Book Description
Timothy Zahn, Hugo Award-winning author of The New York Times best-selling Star Wars trilogy, blazes a spectacular new path across the sky in an epic original novel of star-spanning action adventure, mystery and intrigue.  A long era of peace and prosperity in the interstellar Commonwealth has suddenly come to an end.  Four alien starships of unknown origin have attacked, without provocation, an eight-ship Peacemaker task force, utterly destroying it in six savage minutes.  The authorities claim there were no survivors.  But Lord Stewart Cavanaugh, a former member of Parliament, has learned through back channels that one man may have survived to be captured by the aliens:  his son, Commander Pheylan Cavanaugh.  A large-scale invasion appears imminent, and the strictest security measures are in effect . . . measures that Lord Cavanaugh has no choice but to defy.  He recruits Adam Quinn, who once flew with the elite Copperheads--fighter pilots whose minds are literally one with their machines--to rescue his son.  Quinn assembles a crack force of Copperheads to steal out of the Commonwealth security zone and snatch Pheylan Cavanaugh from the conquerors.  Depending on the outcome, Quinn and his men will retum home as heroes or as the galaxy's most despised traitors--if they come home at all. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (37)

Don't waste your time or money.
This is the first book of a trilogy, none of them are worth reading. I bought all three for a dollar at a charity used book sale and feel like I paid too much. But read all three because they were on hand, I'd already paid for them and I needed some brain dead diversion between more difficult tasks.

The plot line is hackneyed, the execution by the numbers, and the resolution completely unsatisfying. These books may be entertaining for a young person just getting into action scifi, but most adults or science fiction veterans will have instant deja vu for any number of works that have covered this territory better.

Great first book in the series
I just finished this one, and am looking forward to getting the others in the series.Zahn creates great characters:flawed and lovable, and believable.The Science Fiction (note the capitalization) is good; not a lot of details, but enough made-up buzzwords and close-to-current technology to let your brain deal with the gap.

The Commonwealth (an association of spacefaring races, including Earth) is being threatened by a new race, called The Conquerors.At the center of the book is the Cavanaghs:Stewart, the father, a former high-ranking politician; two sons, Pheylan, the physical one, and Aric, the thinker; and Melinda, the daughter, a surgeon and pretty middle-of-the-road between the brothers.I'll not spoil the fun, but there are no Star Trek-like, miraculous inventions to save the day.Some lucky breaks, and lots of times when you think, Yeah, I saw that coming -- but enough surprises to make it fun also.

An easy read; if you are looking for an Asimov-weight book, or a Niven-like explanation of a really cool technology, you've come to the wrong place.Zahn is more about characters, politics, and subterfuge; his stories just happen to occur in the future, so you can warp around the universe looking for your loved ones.

Highly recommended; 5 out of 5 stars.

A fun Trilogy
I thoroughly enjoyed this series, the read is fast, and the approach to the story makes it very fun

Decent plot, little depth
The plot of this book is adequate. As you may have read in other reviews, an alien species attacks. Our protagonists are all human, the race that is first among equals of the space federation which keeps the peace. The federation has a doomsday weapon it hasn't used for decades, some species of the federation don't like the way the humans run the show, the new aliens are truly alien. It's a pretty good setup.

But the execution is wooden. The characters are cardboard-like, the few aliens we meet get a page of dialogue each and are then gone, and there are three parallel stories which all get too little treatment to be interesting. Characters are either good or evil and their motives are simplistic and along the lines of "find my son", "dislike main character", "be loyal bodyguard", etc.

BEGIN, SPOILERS: And the author even makes characters this thin behave in unnatural ways. For example, a career soldier and politician who spent 20 years containing the threat from one warlike alien species lands on their planet. After two pages of dialogue, he has been convinced that they aren't warlike at all. A page or two later, he commits high treason against the federation to help them. In another passage, the good guys (who are civilians) somehow forge orders to get a squadron of space fighters sent to them. They then explain to the fighter pilots how they are looking for a relative in hostile territory and need help. Half the pilots agree to ignore the impending war and go AWOL to help out. Come on.
END, SPOILERS

Wooden characters are nothing new in sci-fi. Think about Asimov's or Clarke's work. The difference is that their stories had interesting science in them (the Foundation, laws of robotics, century-long space travel, etc). "Conqueror's Pride" doesn't. So I found myself not caring what happened to these simplistic characters with weird behavior as the flitted by half a dozen uninteresting worlds.

Not my cup of tea, but I see others liked it. If you like straight-forward action and spy stories in a sci-fi setting and you don't care much about character development, this may be for you.

Epic space adventure at its best!
The first in the three part Conqueror's Trilogy, Conqueror's Pride introduces a rich new universe of characters, locations and technology for the reader to explore.

This is definitely one of my all time favourite science fiction stories...It has everything you come to expect from Timothy Zahn, complex and intriguing characters, a fast paced, twisting plot and fantastic action and suspense...For those who have yet to read anything by Timothy Zahn, you will find him and his absolute best here...
... Read more

Book Description

Customer Reviews (6)

An unexpected sequel
Here we are treated to a Zahn sequel which, amazingly enough, has nothing to do with Star Wars.

I was a bit surprised to find that Zahn chose to write a sequel for the book Night train to Rigel.Surprised simply because when compared to other amazing works (Icarus Hunt for one) I can imagine much more deserving stories which need another book.

The first book of this series worked well in the same way that Icarus Hunt did.It dropped you in the middle of a story and left you curious, interested and confused for the rest of the book.Sadly, this book lacks a large amount of the mystery which made Rigel so interesting.Knowing the enemy, the setting and all of the background before the book started actually destroyed the fun.

It is told in the same quirky, fast paced, first person view that many of Zahn's stories are told.Although, I have to admit, the constant self-assured and cocky attitude of the main character did get old after a while.It did keep me interested through the whole book and it comes off as a short read since most of the scenes blend so seamlessly into each other.

If you have actually read Night Train to Rigel and liked, then pick up this book and you will still find some enjoyment out of it.If you are new to the works of Timothy Zahn, well then I would recommend you pick up Icarus Hunt of the Conquer's Trilogy long before you set sites on this.

Enjoyable space detective story
Former spy Frank Compton is fighting a lonely battle against a life form (the Modhri) who can create a colony of himself in virtually any living thing, either influencing or taking over the entire life form. Fortunately, he's got Bayta, an assistant who is not only capable, but who can telepathically commuicate to the spiders who run the train system that communicates the multiple space-traveling civilizations--and who can make sure he travels first class. It's when he's traveling first class that another human approaches him with a strange (not to say suspicious) story about an art object. When the man is murdered shortly later, Compton becomes a suspect. But Compton learns that the Modhri is interested in the art objects--and anything the Modhri wants, Compton intends to make sure they don't get.

Being suspected of murder puts a bit of a cramp on Compton's normal abilities--especially when his alien bosses decide he's more of a liability than an asset and fire him. Still, through a combination of fast talking, judicious blackmail, and rash promises, he manages to stay alive and put himself on track of the last of the artworks. He even comes up with a theory of why the Modhri is interested, and it isn't because the Modhri has decided art collecting is more worthwhile than galactic conquest.

Author Timothy Zahn combines a space-opera style with the hard-boiled detective story in an intriguing adventure. Compton, with his conflicted feelings about Earth and Bayta, makes an interesting character--maybe too smart and sure of himself to be really likable, but interesting. Bayta is a great side-kick, her talents exactly matching what Compton needs.

