Dark Force Rising: Star Wars Legends
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- Create Date：2021-10-24 09:51:05
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Timothy Zahn
- ISBN：0593358791
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Summary
In this essential Star Wars Legends novel， the sequel to Heir to the Empire， Grand Admiral Thrawn's sinister plan threatens to spell doom for the fledgling New Republic and its most iconic heroes。
The dying Empire's most cunning and ruthless warlord， Grand Admiral Thrawn， has taken command of the remnants of the Imperial Fleet and launched a massive campaign aimed at the New Republic's destruction。 Meanwhile， Han Solo and Lando Calrissian race against time to find proof of treason inside the highest Republic Council--only to discover instead a ghostly fleet of warships that could bring doom to their friends and victory to their enemies。
Yet most dangerous of all is a new Dark Jedi， risen from the ashes of a shrouded past， consumed by bitterness， and scheming to corrupt Luke Skywalker to the dark side。
The dying Empire's most cunning and ruthless warlord， Grand Admiral Thrawn， has taken command of the remnants of the Imperial Fleet and launched a massive campaign aimed at the New Republic's destruction。 Meanwhile， Han Solo and Lando Calrissian race against time to find proof of treason inside the highest Republic Council--only to discover instead a ghostly fleet of warships that could bring doom to their friends and victory to their enemies。
Yet most dangerous of all is a new Dark Jedi， risen from the ashes of a shrouded past， consumed by bitterness， and scheming to corrupt Luke Skywalker to the dark side。
Reviews
Ashley
，
This review is part of a review series; the introduction can be found here， if you want to know more about this project。If we ever perfect travel between multiverses， I want to pack up my bags and go live in the one where Zahn's trilogy gets made into the sequel movies。 Y'all， it is SO GOOD。 So satisfying， so thrilling， so quintessentially Star Wars。 It's everything I love about the original trilogy。 Threat of the Day: More evil Picard being supremely cultured and evil。。。。and now with CLOOOOONES This review is part of a review series; the introduction can be found here， if you want to know more about this project。If we ever perfect travel between multiverses， I want to pack up my bags and go live in the one where Zahn's trilogy gets made into the sequel movies。 Y'all， it is SO GOOD。 So satisfying， so thrilling， so quintessentially Star Wars。 It's everything I love about the original trilogy。 Threat of the Day: More evil Picard being supremely cultured and evil。。。。and now with CLOOOOONES！ Dun dun duuuuun！ It's really cool to see this alternate take on clones， unsullied by the prequels。 10/10Thirsty for Skywalker， You Are: Everyone was too busy moving the plot along to get frisky 0/10 Nerfs HerdedBest part: the prison break scene had me on the edge of my seat Worst line: Except for his over-use of the phrase "space of heartbeats"， nothing cringey！ Would I revisit in 20 years: Most definitely！ There's not a lot that stood out in this novel--as you can tell from my sparse review--but that's ok because it's the second book in the trilogy。 It's meant to carry on from the first and set up the final。 I am not disappointed in its structural and character perfunctory-ness。 Overall 10/10 。。。more
Bridger Hibbert
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NOTE: At this time for my first review （currently rated at 4 stars）， I just want to say that I had not finished Timothy Zahn's trilogy yet。 I also need to say this is my second book to have ever completed in the STAR WARS Expanded Universe that is now branded as legends。REVIEW #1 - AN OPINION， NOT FACTMy overall impression of this book is that I liked it better than the last one。1。 The writing just felt better paced， and the plot was more than grey-skinned aliens trying to kidnap the Skywalkers。 NOTE: At this time for my first review （currently rated at 4 stars）， I just want to say that I had not finished Timothy Zahn's trilogy yet。 I also need to say this is my second book to have ever completed in the STAR WARS Expanded Universe that is now branded as legends。REVIEW #1 - AN OPINION， NOT FACTMy overall impression of this book is that I liked it better than the last one。1。 The writing just felt better paced， and the plot was more than grey-skinned aliens trying to kidnap the Skywalkers。