Tag: Timothy Zahn

Book Review – Thrawn: Treason by Timothy Zahn

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Thrawn Treason

Thrawn: Treason by Timothy Zahn is the third novel in the author’s Thrawn trilogy, set in the new canon of Star Wars. Grand Admiral Thrawn has proven himself time and again to be a cunning and resourceful asset in service of the Empire, but the politics within the Imperial Navy mean that his tactical proficiency in war is not enough to curry favour. As such, the Grand Admiral’s TIE Defender program is at risk of being halted in favour of Director Krennic’s secret Death Star project. However, if he can solve a seemingly petty issue with the latter project’s supply chain, he can secure his own interests. With only limited time, what begins as a rather simple investigation into pest control unravels into a much deeper conspiracy of treason within the Empire and an incursion of enemy forces from the unknown regions of the galaxy.Read More »

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WWW Wednesday – February 9, 2022

Ryan3 Comments
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WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

We Were LiarsLast night I finally started reading We Were Liars by E. Lockhart, and I got to the end of the first section of the book. Picking up this book was more of a whim than is normal for me, so I was afraid I might immediately dislike it, but fortunately I’m pretty into it so far. It hadn’t really occurred to me before (or I’d forgotten) that this is a YA novel, and the writing certainly has a YA way about it, though I don’t mean that negatively. The first section was a lot of establishment, so I’m really intrigued to see what the advertised mystery and suspense will entail. So far we have the lead character having suffered injury under unusual circumstances, but that hasn’t developed into a full mystery just yet. I’m intrigued to see where things go.

I’m still in the middle of the Scott Pilgrim: Color Edition Digital Omnibus by Bryan Lee O’Malley too, and as this reread continues I feel like I have less to say about it. I’m much better appreciating how this story navigates the ups and downs and complications of relationships than I did the first time around, though.

Recently Finished

Thrawn TreasonOver the weekend I managed to finish up reading Thrawn: Treason by Timothy Zahn, finally capping off this trilogy among the new canon Star Wars books. I think I like this book about as much as the second book overall, but for different reasons. The story was a lot more solid all around, but it was also less interesting than some of the directions the previous book went in. I did really like the greater emphasis on strategy and engagements between capital ships, with a lot of focus on the command bridge, but it was a little stale at times too. It really is a shame that the Rebels TV show stops this story from going any further, because there are a lot of threads I’m really interested in seeing continued. Thrawn was so much more interesting as an anomaly within the Empire. Who knows, maybe things will continue in some form. I’ll try to have a full review up soon.

Reading Next

The Last ContinentI don’t know why I feel compelled to choose my next novel as soon as I’ve started a new one, but here we are. Since it’s technically a leftover from last year, grandfathered into one of this year’s lists, I’ve decided I will read The Last Continent by Terry Pratchett next, which continues the story of Rincewind after being accidentally transported to the Discworld’s version of Australia. It’s been a little while since I read Interesting Times, the previous book in this sub-series, and though Rincewind isn’t my favourite character, I am looking forward to seeing what he gets up to next.

Until next week, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below.

WWW Wednesday – February 2, 2022

Ryan4 Comments
www_wednesdays

WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

Thrawn TreasonI’m still slowly making my way through Thrawn: Treason by Timothy Zahn; I’m about 70% of the way through now, so hopefully I can get it finished by next week. As I was reading it last night, the thought occurred to me that this novel, perhaps this trilogy as well, is the most that Star Wars has felt like Star Trek for me, with a darker twist considering the nature of the Empire. It considers a lot of the crew dynamics on their Star Destroyer with their admiral, Thrawn, at the top, who inspires a lot of loyalty and is great at solving military problems. The focus is much more on the perspective of the command bridge as well and their solving of strategic dilemmas. I’m still waiting for one of these to really hook me though, as I’ve still not really felt like what they’re coming up against is truly a threat, even contained within these little skirmishes. I can’t deny that I’m enjoying it all the same, though.

Scott Pilgrim Color Edition Digital OmnibusI’m also still slowly making my way through the Scott Pilgrim: Color Edition Digital Omnibus by Bryan Lee O’Malley. I haven’t really got much more to say about it at the moment, except that I continue to be a little in awe of how much more in-depth the story is here vs. the film, the latter being what I honestly remember more than the first time I read the comics. The amount of time spent dwelling on Envy Adams, Scott’s ex, for example, was really surprising during my readings this past week. The book itself even breaks the forth wall about how much time it spends just at her concert. Scott continues to have many more redeeming qualities here compared to the film, where he honestly comes off a bit sociopathic rather than selfish and absentminded.

