Luke Skywalker Books

As a child of the 80s, it's only natural that I was a fan of star wars growing up. As a fan of books, it's only natural that sooner or later I'd get involved in reading star wars. Admittedly, while being a fan of the original trilogy, and SOME parts of the prequels, I never touched a star wars book or comic before in my life. A co-worker lent me this book some months ago. Recently with the whole star wars turns 30 celebration, I watched the original trilogy on DVD again and got 'bit by the bug' as they say. The same happened to me with the star trek 40th birthday, grabbing onto the original series on DVD as well as as many paperbacks as I could. Anyway, enough back story ;)

I was pleasantly surprised by how good this book was. I wasn't expecting that much but from start to finish, this book has that authentic spirit of star wars. And it centers around one of my favoirte characters, Han Solo.

The characterization is spot on. Han, always looking out for number one seems to have an uncanny knack of getting involved in situations where he ends up being the hero, whether he likes it or not. The ironic part of it is is that he's GOOD at it! This book carries that characterization out very well.

Just looking for ship's repairs and mock up trader papers, Han gets involved in a conspiracy involving the galactic Trade Authority in which 'enemies' of the Authority just happen to disappear without a trace.

The play between Han, Chewbacca and the rest of teh characters, both good and bad (especially the droids..we all know how he feels about them) is really fun to read and there's plenty of action in the grand star wars fasion that, as fans, we're used to and have come to expect. My next read is going to be Han Solo's revenge and I can't wait. Highly recommended to any Star Wars fan, hardcore and casual alike.

The book is great. It was what I expected and it came so soon after ordering.

this was a great read. it is a large comic to put it bluntly. it has cool drawings and is well written. most of your favorite lines from the movie are in in unadultrated. it is narrated quite well and is a great book to add to your star wars collection.

The cornerstone of the modern Star Wars Expanded Universe, Timothy Zahn's Heir to the Empire was published in 1991 in an environment where Star Wars was considered a dusty relic of the 70s and 80s, except to some die-hard enthusiasts. At least, that was the perception going around. The reality was there was enough latent interest in the franchise to send this book soaring up the New York Times bestseller lists. I remember at the time believing there would never be any more Star Wars films and that this trilogy would act as a surrogate Episodes VII, VIII, and IX. Well, here we are eighteen years later and we've gotten three (soon to be four with the animated Clone Wars) more films, but still no sign of the infamous sequel trilogy. So, for the time being, perhaps the Thrawn Trilogy can be considered the closest thing we've got.

In light of that, the great news is this is one of the best books of the Expanded Universe and also one of its most cinematic. Zahn moved the timeline forward to five years after Return of the Jedi, and in doing so permitted the main characters to develop beyond what we saw in the films. Han and Leia are married with twin children on the way, and Luke is laying the groundwork for the future course of the Jedi. All the usual sidekicks are back and true to their film selves.

The key, though, is the new villain Zahn introduces, Grand Admiral Thrawn. Thrawn is a character of chilling intelligence, methodically plotting and executing a return to power for the scattered remnants of the Empire. He is ably assisted by Captain Pellaeon and a well-trained Imperial force of warships and troopers. Thrawn's earliest appearance in the Expanded Universe chronologically was in the excellent novel Outbound Flight, set decades earlier. Heir to the Empire does not reveal much of the intervening decades in his life but readers of the other book will immediately recognize the portrayal and development of Thrawn here.

Another significant addition to the Star Wars galaxy in this book is Mara Jade, former Emperor's Hand and Force user turned smuggler. Mara is a strong character who tends to dominate any scene she's in, but she makes a great foil to Luke Skywalker. They are connected by surprising events from the past, casting a new light on the battle at the Pit of Carkoon in Return of the Jedi. Mara's adversarial relationship to Luke creates many opportunities for growth in both her and Luke and Zahn handles this well.

The best thing about Thrawn is he brings a true sense of danger that was lacking in the Empire's leaders since the Battle of Endor. Ysanne Isard was smart and malicious but lacked a sweeping vision. Warlord Zsinj was somewhat clever but also a bit silly and trite. The New Republic has faced many other opponents but not any with the potential for complete ruin that Thrawn brings. The addition of the rogue Jedi Joruus C'baoth to Thrawn's forces completes building the most credible threat the fledging government has faced in the Expanded Universe.

The storyline itself works well both as a largely standalone episode, not dissimilar to A New Hope, but also in planting the seeds for the two sequels. The storyline itself is well-crafted and marries perfectly with Zahn's strong characterizations. This book is essential reading for any fan wanting to enter the Star Wars Expanded Universe but also continues to be a rewarding read for fans saturated in the tales of that galaxy far, far away.

