Greater Good
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- Create Date：2021-05-05 06:51:36
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Timothy Zahn
- ISBN：152910193X
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Summary
Thrawn and his allies race to save the Chiss Ascendancy from an unseen enemy in the second book in the epic Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy trilogy from bestselling author Timothy Zahn。
Thrawn's latest triumph still rests newly on his shoulders。 Despite leading the Chiss to victory and bringing glory to the House of Mitth， the true threat to the Ascendancy has not yet been extinguished。 Their foes do not send threats or ultimatums， or mass ships on the edge of the Chaos。 Their weapons come cloaked in smiles and generosity: Gifts offered freely。 Services granted unconditionally。
Across the Ascendancy， seemingly inconsequential events could herald the doom of the Chiss。 As Thrawn and the Expansionary Defense Fleet rally to uncover the enemy plot， they discover a chilling truth: rather than invade Chiss capitals or pillage their resources， they strike at the very foundation of the Ascendancy， seeking to widen the rifts between The Nine Ruling Families and the Forty Great Houses below。 As rivalry and suspicion sow discord among allies， each warrior must decide what matters most to them: the security of their family， or the survival of the Ascendancy itself。
Thrawn's latest triumph still rests newly on his shoulders。 Despite leading the Chiss to victory and bringing glory to the House of Mitth， the true threat to the Ascendancy has not yet been extinguished。 Their foes do not send threats or ultimatums， or mass ships on the edge of the Chaos。 Their weapons come cloaked in smiles and generosity: Gifts offered freely。 Services granted unconditionally。
Across the Ascendancy， seemingly inconsequential events could herald the doom of the Chiss。 As Thrawn and the Expansionary Defense Fleet rally to uncover the enemy plot， they discover a chilling truth: rather than invade Chiss capitals or pillage their resources， they strike at the very foundation of the Ascendancy， seeking to widen the rifts between The Nine Ruling Families and the Forty Great Houses below。 As rivalry and suspicion sow discord among allies， each warrior must decide what matters most to them: the security of their family， or the survival of the Ascendancy itself。
Reviews
Alex Mayfield
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7。75 out of 10TikTok Review: https://vm。tiktok。com/ZMeVDXHfh/ 7。75 out of 10TikTok Review: https://vm。tiktok。com/ZMeVDXHfh/ 。。。more
Ruairi Hegarty
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Greater Good is an interesting follow-up to Chaos Rising。 It delves deeper into this new part of Star Wars by focusing mostly on new characters rather than the titular Chiss。 This different focus is excellent for world-building， allowing the reader to examine the complicated internal politics of the Ascendancy through characters at the very top and bottom of its hierarchy。 It does feel that there was perhaps too much going on at times in this entry as we jump from multiple different starships wi Greater Good is an interesting follow-up to Chaos Rising。 It delves deeper into this new part of Star Wars by focusing mostly on new characters rather than the titular Chiss。 This different focus is excellent for world-building， allowing the reader to examine the complicated internal politics of the Ascendancy through characters at the very top and bottom of its hierarchy。 It does feel that there was perhaps too much going on at times in this entry as we jump from multiple different starships with their individual crews as well as a parallel story in the Chiss homeworlds all within single chapters。 The memories entries are excellent however， focusing on （mostly） one narative and one perspective。 While we learn little new information about Thrawn himself， one aspect of the story which is particularly effective is its subtle explorations of his effects on those around him， much like the more recent trilogy。 Overall， I am interested in this story continuing。 。。。more
Sarmat Chowdhury
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Another awesome Thrawn story courtesy of Timothy Zahn。 "Greater Good"， the second book in the Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy series follows Mid Captain Thrawn during his time with the Chiss Defense Expansion Force as they clean up the remnants of the aggression from the end of the first book in "Chaos Rising"。The second book continues to follow Thrawn aboard the Springhawk， along with other members of the Chiss and their families that we were introduced to in the first book， along with more alien Another awesome Thrawn story courtesy of Timothy Zahn。 "Greater Good"， the second book in the Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy series follows Mid Captain Thrawn during his time with the Chiss Defense Expansion Force as they clean up the remnants of the aggression from the end of the first book in "Chaos Rising"。The second book continues to follow Thrawn aboard the Springhawk， along with other members of the Chiss and their families that we were introduced to in the first book， along with more alien species that reside in the Chaos， the part of Greater Space that the Chiss Ascendancy is found。 The second book in the trilogy continues to add to the myth of the Chiss， with readers getting a better look at the various political webs that bind the members of the Chiss to their families （the current Nine ruling and the Forty Greater Families） along with the homogeneity the Chiss system in regards to outsiders。 We continue to see that the Chiss enjoy their presence of isolationism and non-interventionism， how they react as a society to refugees， and we continue to attempt to figure out who and what is the motivation for the main antagonist for the trilogy。 Zahn does an amazing job once again in fleshing out Thrawn and his early days in the Ascendancy， and also how the Chiss are as a people and system。 。。。more
