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3.95 AVERAGE
3.95 AVERAGE
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Check out this review and more at Disorderly Daydreams blog!
Star Wars: The Padme Trilogy #2
Padme has been elected Queen of Naboo and with the help of her security head, creates a team of handmaidens to help protect her. When the Trade Federation starts to poke at Naboo, Padme joins in on the political games in order to keep her planet safe.
This was very much a YA read, heavily focused on the teenaged girl audience. I made the mistake of reading these out of order, but I enjoyed this one even though I was not the target demographic. I like Star Wars but I'm not a purist so I felt that this was a great story for Padme. I liked reading about her and her life before Anakin. She was going places and I'm sort of sad that one boy comes along and ruins it for her.
I don't have a ton to say about this one. I think that if you don't mind reading books that include teenaged girls, make up, dresses, and periods, then this will probably be a fun read for you. If you don't like those things, then skip it. But I will say that there's a bit of torture and loads of political intrigue in this book, too, which made it quite interesting.
I gave this one a 3 out of 5. It get's a 3 because the non-teenaged girl stuff was really good! Also, it's rated down partially because I'm sort of tired of all the Star Wars audiobooks having the low-rumble sound effect in the background of the narration. It's annoying, it's unnecessarily loud (I'm sure it's damaging my ears), and we don't need that noise.
Star Wars: The Padme Trilogy #2
Padme has been elected Queen of Naboo and with the help of her security head, creates a team of handmaidens to help protect her. When the Trade Federation starts to poke at Naboo, Padme joins in on the political games in order to keep her planet safe.
This was very much a YA read, heavily focused on the teenaged girl audience. I made the mistake of reading these out of order, but I enjoyed this one even though I was not the target demographic. I like Star Wars but I'm not a purist so I felt that this was a great story for Padme. I liked reading about her and her life before Anakin. She was going places and I'm sort of sad that one boy comes along and ruins it for her.
I don't have a ton to say about this one. I think that if you don't mind reading books that include teenaged girls, make up, dresses, and periods, then this will probably be a fun read for you. If you don't like those things, then skip it. But I will say that there's a bit of torture and loads of political intrigue in this book, too, which made it quite interesting.
I gave this one a 3 out of 5. It get's a 3 because the non-teenaged girl stuff was really good! Also, it's rated down partially because I'm sort of tired of all the Star Wars audiobooks having the low-rumble sound effect in the background of the narration. It's annoying, it's unnecessarily loud (I'm sure it's damaging my ears), and we don't need that noise.
Absolutely fantastic, not in the story - because we don't learn anything really very new in the Star Wars canon - but in its dynamics and its characters, Queen's Peril is refreshing and innovative because it manages to establish a tell of strong and unique women in the masculine universe of Star Wars. I loved reading this novel, I discovered different aspects of Padmé Amidala's personality, and especially how much she relied on her handmaidens and friends to ensure that she was protected but especially true herself. Johnston is incredibly talented when it comes to taking the time to unpack human relationships (friends, family, and love) and to me she's one of the best writers in the canon universe. A must read if you're a fan of the prequel movies.
I enjoyed Queen’s Shadow quite a bit with how it fleshed out the relationships between Padmé and her handmaidens, which had been so overlooked for so long, and was really looking forward to Peril building on that. Rather, it does quite the opposite. It spends plenty of time getting this crew into their proper place for the inevitable battle, but, by the time the action starts, there’s only 60-70 pages left in the book and little room for meaningful character development. It feels this book focused on the wrong things and tries to do too much without actually achieving anything. Instead, much of its energy spent on confusing fan-service and unresolved and inconsequential story threads.
When I realized this book would be a retelling of the Phantom Menace through the eyes of Padmé and co., the possibilities seemed endless and I was bought in. But once we actually get to the invasion of Naboo, we rush through every critical event that could provide some profound insight into Padmé’s psyche as she’s forced to make hard wartime decisions within only her first month as Queen.