As with any good detective story, Zahn throws one danger after another, and mixes them up with plenty of twists. As he travels the galaxy in search of rare artworks, Compton needs to outsmart, outfight, and ultimately outmaneuver the Modhri. Early in the novel, there were a few moments where I wanted Zahn to get on with the story, but once he started cranking, he turned out a fully enjoyable read.

An Excellent Sequel
An excellent sequel to Night Train to Rigel !You should read that book first to get the most out of this one, since some of the prior events and explanations are assumed, but it's not essenntial or even major.

The book is another racecar of a read, with a tight small set of characters speeding thru action with hairpin plot curves.Dialogue is witty banter bouncing short tennis-ball volleys between characters that are well defined ones you can relate to and enjoy.The mysteries and the uncovering of them all make wonderful sense as you ride along, hanging on for the ride.The story is *not* a copy of the old classics, but the style and flavor would fit right in with The Maltese Falcon or The Orient Express or more modern spy stories, and is another excellent addition to the SF-investigator genre -- not as dark as Bladerunner or as techie as Caves of Steel.

It seems good to see a different kind of SF from Zahn, and seems good for SF that he's adding something different.Looking forward to #3 !

Third Lynx Sci-Fi
Interesting continuation of the adventures of the characters in The Night Train to Rigel by Timothy Zahn. Enjoyable must read for his fans.

Hodge podge of mystery and sci-fi.
Zahn is generally an excellent author, but I feel that The Third Lynx is a bit sub-par compared to his Star Wars novels. I didn't get the impression that Morse was British until the 2nd half of the book, where he began to use "bloody" in almost every other dialogue. The use of the Quad-rail space trains and the ports started to get boring after the first quarter of the book, and it resembled an old-fashioned "whodunnit" on the Orient express. The description of the characters is rather dry, and all of the different aliens did not quite add to the story as much as a Sci-Fi enthusiast would have wanted. Overall it was not a bad story, but it would have flowed better with less talk about first class seating in the quad-rail and if the entire war between the Chahwyn and Mohdrids was compressed into one larger story rather than split the novels into multiple parts. Compton makes way too many assumptions and the author writes this off as Compton's "Westali" training and military experience. ... Read more

Book Description
In Conquerors' Pride, Timothy Zahn, Hugo Award-winning author of the New York Times bestselling Star Wars(r) trilogy, unfurled an epic tale of drama and courage as the interstallar Commonwealth faced savage invasion by alien starships of unknown origin.  Now he probes deeply into the world of the invaders themselves in one of the most powerful evocations of an alien society ever created.

The Zhirrzh have won a temporary respite in their war with the barbarians.  But the Human  captive Pheylan Cavanaugh has escaped, and for that Thrr-gilag, the young Searcher, finds himself disgraced, his bond-engagement to a female of a rival clan imperilled.  Soon he becomes a target of hidden and powerful forces seeking to remake Zhirrzh society in their own merciless image.  His only hope is to prove that the overclan authorities are wrong:  that it was not the
Humans who started the war.

But time is short.  The forces of the Zhirrzh are overextended and face swift retaliation.  The Zhirrzh have learned to conquer death itself -- but even that awesome power will be no match for the devastating might of the Human Conqueror armadas.  Thrr-gilag soon comes to realize that his people face a two-fold
threat:  destruction by Human technology. . . or destruction from within. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (12)

Excellent second novel in Trilogy
Timothy Zahn has upped the stakes in his second novel in the Conquer's trilogy. After the first novel,Conqueror's Pride, which details the events that lead to the beginning of the Human-Zhirrzh war, Zahn takes on the ambitious task of narrating the events from the aliens point of view. This is one of those novels that should have a degree of difficulty factor figured into the review is this is not an easy thing to accomplish.

However Zahn does a superb job of pulling this off by clearing explaining the differences in culture but also interjecting just enough similarities between humans and the Zhirrzh to help the reader identify with this alien culture. The greates difference between the two is that the Zhirrzh have two states of being-the first as biological entities and then after their mortal bodies die they are able to exist as incoporeal beings known as Elders.

The Zhirrzh belive that their human opponents have devised a super-weapon that will not only destroy their coporeal bodies, but can extinguish their lives as Elders as well. The majority of this novel deals with the Zhirrzh's attempts to find out if the Humans do actually possess such a weapon and how they can possibly overcome a force that they have never encountered before in their existence.

By telling the narrative through the Zhirrzh's perspective, Timothy Zahn has given depth to this military-style space opera. This enables the reader to identify with both participants in this battle and sets the stage very well for what should be a rousing conclusion to this trilogy.

Amazingly written
Timothy Zahn has a knack for keeping you on your toes.Although this book is the second in a trillogy, it is distinctly different from the first in so many ways, and yet, it fits in with the story impeccably.I was very impressed.A must-read for all sci-fi fans.

The Zhurzh are awesome!
I read the first book, and I really enjoyed it, and I just wanted to getthe seconed one. When I realized that it was from the point of view of theZhurzh, I started to have doubts, but it turned out to be just as good asthe first. Vivid, and emotional, you find yourself feeling the way thecharacters do, hoping that things will turn out for them. This bookcompelled me to read the third.

A refreshing change
I first got into Timothy Zahn's work through his Star Wars Titles, which were good. However his work with the Conqueror's Trillogy is exceptional. His non Star Wars stuff is far superior. His approach to the concept of"First Contact" is refreshing and well worked. If you want toread a good story with very interesting twists, these are the books foryou.

Weakest of the series
There's a cliche that goes, 'a chain is only as strong as its weakest link.' Well, this is the weak link in the Conquerors' series.

Which is ironic since Conquerors' Heritage has the most intriguing idea of all threebooks: presenting the viewpoint of the alien invaders. Sounds interesting,doesn't it? But, alas, it simply isn't. Central to this problem is thatZahn promises a glimpse into an alien culture, but presents a world inwhich very little seems alien to us. The world of the Conquerors isessentially a quasi-human society with numerous ironic and tiresome twists.Example: the basic unit of time is the hunbeat, instead of the heartbeat(see how clever that is?). Yes, to Zahn's credit, there are indeed somepoints of interest. I did find the mystery of the fsss organ interesting(What is it? How's it work?), at least until Zahn turns it into an almostcomical commentary on euthanasia. Careful readers will catch this, finnickyreaders will be annoyed by it. Overall, Zahn gives the impression of beinga talented writer with nothing worthwhile to say.

It is also worth notingthat Zahn breaks a major rule of narrative structure and has it blow up inhis face. The problem in this series (as defined by book one) is theconflict between the humans and the Conquerors. This is what Conquerors'Pride started out with, and it is where we were left at the end. Zahn'smistake is that in this second book, the central problem of the series isbarely addressed. Instead, Zahn deals with the family squabbles ofcharacters who, in the first book, were relatively minor characters. Thissimply doesn't work. Zahn deviates from the main premise of his story sofar and for so long that readers are likely to tire of it rather quickly.Readers who claimed that Conquerors' Heritage was boring or lacked theintensity or interest of the other two books are most likely responding tothis problem.

