Dark Force Rising (Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy, #2)

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Dark Force Rising (Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy #2)

by Timothy Zahn (Goodreads Author)

4.08 of 5 stars 4.08 · rating details · 19,336 ratings · 304 reviews

The Empire is dying; but like a dog near death, the Empire is at its most dangerous, ready to lash out with nothing to lose. Grand Admiral Thrawn may have found just the firepower needed to take a bite out of the New Republic: some two hundred Dreadnaught heavy cruisers, lost to hyperspace in the days of the Old Republic. Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewbacca may be up against mo...more

Hardcover, 376 pages

Published May 1st 1992 by Bantam

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Mar 01, 2013 Alex rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: star-wars, science-fiction

Did it take me two books to realise that Zahn can't write worth a damn. Ok, no, that took about 50 pages but these novels are apparently so important to the Star Wars expanded universe and so beloved of EU fans that I wanted to give them a fair shot. I enjoyed Heir to he Empire well enough as setup, even if its characterisation was crooked and its plotting a little unadventurous. However, Dark Force Rising takes whatever potential the series may have had and murders it brutally with a lightsaber...more Did it take me two books to realise that Zahn can't write worth a damn. Ok, no, that took about 50 pages but these novels are apparently so important to the Star Wars expanded universe and so beloved of EU fans that I wanted to give them a fair shot. I enjoyed Heir to he Empire well enough as setup, even if its characterisation was crooked and its plotting a little unadventurous. However, Dark Force Rising takes whatever potential the series may have had and murders it brutally with a lightsaber to the groin.

Zahn doesn't know what to do with this story. At all. His attempt to be "dark" like Empire Strikes Back is quite laughable. The plot revolves around everyone in the novel trying to find a bunch of lost spaceships that are such an amazing prize because ... they can be manned by fewer people. Yep, you heard that. This is Star Wars. S.T.A.R W.A.R.S and Zahn invented a bunch of space ships that need smaller crew. Hey Timothy. Timothy ... why was the DEATH STAR fucking cool? Anyway it all ends on a Dark note because the practically beaten remnants of the Empire are a little less beaten.

Well, there's not much makes up for this faux pas. I don't particularly recognise the old charcters in Zahn's portrayal, they're just names with a shared history that he occasionally alludes to with a choice quote ("never tell me the odds" said Han. Ohhhh Cheers Zahn. ahhahahah good one!) The newer characters are flat like pancakes that don't even have jam or honey on them. Which is ridiculous. Mara Jade bores me to tears. Again, Zahn had the entire universe to fill with cool characters and he creates someone who wants to kill Luke Skywalker because he made her lose her job via killing the Emperor. As Emperor's Hand you'd think she'd expect this. Or have a contingency plan. Or something. You'd think she'd be badass and kill Luke on a hilarious whim. But no, Zahn makes her an incessant whinger. Not so great to read about! Talon Karrde, Yawn. A smuggler with no good dialogue ... scheming Bothan Feyl'Ya (or something) at least had a plot role and I'd have liked to have gotten deeper into political intrigue within the New Republic.

Oh, and I'm not even going to mention C'Boath. Evil Jedi extraordinaire who errrr does nothing except preside as court judge to a bunch of farmers. I'm not even kidding. Evil Jedi C'Boath who is so badass that he gets Luke to come and visit him and then MAKES HIM be judge to a bunch of farmers. And I'm not even kidding.

The drab, the bland, the dull writing, the boring plotting is too much to really need outlining to a great degree. This book is barely Star Wars. It's barely Space Opera. It's barely a book. It's a bunch of bland elements but into a bland blender and blanded up to created a a bland juice blend. I don't think I'm gonna read the third one.(less)

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Nov 28, 2008 Ron rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Ron by: Wendell Andrea

Shelves: fantasy, science-fiction, star-wars

Okay, not as good as the first of the series,and of course it suffers the middle story's inevitable lack of clear opening and closing, but still a credible effort.

The quality of the cover art took a nose dive, but that's not Zahn's fault. The Budget at Bantam must have taken a hit. they claim Tom Jung made both, but they sure don't look it.

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Feb 10, 2013 Maythavee rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

Timothy Zahn did not let me down. Dark Force Rising was a fantastic sequel! I think I enjoyed it more than the first book. Just when you thought things could not get any worse for New Republic…

I don’t want to spoil anything but damn, Grand Admiral Thrawn is one hell of a character. I love him. Like Captain Pellaeon had thought in the previous book, if the Grand Admiral had been in charge of the Empire fleet during the Battle of Endor, the outcome might have been different. Seriously though, Thra...more

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May 10, 2013 Allen Reeves rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review applies to all 3 books in the series.

