This New York Times best-selling Star Wars Young Adult novel now available on paperback! The reign of the Galactic Empire has reached the Outer Rim planet of Jelucan, where aristocratic Thane Kyrell and rural villager Ciena Ree bond over their love of flying. Enrolling at the Imperial Academy is nothing less than a dream come true for both of them. But Thane sours on the dream when he sees firsthand the horrific tactics the Empire uses to maintain its ironclad rule. Bitter and disillusioned, he joins the fledgling Rebellion--putting Ciena in an unbearable position between her loyalty to the Empire and her love for the man she''s known since childhood. Now on opposite sides of the war, will these friends turned foes ever find a way to be together, or will duty tear them--and the galaxy--apart? This paperback edition includes the exciting first chapter from Claudia Gray''s novel, Leia: Princess of Alderaan.