Thrawn

Thrawn by Timothy Zahn
Because author Timothy Zahn's Thrawn Trilogy kicked off the Legends publishing program in the early 1990s, it holds a special place in the hearts of Star Wars book fans. So for lots of us it was a big disappointment to see those books overwritten by the new movies. But that doesn't mean the trilogy's namesake character, blue-skinned military genius Grand Admiral Thrawn, is gone for good.

Now the fan-favorite character is back in the Star Wars canon with this novel about the beginnings of his career in the Imperial Navy, leading into his role in Season 3 of the Star Wars: Rebels TV show. And he's in good hands: The book is written by the same author as the original Thrawn Trilogy. In fact, this book could fit almost as well into the Legends timeline as it does into the New Canon!

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Thrawn's career is continued in Thrawn: Alliances.

This is a book from the New Canon timeline! It's guaranteed to be consistent with future movies, TV shows, books, and comics (and all new stories since mid-2014).

The Old Republic: Deceived

The Old Republic: Deceived by Paul S. Kemp
Spinning off from the sacking of Coruscant as seen in the preview to The Old Republic video game, this novel tells the story of a smuggler and a rogue Jedi pulled together into conflict with a brutal Sith Lord.

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This is an Old Republic era book from the Legends timeline. It may be contradicted by newer books, movies, or TV shows (if so, just think of it as an alternate universe)

Darth Plagueis

Darth Plagueis by James Luceno
A story set over the course of decades, this is the history how the Sith rose again to power through the schemes of Darth Plagueis, the ambitious Sith Lord who trained the later-emperor Palpatine in the ways of the Force! 

In many ways, it's more of a biography of Palpatine (a.k.a. Darth Plagueis) than of Plagueis himself, so it comes very much recommended for anyone interested in young Palpatine as well.

A fan-favorite novel, and something of a masterpiece of the late Legends publishing days, pulling together and drawing dots between many of the other Legends books, comics, and even video games set during the prequel era.

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This is a prequel era book from the Legends timeline. It may be contradicted by newer books, movies, or TV shows (if so, just think of it as an alternate universe).

Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter

Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter by Michael Reaves
In the lead-up to Episode I: The Phantom Menace, small-time Coruscant information broker Lorn Pavan accidentally gets caught in a lethal political game, and ends up on the run from the worst imaginable pursuer: the Sith Lord Darth Maul.

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This is a prequel era book from the Legends timeline. It may be contradicted by newer books, movies, or TV shows (if so, just think of it as an alternate universe).

Episode I: The Phantom Menace novelization

Episode I: The Phantom Menace novelization by Terry Brooks
From well-known fantasy author Terry Brooks comes the official adaptation of the Episode I: The Phantom Menace movie, with several all-new chapters about young Anakin Skywalker, starting from before the beginning of the movie.

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This is a movie novelization from the Legends timeline. Though the movie itself is canon, original content in the book could be contradicted by future books, movies, or TV shows (if so, you can think of it as an alternate universe).

Republic Commando 1-3

The Republic Commando series (parts 1-3) by Karen Traviss
Originally commissioned as a tie-in to the Republic Commando video game, author Karen Traviss's writing was so highly praised its vivid characters and realistic treatment of military life that the story was continued in a popular series. The story follows the life of several clonetrooper commandos during the Clone Wars, delving deeply into their identity as cloned soldiers, as well as their sometimes lackluster relationships with the Jedi and others. Packed with lots of military action.


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Book 1: Hard Contact
Book 2: Triple Zero
Book 3: True Colors

Story continued in Order 66: A Republic Commando Novel.

This is a prequel era series from the Legends timeline. It may be contradicted by newer books, movies, or TV shows (if so, just think of it as an alternate universe).  

Labyrinth of Evil

Labyrinth of Evil by James Luceno
A thrilling lead-in to Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, setting up the beginning of the movie and revealing important events that happened just prior to the events in the film.

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This is a prequel era book from the Legends timeline. It may be contradicted by newer books, movies, or TV shows (if so, just think of it as an alternate universe). 