2。 C'baoth felt more menacing this time around。Mara is haunted by her failure to kill Luke Skywalker3。 There are also still unanswered questions like "Who is Delta Source？"， "What will the Noghri people decide now that they know the truth？"。4。 Thrawn's logic is better understood， and seems less omniscient this time around。5。 Details- a new "wraith" alien that uses absorbed light to camoflague; Luke tried to research Yoda's species （still unknown）; C'baoth hated droids because they were not connected to the Force; C'baoth finds a way around the yslamari's Force barrier by throwing rocks; Leia discovering when the 'space battle' took place above the Noghri planet was a great twist！There were some things that bothered me though。1。 Jedi memory retrieval was taught to Luke by Yoda？ Convenient。2。 Needed Google to tell me that Dengar Roth is NOT Dengar from "V: The Empire Strikes Back" movie。3。 When C'baoth unleashed Force Lightning， Luke did not immediately realize C'baoth was using the Dark Side; I feel like， having been on the receiving end of such power before， Luke should have had a PTSD moment （maybe a flashback to the Emperor's lightning from "VI: Return of the Jedi"）。 Yet he continued to stay。4。 When Mara meets with Thrawn the first and second time; I'd repeat Thrawn's words to describe her: "That was very unprofessional of you， Emperor's Hand。" First， her tone was that of a kid who had been caught doing what they shouldn't， yet demanding to have their way if they made a deal。 Later， when Thrawn followed her to Karrde， it was like she threw a Han Solo-like tantrum （Mara should have at least had some dignity about her， speaking in cold tones equal to Thrawn's）。 It also bothered me that her Force choke wasn't as intimidating as Ruhk's choke-hold。 Yes， Thrawn is intended as the big bad， but it bothered me that Mara， who served the Emperor directly for so many years， couldn't be to Thrawn what C'baoth， a Dark Jedi with no connection to the Empire， was: threatening， or at least equal in menace and power。Finally， Mara believes the Emperor， who basically trains his apprentices in the ways of the Sith， a cult built on betrayal and deception， WOULD NEVER LIE TO HER？ Yeah， if that was supposed to be a twist to make me sympathetic for Mara， it didn't work。To be fair， she was better in this book since she's not always around Luke。5。 The battle meant to be over the control of the Dark Force， the Katana Fleet， is over before it begins， basically， an anti-climactic ending since only fifteen of the hundred ships are remaining。6。 Clones。 Eh， mixed feelings about that。7。 Leia continues to use the Force well， even after book 1 established using it was difficult in her condition （lightsaber pulled from belt， flipping comms switch， etc）。OVERALL， aside from an anti-climactic battle， I give this an 7/10。For a review of the overall trilogy， see my review for "The Last Command"， the final book in this series。 。。。more
Matt
，
Meh this sure is a middle book
Addison
，
Classic Star Wars fun。 Builds greatly on top of the prior book。 Lots of political intrigue， combat， and moving parts that are all expertly orchestrated till the end。
Jeffrey
，
Thrawn :D
Rachel
，
I liked this non-canon book even less than the first one in the series。 It had less Thrawn and less interesting Thrawn at that。 In the show Rebels， Thrawn becomes an increasingly fascinating villain， but here I felt he was underutilized。 This book continues to have the problem of dropped storylines。 The end of the first book， Heir to the Empire， drops the bomb that Admiral Ackbar has been arrested for treason。 It’s mentioned a few times in this book， but it’s not an important part of the plot， e I liked this non-canon book even less than the first one in the series。 It had less Thrawn and less interesting Thrawn at that。 In the show Rebels， Thrawn becomes an increasingly fascinating villain， but here I felt he was underutilized。 This book continues to have the problem of dropped storylines。 The end of the first book， Heir to the Empire， drops the bomb that Admiral Ackbar has been arrested for treason。 It’s mentioned a few times in this book， but it’s not an important part of the plot， even though the previous book made it seem like such a big deal。 Through the majority of this book， our heroes are apart in pairs: Leia and Chewie， Han and Lando， and Luke （either by himself or with Mara）。 