Jackloco
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Book goodIt all keeps adding up。 Society is the largest weapon there is in the skilled hands of a manipulator。 Enjoy
Joshua
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The second in this series puts Thrawn a bit in the back light， focusing more on the intrigue as a whole。 It worked very well。
Josh Root
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I was underwhelmed by this novel。 A re-read may change my mind， but it is definitely my least favorite Thrawn book to date。
Jeremy Roberts
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Solid entry。 Thought it might be a little better than the first book in this series。 Still no significant character development for Thrawn， but other characters developed nicely。 Overall a very enjoyable read。
Albert Riehle
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I'm a fan of Timothy Zahn and have enjoyed all of his Thrawn books。 As a matter of fact， I think Thrawn might be my favorite non-Lucas-created Star Wars character。 But the first Thrawn Ascendancy book was just okay for me and this second just wasn't very good at all。There was a lot about this book that went wrong。 There were elbows all over the place in this story。 Many moons ago， when Zahn introduced us to Thrawn， he gave his character this long， intricate name， based on his family name， person I'm a fan of Timothy Zahn and have enjoyed all of his Thrawn books。 As a matter of fact， I think Thrawn might be my favorite non-Lucas-created Star Wars character。 But the first Thrawn Ascendancy book was just okay for me and this second just wasn't very good at all。There was a lot about this book that went wrong。 There were elbows all over the place in this story。 Many moons ago， when Zahn introduced us to Thrawn， he gave his character this long， intricate name， based on his family name， personal name and and occupation/clan/2nd name， each part separated by an apostrophe。 Each character also had a shortened version of their name that made storytelling more practical by using the last few letters of the clan name， the given name and a letter or two from the occupation/clan。 To Zahn's thinking， I'm sure he wanted to separate Thrawn from the known Star Wars galaxy and make him somewhat exotic and different。 When it was just Thrawn， that wasn't a problem。 But in this series， the stories take place in the Chiss Ascendancy and so we have a large cast of Chiss characters。On board ships within the fleet， that isn't too big of a problem。 Many of the families can be mixed into the crew。 But on the planets of the Chiss， and within their political spheres， many， if not all of the characters in a scene have the first few letters in their names。 In particular， much of this story takes place among the family Xolak， so all of the common names for every characters start with L-A-K。 It's ridiculous。 This story didn't have the greatest pace to start with but the tediousness of trying to remember which Lak-name was which was beyond aggravating。 It's a hole Zahn dug himself into a long time ago and I'm not sure how he could have changed it now but he should have tried something。 There are at least 10 characters of consequence in this book whose name starts with Lak。 It's disruptive。 Constantly。 The book is centered more around Chiss politics and the families and their desires to move up in status or hold on to status。 Look: there are a lot of really good political intrigue books out there。 The backstabbing， the manipulation， the intricacy--it can be great fodder for a story。 Zahn tries but fails to make it work here。 There's a subtleness to the con going on in the background that's done well and I like that it wasn't too convoluted， but honestly， it could have used a few more layers and a bit more oomph。 I won't spoil the plot here， but if I told you what this story was about， you probably wouldn't be interested enough to read it。The good？ Zahn shines when he let's his Thrawn character out of the box。 The space battles， the strategies， the way he dissects a situation to it's core in a matter of minutes--sometimes seconds--and employs his defense or attack is always fun。 I wish there had been more of that。 This book splits between a bunch of perspectives， including back and forth in time。 It's too much of everyone else and not enough of Thrawn。 His role is largely diminished in this book--the parts where he was featured read with pace and interest。 The rest？ Did not。When it comes to Star Wars books， I feel like you have to read them just have a full understanding of things going on in other areas （the new movies， the streaming shows， the other books， etc。） and missing one potentially tears you out of the loop。 So， for that reason alone， I suspect you should read this one but don't rush to it。 If you can get this from the library you'll probably be less salty than I am after paying for it。 And maybe this is worth reading along with something else。 It's an easy enough book to put down and there's nothing challenging enough to get through if you come back sporadically other than the name issue which will be an issue even if you read it straight though。So it's a solid 2 stars for me。 I don't recommend it as a book you might enjoy， but perhaps as a necessary evil for understanding the full background of a great character who is going to play a part in many of the new projects in the works。 I expect better from Zahn。 。。。more
Rebecca
