Never before has the incendiary mix of action, politics, andintrigue that has become Timothy Zahn's trademark been moreevident than in this new Star Wars epic. On the heels of theevents chronicled in Star Wars: A New Hope, the newly mintedheroes of the Rebellion--fledgling Jedi Luke Skywalker,smuggler turned reluctant freedom-fighter Han Solo, andPrincess Leia Organa, a bold leader with a world to avenge--must face the harsh realities of the cataclysmic conflict intowhich they have so bravely plunged. From this point forward,legends will grow, treachery will abound, and lives will beirrevocably altered, in the long, hard fight to counter the fist oftyranny and restore hope to a galaxy too long in darkness.