There are also plenty of other perspectives brought into this story, including Jar Jar, Maul, Qui-Gon, Yoda, Mace Windu, Anakin, and Palpatine. Why? I have no clue. One instance that truly baffled me was when Padmé wakes up and has a midnight conversation with Shmi,. This moment had amazing potential, considering Shmi is Padmé’s future mother-in-law. But within three sentences, the scene ends with little added to these characters and we’re brought to Palpatine’s chambers, where he’s ordering a statue off what I imagine is the galaxy’s version of Amazon Prime. None of these scenes (such as the few sentences describing Geonosians ordering parts for the Death Star) add anything to Padmé’s story other than to make the reader say, “look, Phantom Menace connection!” By the end, this ends becomes more of a FACPOV story around TPM than a stand-alone tale.
Padmé is often forgotten in the larger story of Star Wars. Unfortunately in a book about her transition to Queen, that’s still the case.
When I realized this book would be a retelling of the Phantom Menace through the eyes of Padmé and co., the possibilities seemed endless and I was bought in. But once we actually get to the invasion of Naboo, we rush through every critical event that could provide some profound insight into Padmé’s psyche as she’s forced to make hard wartime decisions within only her first month as Queen.
There are also plenty of other perspectives brought into this story, including Jar Jar, Maul, Qui-Gon, Yoda, Mace Windu, Anakin, and Palpatine. Why? I have no clue. One instance that truly baffled me was when Padmé wakes up and has a midnight conversation with Shmi,. This moment had amazing potential, considering Shmi is Padmé’s future mother-in-law. But within three sentences, the scene ends with little added to these characters and we’re brought to Palpatine’s chambers, where he’s ordering a statue off what I imagine is the galaxy’s version of Amazon Prime. None of these scenes (such as the few sentences describing Geonosians ordering parts for the Death Star) add anything to Padmé’s story other than to make the reader say, “look, Phantom Menace connection!” By the end, this ends becomes more of a FACPOV story around TPM than a stand-alone tale.
Padmé is often forgotten in the larger story of Star Wars. Unfortunately in a book about her transition to Queen, that’s still the case.
I loved Queen's Shadow, and it got my hopes really high for the rest of the trilogy... which is why I'm disappointed and frustrated with Queen's Peril.
Queen's Shadow is the first book of this series that focuses on Padmé and her Handmaidens, and it's set some years after The Phantom Menace, but before Attack of the Clones. In Queen's Peril, we go back in time to the months leading up to TPM and through the movie. Then, Queen's Hope takes us to Revenge of the Sith. This random order bothers me, but it bothers me even more because Queen's Peril actually feels like a first novel, and a very amateur one at that.
While Queen's Shadow does a great job of making it about Padmé and the Handmaidens, only occasionally giving us a peek into other character POVs, Queen's Peril is all over the place. It felt less like a Padmé novel and more like a TPM missing moments collection. We have Yoda's POV, Shmi's POV, Palpatine's POV but also Darth Sidious's POV, and even... Jar Jar Binks' POV. And they're not even related to Padmé. Why did nobody remind the author this was supposed to be a novel about Padmé? I mean, the book has separate one-line sections about Anakin, such as I'm honestly baffled that nobody was like "Hey... this doesn't belong here."
The book also felt like a wasted opportunity to show us so many other things. Queen's Shadow hints at the intensive training the potential Handmaidens and Padmé went through, which I was looking forward to seeing here - and then we didn't. Queen's Shadow tells us about the rift that the decisions taken right after the Battle of Naboo caused in the close relationship Padmé and Quarsh Panaka had - and then it didn't actually take the time to build that relationship. Queen's Shadow shows Padmé grieving Qui-Gon Jinn - and then we don't have even one scene of them together in the book. We fly through TPM, stopping at the most irrelevant moments instead of looking at it through Padmé's eyes. There's a lot of telling and very little showing.
I was also constantly shaken at the contradiction of these teenage girls being so gifted they can be in government positions as high as ruling an entire planet... but they're still human teenagers who are seen by adults as children. I know the root of the problem lies with George Lucas making Padmé 14 in TPM, but I think it would have made more sense to either: a) have Naboo humans mature faster than Earth humans, so that they're young adults instead of teenagers at 14, or b) have the Handmaidens be older women, so that the Queen isn't surrounded exclusively by other children and older men trying to dictate what she does while she's socially isolated from the rest of the world at a critical developmental age. Having Padmé play Panaka and then put him in his place didn't make me go "oh look at her, so badass" but rather "she's literally a child", a thought that came up several times while reading.