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Clocking in at 410 pages， this is one of the longer Thrawn novels in the current timeline。 This novel has a different feel to it than the other novels。 It's slower pace helps build tension as the reader pieces the plot together before Thrawn does。 This is an excellent use of Hitchkock's bomb under the table explanation of how to build suspense。 The last 120 pages read as the tense and fast paced Space Opera you would usually expect but with much higher stakes because you've spent 300 pages or so Clocking in at 410 pages， this is one of the longer Thrawn novels in the current timeline。 This novel has a different feel to it than the other novels。 It's slower pace helps build tension as the reader pieces the plot together before Thrawn does。 This is an excellent use of Hitchkock's bomb under the table explanation of how to build suspense。 The last 120 pages read as the tense and fast paced Space Opera you would usually expect but with much higher stakes because you've spent 300 pages or so getting to see how all levels of Chiss society are being impacted or will be impacted by the actions of Thrawn， the villains， and their own political and familial hierarchies。 The villains in this series are far more intimidating because they feel the most grounded in reality for how groups can operate to destabilize countries and cause civil war。 The rancher Lakphro is probably the most important character in this book。 This was an excellent piece of cloak and dagger political thriller blended with military scifi and family intrigue worthy of praise from the Drow。 That ending has me begging for more。 Thankfully book 3 releases in November of this year， so I only have to wait six months to read it。 。。。more
Steven Shinder
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I think I enjoyed this one more than Chaos Rising。 It focuses on more characters than just Thrawn， so there’s a bunch you need to keep track of。 The voice acting was great as usual， but I found the ending a bit underwhelming。 There is a mention of something， and I was wondering if I should have known what it is already。 Because it plays off like something that could potentially be familiar to the audience。 However， this is actually the first mention of it。 So I guess we’ll find out more in the t I think I enjoyed this one more than Chaos Rising。 It focuses on more characters than just Thrawn， so there’s a bunch you need to keep track of。 The voice acting was great as usual， but I found the ending a bit underwhelming。 There is a mention of something， and I was wondering if I should have known what it is already。 Because it plays off like something that could potentially be familiar to the audience。 However， this is actually the first mention of it。 So I guess we’ll find out more in the third volume of this trilogy， which I’m sure will end by leading into the 2017 Thrawn novel。 。。。more
Jonathan Koan
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There's something to be said about expectations。 Sometimes they help you get excited， and othertimes they will cause you to not enjoy the book as much。 Case in point: I was not excited for Chaos Rising and was therefore pleasantly surprised。 However， I was really excited for this book， and couldn't wait to start reading。。。and was slightly let down。Emphasis on slightly。After the first book， I was really looking forward to reading more about Admiral Ar'alani and Thalias and Thurfian。 While they ar There's something to be said about expectations。 Sometimes they help you get excited， and othertimes they will cause you to not enjoy the book as much。 Case in point: I was not excited for Chaos Rising and was therefore pleasantly surprised。 However， I was really excited for this book， and couldn't wait to start reading。。。and was slightly let down。Emphasis on slightly。After the first book， I was really looking forward to reading more about Admiral Ar'alani and Thalias and Thurfian。 While they are all present， they barely show up in this book。 Ar'alani is in the beginning of the book and barely shows up again。 Thurfian is important throughout， but his is more of a slow burn。 Thalias is present throughout， and has an important plot in this book， but not much happens to her overall plot in the trilogy。 If those plotlines are what you were looking for（like I was）， you might be dissapointed in this book。However， this is still a WONDERFUL book！ I loved reading the main plot， and the way that Zahn tied all the plot threads together was genius！This book focuses on Thrawn's search for a refugee's homeworld and people in the "A-plot"， and focuses on a small Chiss world where the Agubi are weaving an interesting web as the "B-Plot"。 I was not excited for the B-plot， although it was really written well。 It served exactly the purpose it should have， and made the ending truly epic， but it just wasn't what I was excited for。 I just wanted to get to the A-plot。 Thawn's story was great。 His ability to dissect his opponents and come up with a grand strategy was brilliant！ Samakro's problems with Thrawn were shown throughout， but he had good character development。 The character who I'd say is the standout in this book is Senior Captain Lakinda（I am NOT going to type out her full name）。 I don't believe she was in the first book（if she was， I don't remember）。 Her arc was the most compelling and I found myself really wanting her to succeed。Like the first book， this had a lot of situational humor that I really enjoyed！ Zahn's dialogue is really top notch。 And while I felt deflated after reading the Alphabet Squadron books， I feel delighted and energized reading these books。 That isn't to say that Alexander Freed's writing style is particularly bad， but it's depressing， and I like the joy and excitement that come from Zahn's style。