I did not expect that the star wars series could continue so interesting after The Return of the Jedi. The new characters that I saw for the first time in this movie are just as interesting as Han Solo and the others I was already familiar with. If you like Star Wars you'll have a lot of fun!

That is if you don't count Splinter of the Mind's Eye, or the Han trilogy, or Lando trilogy. This is a great series and could easily be credited with keeping the Star Wars series in the general populace's eye during the late eighties and early nineties. With no new films to date Star Wars was officially over in 1983 with Return of the Jedi, that is of course until this was published.

One thing that stands out as exceptionally well done is the sense of military tactics and space battles, which ironically was missing from even the Prequel Movies. Zahn's pacing is quick but precise and leaves readers with a good sense of tension that keeps them reading to see how it gets resolved. The natural progression of the characters from the end of the last film (Episode 6) is apparent and the dialog is well written. He really captured the feel of each of the characters and the sense of scope with his descriptions. The opening scene with Luke and Obi-Wan is touching and written with a good sense of the relationship between the characters. Having read this series twice I can say that I thoroughly enjoyed it!

Whether you care for Timothy Zahn's Thrawn trilogy or not, you can't deny that it is the series by which all other Expanded Universe material is judged.

Excellent book continuing the star wars story. The first few chapters are spent getting you back up to speed with previous and new characters, but once through them, it's hard to put the book down. If you enjoyed the battle with Sidious and Vader, Thrawn is a character that will appeal to your liking. A book to read after this before volume two in the series, would be Outbound Flight to further get an idea out Thrawn and who he truly is. An excellent book and a must read!

The good: some characters are well developed and treated that they come alive such as Han Solo and Lando.

The bad: The story seems to go nowhere, first chapters are really boring. I think Zahn fails to set the apropriated tension since the beginning.

The Ugly: How did Zahn dared to write a Star Wars story that doesn't features a dramatic ending with a light saber duel???!!! (sorry if I spoiled but I had to say this) This is not a complete story, it leaves you in the middle of something (nowhere in particular), it doesn't work as a unit like ep V which despite it is to be continued, it has a clear climax.

I'm very disapointed by this novel.

Where to begin? Not only does this book have your favorite classic characters(minus Han, who is frozen in carbonite at the time), but it introduces new characters like Prince Xizor and Dash Rendar. Steve Perry did an excellent job writing this book. You feel like you're right in the middle of the action. It has an interesting storyline, including the construction of Luke's green-colored lightsaber in Return of the Jedi, and the Bothans helping the Rebel Alliance find the plans for the second Death Star. If you are a Star Wars fan, this book is a must-read!

This is by far the best stand alone Star Wars book ever written. The reader does not have to have read any of the other books to understand the story behind "Shadows". This book captures the feel of the original movies and fills in a great deal of missing plot from the films. Highly recommended title!

Shadows of the Empire is a work of genius, plain and simple. Unknown to many, this novel was the elaborate plan of Lucasfilm's marketing department. Lucas had originally intended to release his Special Edition of the original Star Wars Trilogy in theaters in 1996, but when his scheduling fell behind, all of his plans for that year had to be altered. So deciding that this Special Edition would be released in 1997, and also a way to celebrate the original film's 20th anniversary, Lucas' team had to come up with some way to fill in the gap for fans during the year preceding the theatrical release. Shadows of the Empire was not just a novel, but part of an in-genius campaign that was coined "everything but the movie." It included the novel, toys, trading cards, video games, models, and all kinds of merchandise, including an original "film" score. (This soundtrack is also a great addition for any fan of Star Wars scores, by the way.) The Star Wars marketing camp even made a trailer for the novel that aired on television. Set between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, it would answer many fan's questions about how everything fell into place for the final installment of the saga.

As a novel it had a great plot and was well written. With familiar characters and a new exciting villain who was a great foil to Darth Vader (Prince Xizor), this story was exciting and highly entertaining. Two key scenes that stand out are Vader trying to heal himself with the Dark Side of the Force (which gives readers a great sense of his character and his whole obsession with Luke and the Force), and the seduction of Princess Leia by Prince Xizor. This is a fantastic read and the only Expanded Universe book that has been recognized by George Lucas himself as being the only novel to be considered official canon.

Highly recommended and while you're at it you might as well get the soundtrack if you can get your hands on it. This only compliments the novel and is a fantastic piece of musical scoring in and of itself.

The Star Wars Saga has led to many novels based of the events of the films. This novel follows our favorite characters as the prepare to save poor old Han Solo from Jabba the Hutt. The novel shows the happenings between the Episode V and VI. To me, the novel shows Luke's transformation to a full-fledged Jedi.

