Shadows of the Empire ( novel ) Shadows of the Empire is a 1996 novel written by Steve Perry . It describes the events between the films " " and " " . It was part of the " " multimedia project . Publisher ' s summary . Hardcover . Back Cover It is a time of crisis . Han Solo , frozen in carbonite , is being taken to the vile gangster Jabba the Hutt . As Princess Leia mounts a rescue mission and Darth Vader scours the Galaxy for Luke Skywalker , another sinister figure emerges . Cunning and ruthless , leader of a powerful crime syndicate , he will pit himself against Vader for the favor of their mutual master . . . the dreaded Emperor . Inside flap " His name is Xizor , Underlord of a galaxywide criminal organization called Black Sun . He seeks to displace Darth Vader as Emperor Palpatine ' s right hand . To do so , he will hatch a brilliantly evil plan to discredit Vader in the Emperor ' s eyes . But in the meantime he will join the Dark Lord in an unholy alliance whose common target is the young Rebel hero , Luke Skywalker . " " While Vader and Xizor bait their trap for Luke , Han Solo is being held captive , flash - frozen in a carbonite slab . Mourning the loss of the man she loves , Princess Leia mounts a rescue mission to free Han . She enlists the aid of Luke , who is sharpening his skill in the Force at Ben Kenobi ' s home on the edge of Tatooine ' s Western Dune Sea . Skywalker organizes a crack fighting force , including Wedge Antilles and his famous X - wing squadron ; Lando Calrissian ; and the mercenary Dash Rendar . Yet the fierce battle that ensues to rescue Han will not go according to plan . For the Empire ' s spies are everywhere . " " What ' s worse , though he is cold and reptilian , Xizor has a certain predatory charisma that not even Leia can totally resist . Against the judgment of Chewbacca , who has promised Han to keep her from harm , Leia walks willingly into Xizor ' s lair in a dangerous play of passion and willpower to get the information she needs to defeat him . At the same time , Luke stands in the crosshairs of a conspiracy of assassins and bounty hunters recruited by Xizor ' s lieutenant , the beautiful but lethal Human replicant Guri . As the struggle between Xizor and Vader intensifies , Luke finds himself the potential prize of the two most evil entities in the galaxy — one who wants him alive , and one who wants him dead . " " In a final , explosive showdown , the Rebels must infiltrate Xizor ' s impregnable stronghold and fight the combined forces of Black Sun and the Empire in deep space . With death and betrayal looming on every side , Luke , Leia , Lando , and Chewie must use every weapon and resource at their disposal , including the Rebel fleet and some intriguing new allies , if they are to prove victorious . In " Shadows of the Empire " , Steve Perry adds an exciting new chapter to the " Star Wars " saga and introduces important new characters and situations no " Star Wars " fan will want to miss . " Paperback . " It is a time of crisis . Han Solo , frozen in carbonite , is being taken to the vile gangster Jabba the Hutt . As Princess Leia mounts a rescue mission including Luke Skywalker , Lando Calrissian , and a brilliant young pilot , Darth Vader pits himself against a cunning and ruthless rival . Xizor is the leader of a powerful crime syndicate who seeks to supplant Vader for the favor of their mutual master , the dreaded Emperor . Their target : Luke Skywalker . Suddenly Luke finds himself the potential prize of the two most evil entities in the galaxy - one who wants him alive . . . and one who wants him dead . " Synopsis . Princess Leia organizes a rescue team to save a carbonite - frozen Han Solo from the hands of the infamous bounty hunter known as Boba Fett , who is taking Han to the ruthless Jabba the Hutt . The mission is unsuccessful , and Fett gets away with Han . Meanwhile , Darth Vader is hunting down his son , Luke Skywalker so that he can turn him over to the dark side of the Force . However , the leader of the Black Sun criminal syndicate , Prince Xizor , is trying to kill Luke . Both Vader and Xizor are in Emperor Palpatine ' s good graces , and Xizor even pretends that he is looking to have Luke become a member of the Galactic Empire , just as Vader is trying to do . And even though the latter Sith is more aware of the Prince ' s plans , Palpatine forces Vader to trust in Xizor . In order to lure Luke over so that he can kill him , Xizor has Princess Leia kidnapped . Luke , Lando Calrissian and Dash Rendar sneak into Xizor ' s palace from underground to rescue Leia , and this all leads into a conflict that ultimately leads to the palace ' s destruction . Luke , Leia , Lando and Dash all escape , but so does Xizor . Eventually , a battle plays over Imperial Center where Xizor is killed in the destruction of his own skyhook . The novel ends as Luke and Leia plan to rescue Han from Jabba the Hutt ' s clutches , leading into . Cover gallery . This is a gallery of the different cover variations of " Shadows of the Empire " . Behind the scenes . When asked about cut or disputed content of the novel , Steve Perry explained , " I wanted to have Luke and Lando stop at the SW ' s equivalent of a gas station to use the phone , but nobody thought that was funny except me . At first , everybody was leery of having droids fly the FALCON , didn ' t want to do it , but I begged them to let me try and toss it if they didn ' t like it . They decided they liked it . 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