really boring

the irritating writing style continues...unfortunately this time there is no attempt at a storyline and no interesting characters. we don't really need to be informed every time someone has to 'connect to the force', or runs through jedi meditation techniques, etc. it has to be implied at some point really.

So much for the Bantam books... [some spoilers]

This is the second and final installment in the "Hand of Thrawn" series, which in terms of the 'big picture', is not just the last of its series, but chronologically the last of the Bantam books (set between the Battle of Endor and 19 years after the Battle of Yavin). Zahn does a nice job with the major plot threads he began with in the original "Thrawn" series - that is, finding an end to the Imperial threat and bringing the relationship of Luke and Mara to a (happy) resolution. He also does some foreshadowing of the crises of the New Jedi Order books. As far as this book goes, it's another readable entry into the "Star Wars" expanded universe. However, I'm finding difficulty fully accepting it - partly due to some of what Zahn wrote in this book, and partly due to Lucasfilm's further work in the universe with the prequels - which undercut what Zahn (and others of the Bantam authors) have tried to establish as cosmology of the "Star Wars" universe. I'll explain what I mean below.

On the plus side, Zahn has two major talents that I can perceive. First, he knows how to pace events and plot threads. He juggles quite a threads in this book - Luke & Mara, Leia, Han & Lando, Karrde & Shada, Corran & Wedge, "Thrawn" and his co-conspirators, Mistryl assassin Karoly, young hacker Ghent, and Imperial subversive Navett. That's a lot, but a) you never feel like he jumped to a thread without advancing the overall plot, and b) they're balanced against each other well enough so that you don't feel that any of them get more time than they should. Karoly and Ghent only have as much time as will make the book interesting. Other authors (Robert Jordan) would waste time with these fringe characters and create rabbit trails with no forseeable resolution.

Zahn's other great talent is that he writes pretty good Star Wars dialogue - with the notable exception of people saying things like "Point". There are some other Zahn-ish phrases like that, but overall, Han sounds like Han, Leia sounds like Leia, Luke sounds like Luke, the Imperials sound like arrogant British colonialists, and 3PO sounds prissy and anxious as ever. Frankly, if the dialogue doesn't sound like the movies, it ain't "Star Wars".

On the minus side, Zahn does two things here that make me cringe. One thing is - and he carried this over from Spectre of the Past - that he treats all the Bantam books between his original Thrawn series and this one as in line with continuity (or 'canon', if you will). I'm familiar with the plots of all of them from reading the Essential Chronology (except the events of the Corellian trilogy, which my wife read and highly recommends and so I'll get to it someday maybe). Yuck! How many superweapons DID the Emporer hide? Zahn seems to refer to this ironically at one point (which indicates that he perhaps finds the 'superweapon again' plot overused and ridiculous - which is good) but does treat it as though it happened (bad). I think I would have preferred it if he had written his books ignoring those blemishes, thus allowing the reader who didn't like them to pretend that they were apocryphal. Zahn also refers to Han getting beat up, which is a reference to the controversial Black Fleet Crisis series. Not necessary!

The other thing Zahn does -- aRGH -- is include a scene between Luke and Mara, where Luke essentially repents of his messing around with the dark side and piggishly thinking he could do no wrong - some of which is in reference to the Dark Empire series -- ack!!! That's not the worst part. The worst part is that he essentially tells Mara that she doesn't need to repent of her past service to Palpatine as she was really just a tool. Mara disagrees, but Zahn frames the scene in such a way that Luke is 'more right'. WHAT? Jade WAS a henchman of one of the baddest villains ever created! His "Hand"? And if you're telling me that she was just a robot with no will of her own, I'm not buying it! She (as written) doesn't buy it!

What Zahn couldn't control is the rules of the game (or the universe, rather) being changed on him. Spaarti cylinders? Clones as bad guys during the Clone Wars? Not really. So what's the point of reading the Bantam books if the universe really isn't coherent? I find such things disconcerting and distracting, and while I admire Zahn's work, it's hard to be excited about this series the way I was before the prequels. I used to think, whilst reading the original Thrawn series, "Oh yeah this is the way it happened after Endor!" Now I think, "Well, it's nice but doesn't square with the 'canon' of the movies. Nice, but fanciful."

So, now I'm going back to the prequel novels. Some are quite good (I hear) and should not be as disconcerting. I need to 'buy' what I'm reading as Star Wars, if I'm going to enjoy it. That's no fault of Zahn's, I know. But if you want to read stuff that's 'true' to the universe, I can't recommend any of the Bantam books (don't know about NJO).

great enhancement to the universe [no spoilers]

"Vision of the Future" is the final second novel in The Hand of Thrawn series approximately ten years following The Thrawn Trilogy. It concludes the story in the tradition of creativity and intrigue from the prior novels.

Although the preceding novel has more political developments dominating the storyline, this book returns to creative battles and stunning revelations. The Mara Jade and Luke Skywalker duo along with Major Tierce and Admiral Pellaeon sections of the storyline are interesting. In addition, the use of High Councilor Leia Organa Solo's Jedi skill is exciting.

I was aggravated when I found New Republic characters heading in four different directions searching for the same thing without consulting each other. Considering the closeness of the group such behavior is peculiar. A couple loose ends are available for future stories whereas one piece of information regarding Grand Admiral Thrawn could have been left alone to leave a greater mystery.

I recommend this series to any fan of the Star Wars universe.

Thank you.