Han and Leia have only a few scenes together。 I liked the parts when they were all together better。Zahn really overuses the phrase “[person] drew [himself/herself] up to [his/her] full height” when they’re about to say something important。 It felt like he used this phrase for every character at some point。 A good editor would have had him find some other ways to add significance to whatever the character is going to say。 The end when everyone comes together improves the story， and it ends with a smaller cliffhanger that sets up the last book。 I’m actually really intrigued to see what Zahn does with that since it involves clones used in a different way than what’s in the canon prequels。 。。。more
Faith
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I had to read Dark Force Rising as an ebook。 I can't stand ebooks。 And I still LOVED every word of this book！ First of all， the romance between Han and Leia is truly at its peak:that no matter how much he tried， he would never be able to totally protect her from the dangers and risks of the universe。 Because no matter how much he might love her—no matter how much he might give of himself to her—she could never be content with that alone。 Her vision extended beyond him， just as it extended beyond I had to read Dark Force Rising as an ebook。 I can't stand ebooks。 And I still LOVED every word of this book！ First of all， the romance between Han and Leia is truly at its peak:that no matter how much he tried， he would never be able to totally protect her from the dangers and risks of the universe。 Because no matter how much he might love her—no matter how much he might give of himself to her—she could never be content with that alone。 Her vision extended beyond him， just as it extended beyond herself， to all the beings of the galaxy。And to take that away from her， whether by force or even by persuasion， would be to diminish her soul。 And to take away part of what he’d fallen in love with in the first place。 The emotional moments curb stomped my heart:Luke’s memory flicked back to Yoda， lying on his deathbed in his Dagobah home … and his own feeling of helplessness that he could do nothing but watch。 Luke still risks himself in dire situations to help others:"Jedi Skywalker，” C’baoth said from behind him。 “He is not permanently damaged。 Come away。”Luke didn’t move。 “He’s in pain。” I just had to make note of this:"You never knew， but right after Ben was cut down—back on the first Death Star—I found out that I could sometimes hear his voice in the back of my mind。 By the time the Alliance was driven off Hoth， I could see him， too。”Artoo twittered。 “Yes， that’s who I sometimes talked to on Dagobah，” Luke confirmed。 “And then right after the Battle of Endor， I was able to see not only Ben but Yoda and my father， too。 Though the other two never spoke， and I never saw them again。 My guess is that there’s some way for a dying Jedi to—"Han and Luke's friendship is still PEAKING:A stray memory clicked: the expression on Luke’s face， just before the battle off Yavin with the first Death Star。 When he’d thought Han was going to run off and abandon them 。 。 。 Also we see more of Wedge in this book！ Y'know， the character that's really prominent in every battle but we know nothing else about？ He has things to do outside of battle in this book！ Not much， but he even interacts with Mara Jade which is something。 LUKE SAID THE THING THAT YODA TAUGHT HIM:"A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense， never for attack。” Luke still just being perfect even after Mara has stated multiple times she wants to kill him is just *chef's kiss*There was a snap-hiss from beside her， and suddenly the terrain was bathed in the green-white glow of Skywalker’s lightsaber。 “Get behind the ship，” he ordered her。 “I’ll hold him off。Further supported by:“He doesn’t have to be an enemy， Mara，” Skywalker said with that irritating earnestness of his。 “He’s ill。 Maybe he can be cured。”Just ugh I love him。Oop and once more:Which meant that wherever Leia and Chewbacca had gone， they were now stranded there。 But there was no time to worry about that now。 “We’re taking it back，” he told the others， stuffing his lightsaber into his flight suit tunic。 “Cover me。”“Skywalker—” Mara hissed; but Luke was already jogging toward the shaft。 This quote was just 。 。 。 