Surprisingly， I enjoyed the overall， A-plot of this book， even though I enjoyed the overall experience of Chaos Rising more。 I believe that's due to the impressive "Memories" that were in Chaos Rising。 There were "Memories" present here， but they didn't add to any of the main characters， but they had to do with Haplif（the main villain） and his portion of the B-plot。 Not what I wanted， but was still fun to read。Also， I am on the edge of my seat to find out more about Jixtus。 Give me EVERYTHING！Overall， I quite enjoyed this book。 It's a fun， complex ride with characters that I didn't know I needed to read about。 Zahn has earned the right to write whatever he wants to in Star Wars， I will read it no matter what。 9。0 out of 10！P。S。 If you like the style and flow of the Ascendency Trilogy， I highly recommend Zahn's old "Conqueror's Trilogy" that came out in the 90s。 It has similar plots and naming conventions， but is more of a traditional sciene-fiction book。 。。。more
Dalen
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I quite enjoyed this one。 There was a fair amount of political intrigue included in this one （including an elaborate plot that spans the entire book）。 It is unfortunate that this is the middle book as it leaves significant things open， but fortunately the third book in the trilogy is coming out later this year。 Thrawn got to hatch some improbable plans， a few minor characters got some pretty good development， and there were some fun space battles。
Michelle Volk
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Overall I think Greater Good was better， but this is still a good book
Matthew Sciarrino
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No one writes better Star Wars than TZ。 And Thrawn is such a great character。 It was TZ that made the then expanded universe what it was。 The fact that he was brought back to help create the new cannon made me very happy。 This new trilogy is a must read for any Star Wars fan。 I can’t wait for book three of the story that takes place BEYOND a galaxy far far away。
Chris Wermeskerch
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I am so sorry to rate this so low， but dang。 I just did not like this one。
Maegan Scheib
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Excellent second in series with great world building and continuation。 However， Thrawn seemed to be a secondary character in this story， rather than the main character。 That is the only reason why I have a 4 instead of a 5 on my review。 All that aside， the ending was excellent， but some events felt unfinished， which may have been intentional。 However， I have no doubt that the third book coming this November will continue this story and pick up where this left off。
Jared Mayes
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Out of all of Zahn's amazing Star Wars work， this isn't particularly one of my favorites。 There's a lot to like， though！ The flashback scenes were different enough from the main plot this time around to clearly distinguish where we were in the story。 Then， the side plot coalesced brilliantly with the main story， culminating in a twist on par with the best Zahn has ever achieved。 The new villain was a true joy to hate， the Paccosh people are given an interesting story following up on their introd Out of all of Zahn's amazing Star Wars work， this isn't particularly one of my favorites。 There's a lot to like， though！ The flashback scenes were different enough from the main plot this time around to clearly distinguish where we were in the story。 Then， the side plot coalesced brilliantly with the main story， culminating in a twist on par with the best Zahn has ever achieved。 The new villain was a true joy to hate， the Paccosh people are given an interesting story following up on their introduction in Chaos Rising， and Thrawn's mentorship of Che'ri is absolutely heartwarming。 Having just re-read Outbound Flight before this， it just didn't quite live up to its Legends' predecessor's glory。 。。。more
Caleb Vandergriff
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I liked Thrawn: Greater good。 It does a good job of setting up stakes for the climax of the book with what I think is a good payoff。 A little more of the main defense fleet characters would have been good to see at the end。 Thrawn was somewhat present in this book。 The book mainly focused on the events and characters around Thrawn and setting up the world of the Chiss Ascendancy， his allies/ enemies， and the bigger political picture （of which Thrawn knows nothing or is implied to）。 It might have I liked Thrawn: Greater good。 It does a good job of setting up stakes for the climax of the book with what I think is a good payoff。 A little more of the main defense fleet characters would have been good to see at the end。 Thrawn was somewhat present in this book。 The book mainly focused on the events and characters around Thrawn and setting up the world of the Chiss Ascendancy， his allies/ enemies， and the bigger political picture （of which Thrawn knows nothing or is implied to）。 It might have been nice to get a pov from Thrawn at some point to see what he thinks or knows of the political structure but I think the absence of one was done for a reason。 This was touched on in the last book with him being oblivious to the politics。 It would be interested to see if he learned from that and is more competent in the area now。 Maybe next book。 Although he still doesn't know much of politics on the first Thrawn book from 2017。 More on how the book was written。 I've always enjoyed Zhan's writing style。 For me at least it flows well and I haven't encountered anything that took me out of the story becuase it was written weird。 I found it easy to read it for extended periods of time。Overall 4。7* 。。。more