There are some stories that are best told as books, some that are best told as movies. When I think of a story best told as a book I think of Dune since despite two large scale attempts neither one (for me at least) captured the magic of the book. Star Wars is a story best told in a visual medium and that is the biggest limitation of these books. They cry out for a different presentation.

I don't want to read about X-Wing fighters, force lightening...more

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Mar 12, 2013 Scrittevolmente rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Amici di Scrittevolmente, fanatici di Star Wars, bentornati! È forse questa la recensione che state cercando? Si direi proprio di si, perché finalmente abbiamo avuto fra le mani il secondo (e atteso) capitolo della Trilogia di Thrawn, la saga che vede proseguire la storia dell’universo di Star Wars da dove i film l’avevano lasciata.

Nel capitolo centrale della saga vediamo gli eroi giungere ad una svolta cruciale, la battaglia contro il grand’ammiraglio Thrawn prende pieghe sempre più disastrose;...more Amici di Scrittevolmente, fanatici di Star Wars, bentornati! È forse questa la recensione che state cercando? Si direi proprio di si, perché finalmente abbiamo avuto fra le mani il secondo (e atteso) capitolo della Trilogia di Thrawn, la saga che vede proseguire la storia dell’universo di Star Wars da dove i film l’avevano lasciata.

Nel capitolo centrale della saga vediamo gli eroi giungere ad una svolta cruciale, la battaglia contro il grand’ammiraglio Thrawn prende pieghe sempre più disastrose; ogni piccolo successo della repubblica sembra essere accompagnato da uno più grande da parte del nuovo impero. Siamo sempre di fronte a svolte, inganni e azione, come ogni buon “capitolo centrale” che si rispetti, esso deve dare e prendere. Dare quella giusta parte di successo ai protagonisti, un illusione di riuscita controbilanciata dalla supremazia del cattivo che fa di tutto per rendersi odioso ad ogni attacco.

In questo caso però non si può odiare il grand’ammiraglio Thrawn. Il suo genio, la sua strategia e la sua capacità di comprendere quasi ogni mossa dei suoi nemici traspare letteralmente dalle pagine, determinato a perseguire la causa dell’impero e riportarlo in vita, l’autore riesce a farlo sentire vicino e potente nella sua fredda e spietata aura di comando. Sebbene sia tutto scritto e comandato, non si può non provare un certo rispetto per un personaggio simile, coinvolgente sebbene sia l’antagonista che nessuno vorrebbe mai trovarsi contro.

Sempre rimanendo sugli antagonisti troviamo maggiormente descritto il maestro folle Joruus C’baoth, che stavolta appare per più di un paio di capitoli e si fa scoprire per ciò che è: un personaggio confuso. In tutti i sensi. Non solo non sono riuscito ad apprezzarlo, sono rimasto anche deluso, aspettandomi forse qualcosa di più. La sua storia, il suo modo di apparire e come viene reso non sono all’altezza degli altri personaggi, la sua psiche complessa di maestro jedi folle viene così relegata al rango di un semplice pazzo qualunque, senza profondità.

Di differente impatto sono tutti gli altri personaggi, i protagonisti storici della saga che vedono approfondita sempre più la loro storia e il modo in cui affrontano questa nuova guerra.

Per leggere la recensione per intero: http://scrittevolmente.com/2013/03/03/recensione-star-wars-sfida-alla-nuova-repubblica-timothy-zahn/(less)

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Jan 03, 2013 Peter rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The first novel of the Thrawn Trilogy, Heir to the Empire, brought back the nostalgia of the original movie trilogy. Luke, Leia, Han, and the rest of the rebellion now face a formidable foe in Grand Admiral Thrawn. While I appreciated the new characters of this novel, I found it to be primarily a setup for the trilogy and incomplete as a stand alone.

The second novel, Dark Force Rising, comes back with full force (forgive the pun). After nearly being assassinated by the Noghiri, a race loyal to t...more The first novel of the Thrawn Trilogy, Heir to the Empire, brought back the nostalgia of the original movie trilogy. Luke, Leia, Han, and the rest of the rebellion now face a formidable foe in Grand Admiral Thrawn. While I appreciated the new characters of this novel, I found it to be primarily a setup for the trilogy and incomplete as a stand alone.

