Vision of the Future

Latest on my growing list of accomplishments is finally finishing a book I purchased a few years back and meant to read but never got around to. Thus, today is has been a good day.

Vision of the Future is a Star Wars novel by Timothy Zahn which is the sequel to the book Spectre of the Past. The two books make up what is called Zahn's Hand of Thrawn Duology, taking place 10 years after A New Hope (Star Wars Episode IV).

Vision of the Future, while certainly exciting, at just under 700 pages makes for a daunting read. It takes a while to get into, but as I've found the last half goes considerably faster. I am a little disappointed that Zahn couldn't have stretched things another 6 pages to round out an even 700 pages. I'm sure there was room for Lando hanging out in some marginally related dank hideout with sketchy characters of limited consequence.

That not withstanding, the book has several plot lines running at the same time: 1) Luke & Mara 2) Han & Lando 3)Leia and the Camaasi Trustant, 4) Thrawn, Tierce, and Disra, 5) Karrde and Shada, 6) Wedge and a pet shop 7) Thrawn's cronies, awaiting his prophetic return, 8) Booster Terrik and General Garm Bel Iblis, 9) Admiral Pellaeon and the Chimera. There's a few other lines of story, including guest appearances by characters from the past, all of which converge nicely at the end of the tale.

My only complaint here is some of the writing is lacking. A worrisome revelation, indeed, having grown fond of the written word by reading these Star Wars novels, especially the Thrawn Trilogy, also written by Zahn. Sentence fragments litter the pages, yes, for dramatic effect, but still, this is not very skilled authorship. I also noted a few typos although in a tome this sized, that is to be expected. I suspect my criticism stems from reading more heady, shorter works of Camus, Hemingway, and Steinbeck of recent.

All in all, if you're a Star Wars enthusiast with time on your hands, go ahead and pickup the Hand of Thrawn Duology. Its a good time.