Recently Finished

When I Arrived at the CastleI decided that each of these weeks was starting to look far too much alike for my liking, so I decided to pick up a rather short graphic novel for a quick read last night. That book was When I Arrived at the Castle by Emily Carroll. The story is about an anthropomorphic cat-woman arriving at the castle of a deadly vampiric countess with the intention of killing her. The story is very folkloric rather than plot-heavy, leaving things a little more up to interpretation than I would prefer, but the gothic visual style and unsettling body horror are fantastically realized, blending violence and eroticism between the two central figures into something really compelling.

Reading Next

I still plan to start We Were Liars by E. Lockhart soon, and with any luck I will have started by next week. Since I’m getting this up so late today, I won’t agonize over what I might read next any further.

Until next week, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below.

WWW Wednesday – January 26, 2022

RyanLeave a comment
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WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

Thrawn TreasonI’m still in the middle of Thrawn: Treason by Timothy Zahn,  just over halfway through in fact. I haven’t gotten any great amounts of reading time in the last week, but I have managed to chip away at it a little anyway. I’m finding that I’m enjoying it a lot as a comfort read, but at the moment I’m still really not sure what the core conflict of this book is. Their little skirmish with the Grysks is interesting, but they feel more like an obstacle than something the characters are sincerely struggle against. I suppose questions of treason will have to come into things, I’m just not entirely certain what that will be yet. Knowing Thrawn’s ultimate fate, I wonder what sort of balancing act that might entail or if he will betray his own people for the Empire. At any rate, I am enjoying this book for the writing and its characters, at least, but I hope it doesn’t disappoint.

Scott Pilgrim Color Edition Digital OmnibusI’m slowly making my way through the Scott Pilgrim: Color Edition Digital Omnibus by Bryan Lee O’Malley, which continues to be a fun nostalgic romp. Although I knew how much longer the comics are than the movie, revisiting it is really highlighting just how truncated the film is. It works, but it really isn’t the ideal way to experience this story. I’m loving the slower moments and how they contrast with the over-the-top action and cartoony elements. I’m especially wondering this time around just how literal we’re meant to take the more absurd elements of the story too, though I’m sure I’m thinking about it too much. One shouldn’t always search for perfect sense, it can spoil the fun.

Recently Finished

Nothing, again! 💀

Reading Next

We Were LiarsI still plan to read We Were Liars by E. Lockhart next, but think that is still a way’s off since I’m only a little over halfway through Treason. In the meantime, I really ought to pick another graphic novel or something to stay on top of my reading challenge; I’m two books behind schedule already. I know that’s not the end of the world, but it feels like an inauspicious start to the year.

Until next week, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below.

WWW Wednesday – January 19, 2022

Ryan4 Comments
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WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

Thrawn TreasonSince last week I’ve gotten nearly another 100 pages into Thrawn: Treason by Timothy Zahn, and I continue to enjoy the book quite a bit. This trilogy has been great for presenting a more nuanced look at the Empire and its politics, especially the shades of grey that exist in this otherwise oppressive regime. The Grysks from the previous book are making a return as a threat to the Empire, and I’m really enjoying this look at other worlds and alien species being a more sizable external threat, rather than having the Empire grapple with rebels or outlaws, as they typically do. It’s almost a shame, knowing how Thrawn’s story ends (for the time being) on the Rebels TV series, because I would really like to see more of him thanks specifically to how he is depicted in these books.

Scott Pilgrim Color Edition Digital OmnibusI also finally started reading the Scott Pilgrim: Color Edition Digital Omnibus by Bryan Lee O’Malley, and goodness it is making me a little nostalgic for the 2000s. It’s also making me a little homesick, as I grew up in Toronto and haven’t been able to properly visit the downtown core since the pandemic started. Another surreal element is that Amazon is referred to as “that online bookstore.” That didn’t take long to drastically change, eh? When I first read this book I was younger than Scott, so reading it as a 30-year-old certainly colours things differently, though I like that it does do the work to make him sympathetic too. I’m really glad I finally started this, I’m really looking forward to continuing through it.

Recently Finished

Nothing! 💀

Reading Next

We Were LiarsI’ve finally cemented my reading challenges for the year, as outlined in my post from yesterday, so I’m now more confident thinking about what I want to be reading next. In that respect, I’ve decided to pull from my scrappy to-read list and read We Were Liars by E. Lockhart next. The only reason I picked this book up was some slight buzz I heard that there’s something messed up about the story. I expect I won’t be as phased as other people about it, but I’m open to being surprised. I won’t start it until I finish with Treason, but I expect I’ll be starting it relatively soon.

Until next week, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below.