This novel is a great book for fans of the films and fans of epic stories.

PARTY ON, DUDES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here is the untold story of the events that took place between Star Wars, Episode V- The Empire Strikes Back and Star Wars Episode VI - Return of the Jedi: a novel in which Darth Vader still lives and battles a villain as powerful and evil as himself; Prince Xizor the leader of the crime syndicate Black Sun.

A passable Star Wars read, but storyline needs more depth and intrigue.

Zahn's initial Thrawn Trilogy is widely respected to be the best Star Wars series, and rightfully so.

So I couldn't wait for the "Hand Of Thrawn" books to have. Still, I was highly dissapointed.

While the first 3 books dealt with an military genius forcing the desperate Alliance back (I finished each book in 2 days max.), these here "merely" deal with imposters and a possible civil war (the reasons for the aggression of several species towards the Bothans here are not really believable) and the attempts to prevent it.

The main flaw of the Hand Of Thrawn is that the plot is simply - boring. I found myself forcing to read part 1 and 400 pages of "Visions of the future" before the story finally speeded up and got intersting. Without loving the first Trhawn-trilogy, I doubt anybody would do that too :-/

Another big minus is the number of side plots - Luke & Mara (the best part - both attacking a Chiss fortess), Leia (Leia breaking diplomatic rules that easily?), Han & Lando (two well known heroes of the Rebellion strutting around on the Imperial homeworld for days without being recognized???), Karrde & Shada (really boring, but you can tell Zahn loves the characters he created...), Corran & Wedge (who - over the course of several chapters do or achieve: nothing), "Thrawn" , Mistryl assassin Karoly (doesn't drive the plot forward at all), Imperial saboteurs (this part actually is quite good), Bel Iblis (doing the usual "totally outnumbered and outgunned but still pulling a trick for the Empire" Rebel stunt), Admiral Pellaeon (trying to sign a peace treaty between the Empire and the Alliance - the most interesting part of the book), and a new faction - The Empire Of The Hand (this part would be really interesting, but isn't explored enough).

Add some ever repeating phrases ( "he/she grimaced" seems to be the standart reaction to about every sentence), add some bad logic (why did Mara and Luke go into the Chiss fortress a second time - achieving basically nothing and then just leaving for 3+ years) to it, mix it with the lack of excitement over the first 1100 pages of this duology, and you get an idea why Zahn failed to recreate the epic feeling the initial Thrawn trilogy had.


For absolute die-hard fans only.

All others should check out the more than excellent newer Zahn novel "Survivor's Quest", which basically is a sequel to the Hand Of Thrawn.

Very good book; a nice footnote to the Thrawn series and addition to the Star Wars universe.

If you've read other Star Wars novels by Timothy Zahn, you know he's the best author of the novels. Do yourself a favor and read the Thrawn trilogy. I'm still hoping Lucas will come to his senses and make a movie from those books.

I really like this book. Personally I am a fan of Luke and Mara and I have to had this book, I wanted to know how they end up together and even if some fans think they were more rational than passional, I think it is the Star Wars way for romance. They are two strong characters, they couldn't have a typical romance! I think it was very "in character" for them. The story is fast and entertaining, I like it, a lot.

I'm amazed at some of the positive reviews. This book was so boring. Probably one of Zahn's worst books, although i havent read all of them yet. To many things going on at once, no real connection to the main story. Which seemed to be the return of Thrawn. And how did it end? With a DUD. Simply horrible.

This review is for The Hand of Thrawn Duology. This duology consists of Specter of the Past and Vision of the Future. This is the follow-up to The Thrawn Trilogy, by Timothy Zahn.

This story is about how the Imperials finally surrender to the New Republic. The overall story was good but the author was bogged down with tieing up loose ends from the rest of the Star Wars novels and comics.

If you are interested in reading a lot of the Star Wars books, I recommend checking this book out from your local library because the events in this book are important in some of the other Star Wars books.

I put the book down about half-way through it because I just couldn't get into it anywhere near as much as the Thrawn Trilogy. I realize that this book is probably just a lot of setting-up for the 2nd book, but I decided that I'd rather read other books instead of be bored on the way. It probably would have been better if Zahn had stuck with his original idea of one book instead of making it a duology.