All in all, I was surprised in a bad way by this book. I expected a lot more from E.K. Johnston, but while I'd still recommend Queen's Shadow, Queen's Peril isn't an unmissable read. I'm still looking forward to reading Queen's Hope, and wish it manages to recapture the quality of the first book.
ETA: Forgot to add, the ending felt completely random and disconnected from the story - but that's true for most of the book.
Queen's Shadow is the first book of this series that focuses on Padmé and her Handmaidens, and it's set some years after The Phantom Menace, but before Attack of the Clones. In Queen's Peril, we go back in time to the months leading up to TPM and through the movie. Then, Queen's Hope takes us to Revenge of the Sith. This random order bothers me, but it bothers me even more because Queen's Peril actually feels like a first novel, and a very amateur one at that.
While Queen's Shadow does a great job of making it about Padmé and the Handmaidens, only occasionally giving us a peek into other character POVs, Queen's Peril is all over the place. It felt less like a Padmé novel and more like a TPM missing moments collection. We have Yoda's POV, Shmi's POV, Palpatine's POV but also Darth Sidious's POV, and even... Jar Jar Binks' POV. And they're not even related to Padmé. Why did nobody remind the author this was supposed to be a novel about Padmé? I mean, the book has separate one-line sections about Anakin, such as
Spoiler
"Anakin Skywalker liked flying."The book also felt like a wasted opportunity to show us so many other things. Queen's Shadow hints at the intensive training the potential Handmaidens and Padmé went through, which I was looking forward to seeing here - and then we didn't. Queen's Shadow tells us about the rift that the decisions taken right after the Battle of Naboo caused in the close relationship Padmé and Quarsh Panaka had - and then it didn't actually take the time to build that relationship. Queen's Shadow shows Padmé grieving Qui-Gon Jinn - and then we don't have even one scene of them together in the book. We fly through TPM, stopping at the most irrelevant moments instead of looking at it through Padmé's eyes. There's a lot of telling and very little showing.
I was also constantly shaken at the contradiction of these teenage girls being so gifted they can be in government positions as high as ruling an entire planet... but they're still human teenagers who are seen by adults as children. I know the root of the problem lies with George Lucas making Padmé 14 in TPM, but I think it would have made more sense to either: a) have Naboo humans mature faster than Earth humans, so that they're young adults instead of teenagers at 14, or b) have the Handmaidens be older women, so that the Queen isn't surrounded exclusively by other children and older men trying to dictate what she does while she's socially isolated from the rest of the world at a critical developmental age. Having Padmé play Panaka and then put him in his place didn't make me go "oh look at her, so badass" but rather "she's literally a child", a thought that came up several times while reading.
All in all, I was surprised in a bad way by this book. I expected a lot more from E.K. Johnston, but while I'd still recommend Queen's Shadow, Queen's Peril isn't an unmissable read. I'm still looking forward to reading Queen's Hope, and wish it manages to recapture the quality of the first book.
ETA: Forgot to add, the ending felt completely random and disconnected from the story - but that's true for most of the book.
wish it was just a story about padme and the handmaidens cuz that was suuuuuper interesting. getting into the movie stuff kinda took me away from the story, but v fun read overall
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A quick, easy, and enjoyable read. Around the half way point, the book catches up to the beginning of The Phantom Menace, and the pacing becomes extremely disjointed as it jumps around within the movie. If you are not like me, and haven't seen the movie so many times you could quote every line, you should definitely rewatch it before reading this book or you will be very lost.
The first half of this SLAPPED — seeing how padme became Queen and gathered her handmaidens and built a team of underestimated girl bodyguards. The last half felt more like a companion piece to the movies than a book in its own right and that was a bummer. I’ve always liked how the Star Wars books I’ve read stand alone and are able to be enjoyed without the films, but this one felt like a paratext attached too firmly to the hip of the central text to really soar. That said: am I gonna read the next one? Absolutely. Bonus points for making at least three of the handmaidens gay.
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated