Star Wars: Thrawn

Found on an unnamed Outer Rim planet, the exiled Chiss warrior Thrawn pledges himself to Emperor Palpatine and joins the Imperial navy. Thrawn's cunning and expertise as a tactician help him to rise through the ranks with unprecedented speed, though his renegade tactics ignite the ire of his superiors. At Thrawn's side is his translator-turned-aide-de-camp, Ensign Eli Vanto, whom he trains in the ways of war. Meanwhile, ruthless administrator Arihnda Pryce plots her own rise to power.

The character of Thrawn was originally introduced in Zahn's 1991 novel Heir to the Empire, and became a fan favorite.[1][2] He went on to appear in several other novels, short stories, comics, and video games.[3] Following the 2012 acquisition of Lucasfilm by The Walt Disney Company, most of the licensed Star Wars fiction produced since the originating 1977 film Star Wars were rebranded as Star Wars Legends and declared non-canon to the franchise in April 2014.[4][5][6]

In a prerecorded video, Zahn announced at the London Star Wars Celebration in July 2016 that he was writing a new novel for Del Rey Books titled Thrawn.[1][7][8] The same day, Del Rey confirmed on Twitter the novel's spring 2017 release.[1][9] In a subsequent interview with StarWars.com, Zahn noted that the novel would cover several years between Thrawn's "first encounter" with the Empire and the events of the third season of Star Wars Rebels, an animated television series in which the character will appear prior to the book's release.[10] He said:

It's very exciting [to write Thrawn again]. A writer never knows which characters are going to click with the readers, and it was highly gratifying to me that Thrawn captured the imaginations of so many people over the past quarter century. Over the years I've written a lot of books and stories that featured him, but with this book I'll be visiting a part of his life that I never before had a chance to explore.[10]

Asked if he would be incorporating any material from previous Thrawn novels, Zahn said, "I've thrown in a few bits and pieces. Nothing too blatant, just little Easter eggs for those who are familiar with my other books."[10] Though in Legends works Thrawn was mostly used in post-Return of the Jedi storylines, both Rebels and Thrawn take place prior to the events of the original 1977 film and show his rise to power.[1][11] Zahn said, "I get to show how he's treated by his fellow officers and shipmates on his way up the military ladder, particularly when he's not in a command position over them."[11]

A full synopsis of the novel was released in January 2017,[12][13] followed by an excerpt in March 2017.[11]

Thrawn was published on April 11, 2017.[12][13] Del Rey Books produced three variant covers: the standard edition is white, featuring Thrawn's face split by the spine; the Barnes & Noble-exclusive edition has the same cover design in black, with a double-sided pull out poster that has a Thrawn portrait on one side and the Del Rey novel timeline on the other; and the Star Wars Celebration limited edition has a textless cover with Thrawn's full face, the portrait on the back cover, and special end papers.[14]

Adrian Liang of Omnivoracious called the novel "a solid addition to the new official Star Wars novels", noting that "the Thrawn POV chapters are the weakest" while the Vanto sections "provide the most insight and entertainment."[15]

In July 2017, Marvel Comics announced that a comic book miniseries adaptation of Thrawn is scheduled for release in early 2018.[16][17] The first issue was released on February 14, 2018, with five more to follow on a monthly basis.

• Thrawn on Wookieepedia, a Star Wars wiki