Rating: 
Summary: The best SW novel in the Best Star Wars book trilogy
Review: I picked up Heir to the Empire when it was new almost 8 years ago. Timothy Zahn has written a Star Wars masterpiece that had me hooked from day one when I picked it up.Heir to the Empire picks up five years after the Battle of Endor. Princess Leia has married Han Solo. They have two children. Luke is the only jedi that is known to be. The empire is still strong though and is led by Grand Admiral Thrawn. Thrawn has a devious plan set in place to destroy the New Republic. It envolves a Dark Jedi that is capable of taking out Luke. His plan is aimed directly at the New Republic and could destroy them all. Like I said earlier Zahn has written a masterpiece. He plays the Star Wars universe so well. Up to the point when he wrote the book all he had to base off was the movies and a couple of novels. His new insights into the world are great. His book is just like an extension of the original three movies. He carries the arogance of Han Solo into the book. You still see the childlike innocence of Luke and you see his troubles as he tires to establish himself. Zahn's work with Grand Admiral Thrawn is amazing. He's one of the top villians I've ever read about. Zahn gives you a great mental picture of what the man looks like. With the details you get consumed by him and for a time while I was reading I wanted the Empire to win because this guy was so cool and smart. The new side characters that Zahn has made are great. I love Karrade and Mara Jade. They were both great characters. I loved the new alien species he thought up. Nothing was to far fetched and everything was described so well you got a good mental picture of everything. This is an excellent novel. You can argue it as the best Star Wars novel ever written and it's easily in the best Star Wars book trilogy. Timothy Zahn has written an absolutely fantastic sci-fi trilogy. Fans of the movie might not appreciate it to much, but if you love the movies and what a continuation pick up this book. You won't regret it.
Rating:
Summary: Zahn's Original Masterpiece
Review: Reading had always been an activity I enjoyed in my free time, and although I occasionally read a Star Wars book, I was never left with the feeling that the films had given me. Most that I read would have entertaining stories, but despite the plot I would find myself struggling to read them to the end; they simply couldn't hold my attention. That all changed when I read Heir to the Empire, the first book in a three part series written by Timothy Zahn. Heir to the Empire, Dark Force Rising, The Last Command, and the two follow-ups that Zahn later wrote, stand apart from all other Star Wars books and most other books in general. Zahn's work is absolutely stunning; with Heir to the Empire he took Star Wars to an entirely new level. The story and characters are superb; the writing itself is magnificent. Timothy Zahn truly captured the epic scope and feeling of the Star Wars universe and then expanded it far beyond. Unlike the film trilogy, Zahn put an emphasis on the strategy and politics of war rather than simply showing the battles as a series of flashy, but entertaining, random explosions. The tactics and stratagems he devised for use in the series are explained well enough to seem perfectly believable, while at the same time being just fantastic and crazy enough to fit excellently into the unique universe that George Lucas created. The characters that Zahn devised for his stories are memorable and unique; they compliment the standard Star Wars cast wonderfully. Many of the more interesting characters are members of the Empire, still fighting a battle against the Rebel Alliance, now known as the New Republic, even though they are currently losing badly. The many Imperial characters that Zahn made, and the focus he put on the Empire, was something that hadn't been done before in Star Wars. During the films you only had glimpses of how the Empire worked, with only Vader and Palpatine as actual characters. For his books Zahn made many Imperial officers main characters to give the reader insight on how the enemies of the Rebellion viewed the universe, and the war they'd been in for so long. The most notable of these villains is, of course, Grand Admiral Thrawn, who has assumed leadership over the remnants of the Empire. As the primary antagonist, Thrawn is a welcome change from the cryptic, detached villains from the films. There is rarely a single event in Heir to the Empire that was not carefully planned by Thrawn himself. Even the cast of heroes eventually take note that nothing they see can be accepted as truth with some one of Thrawn's manipulative and tactical genius plotting against them. Everything they witnessed could be part of his plan, causing them to question anything that happened; only then wandering if that's exactly what Thrawn wanted them to question while he did something completely different. Attempting to unravel the dozens of layers to Thrawn's plans along with the heroes was one of the many things that kept me reading no matter how many other things I needed to do at the time. Then there were equally impressive new protagonists, my favorite being Mara Jade, who has since appeared in dozens of additional Star Wars novels. Similar to Han Solo, Jade is initially a hero by circumstance and not by choice. As a former servant of the Emperor, Jade is engaged in an internal battle. She doesn't want to work for the Empire, realizing that it is no longer what Emperor Palpatine had envisioned. On the other hand, she doesn't want to aide the New Republic as they are the cause of the Empires fall. In fact, she adamantly hates Luke Skywalker, the hero of the New Republic, and desires nothing more than to see him dead. Zahn constantly puts Mara Jade into positions where she must choose to side with Thrawn, or side with Luke Skywalker, which to her is like choosing between two evils. The constant tension, unexpected turns, incredible new characters and classic faces that are now more mature, bring Heir to the Empire to life. Not once did I feel disappointed, and not once did I find anything that I disliked; the book was absolutely perfect. Timothy Zahn is truly an outstanding writer for being able to create books every bit as enchanting and spectacular as the film trilogy itself. Every Star Wars fan owes it to themselves to read Zahn's five books. Make sure to take time off from work first, though; it may be difficult to put the books down.