The second novel, Dark Force Rising, comes back with full force (forgive the pun). After nearly being assassinated by the Noghiri, a race loyal to the Empire, Leia travels to their home planet to try and establish them as allies. Luke heeds the call of a self-proclaimed Jedi Master named Joruus C’Boath. Han and Lando try to unveil treachery within the Rebellion and discover that there are a fleet of ships left over from the clone wars that could turn the tide for either the Rebellion or the Empire.

I enjoyed the second novel much more than the first. Dark Jedi C’Boath toes the line between evil and insane, but covets power nonetheless. He believes that he can convert Luke and Leia to his cause and devotes all of his energy to luring them into his self-righteous plans. His character is interesting and one wonders if the very able and almost clairvoyant leader, Grand Admiral Thrawn, is really in charge or if C’Boath controls the puppet strings.

Luke’s interaction with C’Boath is a tad naive, like he is back in training with Yoda before experiencing the struggles against the Empire. Han also falls short of his suave, but rugged self, constantly concerned for Leia’s welfare while he embarks on his own journey with Lando.

While it didn’t reach the same level of magic that it did the first time I read it, Dark Force Rising is an enjoyable read. Mara Jade is one of the better characters, complex in her loyalties and in her abilities. She struggles with her desire to kill Luke and her desire to form an alliance with him. She starts to display Jedi powers, but she has only touched the surface of the power of the force.

The Thrawn Trilogy is a definitive series in the expanded universe and even as I read it twenty years later, it still holds up fairly well.(less)

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Oct 06, 2012 L. rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

"Dark Force Rising" is the second volume of the Thrawn Trilogy written by Timothy Zahn. Han Solo and Lando Calrissian are working to discover the identity of the intelligence leak within the New Republic High Council. As they work on this they learn of the leak they learn of the existence of the legendary Katana fleet which disappeared decades before. Leia Organa Solo is seeking to convince the Noghiri race to stop hunting her and to abandon their servitude to the Empire. Luke Skywalker, on the...more

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Feb 06, 2012 Ben Dutton rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I’d been reading children’s stories I should have read when I was eleven: Sherlock Holmes, Jules Verne’s adventures – when I came across, in storage, the books I was reading when I was eleven. In fact, Timothy Zahn’s Thrawn Trilogy, appeared the year I turned eleven, and at that age I thought it excellent – so much so I kept buying Star Wars novel right through until 1996, hoping each time that they would be as good as Zahn’s original trilogy. They never were. They say you should never go back:...more I’d been reading children’s stories I should have read when I was eleven: Sherlock Holmes, Jules Verne’s adventures – when I came across, in storage, the books I was reading when I was eleven. In fact, Timothy Zahn’s Thrawn Trilogy, appeared the year I turned eleven, and at that age I thought it excellent – so much so I kept buying Star Wars novel right through until 1996, hoping each time that they would be as good as Zahn’s original trilogy. They never were. They say you should never go back: and it is true. Zahn’s Thrawn trilogy is fun, and this, the first volume gets things off to a cracking start: it reintroduces us to the classic figures, Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Han Solo et al, and some minor characters, and gives us a menacing new villain, yet the writing is never as strong as I recall, and all the nods to the classic films becomes a little tiring.

I did, however, plough through all three novels with such speed, and enjoyed them immensely while reading them, that I can see what eleven year old me enjoyed in them, and why fans of the Star Wars world still read them today. Interestingly it is not the main characters that shine in this series, but the new ones: smuggler Talon Karrde, and his secretive companion, Mara Jade, who has one subconscious command: Kill Luke Skywalker. The Grand Admiral Thrawn is an enigmatic and genius villain – he learns a species flaws by studying their art. Then there is the insane Dark Jedi, Joruus C’Boath, whose megalomania threatens to engulf the universe as a new Emperor. I kept wondering: would these adventures be better without the need to conform to George Lucas’s original vision? Perhaps Luke et al should have just been background.

Nevertheless, Timothy Zahn is a great writer for these sorts of things, and he sows seeds that he surprises us with later – the true nature of Delta Source, the secret behind Mara Jade’s desire, and he makes parents of Han Solo and Princess Leia – and that is the right ending for the love story that begun way back in 1977 with Star Wars.(less)

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Dec 21, 2011 Mark Oppenlander rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction, star-wars

I continue to find Zahn's work impressive. He is crafting a credible, larger-than-life space opera that definitely captures some of the essence of the original trilogy. The characters he has introduced to the series (Mara Jade, Grand Admiral Thrawn, Talon Karrde, etc.) are particularyl compelling - complex and human in the midst of the outsized narrative.