Instead of this book, I highly recommend the following 5-star novels:

Cloak of Deception (Star Wars)
Shadow Hunter (Star Wars: Darth Maul)
Labyrinth of Evil (Star Wars, Episode III Prequel Novel)
Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader (Star Wars)
Shadows of the Empire (Star Wars)

I really, really enjoyed Tim Zahn's retur to the Star Wars universe, especially since this actually makes political sense. Though I enjoyed the Thrawn trilogy, Thrawn himself was rather annoying, as I am sure that he was to Luke, Leia et al, since he was so good at making their lives miserable. But he was just so omniscient that he was a tad over the top, a Fu Manchu from the Galaxy far, far away. This time, he is just being imitated, with humorous results. Mara Jade is back, too, and nobody does Mara like Zahn does. I don't think the other authors that touch on her really understand her, at all, least of all B. Hambly. Highly recommended.

I really liked this book. Zahn did a great job leading you along. You couldn't wait to start the second book in the duology A Vision of the Future.Luckily since I didn't get to read it till well after they had both been published I didn't have to wait. This is one of the better Star Wars books out there.

the irritating writing style continues...unfortunately this time there is no attempt at a storyline and no interesting characters. we don't really need to be informed every time someone has to 'connect to the force', or runs through jedi meditation techniques, etc. it has to be implied at some point really.

The Last Command is the climactic novel in Timothy Zahn's superb Thrawn Trilogy, a series published in the early 1990's that laid the groundwork for much of the Star Wars Expanded Universe that was to come. All of Zahn's carefully constructed plotting comes together here in an action-packed and highly rewarding tale, intertwining the militaristic and precise storyline of Grand Admiral's Thrawn's campaign against the New Republic with the more metaphysical struggles of Luke Skywalker and insane Jedi clone Joruus C'baoth. All the main characters from the Original Trilogy take starring roles alongside Thrawn, C'baoth, smuggler Talon Karrde and ex-Emperor's Hand Mara Jade.

Grand Admiral Thrawn has built the armies and resources he requires for a full-out assault on the New Republic. Key to his plans are the clone army he's creating out of Spaarti cylinders, his newly-acquired Katana fleet of Clone Wars-era dreadnoughts, and cloaking shield technology taken from the Emperor's private storehouse of treasures and technology on the hidden planet Wayland. Thrawn's plans for disabling Coruscant are innovative and quite unexpected, making extremely good use of the cloaking shields. As in the first two books, he is generally a step ahead of his opponents, using his careful analysis of people and cultures' artworks to gain a heightened understanding of their motivations and likely courses of action. For some, Zahn's portrayal of Thrawn might verge too close to making him omniscient, but several key errors act to humanize ("Chiss-ize?") the Grand Admiral and make him more believable. To me personally, Thrawn is one of the most intriguing and entertaining villains in all of the Star Wars stories.

Significant portions of this story focus on Talon Karrde and his efforts to unite disparate bands of smugglers against the Empire. Karrde's journey finally takes on aspects of Han Solo's from the films, as Karrde discovers a wellspring of goodness within himself and is finally able to put profit behind helping people and saving the galaxy. It's interesting learning about the struggles for power between the smugglers after the untimely demise of Jabba the Hutt, and the scenes in which Karrde is double-crossed as he attempts to persuade his peers to his side are quite gripping.

Luke has come to terms with his disappointment at learning that C'baoth is a power-hungry and insane clone of the real Jedi Master, and in this final volume he takes a more proactive role to set things right. Echoing the days of being Rebels fighting a guerilla war against the Imperials, Luke and his friends violate all sorts of rules to break Mara out of imprisonment on Coruscant and use her to get to Wayland and set the stage for the final confrontation with C'baoth. For her part, Mara must deal with the titular last command of the Emperor's implanted in her head, ordering her to kill Luke Skywalker. Zahn's way of permitting her to deal with this imperative and simultaneously allowing Luke to live is quite unexpected.

Of the three books, this one has the most material that is in conflict with the prequel films and later EU, but for the most part everything still hangs together well enough. The clones are portrayed as far more unstable than the ones we met in the films and none of them show any evidence of individual personalities here. There are some timeline things that are a little off, but again, the overall feel of Zahn's story works just fine with everything that has come since.

The Thrawn Trilogy is a terrific Star Wars reading experience and fundamentally important to understanding the Bantam series of novels published throughout the 1990s. Zahn continued on to write quite a few more Star Wars novels, fleshing out the stories of Outbound Flight, Mara Jade, and the enigmatic Hand of Thrawn. Highly recommended!

I must say that this Thrawn trilogy was quite an enjoyable read. Not a 5 star read but definitely a 4 star.

This final book in the trilogy is not without it's merits and kept my interest for the most part. Overall, however, I had a hard time getting captivated, not because the story was uninteresting, just the writing style was a little plain at times.

Overall, I definitely recommend this book and the trilogy to all Star Wars fans.

