Star Wars: The Last Jedi - 10 Great (Canon) Books To Read While You Wait
1. Dark Disciple
Despite its rocky start, 2008's Clone Wars series ended up turning into one of the finer adaptations of the Star Wars license, exceeding the quality of the Prequel Trilogy by a large margin and leaving behind a devoted fan following in the process.
The show was cancelled before it was given the opportunity to wrap things up fully. Which, while indeed a massive shame, allowed for Christie Golden to swoop in and adapt one of the series' many unaired scripts; one that featured political intrigue, assassinations, and Asajj Ventress herself.
Dark Disciple works so well because it takes a completely different approach to its appraisal of the Jedi Order, depicting what could even be considered the Order's lowest moment, where the council - seemingly embracing the cynicism of the era - orchestrate the assassination of Count Dooku. Tasked with the deed is Quinlan Voss, a favourite of Legends lore and a character that the animated series only devoted minimal screen-time to. Supervised by Obi-Wan and equipped with a plan to manipulate Ventress' grudge against Dooku to the Republic's benefit, Voss embarks on a journey that completely transforms the character by the book's end, forcing him to reassess his impressions of the Jedi Order and his actual commitment to it as well.
Ventress is by far the book's greatest triumph however; Christie Golden (the upcoming author of the Inferno Squad tie-in to Battlefront II) finds a voice for the character that embodies both the whit and cynicism that made her so enjoyable in the Clone Wars series, and seeing her delve deep into the former apprentice's motivations adds a whole new dimension to the former Sith Lord. It makes for a brilliant read, and provides closure for the series in a manner that exuded its atmosphere perfectly.
Golden paints the decline of the Jedi Order with all the subtle inflections that such a topic necessitates, and does it all whilst providing the perfect ending to one of the series' finest supporting roles. It is for that reason, among many others, that Dark Disciple triumphs.
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Are you excited for The Last Jedi? Have you read any of the new novels to have released so far? Let us know in the comments below!