I have two minor complaints. First, Zahn seems to treat the original characters (Leia, Han, Luke, etc.) a little too carefully. It is almost as...more

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Nov 20, 2011 Kathryn rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction, space-opera

Dark Force Rising, the sequel to Heir to the Empire, continues the new Star Wars saga. The action of this book centers around the titular Dark Force, the Katana fleet, a group of two hundred capital ships that were lost in the blackness of space when their crews all went insane simultaneously (due to a hive virus). The New Republic and the Empire both want the Katana fleet, as the extra two hundred Dreadnoughts may turn the course of the war. Meanwhile, Leia Organa Solo continues to investigate...more

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Apr 20, 2010 Maik G. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

In Dark Force Rising, Timothy Zahn continues the spectacular story he began in Heir to the Empire, while upping both the intrigue and action of the incredible story arc.
The stakes are higher than ever. Grand Admiral Thrawn's first puch against the New Republic was unsuccessful, but the victory wasn't nearly one-sided. Treachery and political infighting threatens to tear the government apart. As Han and Lando fight to clear Admiral Ackbar's name of treason, Leia races to an alien planet to try to...more In Dark Force Rising, Timothy Zahn continues the spectacular story he began in Heir to the Empire, while upping both the intrigue and action of the incredible story arc.
The stakes are higher than ever. Grand Admiral Thrawn's first puch against the New Republic was unsuccessful, but the victory wasn't nearly one-sided. Treachery and political infighting threatens to tear the government apart. As Han and Lando fight to clear Admiral Ackbar's name of treason, Leia races to an alien planet to try to bring a dangerous and proud alien race into the fight against the Empire. Luke, feeling the call of Joruus C'baoth, the mad Jedi master, must team up with Mara Jade once again, to free her employer and comrade from Thrawn's own ship.

The threads of the plot, while becoming more numerous and complex, never get tangled. Zahn juggles the huge cast of characters with talent that few have ever shown in the series. The action is larger, the characters are more complex, creating tension on both sides of the war. The clashing between Joruus C'baoth and his uneasy ally, Thrawn, becomes more apparent, and threatens to disrupt the Empire's plans, and C'baoth himself makse a move to corrupt Luke, Leia, and her unborn children for his own twisted desires.

This is one of the rare sequels that doesn't suffer from sequelitis. True, you really have to have read the first book to understand what's going on, but the book has a definite beginning and end, and more than enough excitement and interesting characters to fill the 400 plus pages. But, aside from the quality, which is exceptional, this is just a plain fun read. Like the first novel in the Thrawn Trilogy, this captures the essence of the Star Wars mythos, while building on its wonderful history and story.

If you're looking for a fantastic literary saga in the Star Wars universe, you can't do better than the Trawn Trilogy, and the second book proves that Zahn's writing and grasp of the SW universe just keeps getting better and better.

(less)

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Jan 22, 2010 Finalefantasy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Dark Force Rising is a tough book to rate. It has some average material, considerable flaws, and some great stuff.

The politicking is, perhaps, the biggest flaw. Maybe I'm not as smart as Thrawn, Lando and Karrde, but I would classify their plans as: incredible guesses; unreasonable hunches; uncharacteristically foolish assumptions. Also, while these same leaders(Thrawn in particular) are often very clever with their technology, they frequently make foolish(again, uncharacteristically) mistakes r...more Dark Force Rising is a tough book to rate. It has some average material, considerable flaws, and some great stuff.

The politicking is, perhaps, the biggest flaw. Maybe I'm not as smart as Thrawn, Lando and Karrde, but I would classify their plans as: incredible guesses; unreasonable hunches; uncharacteristically foolish assumptions. Also, while these same leaders(Thrawn in particular) are often very clever with their technology, they frequently make foolish(again, uncharacteristically) mistakes regarding it - I can only attribute these silly mistakes to a writer who forgot about life sensor technology and security checkpoints only chapters after exploiting their uses. It's hard to believe how much trust and leeway Thrawn then gives Mara Jade, and similarly hard to believe how fast Han Solo gains Bel Ilbis' aid. The main issue is the inconsistency - shrewd one minute, good-willed and oblivious the next. We also see this imbalance in the ratio of scene to summary: our author wastes some precious attention on individual scenes where summaries would have sufficed, then actually SKIPS scenes that we've been waiting for(ie, the Han-Leia-Luke reunion near the end). It's not a major problem, but it detracts more than once.