The Last Command wraps up all of the loose ends that were established in the other two novels in the series. Mara Jade's character is redeemed and from her memorable introduction, to her fight alongside Luke in Myyrkr forest, to her battle with him against C'boath, her character comes full circle and her ties to the Dark Side are finally severed.

Having certain plot points established early on helped when the book took some surprising turns! I was not expecting them and it made this book the most exciting of the three. I have read many of the Expanded Universe Novels and aside from Shadows of the Empire, none of the others come close to this series.

The Star Wars novel franchise is an interesting one, but it holds little interest for me much beyond this time-line in the Star Wars saga. 5 Years after Return of the Jedi is plenty of time to tell a new story about our beloved heroes. But the Expanded Universe has stretched out into 50 or so years after. Honestly these poor characters can't live in peace, because the publishers need to sell more novels. I likely won't be reviewing the other novels as they don't really compare with the ones I've already noted.

I apologize for the derailment, but I just needed to share that with those that may have been following my book reviews on Star Wars. Thanks! This is a wonderful read and all the character's story arcs are resolved in a exciting and logical fashion.

I already had these books but wanted harcover and this one did not have a paper cover on it. just the book!

In many cases, a reader or viewer of Star Wars can anticipate what will happen in a story before it even starts. One expects the Rebellion/New Republic to be victorious in the end. This does not make the plot any less interesting. One has a vague idea of how the Thrawn Trilogy will end. Still, it is a quality read.

As Thrawn's plan begins to unhatch in "The Last Command", his relationship with Dark Jedi clone C'Baoth begins to crumble. At the same time, the New Republic is pulling allies from sources once thought to be unlikely. The greatest wild card in the story is Mara Jade. If you have not read other Star Wars books that chronologically occur after this book, her fate is a mystery. The author could not have written a more appropriate end to their conflict. Perhaps this is the biggest curve in the story.

As I have expressed in other reviews of Star Wars books, I tend to prefer when the story focuses more on dialogue than on battle scenes. With the exception of the end, this book does not dwell for extended periods in the tedium of describing battle scenes. For myself, this made the book a much quicker read.

Ranking the Thrawn Trilogy in order of preference, I would suggest the second book is best, while this book is the next best. By far, I liked the first book in the series the least. Trends in the reviews seem to follow my opinion to a degree.

Timothy Zahn continues the incredible story of the New Republic's efforts to repel the attacks of the formidable Grand Admiral Thrawn in Dark Force Rising, the second volume of a trilogy. Set five years after Return of the Jedi, this book is an excellent continuation of one of the most interesting storylines in the Star Wars Expanded Universe. Since the trilogy was written in the early 1990's, some details have been contradicted by the prequel films and the immense growth of the saga, but the overall impact of the story is undiminished and things fit together remarkably well.

The book opens with Thrawn's assault upon smuggler Talon Karrde's base of operations on the planet Myrkr. Karrde is struggling to maintain his profitable neutrality in this conflict, but the open attack by the Empire starts him down a path that ultimately will have major ramifications in determining the victor between the Imperial remnant and the fledgling New Republic. Zahn avoids painting Karrde as a carbon-copy of Han Solo, another smuggler whose heart is opened to his inner goodness via external events, by keeping Karrde as an outside force willing to collaborate with the New Republic but not willing to flat-out join.

The primary focus of this second volume's plot is centered around the Katana fleet, a legendary group of Clone Wars-era automated dreadnoughts lost in the uncharted depths of space. This fleet, also known as the "Dark Force," is fantastically desirable to both the New Republic and Grand Admiral Thrawn. The galaxy largely believes the massive fleet to be a myth, but events here prove otherwise and we are swept to a tense conclusion in which both sides make their play to acquire this source of power.

The former Emperor's Hand and Imperial assassin Mara Jade plays a key role in this story. Her impetus to kill Luke Skywalker remains from the first book, but essentially there's never a good time to actually do it. Indeed, despite blaming him for the collapse of her life and despite the Emperor's implanted suggestions, she ends up teaming with Luke to save Karrde and his crew from the Empire. Zahn does a great job weaving her story into Luke's and she brings a very interesting perspective as an ex-Imperial servant. Also enjoyable is a sequence in which she meets Grand Admiral Thrawn and starts to realize that her role as Emperor's Hand wasn't quite what she thought it was.

Luke learns more about the Force and the Jedi through his meeting with the mad Jedi clone Joruus C'baoth on the planet Jomark. Luke is portrayed as very unsure of himself, a decision I don't entirely agree with, but considering that Luke is single-handedly attempting to chart the future of the Jedi, I can see why Zahn developed this particular characterization. If Luke had been a little more self-confident of his own feelings about right and wrong, I don't believe he would have spent very long with C'baoth, but I do like how this time depicts Luke as extremely anxious to weigh all possible paths and opinions as he forges his own vision of a new Jedi Order. Also valuable to this portrayal is a short but engaging scene where Luke arbitrates a small dispute between two aliens in a bar and realizes the high esteem that much of the galaxy still places in Jedi.

