From the Bookshelf of The Expanded Universe…

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

Timothy Zahn

Start date: June 1, 2013

Finish date: June 30, 2013

Why we're reading this: Since its release in 1991, this has been an EU classic for almost every one of us. Zahn started lifting t…more
[close] Since its release in 1991, this has been an EU classic for almost every one of us. Zahn started lifting the curtain on the Galaxy far, far away, and we've been loving the stories ever since.

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Dec 03, 2014 Josh Lewis rated it really liked it

Shelves: sweu

To start with, Thrawn is easily my favorite character in the book: in my opinion, he is a refreshing change from the villains we knew from the original movie trilogy. What separates him from the run-of-the-mill high-ranking Imperial officer is his glacial calm (he is, in fact, often described as some form of the adjective "cold"), calculating, and focused on the end result. He relies on an insanely high intellect and abundance of experience to guide his actions, all without the aid of the Force To start with, Thrawn is easily my favorite character in the book: in my opinion, he is a refreshing change from the villains we knew from the original movie trilogy. What separates him from the run-of-the-mill high-ranking Imperial officer is his glacial calm (he is, in fact, often described as some form of the adjective "cold"), calculating, and focused on the end result. He relies on an insanely high intellect and abundance of experience to guide his actions, all without the aid of the Force (well mostly... but I'll try not to get into spoilers) and the knee-jerk reaction to make a final stand and take out as many Rebels as possible when a plan goes awry. Also, the fact that he is a non-human Chiss in the Empire's top command like a Jew being part of the Third Reich only adds to his image of effectiveness. He is the ideal military commander.

Captain Pellaeon makes a great foil to Thrawn as a typically experienced commander who relies on core military disciplines but doesn't really think creatively beyond that. The Imperials definitely make a good enemy in this first book following the movies and diving into the Expanded Universe.

The book as a whole was a fun read, taking me back to a lot of the things that I loved about the original characters, especially Luke. (ROTJ Luke was unquestionably my favorite Luke.) He is outwardly the collected Jedi from ROTJ while now brushed with inward uncertainty as he tries to figure out how to teach what he's learned.

All that being said, this is definitely a book based in nostalgia. This isn't necessarily a bad fact: the original trilogy is certainly my favorite and it's good to have characters that you know and love. Also, given its status as the FIRST book after the movies trying to make smooth an uncertain transition into a new venture, it's a good starter. However, as someone who began with books later down the line, knowing some of the twists already (Hi, Mara Jade!), and enjoying new material a little more, the not-so-subtle hails back to the movies invoked a groan more than once. (SPOILERS) Luke goes back to Dagobah, we're going to see Lando at some new "respectable" business location (but can we really trust him again, even after 5 years?) etc. etc. Additionally, while Thrawn is a great enemy of intellect, the book liberally toed the line of being completely contrived with all of the coincidences and gut feelings that run rampant through the book.

Overall, it's an excellent transition from the movies to the Expanded Universe for first time readers who have watched the original trilogy. Not my favorite novel, but Timothy Zahn still does an awesome job! ...more

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