Rating: 
Summary: Good, but. . .
Review: This is a good book, and i know people are going to pissed at me for saying this but the charater too. . .flat. "cookie cutter charaters" some might say. But hey thrawn and his love for art is different from all that and that love for art saves Thrawn from being like Talon and the others. TO SEE WHAT I MEAN READ DRAGONLANCE'S FIRST TRILOGY AND SEE FOR YOURSELFS.
Rating:
Summary: The Beginning of the Greatest SW Trilogy Ever!
Review: I first read Heir to the Empire when it was released. Since that book I have been enchanted with a universe long ago and far away. Really it was the Zahn books more than the orignal movie trilogy that made me into a Star Wars fan. I have read and reviewed every book in the expanded universe from the exellent Zahn, Stackpole, Keyes & Denning to the horrible Anderson, Kube-McDowell, Hambly & McIntyre. Heir to the Empire is the book that began all that troublesome mixture of continuity that is called the expanded universe. Zahn is first and foremost and excellent writer. He has a firm grasp of his characters, and uses the movies as a springboard rather than a crutch. In Heir to the Empire Zahn introduces 4 of the best characters in the Star Wars universe: Talon Karrde, smuggler chief extraordinaire a smuggler, who unlike Han Solo is in it for the money and understands the importance of information, Mara Jade sometime Jedi and personal assassin to the Emperor with a mad on for Luke Skywalker, Borsk Fey'la a crafty and ruthless Bothan politician whose treads just on the right side of good in his quest for personal power and the most deadly superweapon ever produced by the Empire: Grand Admiral Thrawn a man as deadly as he competant. A soldier whose ulitmate goal is not destruction but the reunification of the Empire. Karrde, Jade and Fey'la continue to be featured right through the current New Jedi Order series, a testament to their popularity and origins. While Thrawn has never returned after the events of this Trilogy, his ghost remains floating in the background of many of the recent Star Wars novels. Our old friends have also changed a bit Han Solo still a risk taker but married to a now pregnant Princess Leia burdoned by politics but well on her way to becoming a Jedi and Luke Skywalker, not the brooding, depressed hero of later novels, but full of life yet NOT invincible. All in all Heir to the Empire is an excellent beginning to one of the greatest sci-fi literary achievements, as its run as a New York Times Bestseller is a testament of.
Rating:
Summary: If only Episode 1 & 2 were as good as THIS Trilogy...
Review: My hat is off to Timothy Zahn, in my opinion, the BEST Star Wars novelist writing today. It seemed that until the early 90's, the only major series of books to read in the sci-fi universe had Star Trek on the cover -- that is until George Lucas gave the OKAY for Timothy Zahn to begin what would become arguably the best series of Star Wars books written...PERIOD. I noticed one reviewer hailed 'Heir To The Empire' as Episode VII and I believe that was just about the best title, because Zahn so perfectly captured the *feel* of the Star Wars Universe that it in every way exceeded the three original movies. I can't tell you how great it was to get re-acquianted with Han & Leia as a married (and expecting) couple, Lando, Luke as well as a whole group of new characters which hold their own against any previous in the series. Grand Admiral Thrawn is simply a better bad guy than both Darth Vader & the Emperor combined. He uses good old fashioned brains and military tactics to win for the Empire and although he sees a minor defeat at the end of 'Heir' this in no way slows down his ultimate plan on crushing the Alliance. As you wind yourself through this book and the following 2 books in this series, you see how Zahn sprinkled so much in between the lines of how his version of a tale told in a galaxy far, far away should be. You have absolutely everything that made the original 3 movies so good, the Force, the Dark Side, and epic battle scenes. We get inside the head of Luke Skywalker (a very interesting place to be, I might add), you get an extra dose of humor from Han, and let's not forget the wit & wisdom of C3PO. It's ALL here. I particularly enjoyed the introduction of Talon Karrde, Mara Jade and the very unique creatures that have the ability to repel the Force. I found it absolutely brilliant how Zahn incorporated that into the overall story, particularly in 'The Last Command' and their critical help in creating a menacing clone army for the New & Improved Empire. There simply is not a SINGLE negative thing I can think of about these books. Maybe I'm building them up too big for you, but I don't think so. Any Star Wars fan worth his/her salt ought to make reading these 3 novels required. Unfortunately there are a glut of SW novels on the market today, MOST of which are a gigantic waste of trees in my opinion. The New Jedi Order novels which pretty much began with the promising 'Vector Prime' have deteriorated into a farce that just happens