Thrawn Treason, the final installment to Timothy Zahn’s most recent (and officially canonized) novel trilogy, is now available. I have been eagerly awaiting this novel because the first two were absolutely enthralling. While I thoroughly enjoyed the novel, it was not quite what I expected in the final installment of the trilogy.
A short review from the first two novels will help set the stage for Thrawn Treason.
The first novel (Thrawn) featured the story of how the Chiss strategist Mitth’raw’nuruodo, Thrawn for short, became a grand admiral in the Imperial Navy. He was so successful due to his supernatural understanding of strategy and tactics plus his knowledge of the Unknown Regions (in which the Emperor was keenly interested). He also mentored Eli Vanto, who at the end of the book accepted a position as an officer in the navy of the Chiss Ascendancy.
The second novel (Thrawn Alliances) featured two interwoven and parallel stories: one with Thrawn and Anakin Skywalker during the Clone Wars, and another with Thrawn and Darth Vader concurrent with the events in the Rebels animated series. The Emperor sent Thrawn and Vader to investigate a disturbance in the force near the backwater world Batuu (the one featured in Disney parks). They uncovered a plot by the Grysk species from the Unknown Regions to build their forces for potential conflict with both the Empire and The Chiss Ascendancy. They also discovered that the force disturbance came from force-sensitive Chiss children, who could navigate hyperspace with their precognition abilities, kidnapped by the aggressive Grysks.
Thrawn Treason takes place shortly after his triumph over the Grysk kidnappers in the second novel. Caught in between the political maneuverings of Grand Moff Tarkin and Director Orson Krennick, Thrawn is sent to solve a pest problem interfering with supply routes for the secretive Stardust project. With funding for his TIE Defender project on the line, Thrawn discovers a plot that runs much deeper than a simple pest problem.
Once again, his loyalty is put to the question as he encounters both a Chiss warship (with Eli Vanto on board) and several Grysk ships trespassing in Imperial space. He straddles the line between loyalty to the Empire and to the Chiss (insisting that the two are not in conflict) as he uncovers the Grysk plot. The events of the novel conclude immediately before Thrawn arrives at Lothal in his final encounter with the Ezra Bridger and the rebel crew, depicted in the final episodes of the Rebels animated series.
When I first learned the title of the novel, I was expecting a direct confrontation between him and either the Emperor or the Chiss Ascendancy. But because of the events in the final episodes of Rebels, this could only take place after his disappearance with Ezra Bridger into unknown space. I was a little let down to learn that I will still have to wait to learn what happens with Thrawn after his defeat over Lothal.
Expectations aside, the novel was excellent. Sometimes, it’s almost overwhelming how good Thrawn is. He is not a character that is easy to identify with. But Zahn solves this by introducing other less-perfect characters, such as Eli Vanto and Commodore Karyn Faro, who progressively learn to grasp and understand Thrawn’s tactics. Additionally, there are still so many questions about the Unknown Regions, why Palpatine was so interested in them, and what happened there in the years after the Empire’s downfall and The First Order’s rise. The Thrawn series has begun to answer many of these questions, detailing why navigating the Unknown Regions is so difficult and perilous, how navigation is possible through force-sensitive navigators, and what types of dangers and civilizations lurk there.
In summary, I recommend this novel for any Star Wars fan. Thrawn is a captivating character, and his story isn’t finished yet.
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