Hayla
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I thought it was a strange choice to give so many background scenes to a character that ultimately doesn’t survive past this book， regardless I loved the story and I’m so thrilled to dive deeper into the Chiss and get more time with Thrawn。
Lois
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First off， the most important part - I liked it。 In general， it has a lot less of Thrawn in it because it's building up to the third book firstly， but also why Thrawn leaves to go to the Empire， and introduces us to the threats he becomes most worried about in those earlier books that take place after this。 So yeah， less of Thrawn himself， but lots of necessary stuff to get us to where we need to go。 First off， the most important part - I liked it。 In general， it has a lot less of Thrawn in it because it's building up to the third book firstly， but also why Thrawn leaves to go to the Empire， and introduces us to the threats he becomes most worried about in those earlier books that take place after this。 So yeah， less of Thrawn himself， but lots of necessary stuff to get us to where we need to go。 。。。more
Poppy Parkes
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I am ridiculously happy with this book！ I have seen a few people suggesting that Greater Good suffers from 'Middle Book Syndrome' not really contributing much plot-wise， just filling space until Lesser Evil is released。 However， I could not disagree more， my main problem with Chaos Rising was that I kept losing track of who was who and how everything fit together。 But this book clears up all of those questions and leaves me with so many that are more exciting that I cant wait to be answered。 I d I am ridiculously happy with this book！ I have seen a few people suggesting that Greater Good suffers from 'Middle Book Syndrome' not really contributing much plot-wise， just filling space until Lesser Evil is released。 However， I could not disagree more， my main problem with Chaos Rising was that I kept losing track of who was who and how everything fit together。 But this book clears up all of those questions and leaves me with so many that are more exciting that I cant wait to be answered。 I do wish that Thrawn's sister would have been revealed。 I NEED someone to discuss the ending with！！！ 。。。more
Ryan Lindsey
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Zahn once again proves why is the GOAT of Star Wars writers。
Jaime K
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I’m going to try to be as spoiler-free as possible。 A few things to start of this review:~ The Memories sections bridge the 9 months between books 1 and 2 of this trilogy。 After Yiv is defeated， Haplif and Jixtus want to politically （and militarily， because they’re the Chiss） take down the Chiss。 They boast about destroying a world （which I forgot about completely as I read）。 Haplif’s POV is focused on within these memories。Any time I’ll talk about the Memories， I’ll do a double dash before and I’m going to try to be as spoiler-free as possible。 A few things to start of this review:~ The Memories sections bridge the 9 months between books 1 and 2 of this trilogy。 After Yiv is defeated， Haplif and Jixtus want to politically （and militarily， because they’re the Chiss） take down the Chiss。 They boast about destroying a world （which I forgot about completely as I read）。 Haplif’s POV is focused on within these memories。Any time I’ll talk about the Memories， I’ll do a double dash before and after （--）~ There is both a lot of military tactics （as Thrawn is wont to do） and politics。 The biggest political issues stem from the 40 Lesser Families， mainly the Xodlak one。 Through these struggles， we truly see what glory and honor--and family--mean among the Chiss。 The hierarchy of the Chiss is quite telling。 Too， we better understand the alliances between the Lesser and Ruling families。With the Xodlak family， all the core names begin with L-A-K。 Unlike with other families like the Mitth （T-H）， the fact that the first three letters are the same made a lot of names blend together。 I personally had a LOT of trouble keeping up with who’s who。I really want a map of Chiss space。Ar’alani and Thrawn work VERY well together。 The question comes up as to whether Ar’alani learned from Thrawn or the other way around。 She has indeed learned well。 Thurfian analyzes Thrawn well in chapter 1: that “he loses all the time” but with each loss and disaster “is followed so quickly by a glowing success that everyone forgets or ignores what came before。” Thurfian may hate Thrawn， but he is quite an interesting character to read。Thrawn always comes up with crazy battle plans。 I like Thrawn’s crazy。Thalias is asked by Uingali to meet with the Magys， the head of a matriarchal society， to convince them to go back to their home planet and not kill themselves。 It’s a very important subplot， but a lot with the Magys and her suicidal tendencies is quite annoying。 The plot is left open by the end of the book。 Though we do know the answer to the question: Did the Nikarduns destroy the planet or just take it over？The Magys though are overall interesting in that they are。。。if not Force users or even sensitive， accept that it exists and respects it as the Beyond。Mid-Captain Sarako is NOT HAPPY with Thalias being the ambassador the Magys; after all， she’s just a Caretaker。 Despite his suspicions， I’m glad they have the opportunity to talk。 Between Thalias and Che’ri， even more information about Sky-Walkers is provided。 I like that Sarako isn’t the only one who is confused as to why certain aspects are never actually addressed and/or holistically understood。-- We see just how hard Haplif worked in 3-9 months to learn Cheunh and about the Chill in general。 