Dark Force Rising also has no shortage of language issues, most notably the use of distinctly English slang and vocabulary. The dialog is often rather self-conscious, which impedes the characters(who are already hard to pull from the screen into prose). The book is full of puns as well, puns and trite references to the original movie-trilogy. On this note, suffice it to say that the original three movies demonstrate no need to reuse the same jokes. Clearly, neither should these books.

On the plus side, though, it really is an exciting, engaging read. The characters are much-improved from the previous book, the plotting is tighter, and at a few moments, I actually felt myself believing that this was Star Wars. Obviously, the medium here is far different from the movies. But I do think author Timothy Zahn crosses the language gap a few times, actually bringing the same scope and awe that the movies offer.

The characters, new and old alike, offer a lot in this novel. We get strong moments for most individual characters, plus lots of very neat interactions. I was sad that Chewie, Artoo and Threepio are quite misrepresented, but it's not nearly so bad as their respective roles in the new three movies. UGH.

I frequently found myself concerned - even on-edge - about the events taking place here, but suspense and tension were usually accompanied with a kind of grandiose charm - much like in the movies. It was compelling reading, but more importantly it was fun to read.

In all, it's well worth reading. In fact, it's worth reading the only-average quality First Book to get to this volume. Despite its many flaws, Dark Force Rising is mighty fine.(less)

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Apr 04, 2013 Justin rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Anyone interested in Star Wars' Expanded Universe

Hello goodreaders!

I just finished this book and I must say, it was pretty darn good. Now the point I wish to make about this book is that sometimes good politics is just what a book needs, I've read several different reviews about the Heir to the Empire trilogy of Timothy Zahn books and several people say there are too many politics in the book and I'm certainly not going to say otherwise, the political scene in these books is kinda heavy, but its not all unwarranted. Star Wars needs politics fo...more

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Sep 17, 2012 Ryan rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Put quite simply, this is the continuation of a FRAKKIN' AWESOME TRILOGY!!! I'm sorry... did I get a little excited there.

This book is not quite as fast-paced as Heir to the Empire. There is a lot of build-up, political intrigue, strategizing (is that even a word???), but the novel's climax is well worth the build-up and suspense.

This book also has a few of those discrepancies I mentioned in my review for Heir to the Empire... most notably regarding Vader's right hand (literally, his right hand)...more

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Jul 11, 2010 Crystal Starr Light rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: simply-the-best, star-wars, so-good-it-s-awesome

"We who remain must stand together against those who would destroy everything"
Book two in the thrilling Thrawn Trilogy! (Who woulda thought that a C'baoth clone would get the title of this review!!)
The Empire may have been foiled, but only just barely. And now things get worse as Admiral Ackbar, member of the Inner Council, is accused of treason. Han and Lando go to attempt to sniff out the source; Luke discovers that a Jedi named C'baoth may have escaped the Jedi Purge, and Leia goes to meet th...more "We who remain must stand together against those who would destroy everything"
Book two in the thrilling Thrawn Trilogy! (Who woulda thought that a C'baoth clone would get the title of this review!!)
The Empire may have been foiled, but only just barely. And now things get worse as Admiral Ackbar, member of the Inner Council, is accused of treason. Han and Lando go to attempt to sniff out the source; Luke discovers that a Jedi named C'baoth may have escaped the Jedi Purge, and Leia goes to meet the Noghri and work on some sort of resolution.

I Liked:
Golly, I almost wish I could copy and paste my review from Heir to the Empire! But, to be original, I'll try to come up with different things I like.
Timothy Zahn continues to show his Star Wars writing prowess in book two. Many other authors flounder at this point. Not Zahn. He continues the Star Wars feel with this entry, from the characters, to the actions, to the theme.
To his character repertoire, Zahn adds Garm Bel Iblis, a former Senator from Corellia--and rival to Mon Mothma. Through him, we learn more of the beginnings of the Rebellion...and how Mon Mothma, that red-haired lady from Return of the Jedi, can be a little pig-headed and temperamental. A fight between him and her forced him to leave the Rebellion, and he, being too proud and Corellian to boot, is unwilling to rejoin. Garm Bel Iblis does wonders for adding to the Corellian culture (we even learn he met Han Solo when Han was a kiddo!) and giving a new dimension to the Rebellion and Mon Mothma.
The action continues to be high, with his characters spread in five different dimensions. You would think it would be overwhelming, but Zahn handles it nicely, reminding the reader where Leia is, what Han is doing, what happened to Luke and so on so you don't ever go, "Wait a minute, it's been forever since we heard from Mara...where is she?" I've read other authors who drop viewpoints randomly and make me wonder that exact thing.
Lastly, I love how Zahn, in between his characters and plot, manages to tweak on our views of the Jedi. As this was pre-prequels, we get to see his (now obsolete) views on the Clone Wars, how C'baoth became a Jedi (he went to the University before training as a Jedi!), and C'baoth's subtle twisting of Luke to embrace the power of the Jedi. Also, here is hinted the first time in EU that the Senate took part in the destruction of the Jedi (which, honestly, is what they did...they certainly didn't mind the Emperor's movement to destroy them).