Readers who have read the first book and are debatingreading the second should exercise caution. However, if you're like me,then once you start a series you're in for the long haul, and, yes, Zahndoes return to his original premise with Conquerors' Legacy and the storydoes improve somewhat. If you've still got the stomach for it, that is. ... Read more

Book Description
Hugo Award-winner and #1 New York  Times bestselling author Timothy Zahn returns to  complete his original, acclaimed SF trilogy. As  both humans and the alien Zhirrzh prepare for all-out  galactic war, a handful of individuals from both  sides are stunned to discover that the explosive  catalyst for the impending battle is a  misunderstanding both tragic and profound. Determined to avoid  mutual extinction for both their races, this band  now becomes the focus of the subtle and dangerous  force whose goal it is to annihilate and destroy. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (12)

Fast paced and exciting!
Once again, Timothy Zahn has created a masterpiece.In this final book in the Conquerors Saga, he manages to put all the pieces of the puzzle together in a dazzling display of fast-paced adventure.Where the first two books focused on the point of view of one of two cultures involved in the plot, this book brings everything together by involving several different points of view, cultures, and characters.The result is a fast-paced adventure that is sure to keep you on your toes up to the last page.

I'm Just Sorry It's Over
I really liked this book. I beat my mom to reading it luckily, and it wasreally great. The first one I really liked and same with the seconed, butthis might just be the best of the three. It includes all of the charactersfrom both books, so instead of just haaving one species P.O.V. on thestory, you get both, and everyone you want from both. I found the storyexciting, and partsof it funny, and I would recommend it to people,especially if they are sciencefiction lovers.

Okay SF, but not top shelf
The "Conqueror"-trilogy is okay, if you are really doped out by overwork or illness. Obviously the entire trilogy could be condensed into a single book at less than the length of one of its parts. That is not theway the world works. From a commercial point of view it pays more toproduce three separate books. I guess I cannot fault Zahn for going for thebig bucks: he did produce other work that is highly original! But don'tlook in this trilogy for imaginitive SF.

About the trilogy - I actually found myself THERE
I was surprised to read some negative reviews about one or more book of the trilogy: Conquerors' Pride, Heritage and Legacy. The first book is narrated from an almost exclusively human viewpoint. The second book showsthings from the alien viewpoint and Zahn uses it to develop on the alienculture, and you realize in the end that they have worries and interestsjust like us. In the third book humans and aliens finally make contact andso Zahn goes back and forth between aliens and humans. I think that Zahndid a very good job at developing the story in this way. It's tough towrite an entire book only on an alien species' viewpoint, and Zahn shouldbe given credit for this. I think he did such a good job because while Iwas reading I often built such a clear mental picture of the scenes that Ifelt as if I were there myself! (And sometimes wished I HAD been). When Ifinished the first book, I had to wait for months - and suffered terribly -before the second one came out, and so it went for the third. The bottomline is this: in the science fiction genre, if you like suspense,adventure, space battles, and if you like to read about aliens,"good" or "bad" as they may be, then you won't bedisappointed.

Intelligent Space Opera
Well, I titled this review that way, but that may not be entirely fair.I think Zahn writes very good science-fiction, in fact.But it is certainly not inventive new world stuff like some other authors.I think he createsinteresting worlds, but his talent lies in creating intelligent characterswho operate in intelligent settings.

Zahn's books feature a great deal ofpolitical science--or in other words, deal with the interaction of groupsof peoples or beings or whatever.That's why calling it any sort of spaceopera may not be fair.You can do a great deal of thinking while reading aZahn book.(And that may not be something most people do while readingyour average space opera.)

However, you will not do much thinking aboutthe sheer novelty of the world creation.In this series of books you willbe thinking about how both sides are the good guys in some senses, and theprocess of working out how they might avoid total race destruction isinteresting and enlightening.

I quite happily highly recommend a TimothyZahn book--even if it is not a Star Wars book.(He does write some of thebest of Star Wars fiction, if you somehow didn't already know that.) ... Read more

Amazon.com
How does Hugo-winner Timothy Zahn turn an otherwisestraightforward SF page-turner into something truly interesting? With one of the oldest shticks in the book: the good ol' black-hole-that-spits-out-quantum-particles-of-human-goodness trick.

Of course, that's not exactly an old sci-fi shtick, but the essence of it (and its effect) is: the ever-clever Zahn has taken a very cool idea--what if there were quantum particles (or whatever) that compelled people to act ethically--and then explored the impact that might have, in this case on a society and its internal and external interactions. The particles in question are called "angels," and theinterstellar alliance known as the Empyrean has been blessed with Angelmass, the eponymous black hole that emits them. The greedy, Earth-based Pax empire sees these angels as a brainwashing alien invasion and threatens to invade the Empyrean itself to set things straight. Thrown into the fray to explicate the implications are a bumbling but earnest Pax scientist-spy, a pretty young grifter, a brother-sister pair of grizzled space vets, and an Empyrean High Senator who fears the complacency that angels have bred into his society.

Fast, fun, and thought-provoking, Angelmass combines Star Wars-style action (which Zahn knows well) with enough substance to satisfy a more serious reading. --Paul Hughes Book Description
Angelmass, a black hole deep in space, emits "angels," small particles that render humans calm, reasonable, and virtually incapable of lying. The Empyrean,human colonies in the far reaches of the galaxy, has discovered the angels and the power they wield. All members of Empyrean government must carry an angel.The Earth-based Empire, the Pax, view the angels as an alien plot to subvert humanity. They dispatch Jereko Kosta, an innocent academic, to spy on the Empyrean and find out the truth about angels. With Chandris, a grifter who dogs his steps, he enlists on an "angel-hunting" ship. Close up, Kostas learns the angels may be more dangerous than the Pax fear. Before he can react, the Pax dispatches their most powerful warship to confront the Empyrean. Now, Kosta and Chandris, among the few who know the truth about the angels, stand between the Empyrean, the Pax, and war. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (17)

A(completewasteoftime)ngelmass
Honestly, complete rubbish. Paper thin characters and an even thinner plot. I picked this up in the library; had I paid for this I would be thoroughly pissed.

A Great Idea - that falls apart.
Zahn has some great ideas here, but unfortunately the entire story falls apart about 2/3 of the way through the book.

Zahn does some of his best characterization here - only Manta's Gift surpasses it. Several plot threads are introduced, one featuring an intellectual thrust into the role of a spy, another with a rogueish young thief on the run, and another with a politician who suspects something is amiss with the "angels" used in politics - small, harvested particles of "pure good."

Unfortunately, all these likable characters and the clever concept are completely wasted. Several prominent plot threads are virtually dismissed as irrelevant about 2/3 of the way through the book, when Zahn apparently realized he wasn't sure where he was going.The entire ending sequence resolves very few of the initial questions raised, and the answers that it does give are so far-fetched as to break almost all of the book's believability.It's quite a shame, because up until this very-rushed ending sequence, the book is quite enjoyable.

As A Casual Sci-Fi Reader RatesIt...
I was extremely impressed wit this work and loved every minute of it until the bittersweet ending. Not being a science buff or someone who could tell if Zahn's use of Science was accurate or impossible, I was thoroughly dazzled by the content of this book. Even if just for some of the scientific thought process, this book was wonderful in my mind. I always liked Zahns analysis of situations and the infinite flow of possibilities he can throw out. And here, scientific theories are popped out as easy as Pezz.

It is mostly a story about two people, one: an academic, scientist who is talked into being a Spy in enemy territory (a handful of systems known as the Empyrean) and to research Angels. These subatomic particles are the essence of Good, which bring about calm, reason and honesty in those who wear them (mainly officials in government, military leaders and such). He, along with his nation, the Pax, believe Angels are alien invaders or a plot thereof to remove human suspicion and allow for an easy takeover. He's being sent to find a way to save them, by learning as much as he can about the Angels himself.

