First off, Happy New Year Everyone!

I picked up a copy of Darth Bane: Rule of Two the day after Christmas. I finished it last weekend. Here is my review (***MINOR SPOILERS PAST THIS POINT***):

Rule of Two picks up where Path of Destruction left off. Bane has tricked the Brotherhood of the Sith into unleashing the thought bomb and destroying the Sith Order. As the lone remaining Sith, Bane has taken the title Darth Bane and a new apprentice--a young girl named Zannah. Darth Bane sets out to re-establish the Sith Order and implements the Rule of Two: There shall only be two Sith. One to hold power and the other to crave it. When the Apprentice has learned all that her master can teach her, she shall challenge her master for supremacy, and if successful, take on apprentice of her own. In the fashion, the legacy of the Sith is to be passed on through the generations until the Sith are ready to destroy the Jedi.

There are three primary stories in Rule of Two. First, Bane travels to the moon Dxun to discover an ancient Sith temple, inside of which he believes to be the lost Sith Holocron of ancient Sith secrets. Second, Darth Zannah develops and comes into her own powers. Along the way, she comes to understand Bane's teachings and contemplates exactly what her role in the new Sith Order will be. Then, the former padawan of General Hoth, unconvinced that the Sith were exterminated at Ruusan, attempts to track down and destroy the Sith lords that he believes still threaten the galaxy.

The novel provides some great insight into the Rule of Two and the philosophy of the Sith. Darth Bane regularly tests his apprentice and points out her failures and successes. The discovery of ancient Sith knowledge also provides more clues as to the philosophy of the dark side. The relationship between Bane and Zannah is one of the highlights of the book, especially in the first half.

In addition to providing valuable information into the Sith Order, Rule of Two provides a fair amount of history for the Jedi and the Republic. Prior to Rule of Two, I was unaware that the post of Supreme Chancellor had primarily been held by Jedi. Then the Ruusan Reformation changed all of that and converted the Jedi from being politicians and bureaucrats from the Republic into being its protectors.

Although the title of the book suggests that Darth Bane is the central character of the novel, I felt that Darth Zannah was more of a key figure. She is featured in many chapters. It is frequently her perspective that dominates some of the more important scenes of the novel as well. I hope that Drew Karpyshyn gets the opportunity to write a third novel in this series that details Zannah's rise and eventual succession as the Lord of the Sith.

The only complaint I have about the novel is that there was a continuity error. There is a Chiss character that appeas about midway through the novel. The overall role of this character is not major, so its inclusion is not that big a deal, but at this point in the Star Wars chronology, the Chiss were not supposed to be integrated into the known galaxy. Most denizens of the Star Wars galaxy wouldn't have known what one was either. Its not a major flaw, but there it is.

Overall, I believe the novel deserves high praise. Karpyshyn has woven an excellent tale of the Sith and the Dark Side. The action moves quickly, and the story and characters develop throughout. Although I had some idea of how the novel would end, given my previous knowledge of Darth Bane, I was still pleasantly surprised with the manner in which Karpyshyn resolved the plot. In my opinion, he is beginning to establish himself as an excellent author in the Star War universe. I hope he has the opportunity to continue his series on the legacy of the Sith Lords. If not, I hope he at least gets the opportunity to pen other novels set in the galaxy far, far, away.