Dark Force Rising has a spectacular storyline involving Leia's efforts to understand and ally with the Noghri people, the same species who assiduously attempted to kidnap her and her unborn twins throughout Heir to the Empire. Leia journeys with Chewbacca and C-3PO to Honoghr, the devastated Noghri home world. The Noghri are a brilliant addition to the Star Wars universe, a truly alien species that Leia struggles to relate to and eventually is able to reach. The sequence in which Leia discerns the truth concerning what the Empire did to the Noghri and Honoghr is absolutely compelling.

The Thrawn Trilogy is some of the best reading in the Expanded Universe, and as such Dark Force Rising is highly recommended. Zahn offers a potent mix of action, politics, character development, and intriguing plotlines to make a fresh and highly readable tale.

Having left our heroes in the wake of imminent danger, Dark Force rising starts off with a real sense of foreboding. This installment of the Thrawn Trilogy delves into Leia's character and interestingly examines Darth Vader's influence during his reign with the Empire. The Noghri character whom befriend's Leia is told of Vader's "generosity" as well as the Empire's during the time of the Galactic Civil War.

Another fun aspect of this book was following Lando and Han in their discovery of the Dark Force fleet. It was a nice venture into different territory and interesting to see how these two characters interacted when pressed into dangerous situations.

Luke's training with C'boath is also well written and readers get a real sense of Luke's lack of confidence in his skills since defeating Darth Vader. His rushed training on Dagobah is echoed nicely in his story arch for this novel and it fleshes out his character very well.

For those who loved Heir to the Empire, you just need to keep reading the trilogy!

I found this book a little more drawn out then the first. In keeping with the first book I found myself putting it down shortly after picking it up. It was interesting in parts. The last third of the book picked up for me so I give it three stars.

Frankly I have enjoyed this trilogy quite a bit. Timothy Zahn is definitely a decent writer but so far does not write a story capable of getting better then a 4 star review. This book was good but a little less interesting then the first. Still it is an interesting series and he does have a good character in Grand Admiral Thrawn which he depicts very well.

I really enjoyed Dark Force Rising, the second book in the Thrawn Trilogy by Timothy Zahn, and it made me excited to read the rest of the books in the Thrawn series.

Dark Force Rising starts immediately where Heir to the Empire leaves off. Admiral Ackbar is in prison, accused of treason, and Fey'la is still trying to take over leadership of the New Republic. Han Solo and Lando Calrissian journey to investigate the claims against Ackbar. Leia rendezvous with Khabarakh, and she must try to convince his fellow Noghri the Empire is exploiting them while she and Chewbacca try to remain hidden from Grand Admiral Thrawn's presence on the Noghri planet, Honoghr. Luke, still questioning his abilities as a Jedi, sets off to find Jedi Master Joruus C'Boath on the small planet of Jomark. Mara Jade inadvertently leads Grand Admiral Thrawn to Talon Karrde and his capture, and she must reluctantly seek out Luke Skywalker to help in Karrde's escape. Looming in the background of the novel is the search for the mythical Dark Force, a large fleet of Dreadnaughts, which could prove invaluable to whomever is able to find them first.

Timothy Zahn's Dark Force Rising is an action packed adventure with one perilous situation after another. Zahn writes the characters and action so well, I found myself completely consumed by the story, eager to find out what happened next. I would recommend this book to Star Wars fans who read and enjoyed Zahn's first book in this trilogy, Heir to the Empire.

While I must admit that I was not a great fan of the first book in the Thrawn Trilogy "Heir to the Empire", the second book really got my attention. I will venture to say that most people reading the Star Wars books are reading to see the characters they loved from the movies develop. In the second book, Han Solo, Luke, Lando Calrissian, and Leia Organa Solo take center stage as they chase an once defunct fleet of abandon ships while a conspiracy against the New Republic unravels. It makes for a fast paced read that is hard to Star Wars fans to dislike.

There were a number of aspects of this book that I really enjoyed. Star Wars certainly has some political wrinkles in the plot. "Dark Force Rising" sees the New Republic's government developing into dangerous factions. The power grabs of this era are not limited to the Sith. Seeing the insanity of Jedi Master Joruus C'baoth spiral as he meets Luke Skywalker affords the opportunity to develop Luke's character as he continues to learn the ways of the force. As I await the third book in the trilogy, I am most looking forward to seeing the direction which the author takes the Mara Jade character. While the author seems to have ended this aspect of the story, I find it hard to believe that the author would end it so abruptly.

