This review contains spoilers. I’ve always been a bit skeptical of the Star Wars Extended Universe (with the exception of the excellent Darth Bane trilogy). Timothy Zahn’s Heir to the Empire trilogy (1991-93), however, had proven me decisively wrong - and, indeed, has shown me why so many would have preferred an adaption of Heir to the Empire instead of the sequels we got. The trilogy follows the efforts of Grand Admiral Thrawn, a military genius, to revive the Empire, five years after their defeat at Endor in Return of the Jedi. Thrawn is a refreshing take; rather than a new Sith lord leading a new Empire, Thrawn is a military commander leading the remnants of the Empire five years after the defeat at Endor. There’s no cackling evil, no random acts of violence, and no new superweapons - just a coldly calculating military genius, making intelligent use of the resources available to him. Like Sherlock Holmes, Thrawn is a character whose genius is shown through his companion, in this cas...