Luke flexed the fingers of his artificial right hand， feeling a ghostly echo of the searing pain that had lanced through it as Vader’s lightsaber had sliced through skin and muscle and bone。 A fragment of an old Tatooine aphorism flickered through his mind: something about the passing of evil from one generation to the next 。 。 。 Also Leia just being an absolute girlboss and taking immediate control of the situation with this scene:Leia put her hand against the smooth wood of the genealogy chart， her knees suddenly feeling weak with shock。 Forty-four years。 Not the five or eight or even ten that she’d assumed。 Forty-four。 “It didn’t happen during the Rebellion，” she heard herself say。 “It happened during the Clone Wars。”And suddenly the shock gave way to a wall of blazing-white anger。 “Forty-four years，” she snarled。 “They’ve held you like this for forty-four years？”She spun to face the door。 “Chewie！” she called， for the moment not caring who might hear her。 “Chewie， get in here！”Followed by:There was a sound like a hissing gasp from the crowd。 The two Noghri who had been moving toward the maitrakh froze in midstride … and as the gasp vanished into utter silence， Leia knew that she’d finally gotten their complete attention。 “I am not merely the daughter of the Lord Vader，” she said， putting an edge of controlled anger into her voice。 “I am the Mal’ary’ush: heir to his authority and his power。 I have come through many dangers to reveal the treachery that has been done to the Noghri people。”She withdrew as much of her concentration as she could risk from the floating lightsaber to look slowly down the line of dynasts。 “Will you hear me？ Or will you instead choose death？” Also THE WAY LUKE REACTED WHEN HE THOUGHT MARA WAS DEAD these two are totally becoming a couple:The kid was looking like he’d just lost his best friend， instead of someone who wanted to kill him。 。。。more
James Kennedy
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 This book was very interesting， and was a different perspective of Star Wars。 Although Han Solo gets the most action in this book， as well as Lando， the amount of action in this book related to the other episodes in the series is very low。 Timothy approaches the dark Jedi and Grand Admiral Thrawn with the mindset of converting Luke， not killing him， which isn’t a good tactic at all considering Luke is the child or prophecy。 This book makes me ask many questions but overall， it was a solid 3 out This book was very interesting， and was a different perspective of Star Wars。 Although Han Solo gets the most action in this book， as well as Lando， the amount of action in this book related to the other episodes in the series is very low。 Timothy approaches the dark Jedi and Grand Admiral Thrawn with the mindset of converting Luke， not killing him， which isn’t a good tactic at all considering Luke is the child or prophecy。 This book makes me ask many questions but overall， it was a solid 3 out of 5， I would read another Star Wars book over this one。 。。。more
Andrew Briggs
，
I want to enjoy it。 But it’s not clicking for me。
Mark
，
When the characters in this book started talking about the Katana fleet （a collection of cruisers from the Old Republic days that were lost in space when their crews were infected with a virus that drove them insane）， the primary plot device for the story， I was expecting a much different book from the one I ended up reading。 I envisioned a tense salvage operation， as the New Republic forces first located the fleet， then cautiously explored the creepy， derelict ships while trying to the nasty vi When the characters in this book started talking about the Katana fleet （a collection of cruisers from the Old Republic days that were lost in space when their crews were infected with a virus that drove them insane）， the primary plot device for the story， I was expecting a much different book from the one I ended up reading。 I envisioned a tense salvage operation， as the New Republic forces first located the fleet， then cautiously explored the creepy， derelict ships while trying to the nasty virus that killed their crews--and maybe even encountered some horrifying creatures along the way。 Unfortunately， the fleet turned out to be nothing more than a MacGuffin。 I suppose the Star Wars universe wasn't quite ready for the Alien treatment。 Even so， the build-up to this fleet's importance fizzled out once Han and the rest of the crew reached it。 The climactic scenes didn't take full advantage of the setup。 