Dooku: Jedi Lost

Star Wars is a franchise rich with great characters, but who to choose? It is tricky writing a cannon book on the likes of likes Han Solo or Rey lest you impinge on the films themselves. Thankfully, with such an abundance of history to choose from, there is always an interesting character to expand upon that won't destroy what is going to happen in The Rise of Skywalker. Take Darth Tyranus ne. Count Dooku, a character immortalised by the great Christopher Lee in the prequel trilogy. What made this Jedi Grandee turn to the Dark Side? There is a lot more to the man than just a classic lightsabre battle with Yoda.

As a young Jedi Apprentice, Dooku was always a leading light destined to be a great Knight and tipped to one day lead the Jedi Council, so how did he devolve into becoming Darth Tyranus? Like with so many drawn to the shadows it was never Dooku's intention to become evil. Dooku: Jedi Lost by Scott Cavan is the script taken from the audio production that aimed to explain the fall and rise and fall again of Count Dooku.

As I read more of the recent Star Wars books, I am beginning to increasingly appreciate the lore that makes up the universe. People criticised the Trade Federation elements of The Phantom Menace, but as you delve deeper into the prequel elements of Star Wars you begin to understand how the petty politics and bureaucracy of the era led to much of the evil of The Imperial Army. Dooku himself is a character steeped in the politics of the time. Unbeknownst to him, he is no ordinary Jedi Apprentice, but the eldest son of the leader of planet Serenno. There is a reason why Jedi’s do not know about their former lives and Dooku is the lesson.

The story of Dooku is not one of power and madness, but more powerlessness and sadness. The narrative starts during the days Count Dooku is at his most powerful and is told from the perspective of his potential apprentice, Ventress, who is sent out on mission to find Dooku’s sister. To learn of the sister’s whereabouts Ventress must explore Dooku’s past and it here that the story jumps along the timeline of Dooku’s life from Jedi Trainee through to the role of Count Dooku.

Dooku’s problems stem from knowing who he is. His secret desire to protect his sister and the planet Serenno is at odds with the Jedi code. The best elements of the book explore where the fault of Dooku’s decent to the Dark Side lies. Could he have been saved if the Jedi Council were not so bureaucratic and neutral? The more you read about the Jedi, the more you realise that they are in part to blame for their own destruction. Their unwillingness to become involved in intergalactic politics led to the secret rise of Palpatine and indeed Dooku himself. Dooku saw first-hand the horrors that happened on remote planets and the apparent disregard that the Jedi had for them. Talk of balance is all well and good, but hard to stomach when you see millions of dead bodies that could have been averted.

For the more leisurely Star Wars fan Jedi Lost offers far more than just philosophical conversations about the balance of the Force. The twin stories of Dooku’s life and Ventress’ adventure is packed with action and tension. Set pieces include a scene where cities fall from the sky and a hunt in which the Rebel Alliance are the hunters. It is great to read from the Dark Side’s point of view and after this book you may feel more than a little sympathy for Count Dooku.

A note must be made on the format of the book. This is a script taken from an audio adventure. Therefore, it reads like a play. Internal monologues are kept to a minimum and instead you are given conversations between two characters (imaginary or not) to explain matters. After a few pages you will soon forget that it is not normal prose. It works perfectly as a narrative and the only slightly confusing elements are the surreal sections that see characters on the point of madness. Here the audio play would be a far more effective tool.

There is a lot of sadness in Jedi Lost as it is a book that explores a flawed man who wants what is best for his people but loses his way. You can sympathise with some of the actions Dooku takes and the bad guys may just be the Jedi Council and their unwillingness to waver from their traditions. If you are a fan of Star Wars and want to delve even deeper into the lore, then you will adore this book. For the more causal fan, there is also a fun action script on offer.