Dark Force Rising: Star Wars Legends (The Thrawn Trilogy)

by Timothy Zahn

In this essential Star Wars Legends novel, the sequel to Heir to the Empire, Grand Admiral Thrawn’s sinister plan threatens to spell doom for the fledgling New Republic and its most iconic heroes.

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. Meanwhile, Han Solo and Lando Calrissian race against time to find proof of treason inside the highest Republic Council—only to discover instead a ghostly fleet of warships that could bring doom to their friends and victory to their enemies.

Yet most dangerous of all is a new Dark Jedi, risen from the ashes of a shrouded past, consumed by bitterness, and scheming to corrupt Luke Skywalker to the dark side.

Genres: Star Wars, Science Fiction, Fiction, Audiobook

466 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 28, 2011

About the author

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 became a professional writer. He and his wife Anna live in Bandon, Oregon. They have a son, Corwin Zahn.

Reviews

[Anna Hatzl · Rating 5 out of 5]

x2 on my review of the first book in this trilogy 💥💫

The characters and the w̶o̶r̶l̶d̶ galaxy feel authentic and true to Star Wars, with all these connections to other events and character in the sw timeline without being too much "remember this?? 🤓" like some modern star wars media does it.

Seeing more of Leia and her connection to the force is everything i wanted as a kid and so much fun + Luke's struggle of being the only Jedi "master" with so much knowledge missing, meeting other force sensitives and navigating having to be the one that "knows" is such an interesting side. Wish there was even more time to deal with these topics in this trilogy but ofc plot has to happen 😌

How I wish these were adapted into movies 🥹 the different locations and scenarios are so cool

[Matthew Whiteman · Rating 5 out of 5]

It took a few chapters for the story to pick up again, but once it did I was hooked. I'm really excited to see how the Trilogy concludes!

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a ride! Very similar to Empire Strikes Back in that it setups the third part of story extremely well. Leaves you with a cliff hanger ending and has a great what will happen next vibe.

All the characters interacting together throughout this book show what could have been had this been adapted into a movie.

This book is a brimming with action, political intrigue, space battles and even a bit of the force both dark and light thrown in for good measure.

Very excited to get to the last book in this series. Highly recommend to any Star Wars fan again especially someone looking for a true successor to The Return of the Jedi.

[Tyler Denering Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grading on a scale for Star Wars books, I totally get why this Timothy Zahn trilogy is a classic for EU stories. Hits a lot of beats close to the original trilogy with compelling mystery and dangerous villains. Looking forward to wrapping this trilogy up with the final installment!

[the pickwick club · Rating 4 out of 5]

pellaeon when he guesses what thrawn’s plans are: https://media1.tenor.com/m/-41DWQxEzP...

[Jonathan Schroeder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fun star wars book with some mystery about a fleet of ships abandoned that was interesting

[Alex McKenna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've said it before, but running with the OT characters again is just so fun. The dialogue and relationships between them is so strong that it makes me really miss how good this IP used to be!

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great plot but the prose leaves a lot to be desired, which I guess makes sense given the target audience.

Excited to take a break and read something else for the first time in a while before finishing the trilogy

[Cannon Qorson · Rating 1 out of 5]

One star feels harsh but it took me around three years to finish. I kept forgetting about it. The plots fine, definitely better then the first one. Its slower and longer then it needs to be though. Thrawn is awesome but he isn't the main character. Mara is fine. My main issue with these books is Zahn's writing style. Very bland and overly analytical.

Heres some examples:

"One of the first minor truths about interstellar flight that any observant traveler learned was that a planet seen from space almost never looked anything at all like the official maps of it. Scatterings of cloud cover, shadows from mountain ranges, contour-altering effects of large vegetation tracts, and lighting tricks in general, all combined to disguise and distort the nice clean computer scrubbed lines drawn by cartographers. It was an effect that had probably caused a lot of bad moments for neophyte navigators, as well as supplying the ammunition for innumerable practical jokes played on those same neophytes by their more experienced shipmates.
It was therefore something of a surprise to find that, on this particular day and coming in from this particular angle, the major continent of the planet Jomark did indeed look almost exactly like a precisely detailed map. Of course, in all fairness, it was a pretty small continent to begin with."

"Lando nodded. 'I don't know if I mentioned it, but after they apologized for getting the magnetic coupling off-center over our hatch I went back and took a look.'
'You didn't mention it, but I did the same thing.' Han said sourly. 'Looked kind of deliberate, didn't it?'
'That's what I thought, too,' Lando said. 'Like maybe they wanted an excuse to keep us cooped up down here and not wandering around their ship.'
'Could be lots of good and innocent reasons for that,' Han reminded him.
'And lots of not-so-innocent ones,' Lando countered. 'You sure you don't have any idea who this commander of theirs might be?'
'Not even a guess. Probably be finding out real soon though.'"