Second: a 16 year old girl who is running. She's an underground con-artist and thief who is trying to get away from the obsessed and insane person who taught her the tricks of the trade. She ends up encountering an Angel while trying to make a supposedly profitable "score" and ends up trying to fight against herself with either letting the Angel reform her or running from the Angel. She's also at conflict with herself over what she really wants and needs in her life.

There's also characters battling their own moral problems, a senator who's innocent and seemingly noble action starts to flower into a mess he cannot control, a general at war with politics and a pair of Angel hunters who just seem to smile at every problem over a hot cup of tea. They are all thrown into a pot and shaken around with the threat of an invasion and an enemy that comes from the least expected place.

It is a wonderful story that I'm still in love with, but I'm also easy to please. Zahn's book Heir to the Empire was the first book I read as a child that was not assigned to me as homework. I've been a fan every since.

This book has this type of basic plot line to it. Someone thrown into a place, isn't all that prepared for it, is actually there for a reason he doesn't quite know and has to figure it out for himself and then save the place where he was thrown into. If you have read Manta's Gift by Zahn you'll also note this is a very similar plot line... and the two books were written back to back (variety?). Manta's Gift features a person who basically lost their life in an accident and was talked into being "born" again as an alien, the Qanska. He's actually there for a reason he doesn't know yet and must face a threat against his new "people". Same basic idea.

Though Angelmass plays this out on a pretty large scale and has the issue of What is Good and Evil? As these Angels supposedly are the stuff Good is made of... it talks about that. Manta's Gift has the issue of What is Humanity? As a human is born again as an alien and becomes one of them, what does it mean to be human? Both stories also have a very annoying villain character, the Adjutor Telthorst and Liadof of the Five Hundred, they have someone aligned with the annoying villain but definitely not on the same thought pattern, Faraday and Lleshi, and a leader type character on the other end who's trust must be earned, Forsythe and Latranesto (though they differ highly in personality).

Still I loved this book even though I read itafter reading Manta's Gift and kept going "Wow this is a lot like Manta's Gift." I really liked the personalities and the way that the characters thought, because half the time they were trying to fool themselves more than fool everyone else and you knew it throughout the entire thing. I recommend it to anyone who is like me, a casual sci-fi fan, star wars fan, gamer and hopeless romantic that just eats of any hint of affection between main characters.

"It is a Serious Sci-Fi novel sneakily posing as a Golden Age thrill ride." -Locus

Good Character Development
Excellent development of the main characters.I cared about them enough to be concerned for them--I didn't want to see them get hurt, etc.In fact, I really liked them.So the minor tactical twists in the plot that put the characters in tough situations kept me interested--chase scenes, and the like.But the overall plot was just O.K. Characters: 5 stars, Overall plot: 3 stars. Chandris is a bit like Skywalker's wife, no?

In my opinion, this book is much better than Icarus Hunt, but not quite as entertaining as his Star Wars novels.

Interesting
Angelmass was not really at all what I was expecting. It was very interesting and forced me to ask specific questions about the character's actions. For a very long part of the book very little action happened - I happen to like it when an author writes non-action sequences and still makes them entertaining (which Zahn certainly did).

It's an excellent book. ... Read more

Book Description

Customer Reviews (6)

Another Winner
In this the fifth book of the series, Zahn does something that he's very good at. He separates his characters and has his two stories running parallel. While Jack and Draycos are finding out what really happened to Jack's late parents, Alison and her symbiant find themselves back on the slave planet of Dragon and Slave: The Third Dragonback Adventure (Dragonback). Alison has been captured by The Malison Ring in order to help them obtain the information of where Draycos's people will arrive. Once again, the relationship between Draycos and Jack takes a new and unexpected turn. A must read.

Fast moving and fun -- engaging if fluffy space adventure
I've been reading Timothy Zahn's "Dragonback Adventures" series with a fair amount of enjoyment through the five books so far. It's a YA series. The hero is Jack Morgan, who has acquired a symbiotic companion, Draycos, a dragonlike being of an alien species, the K'Da. The K'Da can turn two-dimensional on the skin of an appropriate host. Indeed, they need to do so at least every six hours or so. Draycos was one of a vanguard group of K'Da as well as their hosts, the Shontine, who were fleeing an evil enemy in another galaxy. They had arranged for a colony in our Galaxy, but were ambushed on arrival. Draycos was the only survivor, and luckily for him Jack turned up -- luckier still, humans are acceptable hosts.

Over several books Jack and Draycos have been trying to track the humans who seem to be helping the bad aliens arrange to destroy the rest of the K'Da. They have by the by acquired an ally of sorts, Alison Kayna, a girl Jack's age (14 or 15) with a similar skillset to Jack's -- thief, hacker, safecracker, etc. And in the previous book they discovered a planet inhabited by a species much like the K'Da, but doomed to mindlessness by the lack of suitably intelligent hosts. Alison is now host to a female named Taneem. (So it would seem -- possibly -- that love interests are in place for both Jack and Draycos, though no real moves in that direction have been taken.)

In this book the quartet head to a planet where Jack's Uncle Virge had stashed something mysterious in a safe-deposit box. No sooner does Jack arrive, however, that he is shanghaied by a group of aliens and taken to their rural home to act as "Jupa", or Judge-Paladin -- to adjudicate tribal disputes, basically. It turns out he smells like their previous Jupas -- who turn out to have been Jack's long-dead parents. Jack cooperates, while he and Draycos sense a mystery concerning an abandoned mine -- and possibly concerning Jack's parents' death.

Meanwhile Alison retrieves the contents of the safe-deposit box, and is immediately kidnapped by bad guys who have been expecting someone to take an interest in that box. Rather implausibly, what they really want is a super-skilled safecracker, to open a safe from Draycos's ship -- that may contain information about the arrival of the rest of the K'Da. In other words, these are the bad guys. Why a 14 year old girl is the best safecracker available to them is a mystery never revealed. It turns out the safe is back on the planet from a couple of books before where Jack freed some slaves -- and Alison finds herself, against her will, guilted into trying to free more slaves.

The book (as with all in the series) has great gulps of implausibility and downright silliness. But it is also fast-moving, fun, with engaging main characters. I find the whole series pretty enjoyable fluff.

Good serving of Mind Candy
A great story for the young and the young at heart. Our story now includes Jack and his probable girl friend, both of whom have dragons hitching a ride on their skins.Jack finds out a lot more about his parents, what their probable fate was, and that they were probably as opposite Uncle Virge as two people could possibly get.In the process he has lots of adventures, takes plenty of opportunity to mete out justice and grow one more step in to that Responsible Man that seems to be Zahn's ideal.If you don't expect to be wowed by depth and complexity then you will not be disappointed by this story.It's well worth the read, but do not expect greatness.

Fun Book
Zahn is a wonderful writer who has immersed his characters into a new sci-fi setting. This story is a great whodunit and and is well written. The story keeps your attention and skillfully has the characters grow before your eyes.

I would compare this book to ones as written by J.K. Rowling. Zahn has a way of making even adults love the characters. In the world of Jack and Draycos, you will be thoroughly entertained throughout the experiences of these two key characters.

superior outer space action thriller
By the time he was three years old Jack Morgan was an orphan.His con artist Uncle Virgil raised him in a strange manner as befits the man's occupation of swindling people all over space.