Episode III: Revenge of the Sith novelization

Episode III: Revenge of the Sith novelization by Matthew Stover
Author Matthew Stover brings his gritty, emotionally vivid approach to Revenge of the Sith, giving us by far the best Star Wars movie adaptation to date. Stover adds an impressive amount of depth to the characters and events from the film, with the end result in many ways better than the movie itself. Lovers of Episode III will love this book, and haters of Episode III may like it more after reading this book.

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This is a movie novelization from the Legends timeline. Though the movie itself is canon, original content in the book could be contradicted by future books, movies, or TV shows (if so, you can think of it as an alternate universe).

Coruscant Nights

 
Coruscant Nights by Michael Reaves
A memorable trilogy of character-driven adventures in the seedy underworld of the city planet Coruscant. Inspired by the film noir detective movies of the 1940s and 1950s, these books tell the story of a self-doubting Jedi survivor, a sarcastic droid, and a plucky ex-journalist who come together with other interesting characters to solve mysteries and join the budding resistance in the early days of the Empire.

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Book 1: Jedi Twilight

Book 2: Street of Shadows

Book 3: Patterns of Force

Story continued in The Last Jedi. 

This is a classic era book from the Legends timeline. It will likely be contradicted by newer books, movies, or TV shows (if so, just think of it as an alternate universe).

Shadows of the Empire

Shadows of the Empire by Steve Perry
The only novel set between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, this book was published in 1996 as a refreshing return to the classic trilogy era, in the years where most novels took place after the defeat of the Emperor. The book is essentially a lead-in to Return of the Jedi, setting up the background for many of the events in that movie. However, it revolves heavily around a new character, the crime kingpin Prince Xizor, who is competing with Vader for the Emperor's favor.

Though the book tells a reasonably engaging story, many readers remember it more for its creepy attempted rape scene (for the record, most Star Wars novels have no sexual content at all).

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This is a classic era book from the Legends timeline. It will likely be contradicted by newer books (if so, just think of it as an alternate universe).

X-Wing (Rogue Squadron Arc)

 
X-Wing series (Rogue Squadron Arc) by Michael Stackpole
This series of fan-favorite novels tell the story of Wedge Antilles's newly re-formed Rogue Squadron X-Wing pilots in the years after the destruction of the second Death Star. The varied Rogues will have to learn to work together if they are to cripple the flailing Empire, recapture the galactic capital planet Coruscant for the New Republic, and save the galaxy from the machinations of a sociopathic Imperial warlord. These books are remembered fondly by many Star Wars fans for their highly engaging, character-driven stories.

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Book 1: Rogue Squadron
Book 2: Wedge's Gamble
Book 3: The Krytos Trap
Book 4: The Bacta War

The next three X-Wing novels follow a different group of pilots, Wraith Squadron. The story of Rogue Squadron is continued in Book 8: Isard's Revenge.

This is a post-Return of the Jedi series from the Legends timeline. Think of it as an alternate universe from The Force Awakens and newer books.

The Thrawn Trilogy

The Thrawn Trilogy by Timothy Zahn
Among the most beloved of all Star Wars novels, the so-called Thrawn Trilogy (a name that doesn't actually appear on the books themselves) was the story that launched the Legends expanded universe in earnest back in 1991. These books were the first ever written to take place after Return of the Jedi, and they set the stage for much of the rest of the Legends continuity. They tell a masterfully-written, multi-faceted story that's at once both epic and deeply personal.

Five years after the destruction of the second Death Star, the budding New Republic is threatened by Grand Admiral Thrawn, an alien military genius who has returned from the Unknown Regions to retake the galaxy for the Empire. Worse, Thrawn teams up with an insane Jedi clone who boasts access to secret Imperial technologies. Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Princess Leia must rediscover old secrets and search out new allies in the struggle to stop Thrawn. But among these new "friends" is Mara Jade, a former Imperial agent who lives for one purpose: to kill Luke Skywalker.

The Hand of Thrawn duology is a sequel to this trilogy, set ten years afterwards.

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Book 1: Heir to the Empire
Book 2: Dark Force Rising
Book 3: The Last Command

This is a post-Return of the Jedi series from the Legends timeline. Think of it as an alternate universe from The Force Awakens and newer books.

(Do you miss Grand Admiral Thrawn? He's back in the new Star Wars canon, starting with Timothy Zahn's novel Thrawn!)