"'I think we're somewhere above the aft hangar bays,' Mara said. 'Those service techs got off just forward of the central crew section, and we hadn't gone very far down yet.'
'Above the hangar bays,' Karrde repeated thoughtfully. 'Near the vehicle deep storage area, in other words?'
Mara frowned at him. 'Are you suggesting we grab a ship from up there?'
'Why not?' Karrde countered. 'They'll probably be expecting us to go directly to one of the hangar bays. They might not be watching for us to come in via vehicle lift from deep storage.'
'And if they are, it'll leave us trapped like clipped mynocks when the stormtroopers come to get us,' Mara retorted."

This works when its Thrawn pov, but its weird for everyone else and gets annoying over 400 s0mething pages.
One of the reviews on the original editions back cover says: "Zahn has perfectly captured the pace and flavor of the Star Wars movies. This is space opera at its best." Like wow, really?
Also these books don't feel stand alone, they're definitely parts of a whole, so I don't think they'd adapt that well.
This story has been okay but I don't get how so many people think this is one of the best pieces of Star Wars media ever. I don't think the crazy hype is proportional to the quality. I really don't get what I'm missing.
I dunno if I'll pick up the third one. I'm this far in so I guess I might as well. Wookiepedia spoiled the ending though...

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes the middle of a trilogy struggles to meet the novelty of the first and satisfying culmination of the last. But Dark Force Rising might be better than Heir to the Empire that kicked off the original Thrawn trilogy. To me that's because it's cooking. After spending the first book introducing our characters and conflicts, this one has more energy as the dominoes begin to fall. It keeps the structure of shifting perspective, which I like.

The name of the book refers to a long lost fleet of powerful spaceships. The remnants of the Empire, led by the brilliant Grand Admiral Thrawn, knows that accessing such a fleet would give it the boost it needs to fully re-emerge as a power to be reckoned with. For that reason, the New Republic knows it must not let it fall into their hands. It's a race. Meanwhile, Luke and Mara briefly come under the thrall of the mad Jedi C'Boath, more so Luke, who is reluctantly saved by Mara - for now. The other big development is Leia using her status as the daughter of Darth Vader to attempt and sway the Noghri away from their loyalty to the Empire.

One character that I enjoy how Zahn writes is Lando. He's not especially prominent compared to the core of Luke, Leia, and Han, but he is usually in the mix and often quite adept at sussing out situations. He and Han have a good chemistry as they bounce around trying to figure out the status of the Dark Force. I look forward to the conclusion of this, and it remains clear why this series launched a whole wave of Star Wars novels in the 90s.

[R. L. Peterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Plot Twists!

I didn’t expect the Nogerhi plot twist. Definitely made the book for me! Highly recommend! Cannot wait for book 3!

Official Review

Dark Force Rising Book Review || Book 1 of 200

This is my first read of 2026 and what a ride! I won’t lie, initially, I was a little bored. I wasn’t seeing how lines connected and honestly found Han and Lando’s parts dull. But then things kicked into high gear! Leia and the Noghri, Luke and C’Baoth, and then the whole political intrigue between Borsk and Akbar!!! It was edge of your seat stuff!

*Spoilers* Mara finding out she wasn’t the only Emperor’s Hand, Leia discovering what the Decon droids were actually doing and finding out why they needed the Spaarti (cloning) cylinders for were best scenes! *end spoilers*

There are a couple inconsistencies with the Canon Prequel movies but honestly, that doesn’t matter a whole lot.

10/10 would recommend for ages 16+!

#mamareads #scifi #starwarsnovels #darkforcerising #thrawntrilogy

[Juanma]

El segundo libro de la trilogía es tan bueno como el primero. Más maduro, los riesgos aumentan y se consuman muchas de las cosas que estaban pendientes desde el final del primer libro. Es alucinante como todas las subtramas, que parecen distantes entre si, se tejen y terminan orgánicamente mezcladas en una conclusión compartida cuando llega el climax de la historia que, no es menor, tiene un final agridulce para los protagonistas, eso lo hace aún mejor. Se nota que es una trilogía pensada al detalle en su estructura, personajes y situaciones, es tan Star Wars que me asombra. Timothy Zahn entiende todo lo importante sobre ese universo, hasta en la forma de relatar batallas o describir con precisión cada detalle visual de su mundo para hacerlo parte de ese cosmos que al dia de hoy está sobrecargado de material pero al momento de publicación habia poquito sobre lo cual construir. Quizás de esa libertad viene la grandeza de estos libros.

