Dark Force Rising (Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy, Book 2)

This book was great, definitely one of the best Star Wars books I have ever read. It was very exciting and moved quickly, and the writing made the characters seem almost real, so that I truly felt for them. All the original characters were cooler than ever and true to themselves, and all the new characters were awesome too, especially Mara Jade. I like the way her character is turning out, in that she is a really strong, tough female, who can take care of herself. She still seems to hate Luke a lot, but even that is gradually fading. I think it shows the strength of Luke's character, in that no matter how much of a jerk she is to him, he is always nothing but nice to her. I would recommemd this book to any Star Wars fan, and even to someone who's seen the movies and would kind of like to know what happened next.

Dark Force Rising is the second book in Tim Zahn's Thrawn Trilogy. OUr heroes, on the run from assasins after Leia's unborn twins, as well as Luke and Leia themselves, run through the book at a frantic pace. Leia decides that the best place to hide is amongst the enemy, so along with Chewbacca she embarks on a quest to the world of Honogar, the homeworld of the Empire's best assasins. Luke after spending time with the insane Dark Jedi C'Boath is off on a mission to rescue smuggler chief Talon Karrde from Grand Admiral Thrawn's personal Star Destroyer with the help of Mara Jade, who wants to kill him once the rescue is complete. Han Solo finds himself swept off to a secret meeting with a soldier who may or may not help the fragile New Republic against the victorious Empire and Thrawn. Added to this is a frantic race to discover the location of the Katana Fleet or Dark Force. A mysterious fleet of warships designed after the Clone Wars that could tip the victory in the laps of those who find it first. Add in political intrigue, an Alliance commander accused of treason and clones and you have one heck of a good novel.

A lot of people just can't find any excitement in character development. They want action, action, action. Dark Force Rising isn't for them.

However, for someone seeking an intellectual Star Wars story (which, yes, IS possible) this is great. The Noghri are vastly interesting, and Leia's interaction with them is wonderful. (This is how the bit with the Ewoks should have gone in Return of the Jedi.)

And of course, we get to see more of Mara Jade, my second favorite Star Wars character in the universe. And she's absolutely true to character (big surprise! This is one of the defining books for her character, after all.)

The best part is a complete lack of Death Stars and Death-Star-like superweapons.

In this second novel of the Heir to the Empire trilogy Timothy Zahn splendidly continues the plots he began in the first book. Everything fits and is so exciuting that you can't put down the book. When Leia goes on a mission to the Noghri, the aliens that under the command of the empire tried to kill her, she finds herselfs in a snakes pit. Luke Skywalker is going on a search for the Jedi Master C'baoth and Han Solo tries to find a fleet of great battleships that vanished years before. To oppose the heroes Zahn once more lets Grand Admiral Thrawn give a great taste of his vicious genius. And between the fronts, Mara Jade and Talon Karrde have their own troubles. In the end 'Zahn lets the subplots flow together to a great and surprising final which will make you want to read the final book.

Do you hate George Lucas for ruining his own creation like I do? I mean, Star Wars, the defining mythology of at least two generations, the story of heroes and redemption has become the joke of our times. How could it not? Did you see that idiot, Anakin, scratching his way up the hill, beaten and burned, destined to become the shell for James Earl Jones's ominous basso voice? Did it make you groan? Did it make you want to set fire to the Skywalker Ranch? Am I alone?

Now, I'm not a Star Wars Geek. I don't play the roleplaying game. Never have. I don't have the library of tie-in novels and I do poorly at the trivia compared to a lot of people. But I snuck into the theater when I was 11 years old to watch Luke Skywalker discover The Force. I know great stories and despite the slightly cheesy effects and the ham-handed acting, Star Wars was a great story.

Why am I going on and on about what was? Because Timothy Zahn does Star Wars better than George Lucas does Star Wars. If Lucas had just filmed these three books - Heir to the Empire, Dark Force Rising, and The Last Command - he'd have a masterpiece to crown his early achievements.

In Dark Force Rising, Leia conducts a mission to influence an alien race heretofore loyal to one of the Emperor's warlords, Luke finds himself battling an insane Jedi Master, Joruus C'Baoth, and Han Solo races the forces of the warlord, General Thrawn, to get to a lost fleet of Dreadnaught cruisers. The tension is high throughout this second book in the series and the characters conduct themselves admirably, keeping to the heroic expectations and rebellious attitudes we expect.

Reading this series, and especially this book, will remind you why we loved Star Wars and why we now hate George Lucas.

- CV Rick