Other than this particular let-down， I didn't find our various heroes' subplots particularly compelling: Leia， in the guise of "Lady Vader，" attempts to turn an alien species， the Noghri， from servants of the Empire to allies of the New Republic。 Luke spends some time learning dubious lessons from his new jedi teacher， Joruus C'baoth （and not being nearly skeptical enough about the whole thing， in my opinion）， and forming an uneasy alliance with Mara Jade。 Han meeting up with an old Corellian senator who had been instrumental in the burgeoning rebellion but had then sort of disappeared。 I suppose the most fun scenes were the ones in which Luke and Mara sneak aboard a Star Destroyer to rescue Talon Karrde from a detention cell。 The scenes directly echo Luke， Han， and Chewbacca's rescue of Leia in the first movie， including some time spent in the garbage compactor。 But in retrospect it seemed like a bit too much fan-service and not enough thought put into the difference between the layout of a Star Destroyer and the Death Star。 But perhaps I'm putting too much thought into it！As with the first volume， this one was a fun， fast-moving distraction， but not a book I'd read again。 。。。more
Kat
，
A bit slow for the first half but with intent。 AND WHEN I TELL YOU MY MOUTH DROPPED OPEN ON THE LAST PAGE ARE YOU KIDDING ME？！ Filoni and Favreau， you absolute mad geniuses。
Joran
，
Again this book continues to capture the Star Wars feeling in a great way。 The only thing I can think of that could make others not read this is the fact that there are so many sub plots to keep track of。 Trust me on this: Timothy Zahn knows， and if you keep reading， he guides you along so it all makes sense。 Just read the entire book， and it all makes sense k？ Luke's whole interaction with C'Baoth is very realistic and man C'Baoth really is insane isn't he？ Anyways， Thrawn as I expected gets wh Again this book continues to capture the Star Wars feeling in a great way。 The only thing I can think of that could make others not read this is the fact that there are so many sub plots to keep track of。 Trust me on this: Timothy Zahn knows， and if you keep reading， he guides you along so it all makes sense。 Just read the entire book， and it all makes sense k？ Luke's whole interaction with C'Baoth is very realistic and man C'Baoth really is insane isn't he？ Anyways， Thrawn as I expected gets what he wanted in this book， and I loved it。 。。。more
David Wheeler
，
I actually enjoyed this second installment of the Thrawn trilogy better than this first。 I know that is an unpopular opinion。 Although this is not Canon now， this is a great story that should be read by all Star Wars fans。
Amelie
，
Every time I encounter Thrawn in the Star Wars universe， I’m impressed with how excellent of a villain he is。 Many of the Star Wars villains/antagonists are either simply foolish or incredibly emotionally-driven by their rage， fear， power-hunger， etc。 Thrawn actually thinks critically， makes logical choices， and is open to his cohorts’ suggestions。 Stories are always so much more enjoyable when a formidable character is heading the opposition。Talon Karrde and Mara Jade are still favorites， and I Every time I encounter Thrawn in the Star Wars universe， I’m impressed with how excellent of a villain he is。 Many of the Star Wars villains/antagonists are either simply foolish or incredibly emotionally-driven by their rage， fear， power-hunger， etc。 Thrawn actually thinks critically， makes logical choices， and is open to his cohorts’ suggestions。 Stories are always so much more enjoyable when a formidable character is heading the opposition。Talon Karrde and Mara Jade are still favorites， and I’m looking forward to seeing their roles in The Last Command！Also， I absolutely loved the prolife themes and the theme of loving and raising children well as Leia thought about her future with her unborn twins。 And there seemed to be a subtle theme of loving your enemies woven into Leia’s interactions with the Noghri。Overally， this was such an intriguing， enjoyable book （and， since I listened to the audiobook， Marc Thompson’s narration remained simply excellent）。 I’m looking forward to finishing this series！ I haven’t been disappointed。Content: mild violence， one use of d**n， one use of h**l。 Again， as this is Star Wars， the dualistic entity/philosophy of the Force is very prevalent。 。。。more
Tyler Marsolais
，
Great expansion and setup
broseph_spinosi