After reading the first book in this series, I was certain that I would be disappointed by chronology. After reading the second book, I can not wait to read the third book. With the plot leaving questions in my mind, the author did more than enough to keep the series interesting through three books.

The conclusion of the first wave of Vong attacks is perfectly written in Stackpole's style. And a must read for those who enjoyed any of his previous works.

I very much enjoyed this book, and I certainly would like to see what conclusion the writer is going to make of this!!
A fairly good story, it is allways a winner to do battle between good and evil, just make sure it`s a happy ending!

So, here we are with our next review for book 3 of this fine series. Everything that I felt lacking in narrative in the last book was fixed in this one. This one was an exciting read in every way. I loved the buildup, the relationships and so forth. It had a very cool climax in this one as well. This one is my favorite so far in this series. I will be starting book 4 tomorrow, so stay tuned.

leia travels about being saved time and time again kinda like daphane on scooby doo.anakan programs valuable info for the republic and has little trouble killing vongs unlike everyone else.jaonas a lt already shes so good!the vong capture and lose ppl frequently.anakan and jacen solos sibling rivalry chills a little as they creep ever closer.the vong use slaves as soldiers via mind control.they use one of the coolest methods for really messing up your enemies ive ever read.bu this time theyve messed up a lot of planets in the ne section of the world.the good guys have it even worse off as rhe republic unties connecrions to the jedis.everyones running about looking for weopons of mass distruction.although there are no known sith,some jedis feel the dark side calling them when they need that little something extra for battle.the drama continues!

Ruin is the closing chapter in Michael Stackpole's Dark Tide duology, and the third book overall in the New Jedi Order saga. After making some gains against the Yuuzhan Vong's invasion of the galaxy, the Jedi Knights and New Republic military, assisted by the armed forces of the Imperial Remnant, gather for a grand confrontation over the fate of the planet Ithor.

While Dark Tide I: Onslaught (Star Wars: The New Jedi Order, Book 2) spread the spotlight on various Jedi and Rogue Squadron characters, Ruin really reads more like a Corran Horn adventure. Stackpole's signature contribution takes the starring role here, and those of us who enjoyed I, Jedi (Star Wars) and the X-Wing Rogue Squadron series know that that's not necessarily a bad thing. The Yuuzhan Vong play a more visible role in this novel than they did in Onslaught, and we finally get a better idea of what drives these technology hating and pain obsessed invaders.

If you don't mind Luke, the Solo kids, and pretty much everyone else taking a backseat to Corran Horn, Ruin should prove to be an exciting and enjoyable chapter in the New Jedi Order saga. Stackpole continues to show a flair for describing military action and starfighter battles, though his dialogue still tends towards the melodramatic. His characters tend to give introspective or inspirational speeches that nobody - in any galaxy - would ever say out loud. He also seems compelled to end each chapter with some bold declaration by one of the characters, which gets old fast.

Those gripes aside, Stackpole does a great job closing out this series within a series. The final confrontation between Corran and the Yuuzhan Vong leader Shedao Shai, and the unforeseen consequences of that action are more than worth the price of admission, and will have you wondering whether this is the final Corran Horn adventure.

I have read almost the entire series of NJO,(Currently reading "The Unifying Force) and this book and its counterpart, Rebirth are the some of the best books I've read. This book fleshes out the relationship between Anakin Solo and his best friend Tahiri, setting the stage for a stronger relationship in future novels like Rebirth. Mr. Keyes does an excellent job of using plausable dialogue and creating a history of the friendship of the two characters and turning Anakin into a hero rather than a side character.

Ok, on to the specifics. The whole book is about Anakin and Tahiri fighting on Yavin Four. After a failed attempt to get all the younger students off the planet as the Peace Brigade invades and tries to hand over the young Jedi to the Yuuzhan Vong, Tahiri goes back from the shuttle she tries to use to escape and is captured. Anakin, later returning, uses every skill he has to try to rescue her from the Master Shaper, Mezhan Kwaad who is trying to rearrange Tahiri's mind to make her think she was once a Yuuzhan Vong. Anakin sides with a shamed warrior, abandoned by his clan and hunted by them as well, he seeks vegeance against the other Yuuzhan Vong shaper, none other than the Mezhan Kwaad who captured and tortured Tahiri. In the meantime, Jacen and Jaina search for Booster Terik who has a giant red Star Destroyer that could change the flow of the war.

As Anakin reaches the end of his journey, he may have sacrifice some dignity to hide his true Jedi identity as he sneaks into the Yuuzhan Vong camp where Tahiri is held.