Jack knew no other lifestyle until he saves the life of Draycos, a symbiont dragon looking species.They become friends and set off on learning who destroyed Draycos' K'da/Shontine people with the skill of Draycos leaping onto Jack's back and turning into what looks like a tattoo when necessary.As they find clues, aliens abduct Jack to serve as a judge even as a plot rises to set him up for arrest.At the same time his friend Alison Kayna and her newly acquired symbiont are kidnapped by those willing to torture her to obtain information so that they can annihilate the K'da/Shontine fleet.Jack and Draycos must save the day or at least Alison and her symbiont must, but their chances for success seem almost impossible.

Although the Dragonback series targets teens, readers of all ages will appreciate the well written saga (see DRAGON AND SOLDIER).DRAGON AND JUDGE is a terrific tale that plays out on two levels, the ethnic cleansing of a species and the attempts to criminalize Jack with a clever frame.As with the previous four novels, this book can stand alone as a superior outer space action thriller.

Harriet Klausner
... Read more

Book Description
Never before has the incendiary mix of action, politics, and intrigue that has become Timothy Zahn’s trademark, been mmore evident that in this new Star Wars epic. On the heels of the stunning events chronicled in Star Wars: A New Hope, the newly minted heroes of the Rebellion–fledgling Jedi Luke Skywalker, smuggler turned reluctant freedom-fighter Han Solo, and Princess Leia Organa, a bold leader with a world to avenge–must face the harsh realities of the cataclysmic conflict into which they have so bravely plunged. From this point forward, legends will grow, treachery will abound, and lives will be irrevocably altered, in the long, hard fight to counter the fist of tyranny and restore hope to a galaxy too long in darkness.

The destruction of the Death Star by the Rebel Alliance was a decisive blow against the Empire, but Palpatine and his monstrous enforcer, Darth Vader, are no less of a threat. The brutal extermination of Alderaan not only demonstrated the magnitude of their murderous power, but served as a chilling testament to their resolve to crush the Rebel uprising. Standing against them, Skywalker, Solo, and the Princess remain uncertain opponents. Luke is gifted and brave, but unschooled in the power he possesses. Han has doubts about waging someone else’s war–and his contentiousness is one more burden for Leia to bear as she struggles to help keep the Rebellion alive. The three have been sent to mediate a dispute between Rebel Alliance factions in Shelsha Sector–agitating matters by forcing Han to deal not only with pirates, but with his more dreaded enemy, politics. At the same time, Mara Jade–all of eighteen and years away from her fateful meeting with Luke–is serving her evil master, Palpatine, well in her role as the Emperor’s Hand: tracking suspected treachery in the Empire to what may be high places–while trying to stay out of Darth Vader’s way.

But the Rebels will prove to be only one of the Empire’s concerns. For Imperial Stormtrooper Daric LaRone, his faith in the Empire shaken by the wanton destruction of Alderaan, will commit a sudden and violent act of defiance, and take four other enforcers with him, in a desperate bid to elude their masters’ wrath.

Each of these fateful actions, whether sanctioned, secret, or scandalous, will expose brutality and corruption, spur upheavals destined to shake the Empire to its core, and shape momentous events yet to come.


From the Hardcover edition. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (56)

4 stars
In the days shortly following the Battle of Yavin, Han Solo finds himself being sent on yet another mission for those crazy Rebels that he just cannot seem to get away from. While he, Luke, and Chewie go in one direction, Leia Organa has her own assignment from Mon Mothma. Meanwhile, Mara Jade is far more at ease with her force skills, albeit on the Dark side, than Luke Skywalker is with his Light ones. Her assignment as the Emperor's Hand takes her to the same planet the Falcon's crew is headed for. The real stars of this adventure are a bunch of AWOL stormtroppers who want to do the right thing and don't feel like they can uphold their oath to protect the citizens of the Empire as official servants of it. Having turned renegade, they will prove to be great allies for Luke and Han as they try to successfully complete their mission and get Leia to safety when she runs into the inevitable trouble.

**** Though until now, I had somewhat given up on the Expanded Universe novels as they did not retain the same emotions that the original trilogy inspired me with, at least, they did not for me, this book brings back that old "YES!" feeling. Having Luke, Leia, and Han back to being the people I fell in love with as a little girl made the prose sing for me. The plot was fun and fast paced, but didn't skimp on the characterization. If you've gotten bogged down trying to keep track of who is who, what the Vong or what have you are, and you have turned to fanzines in hopes of recapturing the magic of Star Wars, then add this book to your keeper shelf. It's got all the right stuff. ****

Amanda Killgore for Huntress Reviews

One of My Favorite Books
This book was awesome, I loved the storyline and the overall flow of it.I enjoyed watching what happened to LaRone and his fellow Stormtroopers.And there were just so many thing I did not expect, twist and turns but I never really got confused. One point I lost track but it was shorter than a page. The second Star Wars book Ive read, I dont really remember the other, but Im deffinitly buying more. I would recomend this to Every star wars fan...

It is about time !!!
It is about time !!! And a nice way to put in the emergence of the Rebel alliance, the progression of some of the heroes (Luke, Leia, Han,...) and a bunch of newcomers. And it puts everything in a more plausible and logic perspective.

Ambiguity run amok!
The action doesn't stop in the Expanded Universe--not after "Return of The Jedi," and not even between the films. Thus we have Zahn's "Allegiance," an examination of at least three disparate groups within the galaxy and where they stand on the pervasive and perceived tyranny of Palpatine's Empire (especially in a galaxy recently bereft of Alderaan).

Of course, our Rebel and Imperial familiars are still running across the galaxy pursuing their own ends, mutually exclusive of each other--all the while operating under their own loyalties and allegiances. There are, however, other, more intricate plots at work, and it may take a scrupulous eye to discern all of them. Thanks be that Zahn's style seems crisper here--easier to follow, lacking some of the more complex elements of the Thrawn trilogy and thus hearkening back to a simpler time in the Empire when men were men and a single one of them (not a bunch of squabbling warlords) ran the show.

There is, first, Mara Jade. At this point in her life she's still utterly in thrall to the Emperor and the Empire; certainly she questions his motives and "ability to see Rebellion where there is none" to a very limited extent, but by and large Zahn gives us a Mara Jade sans the sardonic disposition of the later Thrawn Trilogy; if she doesn't crack wise per se in the middle of a battle, she nonetheless takes control of the many situations of which she's in the middle--and comes out on top (if a little worse for the wear). Her loyalty here is to perceived good men--and though she may look at Palpatine askance once in a blue moon, Zahn presents Mara as someone who nonetheless believes in Palpatine's goals; Palpatine in return seems to grant her more latitude in doubting his orders than he would with even Vader (though that's another story).

Then there are our cover characters, the Hand of Judgement: rogue stormtroopers stationed aboard the ISD "Reprisal," who suddenly desert when their de facto leader, Daric LaRone, kills an Imperial Security Bureau officer in self defence. From their desertion, they amble about Selsha sector, doing random acts of kindness (such as can be done when one's wearing the gleamy white of Imperial Stormtroopers) and inadvertently crossing paths with Rebellion peacemakers in the area. LaRone gives the reader an important look at the concept of a Stormtrooper gone rogue--and it is something worth examining. The trend lately has been to personify Stormtroopers as the Empire's (and Vader's) faceless enforcers who rush headlong into any situation with little thought in their head except Imperial Loyalty. Zahn, however, goes ever further and shows us that these faceless enforcers have names, and lives, and values, and sometimes they don't always mesh with Palpatine's designs on the New Order. In LaRone, one of Zahn's one-off characters who hopefully gets further treatment, we see the Empire at war with itself, personified in this highly decorated and dutiful trooper. Torn between personal convictions (though Zahn thankfully stays away from protracted internal monologues when discussing LaRone's loyalties) and military convictions--Door 1 or Door 2, as it were. LaRone instead cannibalizes his options. He breaks free of institutionalized Imperial Doctrine, and in the process becomes an exercise in contradictions.

