Review: Star Wars – Book of Sith – Secrets from the Dark Side / Author: Daniel Wallace/ Publisher: Titan / Release Date: April 17th
Darth Vader, Emperor Palpatine, Count Dooku – all names synonymous with the dark side of the Force that we know as the Sith. But where did it all begin? Well, for the first time what remains of a long history of texts (five volumes to be precise, all lost to time) is brought together in Book of Sith – Secrets from the Dark Side.
Book of Sith begins with a preface from Darth Sidious himself, honouring those before him and feeling that he will be the last. We are then guided through sections of Sith history, including the Hundred Year Darkness as well as the First Great Schism and the Reign of the Ax, followed by in-depth looks at Sith weapons, Warbeasts and methods of alchemy.
The anthology then jumps to the diary entries of the Sith Malgus and his experiences of the Rim Campaign, including the assaults on Ord Radama and its continuation onto Coruscant. Next, we are given extracts from The Rule Of Two, which acts as a training manual for new initiates to the Sith. We are then treated to some words of wisdom from Mother Talzin, before the book concludes with an essay on the nature of the Force and some closing remarks from Sidious once again.
Book of Sith is extremely imaginative in a number of ways. The switching from the narratives of Malgus and Mother Talzin, to instruction manual-type texts about how to train Sith initiates and the catalogue of resources that the Sith have at their disposal, really helps to bring the reader into the world of the Sith and in a number of ways builds up the mythology that fans across the world continue to cherish.
Additionally, the physical construction of the book contributes much to its charm. The paper is of different textures and shapes which gives one the feeling that the whole thing has been cobbled together, whilst the annotations that have been made by individuals such as Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker add to the mythology that the book tries to create.
Casual readers might possibly become a bit lost among all these layers of information, but Book of Sith is a must of Star Wars fans.