And then how he manipulated them。 Shoot， how the Agbui manipulate in general。 --Indeed， we meet a yuba rancher named Lakphro， along with his family， and he doesn’t trust Haplif from the moment they meet。 I like Lakphro from the start， and like him even more as the book progresses。-- The Grand Migration IS quite interesting once Jixtus points out his observations。 The Agbui work with a young couple Yomie and Yoponek。 Yomie is bloody awesome。 I love how she integrates journaling and note-taking within her art。 --I feel very bad for Senior Captain Lakinda。 The notion of honor and glory is so embedded in her understanding of life that she feels like everyone looks down on her; that she’s always a fool。 Her desire to be better （and have more honor） leads her to be susceptible to a nasty scheme。 Because Lakuviv is crazy pants。Memories VI makes me loathe Haplif。 As if I didn’t hate him before。 But my memory is so shoddy that I didn’t remember details about the characters when opening this book。 The truth about the mines and metals is so predictable and foreshadowed along the way that I’m almost mad I didn’t recognize it， but I truly am blind to some of those things。 I love that Lakinda immediately accepts that truth， and recognizes that different mindsets doesn’t mean any one person is better or worse than another。 And that， in the end， Chiss is greater than family。At the end， Thrawn’s political incompetence really helps。 The end is ominous。 What I didn’t like: The phrases “hun-bun” and “yokel” 。。。more
Diana Antilles
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Timothy never misses！
SWbookcollector
，
Thrawn Ascendancy: Greater Good by Timothy Zahn。 Review copyTasked with cleaning up the remnants of the Nikardun forces after their defeat， Senior Captain Thrawn once again pushes the boundaries of protocol and the patience of his peers when he discovers a mysterious and suicidal group of refugees， that have given up hope after the destruction of their un-named home planet。 Thrawn and the， now familiar， crew of the Springhawk take it upon themselves to simultaneously investigate the potential th Thrawn Ascendancy: Greater Good by Timothy Zahn。 Review copyTasked with cleaning up the remnants of the Nikardun forces after their defeat， Senior Captain Thrawn once again pushes the boundaries of protocol and the patience of his peers when he discovers a mysterious and suicidal group of refugees， that have given up hope after the destruction of their un-named home planet。 Thrawn and the， now familiar， crew of the Springhawk take it upon themselves to simultaneously investigate the potential threat to the Ascendancy and save the lives of these refugees by proving to them that hope is not lost。 Meanwhile the nefarious enigma Jixtus executes clandestine machinations that appear to have a far larger scope than the Nikardun threat exhibited。The second book in the Ascendancy trilogy does what all good second acts do。 It takes what came before it and expands upon and adds depth， weaving story threads and developing existing characters whilst introducing new， crucial ones。 It slows down the frantic and sometimes wonderfully confusing world building of Chaos Rising and allows the characters and stories to breathe and move forward leisurely。 This was a much needed change of pace as I found myself warming to these characters and this world more and more with each chapter。 It's a more complex story than Chaos Rising but one that's much easier to follow as it's less about remembering names， ranks， species and the intricacies of House politics and more about the narrative itself and the relationships between the characters。 It's also worth noting that this is easily the canon Thrawn book to feature the title character the least。 This is by no means a bad thing as Zahn has given us such compelling characters like Ar'alani， Thalias and newcomers Haplif and Lakinda that it serves the story better to see it from multiple POV's。 Greater Good also confirms that Thrawn Ascendancy is a more cohesive and serialised sequence of books than the previous canon trilogy。 Thrawn， Alliances and Treason were all very much their own stories that were only tangentially linked by characters and some small story details。 The Ascendancy trilogy is very much one story， perhaps closer to his Legends trilogy in that regard than anything else。The use of the memory chapters in this book are more focused this time around， following one story thread and giving more context to a certain thread。 It's effective and these chapters were some of my favourite parts of the book。 Thrawn Ascendancy: Greater Good builds on the groundwork laid by the first book to create a compelling and vital second part that does as much for this trilogy as Empire did for the OT。 。。。more
Eli
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If you're hungry for Chiss lore， you're gonna love this。If you're hungry for Thrawn specifically， it leaves something to be desired。Unlike the first novel in this trilogy， which focuses primarily on Thrawn， the scope of Greater Good is much wider。 Lots of new characters introduced， and a lot of names to keep track of。 I personally didn't find the name thing difficult， but the story veers far away from Thrawn a lot of times。 It's clear that Zahn wanted to showcase the vastness and diversity of th If you're hungry for Chiss lore， you're gonna love this。If you're hungry for Thrawn specifically， it leaves something to be desired。Unlike the first novel in this trilogy， which focuses primarily on Thrawn， the scope of Greater Good is much wider。 Lots of new characters introduced， and a lot of names to keep track of。 I personally didn't find the name thing difficult， but the story veers far away from Thrawn a lot of times。 