to be using the Star Wars name to advance utter drivel. But if you can find anything with Timothy Zahn's name on the front, you are guaranteed a story that will entertain as well as inform you about the world of Star Wars. Just HOW good is Zahn? Believe it or not, the planet Coruscant was such a good creation, George Lucas BORROWED it for use in the Phantom Menace. Yes, it's true, Lucas did NOT come up with that one by himself. I have talked with one of the authors of a single Star Wars novel and they told me that in their conversations with Mr. Lucas, he admitted that Zahn's Trilogy was the equal to anything he had managed to come up with, and possibly better. You cannot find a better endorsement than that, now can you? Go ahead, give in and buy 'Heir To The Empire' if you haven't yet. You will be amazed how good it is -- especially if you have managed to suffer through any of the trash that has come out in the past 5 or 6 years with the Star Wars name on the cover. Once you give in to this, you will most certainly follow by reading the two sequels, 'Dark Force Rising' (which isn't what you may think it is) and 'The Last Command'. Truly worthy of the Star Wars name. Timothy Zahn IS the master.
Rating:
Summary: Heir to the Empire worthy first literary Star Wars sequel
Review: In 1991, Bantam Books and Lucasfilm Ltd. reinvigorated interest in the Star Wars universe (well, galaxy) by gathering a diverse group of noted science fiction writers and starting a regular series of novels set in the time period which follows Return of the Jedi. Timothy Zahn's Heir to the Empire, the first volume of a three-book cycle, was almost an instant phenomenon when it was published in hardcover. With its depiction of the continuing battle between what is left of the Galactic Empire and the fledgling New Republic, this novel cleverly mixes the characters from the Classic Trilogy with a cast of newly created heroes and villains, some of whom will make appearances in other authors' Star Wars works. As Heir to the Empire begins, the New Republic has been engaged in a long campaign to mop up the remnants of the once-mighty Empire. The once dreaded Imperial Fleet is in disarray, political and military control of the late Emperor Palpatine's New Order has changed hands several times, yet the former Rebels have reduced Imperial dominion to one quarter of its former size. Yet even as Mon Mothma and the New Republic government establish democratic rule from Coruscant (former capital of both the Old Republic and the Galactic Empire), a new dark force has arisen in the form of one of the Empire's most cunning warriors. His name is Thrawn, and his tactical and intellectual gifts are so great that the racist and sexist Palpatine had promoted him to be the only non-human to wear the white uniform of Grand Admiral. For several years after the Battle of Endor (where the Rebels destroyed the second Death Star and both the Emperor and Darth Vader died), Thrawn was pacifying the Unknown Regions until his return to Imperial territory. Now, with a small but powerful Imperial fleet at his command, the mysterious Grand Admiral believes he holds the key to the undoing of the New Republic and the restoration of the Empire. Zahn not only introduced a set of new characters that would become essential to what fans know as the Expanded Universe series (the charming smuggler-chief Talon Karrde, the beautiful but mysterious Mara Jade, the devoted Imperial fleet captain Pelleaon, and the mad clone Joruus C'baoth), but he brought fans of the movie heroes up to date on the lives of Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia Organa Solo, Han Solo, Chewbacca, Lando Calrissian, and the droids. A professional reviewer, at the time of the book's first appearance in 1991, wrote that Heir to the Empire "captures the spirit of the movie trilogy so well, you can almost hear John Williams' soundtrack." Indeed, Zahn does a superb job rendering the personalities from George Lucas' films that one can almost hear Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford, Billy Dee Williams, and Anthony Daniels when reading their characters' dialogue. The pace of the book is brisk and the action sequences are so well done that one can swear they are cinematic. Although there are many Star Wars authors whose novels are spellbinding, Zahn stands head and shoulders above the crowd.