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 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.

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.