WWW Wednesday – January 12, 2022

Ryan5 Comments
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WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

Thrawn TreasonSince last week I’ve had an unexpected amount of free time again, and I used some of that time to get a start on Thrawn: Treason by Timothy Zahn, the third book in his trilogy of Star Wars novels focused on the titular character. I’m only about 86 pages in, so I haven’t exactly powered through it or anything. I haven’t had a lot of motivation to do so, as it seems is often the case this time of year. I am enjoying the book just fine so far, at any rate, though it’s not clear where the story is heading as of yet. I really like Thrawn as an anti-villain, which is unique to these books compared to his depiction in the Rebels TV show, so with hints to his continued use in the franchise from some other media I have to wonder whether he will be given a more villainous twist if he appears again.

Recently Finished

The Legends of Luke Skywalker The MangaOver the weekend I read through The Legends of Luke Skywalker: The Manga by various. This was meant to be the last book I read in 2021, but I didn’t end up having enough time. In any case, I actually liked this book a lot more than I was expecting. I’m not sure how canon it is meant to be, especially with my least favourite story playfully retconning some circumstance behind the events at Jabba’s palace in Return of the Jedi, but most of them were nevertheless a lot of fun and allowed themselves to be more experimental than I was expecting. I especially liked that a few of them seemed to conspicuously take place after the events of the original trilogy, really capturing the idea that these are the further adventures of Luke.

Reading Next

Scott Pilgrim Color Edition Digital OmnibusI still don’t quite know what I’m going to be reading next in a broad sense. I’ve almost got a list together for my challenges in 2022, but I haven’t fully cemented it yet. There should be a post up detailing everything soon, though. In the meantime, perhaps I will finally start reading the Scott Pilgrim: Color Edition Digital Omnibus by Bryan Lee O’Malley, which I’ve been meaning to start for months. That doesn’t necessarily mean I will start it soon, but I can try to try, can’t I?

Until next week, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below.

WWW Wednesday – January 5, 2022

Ryan1 Comment
www_wednesdays

WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

Nothing at the moment! I’m taking a little break, and I’m still deciding what I want my line-up of books for the year to be.

Recently Finished

As I said last week, I ended up doing a blitz of reading before the New Year. I came up one book short of my goal, but that still amounted to a good handful done. To save on space, I’m going to format this section a little differently than I normally do.

The Complete Cosmicomics by Italo Calvino turned around a lot by the end. The stream of consciousness, abstract style of stories that had been vexing me were replaced by more stories done in the vein of those found earlier in the collection, which I found a lot more accessible. My feelings on the book still aren’t especially high, but I feel better about it than I was afraid I was going to. There will be a review to come soon.

Deserter by Junji Ito was a great little collection of some of the author’s earlier stories. The art was a lot rougher around the edges than I was used to, but that was more than forgivable. A tendency I dislike in some of his other stories is a compulsion to over-explain the outlandish ideas that his stories use. These had plenty of out-there ideas, but it was kept appreciably simple, with the stories more focused on characters dealing with these dilemmas than trying to explain why they are happening. I will try to have a review up for this soon too.

I also read through The Immortal Hulk: The Weakest One There Is by Al Ewing et al. I haven’t got much to say about it, other than the fact that I continue to love this series. It was a lot more action focused, but the horror visuals were great and I’m excited to see everything will resolve with Banner so compromised. One of the alternate Hulk personalities had been dealing with using Banner’s body the whole series so far, but he has finally returned to his Grey Hulk form, which I’m excited to see more of in the next volume.

I also finished Hope Is the Thing With Feathers: The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson, which took my a shameful amount of time to pick back up, considering I started it in June and then just didn’t ever pick it up to read occasionally like I had planned. There were definitely some poems that stood out to me nicely, but it wasn’t really for me either. It’s not something I’d ever read all the way through again, but it was still nice to go out of my comfort zone a little.

Reading Next

Thrawn TreasonI don’t really know what I’m going to read next, because like I said, I haven’t really outlined what I want to read throughout 2022 yet. I have been considering starting The Last Continent by Terry Pratchett, since it is a leftover Discworld book I meant to read last year, but I haven’t gotten a copy yet, so I probably won’t start that first. I have been meaning to finish the new Thrawn trilogy by finally getting to Thrawn: Treason by Timothy Zahn, however, so perhaps I will start that finally. It’s been a while since I’ve read a Star Wars novel, so it should make for some fun, lighter reading after that blitz.

Until next week, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below. Happy New Year, everybody!

Book Review – Thrawn: Alliances by Timothy Zahn

Ryan2 Comments

Thrawn Alliances (2)

Thrawn: Alliances by Timothy Zahn is the second book in the author’s Thrawn trilogy, set in the new canon of Star Wars after the Disney acquisition of Lucasfilm. Emperor Palpatine has sensed a disturbance in the Force on the remote planet of Batuu, at the edge of the galaxy’s Outer Rim Territories. This disturbance, though only hinting at threats unknown, is deemed important enough that the Emperor sends two of his most powerful agents to investigate: the Sith Lord Darth Vader and brilliant strategist Grand Admiral Thrawn.