，
Again， a fantastic part of the Thrawn trilogy。 New situations take new/old characters and make them grow。 Thrawn himself proves to be a still great villain， Luke and Mara being standout characters too。 The smugglers are great too。 Slight critique—the Leia plots one dragged a little （still good though）。
Sara
，
In my opinion， the best book in the trilogy。 I would really， really have loved to see this as a movie！
Spider Soldier
，
Timothy Zahn continues to pleasantly surprise all star wars fans who want to have some fun with thrawn
Jason
，
The battle between the New Republic and the Empire wages on in Timothy Zahn’s page-turning adventure Star Wars: Dark Force Rising， book two of the Thrawn Trilogy。Originally published in 1992， Dark Force Rising came on the heels of the massively popular universe expanding Heir to the Empire—offering Star Wars fans the delight of seeing how the New Republic and Empire have fared after the events of Return of the Jedi。 Absolutely no time is wasted in terms of plot， with Dark Force Rising picking up The battle between the New Republic and the Empire wages on in Timothy Zahn’s page-turning adventure Star Wars: Dark Force Rising， book two of the Thrawn Trilogy。Originally published in 1992， Dark Force Rising came on the heels of the massively popular universe expanding Heir to the Empire—offering Star Wars fans the delight of seeing how the New Republic and Empire have fared after the events of Return of the Jedi。 Absolutely no time is wasted in terms of plot， with Dark Force Rising picking up immediately after the events of the first book。Similar in structure to the trilogy’s first installment， Dark Force Rising has our heroes， villains and those somewhere in between off on their own storylines。 What’s enjoyable about this storytelling approach is that plot elements can be teased out from chapter to chapter and events never get boring。 Just when Zahn leaves you wanting more with one storyline， he moves on to another。 Also， it’s great fun trying to decipher how all the elements will come together eventually， although another of Zahn’s strengths lies in his ability to shock and delight by the book’s conclusion。Dark Force Rising carries a strong theme of righteousness throughout。 Leia Organa Solo builds on her relationship with the Noghri people， and in combination with the Force and her allies uses this to create real change for a nation of people who have been enslaved by the Empire for decades。 Mara Jade makes choices that prove her moral center might just be stronger than her desire to avenge her former master， Emperor Palpatine。 Talon Karrde’s storyline also takes some turns that clearly show he’s not just a smuggler looking out for his own interests。 All of the events taking place never feel out of place or ill-deserved。 Being book two of a trilogy， it’s quite satisfying to see some of the elements that were introduced in book one start to pay off。 This theme of moral righteousness seems to be setting up an epic conclusion come book three。 A clear line in the sand has been drawn between who’s on what side and with Zahn at the helm， the excitement will surely only ramp up from here。Combine all of the above with Dark Jedi Joruus C’baoth （who’s definitely gone off the deep end）， a long thought missing ghost fleet of warships， and an epic space battle finale and you’ve got all the ingredients for a riveting Star Wars reading experience。 Let’s not forget Tracie Ching’s brilliant cover art that really makes this 2021 edition shine。Dark Force Rising expertly combines action， intrigue， and heart and all takes place in the entertaining world of the Star Wars Legends universe。 Like the Grand Admiral himself， Timothy Zahn steers this saga’s ship masterfully and I can’t wait to arrive at this journey’s destination。 I give this one 🧢 🧢 🧢 🧢 🧢 /5， two for two for this series so far！ 。。。more
Chris Wermeskerch
，
It's amazing how good these books are considering how unreadable the current ones are。 It's amazing how good these books are considering how unreadable the current ones are。 。。。more
Jericho Shin
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Una excelente y entretenida continuación de "Heir to the Empire"。Esta trilogía realmente está funcionando como una excelente continuación de la trilogía original。 Una excelente y entretenida continuación de "Heir to the Empire"。Esta trilogía realmente está funcionando como una excelente continuación de la trilogía original。 。。。more
