Star Wars: Heir to the Empire: (20th Anniversary Edition), The Thrawn Trilogy, Book 1

My son aged 18 read this. We hated star wars episode 7to9 and these books just make much more sense in terms of star wars Canon. He can't put them down. We've ordered book 2 and 3 already.

I was never really a huge fan of Star Wars, but a friend of mine recommended this as a great book only needing rudimentary knowledge of the SW universe, and as a sci-fi fan looking for an easy read, I thought I'd give it a go. It surpassed all my expectations. Well-written, with a gripping, cinematic story and likeable and intriguing characters. Would recommend to anyone with a passing interest in SW and/or sci-fi.

Got this for my nephew. Always loved these books and Zahn is far superior narrative to the route Disney took

Absolutely love this book! Reading it one breath! The plot, action, characters, writing - everything is great! A must for a Star Wars fan! Recommended! (Looking forward to finishing reading the entire trilogy)

Really enjoying this, a good read for any starwars fan.

Bought as a gift so not able to comment on content.

I think a lot of fans forget how old this book is, published back in 1991 - 8 years before The Phantom Menace would release in cinemas.Heir to the Empire is one of the books that 'started it all', we have Heir to the Empire to thank for introducing some of the most beloved Star Wars world building - Coruscant? Yup, named here. First appearance of Thrawn, Mara Jade, Talon Karrde and many others - all here. Leia as a high ranking senator, Han as her loving husband, Luke as the true Jedi master, tick, tick, tick. The Star Wars expanding universe flourished from this point onwards, from 1991 to 2012, Star Wars cannon flourished, before the dark times...before the mouse...Five years after Return of the Jedi, the New Republic has a fragile control over the galaxy, this first book of three deals with the rise of a new enemy, Grand Admiral Thrawn, who begins to gather fractured Imperial forces for a strike back against the New Republic.It is impossible to discuss the books without expressing sheer admiration for Thrawn. Poor writers will create evil villains that shout and scream speeches 'because they are evil', poor writers will give the villains giant super weapons with ominous names like 'starkiller' as they are evil. Other writers will trash beloved, long standing characters fans know and love to insert new, unlikable, inexplicably powerful characters to take on these evil tropes.Thrawn by contrast, is a superb villain. Deeply intelligent, cunning and resourceful he plays against the weaknesses of the New Republic, while marshalling his undertrained fleet for a daring first strike against his enemies. The story alternates between Thrawn (told from a young Captain Palleon, a superb double act) and Han, Leia, Luke and some new, interesting characters.Zahn's writing is fast moving, exciting and creates tension. His world building and respect for the franchise shines through, its the same passion for the universe most recently seen in the excellent Mandalorian TV series.How Disney looked at this superb trilogy and thought 'nah, we can do better' is one of the most inexplicable decisions made by committee I have ever seen.Wash the taste of Last Jedi and Rise from your mouth in the warm bath that is Zahn's writing. If you have gone through this excellent trilogy also try his two part follow-up 'Spectre of the Past' and 'Vision of the Future'. There are so many classic Star Wars books out there to enjoy (don't forget 'Shadows of the Empire'), but this is where it all started, and is the best place to begin.

Great little book that I've picked up after watching the Mandalorian