belongs to Nute Gunray. Stored in this chair is a communication the cowardly Neimoidian has received from Darth Sidious. This reveals the fact that Dooku is indeed the apprentice and not the master and that Darth Sidious is the one the Jedi should be looking for. From this point on the novel becomes the story of the search for Sidious. Step by step the Jedi get closer to the Sith Lord and they even manage to trace his steps to 500 Republica, revealing that he indeed may be in control of thousands of senators, just as Count Dooku had said against Obi-Wan right before the start of the Clone Wars. Sidious however is still very much in control of the situation and makes sure that the Jedi don't find out about his true identity. The strike on Coruscant, the one we jump into at the beginning of ROTS, comes just in time to make the Jedi change their priorities and leave the search for Sidious to defend Coruscant. You could say that it is a very straightforward and somewhat predictable storyline, and you would be right. But this doesn't prevent the novel from being truly great and interesting. There are tons of new details revealed and the extra depth to some of the leading characters that is created in the story makes this a joy to read. Take the Anakin/Obi-Wan relationship for example. Many people were complaining that they didn't seem like friends at all and that Obi-Wan lied when he said: "...and he was a good friend." in ANH. This novel shows us that this is not at all the case, they really work together as a team and we clearly see the bond the two men share. Other great examples of character enrichment are Dooku, Grievous, Sidious, Windu and Yoda. They all get some extra attention and it makes all of them feel a lot more "real" in ROTS than they did before. What this novel does is make ROTS exponentially better than it was before; everything just feels better and more logical. The only thing that made me think a bit was the fact that the novel is "merely" a tie in to ROTS. The story doesn't really end here; it isn't finished by the end of the novel. However much I dislike it, it is a thing that should (and will) be included in my rating. Still nobody with even a faint feeling of love for Star Wars should miss this novel, it provides a great deal of very interesting information and it will make your experience of ROTS even better than it was before. I really feel that "Labyrinth of Evil" and "Return of the Sith" should be read back to back. Only then will you appreciate fully how great they are together. This novel is in one word: outstanding!
Rating: 92/100

Personal tilt
Sigh... This novel really was a joy to read. Once more Mr. Luceno delivers a great story and shows us how to write a tie in to a movie or follow-up novel. The web of intrigue that Sidious has created knows virtually no bounds and his brilliance is something that can only be respected. The novel also makes you kind of sad, the darkness is creeping over the galaxy step by step and you can already feel the impending disaster. The best moment for me was when Yoda feels Sidious on Coruscant for the first time. It is only a very short piece of text but somehow it nailed the entire feeling of the novel for me. Slowly but certainly the shadow is appearing from the dark and all the Jedi can do is watch helplessly as it steps out into the light and sets events into motion that will seal the fate of the entire galaxy. I could go on about the greatness of this novel for a long time, but I will just leave you with the following message: "Buy this novel!" Oh and please, Mr. Luceno, keep on writing novels. Reading them makes me very happy.
Rating: 92/100


Overall Rating: 92.0/100

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For an overview of al reviews and a ranking see my Book review summary