Reviewed by ladygrey on
Then the balance really shifted in the second act and it wasn't my favorite. Ventress dominated and Vos went from confident - I can handle anything charm to Padawan looking for direction. It wasn't a great shift.. Plus I didn't like where it was going. Or where it went. I would have liked it with a little more details. Like the whole knife's edge - how and why. And how. But it was bearable because there was still hope the characters would be able to step back from this precipice of tragedy.
Or not. The third act seemed rushed and lacking in the depth of the earlier chapters. I understand why -because you can't look too closely at the emotions and thoughts of a man lying to himself without tipping your hand. But it was less fun to read.
Partly, because just as it was turning to the third act, I remembered the movies and how things did (and did not) play out. So, I was curious where it was going to go - since I knew where it wasn't going to end up. If that makes sense.
I will say that it did a very good job of showing a Jedi's descent to the dark side - the allure of power and the reasoning and the slide into darkness. Much better than Revenge of the Sith.
And there was an element of tragedy in a fun character being destroyed by the dark side. Because even after he found his way back, he wasn't the same. Which was sad.
One thing it made me think, apart from the book but just about Star Wars lore is why are there only two options? The stories insist that turning away from being a Jedi (with all the rules and sacrifice) leads to anger and hate? Ventress pushes him to the dark side. Because of the whole Dooku mission. But without that - what would have been so terrible about letting the Jedi restrictions go and falling in love and wielding the light side of the Force? Why couldn't you just be a person who wields the light side of the Force and also falls in love and has a family and enjoys life?