I Didn't Like:
I guess I have a few more complaints about this one than the last. They aren't huge, but I should bring them up.
Zahn creates the Calamari (no, not the Earth food!) as a peaceful race forced into war when they were enslaved. My problem? That theme is repeated ad nauseum in EU. Yeah, I know, Zahn technically wrote this before the Camaasi, before the Mandalorians (according to the Clone Wars TV series), before the billions of other "peaceful races forced into war". But it is still freaking annoying.
Also, Zahn is guilty of speciesism, specifically of Borsk Fey'lya and the Bothans. Borsk isn't the problem, he's cool. But then Zahn goes and sets up the entire race full of back-biting, knife-plunging power seekers. Not cool. I prefer a little more grey to my aliens, a little more depth besides the one word stereotype. Too many books make this mistake. Rodians are idiots and lawless. Hutts are always involved in crime. Wookiees are always good; Trandoshans always bad. Twi'Lek females are always sex slaves, and Jawas are scavengers that apparently can be found off their homeworld of Tatooine (weird, eh?). I could go on and on and on, but I think you get my point.
Lastly, the book does have that middle part of a trilogy feel. You know, no beginning, no end, makes you wonder, "What am I doing here?" We all know, by book three, we'll be like, "Oh, yeah, that's why that was important," but still, while we're reading it, we wonder.

Dialogue/Sexual Situations/Violence:
Foul language? Can't recall anything off hand!
Sexuality is minimum to none.
Lando is injured at one point and can't receive medical attention because of triage. Really have to stretch to find ANYTHING to put here!

Overall:
Zahn doesn't fail to please with entry number two! There were a few things that perturbed me, but there were some moments that nearly brought tears to my eyes. When Leia unveils the Empire's poisoning of Honogr (even if I adore the Empire and hate how it is always shown in such a bad light), when the smugglers come to Han and Luke's aid at the end battle. Not many books can do this to me. This is Star Wars. Five stars. (less)

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Jun 23, 2010 Adam Kranz rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: star-wars, science-fiction

The Thrawn Trilogy (which I'll review as one unit) is, I can now agree, one of the few indispensable, and actually really worth reading productions of the EU. Zahn gets it all right, and does everything I personally want to see in the EU.

First of all, he pulls off all the important plot and characterization goals he tries to achieve: all of his characters have extremely bad-ass abilities and strengths, but they are not defined by their powers. Thrawn and C'baoth in particular come to mind. Thra...more The Thrawn Trilogy (which I'll review as one unit) is, I can now agree, one of the few indispensable, and actually really worth reading productions of the EU. Zahn gets it all right, and does everything I personally want to see in the EU.

First of all, he pulls off all the important plot and characterization goals he tries to achieve: all of his characters have extremely bad-ass abilities and strengths, but they are not defined by their powers. Thrawn and C'baoth in particular come to mind. Thrawn is almost infallible tactically, his will is indomitable, he is a great leader, etc, and yet this is only part of what we remember about him. He has his own very interesting personality. C'baoth demonstrates force strength beyond most anything that had appeared in the EU before the trilogy. However, he is defined not by this excessive and cool strength but by his insanity, which makes him another fascinating character.

The plot was very impressively woven as well. There's a lot of stuff going on, and it all manages to tie together in a convincing and satisfying way. All the characters are constantly trying to outsmart each other and figure out what each has in mind, and the way each character is able to do this is also very convincing.

Aside from these major, crucial points, Zahn also fulfills a lot of the lack I personally see in other EU material. He understands, first of all, that Stormtroopers are shock troops, as opposed to the standard Army grunts, that they are legitimately very good, and that they are extremely loyal. He also includes a very satisfying amount of random continuity, especially including a lot of stuff from the Imperial Sourcebook (near to my heart as the only West End Games sourcebook I had as a child), like the Chariot LAV, Ubiqtorate, Star Galleons, spacetroopers, etc.