After all, how can a Stormtrooper--one of the Empire's finest--suddenly and simply desert? How can he cast off the gorier parts of the New Order and instead adhere to straight-up service to the people? By doing what made LaRone great in the first place: straight-up soldiering without the politics (though those come in later, too).

Zahn shows us, without being preachy, that Stormtroopers don't always hold with Company Policy, and that's not really a bad thing. After all, as old Obi-Wan's ghost instructs Luke, "not all strangers are enemies"--and neither are all Stormtroopers. Our heroes get a lesson in relativism, and while that doesn't necessarily jive with Lucas' idea of a stark good-and-evil universe, Zahn packages it in such a way that the reader is entertained nonetheless. Happy Reading!

Decent read, not Zahn's best
I enjoyed reading this book. Compared to other Star Wars novels, it is at least worthwhile. However, it is far below Zahn's usual quality- the book seems short and extremely lacking in terms of detail on a number of levels. Zahn's characters are poorly developed and environmental details are often particularly weak, especially compared to the books by other active Star Wars authors like Traviss' Republic Commando series.

If you are a big SW fan, you'll probably enjoy it. It's certainly not a bad story and has an interesting theme. However, don't be disappointed when it fails to meet Zahn's typical quality. ... Read more

Book Description
It's five years after Return of the Jedi: the Rebel Alliance has destroyed the Death Star, defeated Darth Vader and the Emperor, and driven out the remnants of the old Imperial Starfleet to a distant corner of the galaxy. Princess Leia and Han Solo are married and expecting Jedi Twins. And Luke Skywalker has become the first in a long-awaited line of Jedi Knights. But thousand of light-years away, the last of the emperor's warlords has taken command of the shattered Imperial Fleet, readied it for war, and pointed it at the fragile heart of the new Republic. For this dark warrior has made two vital discoveries that could destroy everything the courageous men and women of the Rebel Alliance fought so hard to build. The explosive confrontation that results is a towering epic of action, invention, mystery, and spectacle on a galactic scale--in short, a story worthy of the name Star Wars. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (373)

Doesn't deserve to be called a Star Wars story
The good: some characters are well developed and treated that they come alive such as Han Solo and Lando.

The bad: The story seems to go nowhere, first chapters are really boring. I think Zahn fails to set the apropriated tension since the beginning.

The Ugly: How did Zahn dared to write a Star Wars story that doesn't features a dramatic ending with a light saber duel???!!! (sorry if I spoiled but I had to say this) This is not a complete story, it leaves you in the middle of something (nowhere in particular), it doesn't work as a unit like ep V which despite it is to be continued, it has a clear climax.

I'm very disapointed by this novel.

Excellent
Excellent book continuing the star wars story. The first few chapters are spent getting you back up to speed with previous and new characters, but once through them, it's hard to put the book down. If you enjoyed the battle with Sidious and Vader, Thrawn is a character that will appeal to your liking. A book to read after this before volume two in the series, would be Outbound Flight to further get an idea out Thrawn and who he truly is. An excellent book and a must read!

Star Wars Revisited
Heir to the Empire, the first in a series by Timothy Zahn, takes place about five years after the events portrayed in the movie Return of the Jedi. Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, and Princess Leia are all together again. Han and Leia are married expecting twins, and Luke has begun training Leia as a Jedi while secretly harboring misgivings and constantly questioning if his actions are appropriate for a Jedi. The New Republic is on shaky political ground. Admiral Ackbar's position of leadership is threatened. Leia, to her own risk, is pressured into continuing to act as an ambassador for the New Republic, while Han Solo tries to persuade smugglers to turn legitimate and work for the New Republic. Unfortunately, the Empire is not dead. A New Grand Admiral has emerged on the scene intent on the capture of Luke Skywalker, and he isn't the only one.

Initially, I had trouble getting into this novel, but I found my interest accelerated after watching the movies of original three episodes again. The characters I love, Han, Luke, and Leia, are back together again, and Han Solo is just as sarcastically funny as he ever was. I recommend this book to Star Wars fans looking to both revisit the old magic of Star Wars and experience it anew. May the Force be with you.

The New Empire
In the first book of the "Thrawn Trilogy", Grand Admiral Thrawn takes the reigns of the Empire.One of the most compelling aspects of the plots of the Star Wars series is the villains.Without Emperor Palpatine or Darth Vader, the movie plots may not have been as successful.As the main of the "Thrawn Trilogy", Thrawn is portrayed as a tactical genius.In comparison to other villains in the Star Wars galaxy, he does seem a tad dull.

Among the highlights of this book is the conflicts with the "gray aliens" and unlikely alliance with smuggler Talon Karrde on Myrkr.The resolution with the aliens may be surprising to some.Karrde brings a past foe to Luke's present that puts a different spin on the fall of the old Empire.I am intrigued to see this relationship to develop in other parts of the series.Vaguely introduced in this book is Jorus C'baoth, who is likely the clone of a deceased Jedi.Since he is almost a minor character in this book, I suspect he will play a more prominent role in the other books.

I was very close to giving this book five stars.The slower moments with Thrawn prevented me from doing so.The main villain in this series needs to get the readers attention.In this book, I never felt the same threat as other villains because he seems little more than a "military geek".Still, I am excited to read the other books in the series.

Heir To A Good Read
I started reading this book about three years ago and within a month released I was just not in to it so I put it down and returned it to the library, disenchanted. I picked it up again recently and decided to give it another go. I don't know if it is because I am now more in to Star Wars then I was three years ago or what but this time I was totally entralled. THIS IS A VERY GOOD READ.

The story line is well written. I like how the author kept very true to the characters we know from Episodes iv - vi and the way they are woven in to a very good story with the exciting new character of the Grand Admiral. Speaking of which, Grand Admiral Thrawn - Timothy Zahn, a connection perhaps?

This is definitely a recommended read. Many reviewers consider this trilogy to be one of the better ones and I can see why. I give it only 4 stars because of the fact it didn't get me first time around but once it did it stuck. If you are a fan of Star Wars you will be a fan of this book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Amazing Trilogy
This thing is hard to write a short review on since it is actually three books in one. It is about a family, beginning with Jonny Moreau, who for three generations were implanted with high tech weaponry to make them super soldiers. But as has been typical of Timothy Zahn throughout his career these stories are about far more than that. It deals quite a lot with how a society deals having such high tech warriors in their midst. A factor that leads Jonny Moureau into politics, and his oldest son Corwin, who is not a Cobra, follows in his footsteps. Being a Cobra and a politician can put a strain on family life. But it's hard to tell at times which is the bigger problem. The original story Cobra is written as a group of short stories because two of the "chapters" were originally published as short stories. I'm not sure which ones. This is well worth the read for any Timothy Zahn fan.

A great edition of a great trilogy
Like many readers, my first experience with Timothy Zahn was with his STAR WARS books.They were all outstanding, and they prompted me to read his other books.My first stop was COBRA.

In a nutshell, this one-volume edition of the COBRA TRILOGY is a gem, collecting three hard-to-find books in one nice hardcover.

COBRA is military-SF about a group of elite warriors in the 25th century, spanning across multiple planets.It is NOT loaded with unnecessary techno-jargon nor Clancy-esque hardware descriptions.Instead, you get Zahn's superb plotting, smart characters, and excellent writing.

