The origin story of one of the greatestStar Warsvillains . . . a book that fans have wanted for decades.The VergeA satisfying tale of political intrigue . . . Thrawns observations and tactical thinking are utterly captivating.New YorkDaily NewsQuite the page-turner.Flickering MythAbout the AuthorTimothy Zahn is the author of more than forty novels, nearly ninety short stories and novellas, and four short-fiction collections. In 1984, he won the Hugo Award for Best Novella. Zahn is best known for his Star Wars novels (Heir to the Empire, Dark Force Rising, The Last Command, Specter of the Past, Vision of the Future, Survivors Quest, Outbound Flight, Allegiance, Choices of One, and Scoundrels), with more than four million copies of his books in print. Other books include the Cobra series, the Quadrail series, and the young adult Dragonback series. Zahn has a B.S. in physics from Michigan State University and an M.S. from the University of Illinois. He lives with his family on the Oregon coast. how do i make a contact form Thrawn (Star Wars)
153 of 160 people found the following review helpful. Only been waiting years for this bookBy Jennifer QuailThe down side of the Disney acquisition of Lucasfilm was that books like Timothy Zahn's the Thrawn Trilogy were relegated to a status dubbed "Legends." And while some of the new material has been enjoyable (notably James Luceno' s "Catalyst") mostly the books have been middling-quality afterthought to the new films and cartoons."Thrawn" rectifies that.From a only-barely modified origin story that will be very familiar to those who read the short "Mist Encounter" to bringing Thrawn days before his debut in "Rebels", we see the journey an alien has to take to rise to the pinnacle of military rank in the xenophobic Empire. There are familiar notes including character and ship names readers of Zahn's Legends material, new material including Thrawn's young protege, and for those who require an Imperial villain, we have Arhinda Pryce and her ruthless climb to political power that also explains a great deal about her character on Rebels and how she and Thrawn became allies of a sort. There's also a surprise twist to Thrawn's backstory that should catch even longtime readers off guard. And for the first time ever, we're permitted a glimpse into Thrawn's mind rather than seeing him filtered through a human POV.New-canon only fans may find things like the explanation of the "civilian casualties" on Batonn strange or not in keeping with the so-far almost simple-minded insistence in new canon on black and white morality, but readers familiar with Zahn's work recognize this is a design feature, not a bug. If the book had any real flaws, it was a somewhat underwhelming antagonist in "Nightswan", and some of the battle sequences get VERY long-winded as Eli (the narrator) talks through analyzing them. But overall the book is the high quality and characterization we have come to expect from Zahn. Other than Catalyst this is, thus far the only must read new Star Wars thus far, and the only one which is a must read for its own sake.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Thrawn is back!By Sarah BrumfieldAs someone who loved the old EU books and practically grew up reading them, it's safe to say that I was fairly disappointed and upset when Disney wiped the slate clean for the new canon books. I was skeptical about these new books and characters, and even a little reluctant to start reading them.But then Thrawn came back thanks to Rebels. And even better, it was announced that Timothy Zahn would be writing a new Thrawn book.Excited doesn't even begin to describe how I felt.Though this is a new story for Thrawn, many of the essential elements from the old books are present. While there's no Pellaeon, Eli Vanto is just as interesting and developed. Learning more about Governor Pryce was a nice touch as well.While the old EU will always be canon in my heart, this book gives me hope for the new canon.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. great but more would've been good.By MattThe novel superbly shows just how the future grand admiral observes others behvior and body language and uses it to his advantage. Zahn really lets his character sing here. In other novels, he was just humming a few verses here and there. I really enjoyed it when the author showed the reader how Thrawn thinks and how he sees everyone and everything as resources. Having that aide-de-camp to play off of was also a good idea. His conversation with Nightswan at the end was a story in and of itself. I had to smile when reading and rereading those particular pages. I'm hoping that Tim Zahn was hinting at another book when he made mention of Thrawn working with Anaking SkywalkerOK, now for the downside. I really want there to be some interaction between Thrawn and Darth Vader. There wasn't any and very little between Thrawn and the emperor as well. We got more of that character interaction in Choices of One than in this novel. Serious bummer. Zahn also didn't address too much how an "alien" such as Zach had to fend off prejudice and such beyond the academy. That warranted more exploration. Who knows - maybe Tim Zahn will write another novel devote to the future grand admiral. I wouldn't mind hearing more about his thoughts on the rebellion or even taming some of Wild Space.