This book also sheds more light on who the Yuuzhan Vong are as a species and gives them a more "human" light as Anakin spends more time with the shamed one, Vua Rapung.

Greg Keyes is an exceptional author worthy of note and I highly reccomend his other two books in NJO "Rebirth" and "The Final Prophecy".

Keyes kept the heroism and uplifting theme of the original series alive in his first two novels here, and managed to recover some of the lost ground later in the series. Hats off to Mr. Keyes.

in this one luke is pretty dormant.anakan solo can read his mind.and as powerful as lukes mind is,the kid is really mastering the force fast.a story is told where a snake was near him and he stopped its heart as a child.his r2 unit i mentioned in my last review is dubbed r-5.he uns into his childhood playmate tahiri and the seeds of great things are planted.she thinks hes hot and he likewise at her.actualy all the girls like anakan.especialy the young jedi chicks so he had his pick of the place.they[anakan and tahiri have a truly unique love scene where they dont touch but use the force to do the work.soon enough thier feelings come out slowly.master ithrik predicts great things for the 2 as he dies.anakan does not take his death well and gets arrogant and mean.then she is captured bu the vong.geez i better stop going on about these 2 b4 you think this is a romance novel.this is a SCI FI book.the jedis are betrayed far and wide to appease the vong and to keep the peace.even the peace brigade and local police get in on the act.the peace brigade even attack the jedi children and turn them in,knowing full well of the 1984 like methods the ving will use on them.so needless to say the peace brigade and vong are both horrible beyond words.even on the republic there is dissention as a high up allows vong to enter planets.kyp,an older jedi,gets support from other jedi about a new more affressive philosophy.more sith-like.anakan solo is still making headlines as he finds way to sense the vongs presence.he destroyed a spaceship,more vong,got his shoulder injured,went indercover as a vong slave all too rescue his love.his methods are not only truly remarkable but uniqye and way cool.the vong hate tech in any form.on one planer they go genocidal on all the droids.thier definition of peace is "willing sibmission".so you can tell theyre not right in the head.the vong also kill eachother and thier peace brigade allies for failure.thier bio-engineering is really neat.stuff like growing moons.they tortured and brainwashed tahiri before anakan got to her.a high up vong admits in ftont of a large crowf that there are no vong gods and all the stuff they know was implanted by them.that is virtual suicide in the geavily religous vong society.even the dirty old repuclic calls for the arrest of luke skywalker for unsactioned military actions.in other words its a world full of chaos and no one can trust anyone.

I really liked this book because how Anakin saved Tahiri from her capture and how he helped the shamed ones get their courage back, what i saw in this book was Anakin developement in the force such as the lambent in his lightsaber but the whole book is great from start to finish i recomend you read this book.

I really liked this book because how Anakin saved Tahiri from her capture and how he helped the shamed ones get their courage back, what i saw in this book was Anakin developement in the force such as the lambent in his lightsaber but the whole book is great from start to finish i recomend you read this book.

Conquest is the seventh volume in the massive New Jedi Order series, and is the first book in author Greg Keyes' Edge of Victory duology. If found Edge of Victory an interesting title choice for this series-within-a-series, since by the end of Conquest I was still unable to see which faction in this galactic war - the New Republic/Jedi Order or the Yuuzhan Vong invaders - was supposed to be poised for that victory. My guess is that it's the Yuuzhan Vong, since despite some setbacks, their push towards total domination of the galaxy continues unabated. The Jedi Knights and the New Republic government aren't faring nearly as well, with planet after planet falling to the invaders and the general public turning against the Jedi and in many cases hunting them down to appease the would-be conquerors.

Then again, Edge of Victory could refer to Anakin Solo's personal journey as a Jedi, which is the main focus of this book. Anakin, with the aid of a renegade Yuuzhan Vong warrior (!) invades a Vong stronghold on the ruins of the Jedi Academy to rescue his friend (and fellow Jedi) Tahiri, who is held captive by the Yuuzhan Ving shapers. Anakin's journey through the jungles of Yavin 4, going without food and sleep and totally immersing himself in the Force makes for powerful reading, as does the shapers' attempts to turn Tahiri into a dark side-wielding Yuuzhan Vong warrior.

Conquest may just be the finest volume to date in the New Jedi Order saga. Keyes does a fantastic job with this story, showing us not only the major character development of Anakin, but giving plenty of new insights into the Yuuzhan Vong, particularly the warriors, shapers, and Shamed Ones. It's good to know that behind the religious fanaticism and pain obsession, the Yuuzhan Vong are also subject to internal strife, politics, and the kind of personal baggage every flawed individual comes with.