The production values of this book are good, too.The font size is above-average and is a pleasure to read.On the down side, a handful of typos were found throughout, but not enough to detract from the overall experience by any means.

This book will provide you with many hours of consistently enjoyable sci-fi reading by master author Zahn.

NOTE: I was originally confused about the book COBRAS TWO.But I learned it is only an "omnibus" containing the first two COBRA novels.So there's no need to worry about that.You get the complete series in this one-volume TRILOGY edition.

Enjoyable premise - Worth reading.
The Cobra trilogy was enjoyable but not worth raving about. I'd recommend it to voracious Sci-fi readers, but not many others. For someone who hasn't read much science fiction, this would be a great one to start with. There is enough science to make it seem plausible and yet not stifle or drown the stories for a new reader.

The ideas and science applications are not totally new, but the stories, characters and settings make up for the lack of originality in the science.

Also, Timothy Zahn has created a continuity with the characters and their family that really made the entire volume seems real and personal.

There are many things that could be picked apart, but wouldn't do much good at this point. I liked it a lot, and for most Sci-fi fans, especially military Sci-fi fans, they will love it as well. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Fascinating treatise on the value of life wrapped in wonderful space opera!
"Deadman Switch" is an immensely though-provoking book told in Zahn's typical style - which means the story flows beautifully, the characters are fleshed out nicely, the scenes are vivid and it all wraps together while becoming increasingly suspenseful.

Mining companies and researchers had been trying to reach Solitaire for years in order to harvest the heavy metal from the rings around its moons.However, there was a cloud of sorts surrounding the area that rendered their Mjollnir (hyperspace) drive inactive, thus keeping them out.Finally a research ship managed to get in - not realizing until later that it was entirely by accident, because the man at the helm had died of a heart attack just as they entered the cloud.Once they figured that out, the difficult part came when it was time to leave . . .

Now whenever a ship goes to Solitaire, they take two death row prisoners - one for entry, and one for exit.

The moment of crisis comes when a new company takes over trade on Solitaire and the owner decides to send his Watcher - a member of a religious sect who train their members from youth to be ultra-aware of their surroundings, thus giving them an almost uncanny ability to sense the thoughts and emotions flickering across another person's face and behind his or her eyes.Watchers hold all life as valuable and believe that using them to gain entry to Solitaire is akin to human sacrifice.After being forced to watch the first prisoner killed, he is taunted by a crewmember and told he should go and check on the other prisoner.

She, of course, insists she is innocent.To his surprise, he believes she is telling the truth.

What follows in the book are his various attempts to save her life.Of course, nothing ever stays that simple and he ends up having to try to save the lives of most of the inhabitants of the system.But let's not spoil the surprise, shall we?

This book is not especially easy to find, but it is well worth the search.Hopefully he will re-release it.This seems to be a fad as of late.

Saga In a Science Fiction Setting
Deadman Switch is a moral composition, dealing with non-violence, integrity and the value of life.All of these themes are played out in a galactic empire with all the problems of a modern government.The science fiction setting includes elements that are more in tune with meta-physics than hard physics.However, the story and its characters draw the reader into their world and their difficulties.I would compare it in style, and timelessness to the Odyssey, if not in scope and grandeur.An enjoyable read.

Alien enough
A bit creepy, but full of interesting ideas. In this sense comparable to "Warhorse", but the story line is a bit weaker here. Still well worth reading to those interested in unusual sci fi. Complete with twoalien species, not counting the Watchers.

15 men on a dead Man's chest...
This one was pretty nifty.Interesting that there's a religious order capable of seeing the truth of things just because they better understand the will of god.Sounds vaguely familiar...

Zahn keeps you on your toes
Reading one of Timothy Zahn's books is always a pleasure. He has the abillity to put you in every scene in 3-D and full color. What makes this more amazing is he achieves this without bogging the reader down with laborious and tedious descriptions. He manages to keep the story flowing well and keep you fully aware of your surroundings. This book is also agood example ofhow he is able to keep readers on their toes. Everytime that you think you have it figured out and you know what the story is about he throws in a new element that keeps you wondering where it is going next. He keeps this up to the very end. In fact it seems the closer thisbook gets to the end the more he throws at you.I can just about gaurantee that you won't be disappointed by figuring it all out before the end. ... Read more

Book Description
Mara Jade is beautiful, intelligent--and deadly! She is the personal assassin of the Empire`s dark overlord. But after the Emperor`s death, an unforeseen variable is about to enter the scene of her final mission, the assassination of the leader of the Black Nebula crime organization. Though her master is dead, Jade must complete her final mission...even if it costs her life! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (29)

Typical darkhorse
Go read the novel instead. The art will be better if you imagine it instead. As usual darkhorse has a bad track record when it comes to artists. As soon as i opened it, i knew i was in trouble. Why cant they get someone like Jim Lee?

Mara Jade
Good stuff.It felt a little scattered, but getting so much story into a comic format can be difficult.The drawings were wonderful, and the characters portrayed really well.I would suggest it to anyone looking to figure out Mara's role in the Star Wars universe.

Highly suggested, just wish it had been longer.

Zahn should be writing more TPB's after this...
This was an excellent graphic novel by Timothy Zahn and Michael Stackpole. A great story about the Emperor's Hand, it begins right before the Second Death Star is destroyed and continues for weeks after it. Also, this TPB has about a five-page beginning that's not included in the comic version. By The Emperor's Hand shows more of the characters from other Star Wars novels, such as Ysanne Isard. It would have been nice, also, to see how and when Mara Jade meets up with Talon Karrde, but that's revealed in Star Wars: Tales from the Empire. Great art, dialogue, etc. A sequel would have been nice, but you can't have everything :)

A rare comic that's a must purchase
Mara Jade: By the Emperor's Hand is one of those rare comics that has great art, smooth storyline, commendable dialogue and genuine depth. Co-authored by Stackpole and Zahn, two of Star Wars' more popular novelists known for quality output. The result here is another of their hits you expect when collaborative craniums work well.

The quality of art shines bright, considering the comic dates back to a period where quality and art are not what they are now. You can just tell efforts were made to add extra ice to this cream, the way the front credits were specially done. Characters and climates, scenery and locale, were all highly rendered and coloured well. This is definitely one of your more 3D-ish comics, and worth the purchase if just for that.

Dialogue is what you'd expect from usual Stackpole and Zahn efficiency: quick, creative and inventive. Mara's persona here, in her Imperial days, lends her a cool competence matched only by her slick lines. The support cast isn't left out, and while I haven't quite worked out who oversaw what issues, the authors are at their vintage best here.

What makes this comic stand out from the mediocre variety out there is its creativity and effort to give just a little more for readers. The sheer range of aliens is both amazing and appreciated, both the familiar denizens and all new ones just for a show here and there. Alien species ranged from the typical to exotic to comical. Mara's is never without a way of working, and the inventive methods of working past obstacles speak highly of the writers' imagination behind her.

The storyline itself is simple and enough: eliminate Black Nebula's crimelord, who fancies himself the heir of the recently toppled Black Sun criminal network. Having failed to kill Skywalker at Jabba's palace, this she does easily. Too easily; and when her Emperor master bites the dust, she resolves to finish the job.

Nice use of Isard and Pestage, and why Mara earns her wrath. Good to see a dark-skinned man, that Imperial tech. It's rather rare to get that in comics, when humans are predominantly fair skinned. Humour, of course, wasn't lacking. The bartender alien looked like that Dexter from AOTC, his voice easily imagined.