It's clear that Zahn wanted to showcase the vastness and diversity of the Chiss Ascendancy with this one。The returning characters are lovely， and the new major character， Lakinda， is pretty likable too。 The antagonists are absolutely despicable （in a good writing way） and the main villain， the big bad， is undeniably intriguing and attractive in a way。 As for Thrawn himself， he's brilliant， and I still never cease to be amazed and delighted every time he shows up。As far as the plot goes， it was good， and Zahn really knows how to spin a good intrigue， but at the end， I once again felt like the stakes weren't as high as they could've been。 The questions I was left with after finishing， besides the cliffhanger in the very last sentence， were mostly minor ones about Chiss culture。 The main intrigue of the book got pretty much entirely resolved by the end of the book。 I'm excited for the next one， but I was left feeling like the conflict was a bit too tame。With all that said though， this book has its wonderful moments。 We finally got to see how Chiss who aren't in the military live their lives; what problems they run into， what their hopes and dreams are。 Us Chiss fans got enough lore to keep us busy for months。Overall， if you like Thrawn and want to know more about Chiss culture， this is a great read。 I recommend。 。。。more
JAGD Reviews
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This book comes out just a couple weeks before the 30th Anniversary of "Heir to the Empire"， which marked the start of the EU， Timothy Zahn's amazing run of fantastic Star Wars books and the creation of Thrawn。After the original Thrawn trilogy， Hand of Thrawn duology， Outbound Flight in the EU and now five Canon books you would think the character would be either stale or out of new ground to tread but the Ascendancy prequel trilogy blazes an awesome trail of new mythology。By going back in time This book comes out just a couple weeks before the 30th Anniversary of "Heir to the Empire"， which marked the start of the EU， Timothy Zahn's amazing run of fantastic Star Wars books and the creation of Thrawn。After the original Thrawn trilogy， Hand of Thrawn duology， Outbound Flight in the EU and now five Canon books you would think the character would be either stale or out of new ground to tread but the Ascendancy prequel trilogy blazes an awesome trail of new mythology。By going back in time and showing us the inner workings and cultures of the Chiss Ascendancy and the rest of the Outer Region races this trilogy becomes a completely unique flavor of Star Wars。 Greater Good doesn't quite hit the emotional highs of Chaos Rising but delivers enough intrigue and inner workings of the Chiss to mostly make up for it。 I know we have one more book left in the trilogy but I am full convinced Zahn's six books are setting us up for Thrawn to redeem himself in the new Ahsoka show。 Mark your calendars and come back to tell me how wrong I was！ 。。。more
Sal Perales
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“The odds are never impossible， merely unfavorable。”-ThrawnThe second book in Thrawn’s prequel trilogy is here！ Thrawn Ascendancy: Greater Good continues the story of our little blue guy’s rise through the military ranks in the Chiss Ascendancy。 Once again Timothy Zahn pits Thrawn and his fellow Chiss against their enemies deep in the Unknown Regions。 This time， however， the danger isn’t just fleet tactics and capital ships。 The enemies of the Ascendancy strike with subterfuge and politics。 A ne “The odds are never impossible， merely unfavorable。”-ThrawnThe second book in Thrawn’s prequel trilogy is here！ Thrawn Ascendancy: Greater Good continues the story of our little blue guy’s rise through the military ranks in the Chiss Ascendancy。 Once again Timothy Zahn pits Thrawn and his fellow Chiss against their enemies deep in the Unknown Regions。 This time， however， the danger isn’t just fleet tactics and capital ships。 The enemies of the Ascendancy strike with subterfuge and politics。 A new battlefield for Thrawn where he might not be the genius tactician he is on the battlefield。The book takes most of the Thrawn story tropes and tosses in a mix of Chiss politics and the sowing of dissonance to bring a very interesting story that strays a bit from the usual "Thrawn wins fleet things。" As the second book in a trilogy， there are plenty of loose threads to ponder on as we wait until Thrawn Ascendancy: Lesser Evil arrives in November。 I think I enjoyed this book a bit more than Thrawn Ascendancy: Chaos Rising because of Chaos Rising's great job in setting up these characters and the world-building of Chiss society。 Greater Good plants some very interesting seeds and raises some very interesting questions that I can’t wait to see resolved in the final book。This book is definitely a must-read for any Thrawn fan or fans of political intrigue！Full review: https://theroguerebels。com/2021/04/27。。。 。。。more
Chelsea Tatham
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Excerpts from my review for Dork Side of the Force:https://dorksideoftheforce。com/2021/0。。。 "Heading back into the mysterious， not-quite-lawless area of the Unknown Regions of the galaxy， legendary Star Wars author Timothy Zahn once again presents a slow-burn political thriller featuring the beloved blue-skinned Chiss commander， Thrawn。 Thrawn Ascendancy: Greater Good is the second book in Zahn’s newest Thrawn trilogy， taking us farther back into the future grand admiral’s origins as he navigate Excerpts from my review for Dork Side of the Force:https://dorksideoftheforce。com/2021/0。。。 "Heading back into the mysterious， not-quite-lawless area of the Unknown Regions of the galaxy， legendary Star Wars author Timothy Zahn once again presents a slow-burn political thriller featuring the beloved blue-skinned Chiss commander， Thrawn。 