“I have sensed a disturbance in the Force.”

Ominous words under any circumstances, but all the more so when uttered by Emperor Palpatine. On Batuu, at the edges of the Unknown Regions, a threat to the Empire is taking root—its existence little more than a glimmer, its consequences as yet unknowable. But it is troubling enough to the Imperial leader to warrant investigation by his most powerful agents: ruthless enforcer Lord Darth Vader and brilliant strategist Grand Admiral Thrawn. Fierce rivals for the emperor’s favor, and outspoken adversaries on Imperial affairs—including the Death Star project—the formidable pair seem unlikely partners for such a crucial mission. But the Emperor knows it’s not the first time Vader and Thrawn have joined forces. And there’s more behind his royal command than either man suspects.

In what seems like a lifetime ago, General Anakin Skywalker of the Galactic Republic, and Commander Mitth’raw’nuruodo, officer of the Chiss Ascendancy, crossed paths for the first time. One on a desperate personal quest, the other with motives unknown . . . and undisclosed. But facing a gauntlet of dangers on a far-flung world, they forged an uneasy alliance—neither remotely aware of what their futures held in store.

Now, thrust together once more, they find themselves bound again for the planet where they once fought side by side. There they will be doubly challenged—by a test of their allegiance to the Empire . . . and an enemy that threatens even their combined might. 

I approach every Star Wars novel I read the same way: with wild, unchecked enthusiasm. And the same goes for Thrawn: Alliances, even though I really didn’t care for the first Thrawn book at all (I know, I know…that wasn’t the *first* Thrawn book, but you know what I mean!!) And while I enjoyed this sequel quite a bit more than the first, I still felt a bit disappointed and frustrated with certain aspects of this book.

I was really excited to hear that this book would feature Anakin & Padmé, and of course, as evidenced by the wicked cover, Darth Vader. Which of course means this book takes place during two time periods, and it bounces back & forth quite nicely. If I’m doing my math right, the storyline featuring Anakin, Padmé, & Thrawn takes place not very long before Revenge of the Sith, while the storyline featuring Thrawn & Vader is set just before the final season of Rebels.

My biggest complaint with this book was just, gah…it felt like there were these endless verbal spats between Vader & Thrawn. They bicker, in a way. With Thrawn being so deliberate & calculating with his words, and Vader with the hot temper. It’s just…a lot of back & forth about how to execute a plan (they are sent on a mission by Palpatine), with each of them sure they are right, back & forth, back & forth, until (typically) Vader concedes to Thrawn’s strategic genius. It bored me.

The scenes with Padmé off on her own were some of the highlights for me…she’s a character I’d love to see even more of in the novels, and Zahn writes her extremely well. And I’d say the same for his characterization of Anakin Skywalker…really a spot-on take, taking both The Clone Wars depiction, as well as Hayden Christensen’s into account. 

Also, Vader’s inner monologue is pretty fascinating here, and really takes a deep dive into the whole “Darth Vader killed Anakin Skywalker” theme. The memories Vader holds on to, and his struggle to disassociate from them is really interesting…I loved the little touch of how Vader thinks of Anakin Skywalker simply as “The Jedi”. 

So…overall, I didn’t love this as much as I’d hoped to. An improvement over the first book, but still a bit unsatisfying in the end.