''Thrawn Ascendancy'', also known as ''Thrawn: The Ascendancy Trilogy'' or simply ''The Ascendancy Trilogy,'' is a

trilogy A trilogy is a set of three works of art that are connected and can be seen either as a single work or as three individual works. They are commonly found in literature, film, and video games, and are less common in other art forms. Three-part wor ...

series of ''Star Wars'' novels released in the years 2020 and 2021 consisting of the books ''Chaos Rising'', ''Greater Good'', and ''Lesser Evil''., all by author

Timothy Zahn Timothy Zahn (born September 1, 1951) is an American writer of science fiction and fantasy. He is known best for his prolific collection of ''Star Wars'' List of Star Wars books, books, chiefly the Thrawn trilogy, ''Thrawn'' series, and has publis ...

. The books follow

Thrawn Grand Admiral Thrawn (full name: Mitth'raw'nuruodo) is a fictional character in the '' Star Wars'' franchise. He is notable for appearing as the eponymous character in the ''Thrawn'' trilogy of novels (1991–1993) by Timothy Zahn. Thrawn is an ...

as he rises through the ranks of the Chiss Expansionary Defense Fleet as war brews between the various Chiss families throughout the Unknown Regions. The trilogy is a

prequel A prequel is a literary, dramatic or cinematic work whose story precedes that of a previous work, by focusing on events that occur before the original narrative. A prequel is a work that forms part of a backstory to the preceding work. The term " ...

to Thrawn's exploits in ''

'' (2017) and the TV series ''

Star Wars Rebels ''Star Wars Rebels'' is an American 3D animation, 3D animated science fiction on television, science fiction television series produced by Lucasfilm Animation and set in the ''Star Wars'' universe. It takes place over a decade after ''Episode ...

'' (2014–2018). According to the timeline of the books, ''Thrawn Ascendancy'' comes after the ''

Attack of the Clones Attack may refer to: Warfare and combat * Offensive (military) * Charge (warfare) * Attack (fencing) * Strike (attack) * Attack (computing) * Attack aircraft Books and publishing * ''The Attack'' (novel), a book * '' Attack No. 1'', comic ...

'' movie and before '' Dark Disciple: A Clone Wars Novel'' and ''

Revenge of the Sith Revenge is committing a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. Francis Bacon described revenge as a kind of "wild justice" that "does... offend the law ndputteth the law out of office." Pr ...

''.

Setting

''Thrawn Ascendancy'' takes place in the Chiss Ascendancy, an

oligarchic Oligarchy (; ) is a conceptual form of power structure in which power rests with a small number of people. These people may or may not be distinguished by one or several characteristics, such as nobility, fame, wealth, education, or corporate, r ...

autocracy Autocracy is a system of government in which absolute power over a state is concentrated in the hands of one person, whose decisions are subject neither to external legal restraints nor to regularized mechanisms of popular control (except perh ...

residing deep in the Unknown Regions of the galaxy. The system is headed by the Nine Ruling Families: Boadil, Chaf, Clarr, Dasklo, Irizi, Mitth, Obbic, Plikh, and the Ufsa and is overseen by a ruling body named the Syndicure. Due to their heavily

isolationist Isolationism is a political philosophy advocating a national foreign policy that opposes involvement in the political affairs, and especially the wars, of other countries. Thus, isolationism fundamentally advocates neutrality and opposes entan ...

belief systems, the Ascendancy was not involved in any external affairs and kept their presence hidden to the rest of the galaxy except in fairy tales heard from inhabitants in the Outer Rim. Their focus is primarily on research and exploration rather than expansion into the

Galactic Empire Galactic empires are a common trope used in science fantasy and science fiction, particularly in works known as 'space operas'. Many authors have either used a galaxy-spanning empire as background or written about the growth and/or decline of s ...

, but Thrawn's eventual rise to power in the Empire went against their primary desires. The Chiss Expansionary Defense Fleet composes the Ascendancy's military fleet and monitored the rise of the Grysk forces as enemies of the Ascendancy.

Novels

''Chaos Rising''

The first novel explores Thrawn and his companion Ar'alani's backstory set against the present day several years into the

Clone Wars Clone Wars may refer to: Star Wars Film and television * ''Star Wars: Clone Wars'' (2003 TV series), an American animated television series set in the ''Star Wars'' galaxy * ''Star Wars: The Clone Wars'' (2008 TV series), an American 3D CGI anim ...

where Thrawn, a controversial figure in the Ascendancy, is tasked with tracking down a threat by the Nikardun Destiny led by Yiv the Benevolent.

''Greater Good''

The second novel takes place several months after ''Chaos Rising'' and sees Thrawn's fleet continuing to track the Nikardun threat when a mysterious figure called the Magys seeks his help to save her planet from extinction. The resulting expedition leads Thrawn, Ar'alani, and their compatriots to discover a new threat that has been quietly brewing. Flashbacks show Haplif, an Agbui spy, infiltrating Chiss society at the behalf of Jixtus (eventually revealed to be a Grysk) in order to sow discord between the Mitth and Irizi families.

''Lesser Evil''

The final novel, ''Lesser Evil'', follows Thrawn exploring the legend of the Starflash, a mythic weapon from ancient Chiss history and having to make a difficult decision in his quest for the Ascendancy's salvation as the tides of war continue to grow within and without the Ascendancy.

Reception

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said of ''Chaos Rising'': "

t is T, or t, is the twentieth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''tee'' (pronounced ), plural ''tees''. It is der ...

a ''Star Wars'' book quite unlike anything we’ve experienced so far in the last six years—in ways that are good and bad," calling the world "fascinatingly fleshed out" and the novel a "treat worth sinking your teeth into, although it may prove to be a little too rich for its own good at times." Star Wars News Net stated that the novel "will make you look at Thrawn in a completely new light...My faith in ''Star Wars'' feels very strong after finishing ''Chaos Rising''." ''Chaos Rising'' debuted at number 9 on the

New York Times Best Seller list ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. John Bear, ''The #1 New York Times Best Seller: intriguing facts about the 484 books that have been #1 New York Times ...

for Hardcover Fiction in the week of September 20, 2020. ''Greater Good'' debuted at number 10 during the week of May 16, 2021.

References

{{Star Wars Rebels Thrawn Books based on Star Wars Science fiction novel trilogies