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Star Wars: Labyrinth of Evil
Audible Audiobook
– Abridged
The war that erupted in Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones is nearing its boiling point. The dauntless Separatist forces continue their assault on the teetering Republic as the diabolical triumvirate of Count Dooku, General Grievous, and their Master, Darth Sidious, fine-tune their strategy for conquest. In Episode III Revenge of the Sith the fates of key players on both sides of the conflict will be sealed. But first, crucial events that pave the way to that time of reckoning unfold in a labyrinth of evil.
Capturing Trade Federation Viceroy and Separatist Councilmember Nute Gunray is the mission that brings Jedi Knights Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker, with a squad of clones in tow, to Neimoidia. Their daring efforts yield an unexpected prize: a unique holotransceiver that bears intelligence capable of leading the Republic forces to their ultimate quarry, the ever-elusive Darth Sidious.
Swiftly taking up the chase, Anakin and Obi-Wan follow clues from the droid factories of Charros IV to the far-flung worlds of the Outer Rim...every step bringing them closer to pinpointing the location of the Sith Lord, whom they suspect has been manipulating every aspect of the Separatist rebellion.
Then the trail takes a shocking turn. For Sidious and his minions have set in motion a ruthlessly orchestrated campaign to divide and overwhelm the Jedi forces and bring the Republic to its knees.
- Listening Length5 hours and 1 minute
- Audible release dateJanuary 23, 2007
- LanguageEnglish
- ASINB000NJXFA0
- VersionAbridged
- Program TypeAudiobook
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Product details
Listening Length | 5 hours and 1 minute |
---|---|
Author | James Luceno |
Narrator | Jonathan Davis |
Audible.com Release Date | January 23, 2007 |
Publisher | Random House Audio |
Program Type | Audiobook |
Version | Abridged |
Language | English |
ASIN | B000NJXFA0 |
Best Sellers Rank | #12,005 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals) #319 in TV, Movie & Game Tie-In Fiction #324 in Space Opera Science Fiction (Audible Books & Originals) #501 in Adventure Science Fiction |
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the book well-written and perfectly captures the characters and essence of the saga. Opinions are mixed on the story, with some finding it interesting and backfilling information, while others feel it slowed down at the end.
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Customers find the questioning in the book interesting and provide back-fill information on some of the characters.
"...There is so much depth to this story and it answers quite a few questions that lead up to Episode III, a novelization that was also excellent...." Read more
"...It gives some interesting background on General Grievous and flushes his character and motivations out more...." Read more
"...This really helps with understanding what takes place in the movies and the relationships and inner thoughts of the main characters...." Read more
"...The story has some interesting points and some back fill of information on some of the characters...." Read more
Customers find the writing style well written and light. They also recommend the book to Star Wars fans.
"...With detailed writing and a plot with many twist and turns, it allows the reader to feel immersed into the world set up by Luceno...." Read more
"...Overall its a nice light read and I'd recommend it to Star Wars fans who want a nice taste of Pre-Disney era Star Wars." Read more
"This book is well written and it help piece together any plot holes in the movie, but it is inconsistent with the 2003 Clone Wars show...." Read more
"Good prequel to Episode 3. Short chapters make it an easy read. Follows multiple characters." Read more
Customers find the storytelling in the book perfect, capturing the characters and essence of the saga. They also say it shows the mastery of James Luceno and is brilliant.
"...of the Force, a number of twists and turns, this book shows the mastery of James Luceno. No one writes Republic politics better...." Read more
"...Dooku is presented in a interesting light. He's brilliant, he's lethal and considers himself to be far superior to Maul and Grievous...." Read more
"...Short chapters make it an easy read. Follows multiple characters." Read more
Customers have mixed opinions about the story. Some find it interesting and suspenseful, while others say it slowed down at the end. They also say it's not a good stand-alone story, but rather an effective bridge between the two.
"...With detailed writing and a plot with many twist and turns, it allows the reader to feel immersed into the world set up by Luceno...." Read more
"...Labyrinth of Evil still gives a very good, interesting alternative narrative...." Read more
"...There is so much depth to this story and it answers quite a few questions that lead up to Episode III, a novelization that was also excellent...." Read more
"...The book is a dazzling combination of intense action scenes and deeply emotional little scenes that rush without lagging to the end which is the..." Read more
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It’s placement on the Star Wars timeline is right before Revenge of the Sith and tells the story of the Jedi beginning to unravel the dark shroud that lies behind the Clone Wars. It begins with an assault on Canto Nemoida where the Jedi duo Anakin and Obi-Wan attempt to apprehend Nute Gunray. As they press into the inner sanctum of Gunray’s bunker, they catch Gunray off guard and force him to rush his escape, leaving his chair with a special holotransciever used to communicate with Sidious. Upon finding the chair, the Jedi attempt decrypting the transceiver which allows them to stumbling across the afterimage of Darth Sidious. This begins a chase to find the Sith Lord that leads to a desturbing revelation about the Republic and the war.