Thrawn Ascendancy: Greater Good is the second book in Zahn’s newest Thrawn trilogy， taking us farther back into the future grand admiral’s origins as he navigated his own homeworlds， culture and familial bureaucracy。Picking up where the first book， Chaos Rising， left off， Greater Good sows the seeds of civil strife planted in the former novel as the militaristic Chiss try to sweep up the remnants of one enemy only to find a larger one trying to infiltrate their home。 Besides Thrawn， returning favorite characters include Thalias and Sky-walker Che’ri and Thrawn’s closest ally Admiral Ar’alani。 However， Thrawn and his compatriots take a back seat for much of the novel in favor of spotlighting a new character Senior Captain Lakinda， her family the Xodlak and a mysterious alien race who seem a bit too friendly to be good。""Being a Thrawn novel， Greater Good is also a classic Zahn story and can be a bit overwhelming and heavy in the first half。 Zahn is a master at laying out the game board and slowly moving the pieces into place while the reader is understandably distracted by the intricate and epic space battles and intriguing details of Chiss family culture。 Just as the complexities of Chiss virtues like ambition， power and respect come into greater focus， the long con of a mysterious larger enemy is revealed， pushing the blue-skinned aliens to the brink of civil war。Like all Thrawn novels， Greater Good doesn’t focus on if Thrawn can solve the mystery in time， but how he gets there。 Fans know that Thrawn is a brilliant strategist who leaves little room for doubt of his intellectual skills。 But it is just as intriguing seeing Thrawn’s mental methods at work through the eyes of other Chiss — some of whom respect and admire or despite Thrawn。 With Zahn’s detailed， stream-of-consciousness style writing， Greater Good brings you right into the middle of the mystery， prompting you to pick each character’s brain to try to solve it before the cerebral Thrawn does。" 。。。more
Maggie Lovitt
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Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy （Book II: Greater Good） suffers from “middle book fatigue” but offers up compelling political intrigue， expansive world-building， and a healthy dose of battle strategy。 （READ MORE: https://yourmoneygeek。com/star-wars-t。。。） With the triumph of Thrawn’s latest victory for the Chiss resting on his shoulders， he and his allies find themselves in a race to save the Chiss Ascendancy from an unseen enemy that has yet to be extinguished。 But the enemy is almost as clever as Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy （Book II: Greater Good） suffers from “middle book fatigue” but offers up compelling political intrigue， expansive world-building， and a healthy dose of battle strategy。 （READ MORE: https://yourmoneygeek。com/star-wars-t。。。） With the triumph of Thrawn’s latest victory for the Chiss resting on his shoulders， he and his allies find themselves in a race to save the Chiss Ascendancy from an unseen enemy that has yet to be extinguished。 But the enemy is almost as clever as the Sherlockian-like Thrawn， opting to further the rifts between the ruling families， rather than attack them among the stars in battle。 These enemies bring some of the most interesting elements within the novel， revealing their infiltration through rich flashbacks。 If you enjoy familial drama， then the rivalries between the ruling Chiss families will captivate you。 While the Thrawn Ascendancy trilogy boasts the fan-favorite Thrawn as the central character， his own story often takes the backseat in terms of narrative structure。 Thrawn is the sun of the trilogy and the books are simply exploring the characters that are caught in his orbit。 The plots that do directly relate to Thrawn feel lackluster — we’re told about his flaws， but they never fully come into play。 Zahn is a master at creating characters and Greater Good has a plethora of interesting characters that interact with each other in various ways， but I was still left wanting to know more about them。 When so much of the story is driven by character choices and conflict， having so many uniquely different characters can be frustrating。 You might be intimidated by the size of Greater Good， but Timothy Zahn has a true genius for writing prose that keeps you engaged with it’s fast-paced style。 At times the story wanders away from the central plot， to the extent that key factors set-up in the first half of the book are forgotten by the second half， but it ultimately manages to tie it together in the end。 I have a passing interest in Thrawn and his exploits， so Greater Good falls somewhere within my “good Star Wars books” ranking。 It’s a fun read， with intriguing characters， but in the end it’s just alright for me。 The Thrawn Ascendancy trilogy started strong with Chaos Rising， however Greater Good has left me hoping it can pull off a strong finish。 Whatever my qualms with Thrawn Ascendancy， there is something truly special about having a series written by Timothy Zahn about a character that he created thirty years ago in Heir to the Empire。 Nine years ago this month， Disney’s acquisition de-canonized the Expanded Universe and Grand Admiral Thrawn， but — against all odds — he was brought back to the canon through Star Wars: Rebels， The Mandalorian， and his own novelizations。 For fans of Thrawn， the Thrawn Ascendancy and all of Timothy Zahn’s work is a dream come true and this trilogy is bound to find a special place on the bookshelves of Star Wars fans。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Greater Good
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Greater Good&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Greater Good&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0