Perhaps most importantly, Zahn created a vast new set of interesting canon material himself. Since he was writing the first major EU production, he had a lot of freedom to do this without stepping on the toes of anything previously created, but he could still have created some pretty atrocious shit (as so many other authors did after him). Instead, everything he imagined makes sense, is effective in its context, and much of it has even been put to good use since then (though much of it has also been severely abused).

With the Thrawn Trilogy, Zahn set the real EU novels off to an auspicious start. Unfortunately, only a few other novelists have managed to reach the bar he set here. Read them: you will love them. (less)

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Dec 23, 2012 Ian rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Let me start out by saying that I understand licensed genre fiction. It's a light, fluffy story that intended to let you remain in the Star Wars fantasy for a bit longer. Nothing too deep, just adventure with strange aliens on strange worlds filled with daring escapes and exciting action. It has it's place.

First off, the characters are well-extrapolated from their movie counterparts. Luke deals with what it means to be a Jedi in a post-Jedi world, Han now deals with politics and Leia has her twi...more

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Mar 23, 2012 Dave rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, sci-fi

At the end of Thrawn Trilogy, I am surprised that these three stories had such an impact on the world of Star Wars publishing. I did not find the stories to be very entertaining or exciting. I think all of the characters are flat, and Zahn essentially depends on everything that Lucas put into the main characters. Some of the ideas that Zahn tried to present aren't too bad, but there were plenty of opportunities to grow the characters and it just doesn't happen. The writing on Leia is the worst,...more

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Apr 28, 2011 Jacob rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I know that Heir To The Empire gets a lot of attention for its contribution to the expanded universe, but after reading the followup installment Dark Force Rising I can say that the first book in the series was nowhere near as good as the sequel. Dark Force Rising truly is like The Empire Strikes Back to Heir‘s New Hope, as just about every element present in book number two is an improvement on its predecessor. I’m not trying to say that Heir wasn’t a good book, because it was, but Dark Force R...more I know that Heir To The Empire gets a lot of attention for its contribution to the expanded universe, but after reading the followup installment Dark Force Rising I can say that the first book in the series was nowhere near as good as the sequel. Dark Force Rising truly is like The Empire Strikes Back to Heir‘s New Hope, as just about every element present in book number two is an improvement on its predecessor. I’m not trying to say that Heir wasn’t a good book, because it was, but Dark Force Rising was a faster paced, better constructed, more impactful entry into the canon than Heir was.

In my review for Heir to the Empire, my major complaint was that of pacing and that plot points could have been saved for later installments and suffered no ill effects. The problem with that is that Dark Force Rising has NONE of those problems specifically because they were all handled in the first book. The structure of Dark Force is superbly executed and whatever bumps Heir might have suffered in that department frees up book two to do it’s own thing without having to deal with much in the way of setup. The characters are all developed and maneuvered into position in a manner that allows for the reader to blow through the novel with all the speed of an x-wing fighter. The thing really is a breeze to read even at 400+ pages.

The most satisfying thing about Dark Force Rising is the way that the narrative really only has an A & B plot structure. There’s Leia’s story interacting diplomatically with the Noghri and Han and Lando’s story in their search for the Katana Fleet. Han and Lando’s story is subdivided into several smaller parts because the crux of the story revolves around everyone looking for those lost ships. The intertwining of multiple castmembers towards that end is what makes the books so much fun. There is some really crafty plot work going on in this novel.

The book ends on a massive cliffhanger, as one would expect the second book in a trilogy to do, and further links it to Empire Strikes Back in structure, but it doesn’t leave you feeling incomplete the way that something like the end of Solo Command did. And that’s enough to prove that the story was fulfilling if you ask me. (less)

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Aug 15, 2012 Jesse Wilson rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Like it's predecessor, this continued the story of our favorite Star Wars heroes 5 years after the death of the Emperor. Because it was written before Episodes 1-3 came out, some of the content contradicts what happens in those movies, but never too egregiously. The most notable is the continual references to "Dark Jedi" instead of Sith.

