REVIEW: Thrawn by Timothy Zahn
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| Barnes and Noble Exclusive Edition Hardback |
Publishing information: Hardback; 448pgs
Publisher: Random House; 11 April 2017
ISBN: 9780425287071
Series: Star Wars
Copy: Out of pocket
Reviewer: Tyson
Barnes and Noble
Synopsis: "
One of the most cunning and ruthless warriors in the history of the Galactic Empire, Grand Admiral Thrawn is also one of the most captivating characters in the Star Wars universe, from his introduction in bestselling author Timothy Zahn’s classic Heir to the Empire through his continuing adventures in Dark Force Rising, The Last Command, and beyond. But Thrawn’s origins and the story of his rise in the Imperial ranks have remained mysterious. Now, in Star Wars: Thrawn, Timothy Zahn chronicles the fateful events that launched the blue-skinned, red-eyed master of military strategy and lethal warfare into the highest realms of power—and infamy."
Way back in 2991 Timothy Zahn introduced us to the Chiss warrior known as Mitth'raw'nuruodo, better known as Grand Admiral Thrawn. When Disney acquired the Star Wars franchise they rebooted the expanded universe and made the novels before their ownership part of the "legends universe" making many of the best (as well as many terrible) Star Wars books and characters no longer canon. One of the greatest (if not greatest) character was the elusive Grand Admiral Thrawn no longer apart of the Star Wars universe. Fans went crazy when he was finally re-introduced to the Star Wars universe in the animated series Star Wars Rebels and while I don't watch the show, was glad to hear a novel was planned. Now that the novel is out, we finally have some light shed on the character's beginnings.
The first Chronological appearance of Thrawn occurs in a previous Star Wars novel, that is no longer canon, entitled Outbound Flight (also written by Zahn) Jedi Obi Wan Kenobi and his padawan Anikan Skywalker take part in a mission to the reaches of unknown space and come across a brilliant military officer in the Chiss Ascendancy (it appears that Zahn snuck that non-canon novel into the book so it may be canon after all). So it if you are interested in learning the true origins of Thrawn you can start there. However, the original appearance of Thrawn takes place in the Thrawn trilogy with the first book in the series entitled, Heir to the Empire. In the Thrawn Trilogy not much is background is given about the blue-skinned Grand Admiral. It is part of that mystery that made him such a fan favorite. He was a ruthless military commander much like Lord Vader but instead of callously killing those under his command, Thrawn would chose the time to engage the enemy and crush them with superior planning.
In Zahn's latest book we finally learn how the only alien in the Empire came to rise to the rank of
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| Standard Hardback edition |
Thrawn quickly shows that he is more than capable of planning and executing complex plans as he navigates not only his navel training exercises but gains the upper hand on his classmates that have no qualms about displaying their dislike for an alien in their midst. Zahn does an excellent job of showing how xenophobic the Imperials are and how difficult the climb will be for Thrawn to rise through the ranks of the navy's hierarchy.
Thrawn is not alone in his adventure as the young ensign who translated for him during the encounter on the planet he was found on is ordered to remain his orderly and translator as he learns the ins and outs of command in the Imperial Navy. Eli Vanto isn't just a sidekick in the novel as he grows from resenting his position as translator to a strong tactician and confidant of Thrawns. While Thrawn is the star of the show, Vanto quickly becomes a favorite as well as he learns from his commanding officer and while not Thrawn's equal in tactics, certainly has an aptitude for it and would make for a difficult adversary should he ever gain command of his own Star Destroyer.
My one major complaint about Thrawn as a character, and I am sure I am not alone in this, is his inability to navigate the political spectrum of the navy and bureaucracy. He seems oblivious to it, even when he is told about it outright. I would think that a brilliant tactician would love the world of navigating the complex world of politics but he seems to not understand it or believe it exists. Perhaps he knows he has the Emperor's ear but he seems completely naive to the concept.
Thrawn is the strongest book in the rebooted Star Wars universe and worth picking up. There have been a lot of terrible books since Disney took over but this isn't one of them. Zahn does a terrific job of bringing an iconic character back to the forefront and new and old Star Wars fans will truly enjoy this one. Highly recommended
Overall 8/10
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