I would highly recommend this book to those who enjoyed the prequel era of Star Wars. With detailed writing and a plot with many twist and turns, it allows the reader to feel immersed into the world set up by Luceno. At times, it almost feels like discovering the mechanations of the Clone Wars for the first time.
My only issue I have with this story is that it doesn’t tie too well with earlier expanded universe material like the Clone Wars micro-series. It references aspects of it, but doesn’t tell the story the same. It’s a minor issue, so it doesn’t detract from the excellent narrative.
Revenge of the Sith starts in the middle of a gigantic space battle over Coruscant. The opening crawl summarizes why we are there and what has gone before, but there was so much story the movie didn't have time to cover. That's where Labyrinth of Evil comes in, letting us spend time with Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker at the height of their friendship and their powers, before it all goes bad. After spending very little time with this duo during the Clone Wars books, it's almost a relief to get back to focusing on them and the other main film characters. This focus also makes the book very accessible, even to a casual Star Wars fan.
On the flip side, Luceno makes a grand effort to weave in tasty tidbits of the EU throughout the tale, so dedicated fans will not be disappointed. The comics, books, and cartoons all get their due at various points, and he reaches way back to before The Phantom Menace to pull together what feels like the last step before we pitch over the cliff and fall into the Dark Times.
The book starts with a long chase/action sequence on Cato Neimoidia, a planet we glimpsed during the Order 66 montage in Sith. This is an excellent example of how this book expands the scope of Episode III and kicks off some of the major plot threads of the film. Why did Darth Sidious choose that particular time to set his final plans in motion with the Separatist invasion of Coruscant? That question is abundantly answered in Labyrinth of Evil, and in a chilling scene, Intelligence officer Dyne gets to learn the full truth of exactly how high in the government the Sith influence goes. Good stuff.
This book also works to put to bed some lingering questions from Attack of the Clones. The tale of Sifo-Dyas and his friendship with Count Dooku is sketched out by Yoda, although I would have liked more substance here. The mystery of who erased Kamino from the Jedi Archives is also answered.
There is another source to examine in discovering what happened right before Episode III, and that's the superb Clone Wars cartoon. It tells a very similar story of the Separatist kidnapping of Chancellor Palpatine, although it differs in some key details. On the other hand, the book gives us an adventure with Anakin and Obi-Wan totally distinct from their trip to Nelvaan in the cartoon. Rather than try to forcibly reconcile the differences between the two, my inclination is to celebrate having both available and choosing which to consider your personal canon. In mythology, stories generally have the same nugget of truth at their core but can differ sharply in the surrounding details. If we're to buy into George Lucas' explanation of Star Wars as a modern-day myth, perhaps this phenomenon of two similar yet distinct stories is a manifestation of that identity.
The real strength of James Luceno in this galaxy far, far away is his ability to write a book that feels like a Star Wars film. Just like Cloak of Deception sets up The Phantom Menace so perfectly, exploring exactly the places that more insight was needed, Labyrinth of Evil fits hand-in-glove with Revenge of the Sith. I had more flat-out fun reading it than any book to date in my chronological journey through the Expanded Universe.
Indeed, Labyrinth of Evil by James Luceno is a novel that depicts the events that immediately precede those seen in Episode III. Therefore the novel deals with the last weeks, days and even hours leading to that climax: we get to see how the Sith's plot to take over the galaxy finally comes to fruition, as the Jedi walk into a giant, centuries in the making "pincer move" that is forever going to change the face of that galaxy far, far away. And while it may seem a pointless thing to chronicle (since we all knew how it was going to end, even before the release of Episode III), Luceno actually manages to pull off a very entertaining, engaging book. The book was written in close collaboration with Lucasfilm and Matthew Stover (author of the novelization of Episode III) in order to have them mesh seamlessly.
The action starts in Cato Nemodia, home to the dastardly Nute Gunray (and other leaders of the Trade Federation), where Anakin Skywalker, now a fully fledged Jedi Knight, joins his former master Obi-Wan Kenobi with the objective of bringing Gunray and his entourage to justice. But instead of that, they come up with something potentially more valuable: clues as to the whereabouts and identity of the mysterious Sith mastermind, Darth Sidious.
From there, we are taken for a galaxy-wide ride, a race against time, with the Jedi trying desperately to uncover their insidious enemy, and the Sith's relentless drive to rule the galaxy. The novel (re)introduces all the major characters that we saw in Episode II and all those who will be seen in Episode III, in addition to a plethora of minor characters that play small, yet critical roles in this galaxy-spanning game of (holo)chess. The action is abundant, from deep space battles to melee skirmishes, and on to the greater conflict between the light and the dark sides of the Force.
Luceno's style of writing is pretty "graphic", if I may say so, meaning that he relies more on creating pictures of the characters rather than telling us word by word what they're thinking. He often lets a lot up to the reader to interpret from the "body language" that he endows the characters with. I've read some other comments stating that, because he has to introduce a lot of new locations, characters, alien species and/or vehicles, he spends a lot of time describing such things to the detriment of plot/character development, but I honestly don't agree with that; take his description of the new Republic ARC-170 starfighter for example: it is accurate enough for the reader to get a good impression of what the ship looks like without being too long, but it also leaves room for interpretation without being too succinct, a good balance all in all.