Also, not to give too much away, but it dives into clone history and specifics that aren't exactly in line with what we now know, but most of those can be forgiv...more

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May 18, 2012 Oscar rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Apr 24, 2013 William Redd rated it 4 of 5 stars

This, the second book of the Thrawn trilogy, is just as strong as the first, if not stronger. We get to see Thrawn make his move against the New Republic and the Skywalker family. In the first book, there were already a series of kidnap attempts, leading Leia to go into hiding on the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk. Zahn's descriptions of alien worlds is one of my favorite things about these books. Finding out more about the Noghri and their fanatical devotion to the Empire was absolutely fascinat...more

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Jan 30, 2013 Steve rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Wow, I remember this book being a lot better. This book really annoyed me actually. I read it originally when I was a teenager and had such fond memories of it. I probably should have left it that way. But with the news of J.J. Abrams doing Episode VII and hearing that they would not be basing them on this series I figured I'd read them again.

Seriously, if Grand Admiral Thrawn is such a genius why does he have such a moronic captain around him 24/7. It just got so old reading about Thrawn figuri...more

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Dec 16, 2012 Seth rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: star-wars-novels

Awesome! Read it!

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. With the aid of unimaginable weapons long hidden away by the Emperor on a backwater planet, Thrawn plans to turn the tide of battle, overwhelm the New Republic, and impose his iron rule throughout the galaxy. Meanwhile, Han and Lando Calrissian race against time to find proof...more

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Jan 07, 2008 Warren M. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Thrawn trilogy, especially when applied to the Jar-Jar Binks era of Star Wars, shows the fans exactly what an epic Star Wars trilogy can be. Kudos to Zahn for expanding the Star Wars universe while maintaining fidelity to what should be kept sacred.

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Apr 25, 2013 Devin added it · review of another edition

Star Wars: Dark Force Rising By Timothy Zahn Book Review

It takes place several years after the death of the emperor. The Empire is now run by an Grand Admiral, Grand Admiral Thrawn. In the new republic, admiral ackbar has been accused of treason by a fellow counselor. After a battle on kashyyyk, leia travels to the noghri planet to try and get their people on their side. Meanwhile, Luke travel to a planet to met up with a jedi master to continue his training. This Jedi Master is actually working...more

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Jan 05, 2012 Ricky Ganci rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Luke makes me think of the Jedi that Anakin might have been. When he’s fighting the stormtroopers with Mara, he wants to do everything to stop them, but he views killing them as a last resort. He’s a hero, and perhaps the purest hero of all time. Optimistic, good, and humble. I love him in his black suit and green lightsaber, though I find myself imagining him wearing traditional Jedi threads. Zahn patterns the endings of this trilogy in a reminiscent manner of the classic film trilogy: The firs...more

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May 04, 2009 Andrew rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I liked the first book in this series, but I have to say I think it's sequel, Dark Force Rising, is a slightly better book for a number of reasons. Firstly, this book does a better job of fleshing out some of the newer characters(those who haven't appeared in any of the movies) then the first book does, as you get to learn more about Jorus C'baoth the mad Jedi, more about the Nogrhi race and the history of their planet(not to mention their worship of Darth Vader and how the Empire manipulated th...more

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Mar 28, 2009 Jwm rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

See my review to the first of the series. All of the same likes and dislikes I had with that one apply here, but here are a few extra bits:

1. I read somewhere that one of the characters, as originally pitched by Zahn, was supposed to have been the insane clone of Obi-Wan Kenobi. Would have made the character much more compelling.

2. I still don't like one of the plot points he used, but in the post-midichlorians era, it makes sense.

3. The cloaking technology is The Awesome. It works the way it sh...more

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Jan 03, 2013 David Davies rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction

copied from my Heir to the Empire review
Zahn has written the only Star Wars books I go back and reread. So much rubbish has been written since the SW universe was opened up to authors, and I admit to reading a lot of them when they first started coming out but the rot just got too bad.
The Thrawn trilogy are by far the best and as they were the first new SW books I recomend people just read those and ignore all the rest, even the other Zahn SW books as they are linked to other novels by other au...more

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About Timothy Zahn

Timothy Zahn attended Michigan State University, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in physics in 1973. He then moved to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and achieved an M.S. degree in physics in 1975. While he was pursuing a doctorate in physics, his adviser became ill and died. Zahn never completed the doctorate. In 1975 he had begun writing science fiction as a hobby, and he bec...more

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Books by Timothy Zahn

Heir to the Empire (Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy, #1)

The Last Command (Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy, #3)

Specter of the Past (Star Wars: The Hand of Thrawn, #1)

Vision of the Future (Star Wars: The Hand of Thrawn, #2)

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Dark Force Rising (Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy #2)

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