There were some faults to note, small but noticeable as they were. The facial likeness of Strok was given to other Imperial army officers, which can confuse readers at the end. The end page itself just sorted of finished . . . perhaps a bit too abruptly and not slow enough. Mara doesn't complete her mission till almost the last page.

Further more, she does an astonishing amount to self-thinking. Thought-bubbles were everywhere, which you will find common in books but sort of gave the bemused impression the lady sure speaks a lot to herself! Almost every panel had text in which, factored into the full 144 pages, slows down reading and makes for a long comic here.

While I had problems with Jabba "just" giving Mara a speeder to get away from him when she arouses his suspicions, overall, omitting this nifty slight of work is outright criminal, and with such high standards of excellence it's well worth your $$.

YOU WILL MARRY LUKE SKYWALKER!!!
This is a review of Mara Jade ' By the Emperors Hand a comic TPB which collects 6 issues.ISBN 1569714010 published Sept 1999 and made in Canada.

Before the Emperor died he planted the thought in Mara:YOU WILL KILL LUKE SKYWALKER!!Now they marry.

This is a beautifully done comic given the technology available at the time, 1999.Visually the artwork took the time to draw the panels at a higher quality level than was usually done in the late 90's.Artwork gets 4 stars.

Inking and lay out is a step up from, but still has the newspaper comic strip appearance.The inking and color selections are subdued so I grade at 3.5 because it lacks the richness that Dark horse is capable of, but not displayed in this comic.

Story but Zahn and Stackpole oh my'Story is worth any quibbling about art and ink, though this is a comic as in a visual story.The story is 4.5 and pulls the overall grade up to 4 stars.

This is written almost as a companion to Zahn trilogy that revived the EU.We also see Mara in Jabba's fortress.The cover shows Mara with a Red light saber, but she wields a purple one throughout the book.Old Red eye ' blue eye Isard is in this story.

JediMack!Only 4 stars?This is arguably the best comic produced in its timeframe given the technology that existed in 1999.The binding is superior, which is good because this book has been re-read and seen some abuse and was made well enough to take it.I must reserve 5 star ratings for the best of the best, and in future years dark horse starts producing comic that are jaw dropping gorgeous with rich coloring and awesome penciling. ... Read more

Book Description
The embattled Republic reels from the attacks of Grand Admiral Thrawn, who has marshaled the remnants of the Imperial forces and driven the Rebels back with an abominable technology recovered from the Emperor's secret fortress: clone soldiers. As Thrawn mounts his final siege, Han and Chewbacca struggle to form a coalition of smugglers for a last-ditch attack against the empire, while Leia holds the Alliance together and prepares for the birth of her Jedi twins. Overwhelmed by the ships and clones at Thrawn's command, the Republic has one last hope--sending a small force, led by Luke Skywalker, into the very stronghold that houses Thrawn's terrible cloning machines. There a final danger awaits, as the Dark Jedi C'baoth directs the battle against the Rebels and builds his strength to finish what he had already started: the destruction of Luke Skywalker. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (148)

Not Free SF Reader
"Just when the Republic thought that the insidious and unfortunately
very clever Thrawn could sink no lower, he does. In other words, send
in the clones!

This gives him the manpower (clonepower?) he needs to crew enough
ships to blow the guts out of lots of the Republic forces and
fortresses.

Han and Chewie must gain aid from a smuggler fleet, to try and stop Thrawn. Luke contends with the evil Jedi Master C'Boath.

Leia, very heavily pregnant, desperately tries to hold things together politically.

Mara Jade usurps Luke Skywalker (minor spoiler)
As post-Return of the Jedi novels about Luke, Han and Leia go, Timothy Zahn's breakthrough Thrawn Trilogy is the best.The author captures the epic spirit of Star Wars space opera overall, but the ultimate hero of climax of this book is NOT Luke or Han or Leia.As long as you're ok with that then you'll probably enjoy this book a lot.I would have given this book 4-stars if not for the let-down ending.

As for the best novels from the era of the movie saga, I recommend all of the following 5-star novels:

Cloak of Deception (Star Wars)
Shadow Hunter (Star Wars: Darth Maul)
Labyrinth of Evil (Star Wars, Episode III Prequel Novel)
Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader (Star Wars)
Shadows of the Empire (Star Wars)

The Best Way to Experience This Book
I want to highly recommend you get the audio versions of this trilogy which is amazing.As great as the books are (and if you've read them you know they are probably the most worthy of the title "Star Wars" of any book written in the entire star wars universe), now imagine hearing them dramatically performed complete with (and this is the best part) John Williams original soundtrack set to the events of these books.If you've read the books, try this out, you will enjoy it.If you've heard the book, go back and read it because the audio version is abridged.Hope you enjoy it.I know I did.

The Last Command Book Review
The Last Command is the ending book to a Star Wars trilogy. It is set a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, and is a science-fiction book. It is about how the Empire, under Grand Admiral Thrawn, starts taking back lost territory at a furious rate and what Luke, Leia, Han Solo, and the New Republic do to stop it. I recommend it for ages eleven through fifteen. You also might want to read Heir to the Empire and Dark Force Rising, the two prequels.
I think the audience for this book is ages eleven through fifteen, especially those already acquainted with Star Wars. For example, the book mentions characters portrayed in the movies, and you need to know at least a little of their background, which is mentioned in the movies. The author does not use hugely advanced words, but words like sputter and glide, which are pretty easy to understand.
The book contains plenty of information but pieces it together just right, making it easy and informative reading. The novel is only around three-hundred to four-hundred pages long, but you learn a lot.
The Last Command is written in an easy to understand way. The writing flows quickly, and it is a real cliff-hanger. I read it in around four days.
Youngs will enjoy this book because of the relatively easy vocabulary, speedy reading, and the dramatic writing. I highly recommend it.

Sprint to the End.
Remember Star Wars?Not that joke of a series that came out with the most recent three movies, but instead that sometimes hokey, sometimes brilliant, always engrossing space opera from the seventies.Luke Skywalker, hero for millions of boys, Han Solo, dreamed of by girls everywhere, and Darth Vader, feared by all.That's the series that changed science fiction.Timothy Zahn loved those movies as much as I did.Timothy Zahn stayed true to that vision where George Lucas didn't.The Last Command (Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy, Vol. 3) is the conclusion of the best Star Wars story since we first met Luke and Han Solo.

As should be, the book is action from beginning to end, but that action is varied and tense.From light saber duels to Horatio Hornblower sea battles in space to political intrigue and obsessed vindettas.

The new characters feel like they were just off camera when Lucas filmed the original movies.Mara Jade has dreams of fighting Luke.She's an enforcer for a brilliant smuggler, Talon Kardde.Talon is a political animal, playing alliances and allegiances like chess moves while remaining likable and understandable.

The greatest addition of all is our true villain, Grand Admiral Thrawn.The reader understands that it's a good thing that Thrawn wasn't around for the rebel victories over the Emperor because the result would have been different.He's a mastermind, both strategically and tactically, and can only be defeated by underhanded means or overwhelming force.

To complicate matters, Thrawn's ally, the insane Joruus C'baoth, is a dark Jedi master trying to turn Luke to the dark side and to possess Leia's children, raising them as the seed to a newJedi army.

The action doesn't stop and the ending is fantastic.Pick it up, enjoy it, and remember those good old days.

- CV Rick
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