The authorized continuation of the legendary Star Wars saga and sequel to the #1 New York Times bestselling Heir to the Empire continues in a novel of intrigue, warfare, and shattering evil - as Luke Skywalker confronts the very face of the Dark Side.

DARK FORCE RISING

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 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 currupt Luke Skywalker to the Dark Side.

BLOOD OFFERING

Solitaire: a unique ring of heavy-metal moons.  For decades after its discovery an unexplained "effect sphere" kept all hyperships away from the metal-hungry galaxy's most tantalizing prize.  Until a research ship penetrated the Cloud entirely by accident - when the man at the helm died of a heart attack just before entering the sphere.  For the first time a hypership's drive did not fail as it approached Solitaire.  For the researchers the difficult part came when it was time to leave.

Now every ship heading for the Ring Mines carries two death-row felons - one for entry, the other for exit.  It's as bizarre a method as the effect it encounters, but it works... until the hero of Deadman Switch discovers that one of his condemned criminals isn't guilty....

DEADMAN SWITCH

Now, for the first time: the authorized continuation of the legendary Star Wars saga, the most popular series in motion-picture history - masterfully told by Hugo Award-winning author Timothy Zahn.

BEWARE THE DARK SIDE

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 the remnant 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 thousands 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.

The conclusion to the epic adventure begun in the number one New York Times bestselling Heir to the Empire and continued in Dark Force Rising, this final volume spans a galaxy in flames, and the Empire threatens to engulf the New Republic and its brave defenders.

THE LAST COMMAND

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 Jadi twins.  Overwhelmed by the ships and clones at Thrawn's command, the Repulbic 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 has already started: the destruction of Luke Skywalker.

Also includes the bonus story "Star Wars: Mist Encounter"



It began as the ultimate voyage of discovery, only to become a dark chapter in Jedi history.  Now acclaimed author Timothy Zahn returns to tell the whole extraordinary story of the remarkable - and doomed - Outbound Flight Project.



The Clone Wars have yet to erupt when Jedi Master Jorus C'baoth petitions the Senate for support of an ambitious mission: to contact intelligent life and colonize undiscovered worlds beyond the known galaxy.  But government bureaucracy threatens to scuttle the expedition before it can even start - until Master C'baoth foils a murderous conspiracy plot, winning him the political capital he needs to set in motion the dream of Outbound Flight.



Or so it would seem.  The evil Sith Lord Darth Sidious has his own interests in Outbound Flight.  Yet even he is not the mission's most dangerous challenge.  Once under way, the starship crosses paths with the forces of the alien Chiss Ascendancy and the brilliant mastermind known as "Thrawn."  Thus what begins as a peaceful Jedi mission is violently transformed into an all-out war for survival.

Hugo Award-winning author Timothy Zahn makes his triumphant return to the Star Wars® universe in this first of an epic new two-volume series in which the New Republic must face its most dangerous enemy yet - a dead Imperial warlord.

SPECTER OF THE PAST

The Empire stands at the brink of total collapse.  But they have saved their most heinous plan of last.  First a plot is hatched that could destroy the New Republic in a bloodbath of genocide and civil war.  Then comes the shocking news that Grand Admiral Thrawn - the most cunning and ruthless warlord in history - has apparently returned from the dead to lead the Empire to a long-prophesied victory.  Facing incredible odds, Han and Leia begin a desperate race against time to prevent the New Republic from unraveling in the face if twi inexplicable threats - one from within and one from without.  Meanwhile, Luke teams up with Mara Jade, using the Force to track down a mysterious pirate ship with a crew of clones.  Yet, perhaps most dangerous of all, are those who lurk in the shadows, orchestrating a dark plan that will turn the New Republic and the Empire into their playthings.

"ZAHN TURNS IN HIS USUAL HIGH-CALIBER PERFORMANCE." - Library Journal

LONGTIME FANS SHOULD GET CONSIDERABLE PLEASURE FROM THIS ADDITION TO THE SAGA. - Publishers Weekly

SPECIAL BONUS INSIDE -
the exclusive story "Fool's Bargain,"
previously available in eBook format only!

A dangerous mission to salvage a piece of Jedi past threatens to make Luke and Mara Jada Skywalker history....

After fifty years, the remains of Outbound Flight - a pioneering Jedi expedition viciously destroyed by the alien warlord Thrawn - have been found on the planet Nirauan.  The beings who reside there wish to turn over to the New Republic the remnants of the doomed mission.  Accepting the gesture will mean a long voyage into the treacherous cluster of stars where the thousands of souls aboard the Outbound Flight vessel met their grim fate.

Embarking on the strange and solemn journey, Luke and Mara Jade Skywalker are unaware that the gravest danger lies within the derelict walls of Outbound Flight itself.  As the marooned hulk yields up stunning revelations and unexpected terrors, Luke and Mara find all they stand for - and their very existence - brutally challenged.  The ultimate test will be surviving the deathtrap carefully laid by foes who are legendary for their ruthlessness... and determined to complete the job Thrawn began: exterminating the Jedi.

Hugo Award-winning author Timothy Zahn brings his epic two-volume series The Hand of Thrawn to an explosive conclusion with a discovery that rocks the New Republic to its foundations - and threatens the resurrect the Empire.



VISION OF THE FUTURE



The Empire's master plan is under way.  The New republic is on the verge of civil war and the rumor that the legendary Admiral Thrawn has returned from the dead is rallying the Imperial forces.  Now Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia, and their allies face the challenge of their lives.  They must infiltrate a hidden fortress filled with Imperial fanatics, rendezvous with a double-dealing Imperial commander, and journey into enemy territory to learn the identity of those responsible for an act of unthinkable genocide.  But most important of all is the truth about Thrawn.  In his hands - alive of dead - rests the fate of the New Republic.