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: I just re-read this book for the first time in many years, and it still struck me how well this book is written. Timothy Zahn does an absolutely first-rate job in taking old characters I grew up with and developing even them even more. The dialogue, interaction and narrative all perfectly reflect the tone of the original films. It is great to read the back and forth between Han and Leia, Lando, Luke and all of the old favorites. Not only that, new characters are so well developed and well realized that they become instantly iconic and blend seamlessly into the Star Wars tapestry. First and foremost is Grand Admiral Thrawn, much more than a cookie-cutter villain, whose intuition and cunning make him interesting as well as ruthless. Talon Karrde is an instantly likable character and Mara Jade is a great antagonist. Her interactions with Karrde and Luke Skywalker give her some much needed dimension. Joruus C'Baoth and Garm Bel Iblis also are incredibly well written, as are smaller players like Captain Pellaeon, Khabarakh and the Noghri, and even Borsk Fey'lya, who is written as a perfectly manipulative politician. Reading this book for a second time let me see the numerous subtle hints woven into all three books in this trilogy. The subtlety Zahn uses is excellent, the twists and revelations, while not shocking, are thought out with care and detail. I like the fact that there is no Imperial superweapon being used, and instead it deals mostly with tactics, skill and intelligence. The ultimate plot leaves you satisified, which says a lot more than most of the Star Wars books I have read lately. After the bad taste that the last few New Jedi Order books gave me, it was very reassuring to go back and enjoy this book and the other two books in this trilogy. They are truly worthy to be made into films (if only they could be), and are immensely satisfying books.
Rating:
Summary: Imperial Echoes
Review: Author Tim Zahn's first three Star Wars novels, known as the Thrawn trilogy, told the story of what happened to everyone following Return Of The Jedi. Dark Horse Comics did an excellent job adapting each novel for the comic book format. Heir To The Empire was adapted by Mike Baron. He captures the spirit of the novel, without having to sacrifice too much, given that the graphic novel has fewer pages. 5 years after Jedi Luke leads the new republic, Han and Leia are married, and expecting twins. This, as the last remnants of the Empire are gathering together, under the leadership of Grand Admiral Thrawn. Thrawn has discovered something that could bring the fledgling republic to its knees, and shift the balance of power, throughout the galaxy. Adapting anything, a book, film or TV show, for the comic book format is never easy. But Barron is very edept at putting very limited space to good use. The artwork from Oliver Vantine and Fred Blanchard is just superb. The characters look very much as described in the book. The colors are bold, but in contrast to some other Star Wars comics out there, the art stays within the saga's familiar look-and that's a good thing. The collected graphic novel features an introduction by fellow Star Wars author, Kathy Tyers, and reprints of the single issue series' covers by Mathieu Lauffray. The adaptation is as good as any of the very best of its kind. Recommended, even if, you have read the original novel.
Rating:
Summary: Lucas has met his match
Review: This is the novel that all the extended star wars univers novels are based on. Mara Jade and Grand Admiral Thrawn alone are two characters you wish would have made a camieo in the special additions of the movies. If they make another trilogy post Return of the Jedi, it better be based on Timothy Zahn trilogy.
Rating:
Summary: The Mind of Thrawn, the Hand of Zahn
Review: Before this book, I had never read a Star Wars book. Nor had I ever read a book by Timothy Zahn. I was NOT ready for what I encountered. In the trilogy of books in this series, Zahn manages to create one of the coolest villains in all of sci-fi. Personally, I think Grand Admiral Thrawn is a better villain than Vader (but that just me). Through the course of the book he will take the remnants of the dying Empire and put them back on the road to supremacy. When I try to picture him in my mind I see him as a kind of evil version of General Lee in a sci-fi setting. He's a military genius with the uncanny ability to read the mind of his opponents and win repeatedly despite being vastly outnumbered. But is he really evil? Or just extremely ambitious? Also created in this amazing book series is what has become one fo the most popular characters in the Star Wars universe: Mara Jade. The red-haired young woman with strong force powers and a love/hate relationship with Luke Skywalker also makes a compelling new character. Of course with this being a Star Wars book, all the old characters from the movies return, and the feeling you get from listening to them might be compared to the feeling a person gets from meeting with some old friends he hasn't seen in a long time. Timothy Zahn's writing style isn't overly descriptive, but neither is it entirely cold. If I had to describe his style I would call it the perfect ADVENTURE style. When reading his books (and I have read several since this one), you get the same feeling you would from watching a book adventure film. Everything moves along at a brisk pace. Of course, the first book in the series is really just setting up the situation and the characters. We find out Thrawn intentions and see his grand plan start, but you'll have to read all three books to see the real meat of the story. I highly recommend all three books in the series.
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