Reviews

Pretty good if you're a Maul lover. Loved seeing some characteristics of Maul's servitude and his thought process being displayed under such intense pressure. It gives a lot of context to Maul's headspace before and perhaps even after Phantom Menace. There is no real direct correlation between the two, though, it's its own standalone adventure.

Maul wants to survive above all else; Maul wants to touch the Dark Side for more than just its power to dominate, unlike his teacher.

That being said, the prose is bad, the print design is atrocious, and generally it's all a bit lackluster. Everything and the kitchen sink happens all at once and the book pulls you toward different plot points in the most heart-gripping moments--totally breaking your flow. Not to mention that whatever is brought up is not kneaded to its full potential. It's there for shock factor.

AND GOD, the fact that the enemy at the very end is a Chiss makes sense because of the species' logic and cunning, but also it just feels like fan service and fluff. Radique gets killed *snaps fingers* like that. We never really learned anything about him, and I really think the slot could've been filled by something more fitting. Something so mundane that can easily lead you back to the realization the answer has been right in front of you from the very beginning. But alas.

For a book centered around Maul, there's a surprising lack of real introspection. Schreiber could've definitely dug deeper, though I also understand perhaps the limitations of releasing this considering established canon. AND YET, Clone Wars was already long released at this point AND this is Legends territory.

cyris_reads's review

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

librarimans's review

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4.0

This was a fun read. I've always liked Darth Maul as a character, so it was interesting to follow one of his adventures prior to the Phantom Menace. Sequentially this follows the Darth Plagueis book that was released in 2012.

knp4597's review against another edition

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adventurous dark fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

jjsearle's review

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adventurous dark fast-paced

4.5

rms25's review

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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