There is more to the mission than it at first seems, however, as long ago, during the Clone War, the two first met on Batuu under similar circumstances : Thrawn on an undisclosed mission for the Chiss Ascendency and then-Jedi knight Anakin Skywalker in search of his missing wife Padmé, who was investigating a Separatist plot. The two formed an unlikely alliance to achieve their goals all those years ago, but with loyalties being tested by new enemies, can their renewed partnership endure?Read More »

WWW Wednesday – December 2, 2020

Ryan8 Comments
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WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

MaskeradeAs of last night I’ve gotten just over 100 pages into Maskerade by Terry Pratchett, the 18th Discworld novel. Surprisingly, I’ve found this novel a little slower-going than a lot of the previous books in the series. Despite how far I am into the book, I don’t feel I have a full grasp of what the story will be about just yet. Nevertheless, I am really enjoying the introduction of Agnes Nitt, a character with a good head on her shoulders that would make for a great witch if not for her desire to be a singer. The only thing I’m a little iffy about with her is how much the book likes to make fun of her weight. It doesn’t feel incongruous with how Discworld stories are told, but it has happened with a frequency that has started to feel a little mean-spirited. I do enjoy how she is actually characterized, though, so perhaps it’s just me.

Recently Finished

Thrawn AlliancesOver the weekend I finished reading Thrawn: Alliances by Timothy Zahn. I’m not over-the-moon about the book, but I really enjoyed it as a solid reading experience. The problem of the Then/Now story line still persisted, with the “Then” story being less interesting, which I can attribute to the fact that it was connected to the Clone Wars itself. So, while it did have some surprises in store by the end, ultimately I knew that the events of this story would be of no consequence to the greater war. “Now”, on the other hand, is a side story taking place in the Imperial era but unconnected to the war with the rebels, with my only foreknowledge being that Vader and Thrawn must survive, keeping the stakes of everything else appreciably higher. I should have a review up for this novel soon.

Immortal Hulk Hulk is HulkI also read through The Immortal Hulk: Hulk is Hulk by Al Ewing et al, which reminded me of just how much I love this series. I wish I’d been able to read it a little sooner, in fact, as it was a direct continuation of the action from the  end of the previous volume, which introduced a new villain. In this, Hulk’s very identity becomes compromised as an alien monster who, on the behalf of the Roxxon corporation, alters everyone’s memories of what the Hulk even is. It wrapped up a little too neatly at the end for me, but nonetheless had some great exploration of the Hulk’s various personalities within his mindscape, as well as some genuinely harrowing moments that left me shocked to remember this is a mainline series about the character.

Reading Next

The Rise of Kylo RenI’ve got a good handful of books to choose from next, so I shouldn’t be paralyzed by choice when the time comes. That being said, I haven’t quite made up my mind yet, but I’ve still got a good bit of Maskerade left to read anyway. I will likely reading Star Wars: The Rise of Kylo Ren by Charles Soule as my next comic book read, though, which should be fun.

I wish I’d gotten this up earlier today, but I was much too tired after my night shift. I ought to adjust when I write these.

Until next week, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below.

WWW Wednesday – November 25, 2020

Ryan14 Comments
www_wednesdays

WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

Thrawn AlliancesI’m about 69% of the way through Thrawn: Alliances by Timothy Zahn, which is nice, though I wanted to have it finished by now, so not quite nice enough. I’ve slacked on reading during my days off, as per usual. I’m still enjoying the book quite a bit, though of the two eras it jumps between I’m definitely preferring one over the other, which isn’t to the novel’s credit. I just find the frictional relationship between Vader and Thrawn much more interesting. There’s an appreciable amount of intrigue to the story overall, though, as in both time periods I’m not certain what the characters will ultimately discover about their respective investigations, especially since one is implied to have led to a region of a planet becoming inhospitable. I look forward to finishing it, which I ought to do soon if I’m going to stay on schedule.

Recently Finished

Nothing this week!

Reading Next

Immortal Hulk Hulk is HulkI’ve already committed to starting Maskerade by Terry Pratchett next, so there’s nothing new there, but I suppose I ought to actually read some books from the graphic novel pile. I recently purchased the newest volume of The Immortal Hulk by Al Ewing et al, so I’ll probably read that soon to stay on top of the series. I’m still behind on my Goodreads challenge too and slacking on comics has definitely been the reason for that.

I’ve got three volumes of Berserk by Kentaro Miura just sitting on my shelf, and manga reads especially quickly, so I’ll probably get to those soon too. I really have so much to choose from, I don’t know why I let them languish.

Until next week, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below.