Thrawn: Secret Origins

Chaos Rising (Thrawn Ascendancy #1)
by Timothy Zahn

Mitth'raw'nuruodo of the Chiss Ascendancy is a genius at tactics, his interest in studying art giving him an edge over his opponents. But when it comes to politics, he is constantly out of his depth, and his career is not the only casualty when things go sideways.

Finally, we get the full Thrawn origin story. Given how tightly the other Disney novels have to colour in between the lines (often to the detriment of plot), it's nice to read a book that doesn't have to obey all the rules. Very interesting, though not always engaging. I suspect the next couple of books will give us a better villain - this book was primarily about set-up.

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