Another observation made about the novel is that, by making references to other Clone Wars novels (Dark Rendezvous, Cestus Deception, Shatterpoint,etc), comics (Republic) and even the Cartoon Network animated Clone Wars, it sometimes looses focus and confuses the reader with a bunch of bits that they might not be familiar with. Being a MAJOR Star Wars fans myself, I was familiarized with 95% of the references made and I enjoyed them a lot, but I guess I can actually see how they can be bit confusing for the casual fan. But let me ask you this: when you first saw Episode IV, did it really matter to you not knowing which planet Princess Leia was from? That information WAS NOT in the opening crawl for the movie, and yet we enjoyed it, didn't we? Well, I truly believe that the same can be said about these references: they don't get in the way, they just add, and if you're a dedicated fan you'll be delighted, as they are a real treat.
And as mentioned before, there's one more reason for Star Wars fans to pick this one up: the loose ends. This novel actually DOES tie a fair share of those, which I'm sure caused a lot a sleepless nights to a whole lot of people (LOL). What am I talking about? Naaah, I'm not gonna ruin it for ya, you're gonna have to read it, mates!!! You wouldn't want me to spoil them now, would you? And I wouldn't want to, either, anymore than I would have liked to reveal that Chewie was Luke's father BEFORE Episode V. (Uh, wait...is that how it goes...?)
And while I really enjoyed reading the book (and it didn't take long for me to finish it), there is one tiny little thing that left me wondering: the ending of the book. Chill, I'm not gonna ruin it, either, but let me say this: up until that point, Luceno had managed to perfectly balance the story he wanted to tell with the information about the Clone Wars from the other sources, including the Cartoon Network mini-series. But here, we find an almost totally different take on it, with the end result of two conflicting versions of the events. Some may argue that they are not entirely dissimilar, but the fact remains that they are different enough from each other to create a conflict. There are things about both interpretations (the one of the novel, the one of the mini-series) that I like, but in the end, I guess I'll stick with the mini-series' as the "canon" one.
Ultimately, I think that this is a book that can be enjoyed even by casual Star Wars fans, but I think that its true appeal will be fully appreciated by diehards, mostly. So there you go, if you're interested in going a little deeper than the movies, this is a great place to start and, in conjunction with the Episode III novelization and Luceno's next Star Wars book, Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader, makes for a compelling, truly enjoyable read.
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Reviewed in Spain on January 19, 2023
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Per quanto riguarda il libro, sono rimasta un po' delusa. Era da quasi 10 anni che volevo leggerlo, principlamente perché ne ho sentito parlare piuttosto bene, ma ho diverse critiche da muovere all'autore.
Due parole sul contesto: il libro si colloca nel periodo appena precedente ad Episodio III. In effetti, la fine coincide con l'inizio del film. Il libro segue grossomodo tre filoni narrativi diversi: abbiamo Obi-Wan e Anakin, impegnati in missioni e battaglie; Grievous e Dooku complottano e pianificano, ignari di cosa Darth Sidious ha effettivamente in serbo per loro; Windu, Shaak Ti e altri personaggi di supporto sono a Coruscant per indagare sul sopraccitato signore dei Sith, di cui hanno finalmente rinvenuto qualche traccia.
Partiamo da quello che mi è piaciuto. La trama è molto interessante: ammettiamo pure che il periodo facilita il compito, in questo senso, ma in ogni caso l'intreccio è ben gestito. Ci sono, poi, dei dettagli davvero notevoli, senza contare che finalmente scopriamo cos'è successo su Cato Nemoidia (vale per coloro che ancora considerano l'UE parte del canon, chiaramente, perché Labyrinth of Evil NON fa parte del materiale che la Disney ha conservato).
Passando ai lati negativi, l'approfondimento dei personaggi (o almeno molti di loro: Grievous, per esempio, mi ha colpito) mi è sembrato un po' trascurato, a tratti persino superficiale e scontato. Lo stile non mi fa impazzire: pesantuccio e con parecchi spiegoni (show, don't tell, gente, show, don't tell). Mi capita davvero di rado di sentire la mancanza dei dialoghi quando leggo, di solito ne critico la quantità troppo elevata, ma in numerosissimi punti di questo libro se ne sente la mancanza.
Non so, mi sarebbe tanto piaciuto che la storia contenuta in Labyrinth of Evil fosse stata raccontata da Matt Stover. James Luceno è un autore stimato e sicuramente leggerò altro di suo, ma per ora non mi ha fatto un'ottima impressione.
Non è stata una lettura nel complesso sgradevole, però non sono sicura che consiglierei questo libro a molte persone: la trama è stata decanonizzata e non ritengo che il feedback emotivo sia rilevante. Ci sono molti romanzi di SW parecchio più intensi e/o emozionanti di questo, sia nell'UE, o Legends che dir si voglia, che nell'attuale canon.
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