[Sophia Donadio · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent second book in this series. Felt like the action was really picking up but it also had a good amount of politics and intrigue included. I felt like I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. I enjoyed the continuing relationships being developed with the newer characters as well. I’m excited to see how these characters continue to thread together with the original beloved characters in the final installment.

This definitely felt like classic Star Wars to me. Between the call backs to certain events in the original trilogy to the feeling of the good guys always being very close to losing it all only to prevail at the last second. Thrawn adds an extra layer of intensity to this with his brilliant scheming and I’m curious to see how they overcome him in the conclusion of this trilogy.

[Tobias Ulvestad · Rating 4 out of 5]

God oppfølger til Heir of the Empire og en god fortsettelse av karakterene fra den originale triologien for folk som vil ha mer av de star wars karakterene. Jeg anser dette som canon oppfølgeren til den triologien. Karakterene føles tro ut til deres portrettering i filmene, og de nye karakterene er gode tilskudd til galleriet. Motivasjonene er tydelige og personene føles tredimensjonale ut som gir boken dybde. Man får innsikt inn i ulike perspektiver og forfatteren klarer dermed å få deg til å heie på alle til tross for at noen er i konflikt med hverandre. Anbefales!

[Joshua Niese · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book definitely helped the series along. It’s cool to imagine back to the original trilogy and the fact that this helps to continue the story. I can also see why the die hards out there will always view this at the original sequel series. For being one of those “check off the list and say I read them” exercises in reading, I have been pulled in for sure. Have a few other books to consume that are on my lot before I dive into the last one, but looking forward to it.

[David Schaeffer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zahn makes our favorite characters come back to life much better than Disney could ever hope to. All of our favorites shine and develop in very believable ways while they continue to try and save their New Republic. Thrawn is so chiling as an antagonist and I see now why if there's anything from these legends books that Disney HAD to keep canon, its him. My only regret with this book is that I didn't read it sooner.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Insane follow up to Heir to the Empire. One of the things I’ve wanted was too see Leia in action and we got it. The way she handles politics and approaches conversations is my favorite. She’s diplomatic and straight up a badass.

This was a solid four stars for me and then i got to THAT ENDING. Immediately bumped this up to five stars. Timothy Zahn has been killing it with these cliffhangers and I cannot wait to see where this story goes next.

[Keri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liked this even more than the first one! Continues to be a believable sequel series, which is much more than I can say for the movies. It's not exactly cant-put-down level, but it's like watching a Star wars movie play out in my head.

And pretty clean too!
•
•
⚠️CW: Maybe one swear word? Endangered pregnant woman, space war type violence (killing with lightsabers, blasters, etc.)

[Scott Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Do you like the OG trilogy? Then read this. It is that simple. Zahn captured the magic of the movies and put them in book form. also the audiobook nails the voices to sound like the original cast of the movies.

This is a popcorn book. You won't be wow'ed by deep themes, but you will get more cool star wars. So like what is not to love?

[Zachary Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thrown my new favorite villain.

The new big bad working for the empire may have had a set back
from the last book, but is constantly moving the gears to rule the galaxy. Just as good as the first novel and I plan to move to the next after the review.

[Alwyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

very good follow up, I didn't love the Leia and chewie plotline but loved mara and Luke's . landos and Hans was also pretty solid and the overall premise was very good ( maybe better then the first in terms if direction).

excited for the third.

8.5/10

[Brian Bimschleger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tremendously compelling Star Wars book where Thrawn is always a couple moves ahead. The final scene brings together characters from all different parts of the book and was really satisfying. Very excited to read the last command.

[John Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

A worthy follow-up to the original trilogy with high-stakes excitement and your favorite characters together again.

[David Mcmullen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read to follow along with “A More Civilized Age” podcast

[Tim McRae · Rating 5 out of 5]

Why was this not the Sequel I will never know. Not that there is anything wrong with the three that they did make... But they really squandered a massive win here.

[Chris Lezu · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much better than disneys movies and books.

[Otto Have · Rating 5 out of 5]

Samme vibe som den første. Jeg synes denne var federe fordi historien var i gang, og bogen bare generelt var mere spændende

[David Alton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stellar example of a Star Wars novel!

Easily a favorite in all the Star Wars books I’ve read. Fantastic build up, leaving one itching for the final book in the trilogy.

[laurafee · Rating 5 out of 5]

These are SO good! Why weren’t these made into movies??

[Austin Crowder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Didn’t like it as much as the first, but still a good book that scratches the Star Wars itch