Peter
，
I first read this in the 90s and have been rereading these， so if that influences your view on my review， that's fine。Mr Zahn has been credited with the revival of the Star Wars franchise in the 90s， and I think that's fair。 Overall， he followed the trilogy format with this series pretty well， and understands how to write that。 It's not quite as straightforward as writing three very self-contained stories， and that does show in this volume。 He does an ok job of not making the main hero character I first read this in the 90s and have been rereading these， so if that influences your view on my review， that's fine。Mr Zahn has been credited with the revival of the Star Wars franchise in the 90s， and I think that's fair。 Overall， he followed the trilogy format with this series pretty well， and understands how to write that。 It's not quite as straightforward as writing three very self-contained stories， and that does show in this volume。 He does an ok job of not making the main hero characters of the franchise completely extraneous to the story， but he doesn't do an amazing job of understanding them on more than a superficial level。 In the case of Leia， he joins most of the Star Wars authors of the Expanded Universe in trying too hard to make her relevant and in the process completely missing her all but in name。 I can't tell whether he just didn't do a good job of writing women overall， which I think would be a fair criticism of how he writes them， or whether he doesn't understand them in a Star Wars context。 That would be also fair given how they are portrayed in the Star Wars films - few， and when they are there， they are forced by nature of war into masculine situations。 Unfortunately， that tends to lead to a masculine portrayal with a thin coat of feminine paint。But my real problem with the series overall is the entire slate of villains。 Joruus C'baoth is not a viable character and ends up just being a drain on the story。 Grand Admiral Thrawn is a try-hard effort at making a character powerful enough to be a threat， and is unconvincing at best。 Everything he does reads as deus ex machina。 And then there's a the whole "grand admiral" concept that shows no understanding of the role to begin with， since most grand admiralties are largely honorary titles， with only a few exceptions like Dönitz and Raeder。 Making him a genius feels lazy and makes him less interesting as a character。 I feel like we're supposed to be more impressed by him， but I'm not。The Noghri are amazingly stupid， and were probably a mistake。All in all， I'm giving this more points for fitting into the trilogy and being a better read than the first book， but taking away some for the reasons I've outlined above。 Outside of a Star Wars context， I don't think it'd be more than a 2。5 or 3， but working in a somewhat hokey universe makes it all a bit more excusable。And if you like Star Wars and get offended that I'm calling it hokey， please engage in some reflection。 Star Wars is good because it's hokey， not because it's above it。 If it took itself too seriously， nobody would have remembered it a few years after Return of the Jedi came out。 。。。more
Juan Pablo
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Great balance between winning some， losing some and how。 Interesting characters and situations。 Can't wait to start the next one Great balance between winning some， losing some and how。 Interesting characters and situations。 Can't wait to start the next one 。。。more
Douglas Golonka
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Paint by numbers。 But still Star Wars
Jim Baldwin
，
These books should have been made into the Star Wars sequel movies。
Cara
，
For a nerd like me， this entire series is the book equivalent a hug from my great aunt after a year of covid lockdown。
Debra Cook
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The 2nd book in the thrawn trilogy。
Spoken30
，
A good read！
Xyrax
，
an exceedingly boring mid section and an entirely uninteresting sub plot that feels like it has no real payoff with Leia drags this book down。 It fails at being an engaging midpoint in a trilogy and it’s stakes simply do not come into play early enough or be at risk largely enough to gain any form of emotional support from the reader。 A flawed novel at the core that pulls down an otherwise promising introduction to a trilogy with Heir to the Empire。
David
，