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3.95 AVERAGE
3.95 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Queen's Peril is a solid fun YA book that aligns with the Star Wars movie canon, following the time just after Padmé Amidala is elected as Queen, through to the end of The Phantom Menace. This story gives more background to the events of Episode 1 (admittedly convincing me to appreciate the film more than I have previously) and explores the relationship between Padmé and her handmaidens.
The aforementioned friendship between the young Queen and her handmaidens/skilled decoys is definitely one of the strongest parts of this story. I particularly loved seeing the development between Padmé and Sabé from work colleagues to best friends who would throw themselves into danger to save the other, it truly gives more meaning and understanding to the decoy plot featured in Episode 1.
The first part of the story features a lot of scenes where the female characters were able to act as teenage girls: partying, dealing with friendship issues and menstrual problems. This was so refreshing to see in the Star Wars universe where a lot of the female characters are (debatably) characterised as perfect action heroines. To see these girls having mundane problems and conversations truly humanised the characters, which I think is needed in more science fiction aimed at young girls.
Speaking of TPM, though this book lends insight and adds extra scenes to those portrayed in the first film I must admit that some of the weakest points of the story come from where the book and film crossover. Whereas the author could have given us more insight into Padmé's thoughts, feelings and the decision process behind her actions as seen in TPM, during the last third of the story she instead became a secondary character as any of her prexisting action scenes from the film were glossed over or briefly mentioned after the fact.
Where the author had creative freedom, such as the build-up to TPM or in any scenes set during the film which delved into the experiences of Saché & Yané or giving insight into the thoughts of my girl Sabé, the story really shone.
Overall, this story is a fun and easy read for Prequel fans of the Star Wars franchise, but be aware when going into this book that it *is* aimed at teenage girls (makes sense for a story about a group of teens) and very much reads as such.
The aforementioned friendship between the young Queen and her handmaidens/skilled decoys is definitely one of the strongest parts of this story. I particularly loved seeing the development between Padmé and Sabé from work colleagues to best friends who would throw themselves into danger to save the other, it truly gives more meaning and understanding to the decoy plot featured in Episode 1.
The first part of the story features a lot of scenes where the female characters were able to act as teenage girls: partying, dealing with friendship issues and menstrual problems. This was so refreshing to see in the Star Wars universe where a lot of the female characters are (debatably) characterised as perfect action heroines. To see these girls having mundane problems and conversations truly humanised the characters, which I think is needed in more science fiction aimed at young girls.
Speaking of TPM, though this book lends insight and adds extra scenes to those portrayed in the first film I must admit that some of the weakest points of the story come from where the book and film crossover. Whereas the author could have given us more insight into Padmé's thoughts, feelings and the decision process behind her actions as seen in TPM, during the last third of the story she instead became a secondary character as any of her prexisting action scenes from the film were glossed over or briefly mentioned after the fact.
Where the author had creative freedom, such as the build-up to TPM or in any scenes set during the film which delved into the experiences of Saché & Yané or giving insight into the thoughts of my girl Sabé, the story really shone.
Overall, this story is a fun and easy read for Prequel fans of the Star Wars franchise, but be aware when going into this book that it *is* aimed at teenage girls (makes sense for a story about a group of teens) and very much reads as such.
adventurous
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Interesting to know how Padmé’s handmaidens went from normal girls to being security agents and body doubles at such a young age but the second half of the novel falls apart as it refuses to fully recount the scenes from The Phantom Menace that are alluded to and built up in here, making the story ultimately clunky and confusing. Keeping this in mind, it is a nice companion to TPM.
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Oh my god??? So much better than Queens Shadow. I kind of wish we got this book first. Story was amazing, the character developments for every single handmaiden was amazing. Seeing all f them get recruited. Genuinely cared for each of the characters. Added very important detail and depth to The Phantom Menace which is my least favourite movie. Even the small little ‘cameos’ from Anakin who *liked flying* or from Sidious, they felt refreshing and made the book feel like a continuation of the film which was great. I think the book has two different feet to stand on. 1) is that it interlinks so well with TPM. And 2) is that it works so well as an independent story. Loved this book a lot a lot.
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
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:
No