When fourteen-year-old Padmé Naberrie wins the election for Queen of Naboo, she adopts the name Amidala and leaves her family to the rule from the royal palace. To keep her safe and secure, she’ll need a group of skilled handmaidens who can be her assistants, confidantes, defenders, and decoys. Each girl is selected for her particular talents, but it will be up to Padmé to unite them as a group. … group. When Naboo is invaded by forces of the Trade Federation, Queen Amidala and her handmaidens will face the greatest test–of themselves, and of each other.
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I enjoyed this book a lot more than I thought I would. I was never a huge fan of the Prequels, but Phantom Menace was my favorite (very unpopular opinion I know!). It was not until the Clone Wars did I appreciate the full trilogy. This book is the third prequel era book I have read, and this includes legends and canons. Queen’s Peril takes place prior and concurrently to the events of The Phantom Menace. You do not have to watch Phantom Menace to understand what is going on in this book, but it will make the reading experience richer.
What we learn in this book was how Amidala transitioned from civilian to Queen. It was interesting to learn how different the author compared Padme’s views to the previous Queen and her current Captain of the Guard. To brush up on Naboo politics, Naboo Monarchs are elected rulers for the Royal House of Naboo, the monarchy that governs the human denizens of the planet. The Naboo often elects young women, believing they possessed a form of pure, childlike wisdom that the adults lacked. They hold campaigns and the people vote on who they want the successor to be. The term lengths are 2 years but could be reelected for another term given the max of term years 4.
Even though the book is called Queen’s Peril, I felt like this book is more about the handmaidens. They seemed to be the star of this book. It was nice to read and learn on how the handmaidens came to be and who they were before they became part of the royal court. I knew from legends they taught the handmaidens to be a personal set of bodyguards to the current monarch, and what I loved about this book was how the author took it a step further. Originally, the idea was to have one handmaiden: Tsabin, and she was to be the decoy, but because Padmé and Tsabin got along easily, they decide there should be more handmaidens so that Padmé going undercover will stand out less.
Panaka found Padme four other girls to serve as her handmaidens: Rabene Tonsort, Eirtama Ballory, Suyan Higin and Sashah Adova. He chose these four not because of their similarities to Amidala, but because of their talents. Instead of staying at the bunkers where most of the royal employees stayed, Amidala had her handmaidens live with her so they can become close and talk about their plans. When the handmaidens and Amidala learned about each other, they designated themselves to a specific job by what they were good at and why Panaka sought them out. With the four new girls and Tsabin agreeing on their roles in Padmé’s service, at Rabene’s suggestion they all take on new names to match Amidala’s given one, for privacy, loyalty and so a disguised Padmé will stand out less: Rabé, Eirtaé, Yané, Saché and Sabé.
One reason I enjoyed this book was because this book explained what was going on during the Naboo occupation. The author did not give us The Phantom Menace, but what was going on during that time. When Padme leaves the ship to go with Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan, the author gives the readers what was going on the ship with Sabe, Rabe and Eirtae. During the scenes on Coruscant and other scenes, the author gave us what was going on in the camps and what Yane and Sache were planning. Even though this gives nothing to the Star Wars lore, it adds background stories and lore to Naboo and the citizens. The author gave us new characters such as Panaka’s wife Mariek Panaka and names to characters we see in the movie.
I recommend this book to those who liked the character Padme, the handmaidens and who likes books that give movies a different light. This was a fun read and I am going to read the next book in this possible trilogy Queen’s Shadow.
You can find this review on my website:
https://www.charliadamswriter.com
Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
~Quick Statistics~
Overall: 4.5/5 Stars
Plot: 3/5 Stars
Setting: 5/5 Stars
Characters: 4/5 Stars
Writing: 5/5 Stars
Memorability: 5/5 Stars
~Quick Review~
I absolutely loved Queen’s Peril by E. K. Johnston and cannot wait to see other Star Wars novels that E. K. Johnston will release in the future. However, fans and/or readers who have not watched The Phantom Menace (Star Wars: Episode 1) will most likely be confused in the second half of the novel.
~Other Information~
Publisher: Disney Lucasfilm Press
Page Count: 288 pages
Release Date: June 2, 2020
I would recommend reading Queen’s Peril only if you have watched the Star Wars movies (at least The Phantom Menace). The first half of the novel is focused entirely on Padmé becoming queen and how she acted thereafter. Halfway through the novel it starts overlapping with the events in The Phantom Menace, so watching the movie before reading Queen’s Peril is a really good idea.
~Quick Synopsis~
Padmé Naberrie is a young girl from Naboo who becomes queen at the age of fourteen. She takes on the personality and life of Queen Amidala, relying on her handmaiden’s friendship and skills to not only keep her safe but provide her with a life outside politics. Everything is going well until the Trade Federation, run by Viceroy Nute Gunray, invades and takes over Naboo, causing her citizens to suffer. Now Padmé must take back her planet before it’s too late. And with the help of her handmaidens, it might just be possible.
~Characters~
Queen’s Peril has multiple points of view throughout the novel. These include Padmé, her handmaidens (honestly, I forget the names but I’ll get to that later), Padmé’s parents, Captain Quarsh Panaka (and his wife, Mariek), Senator Palpatine, Jar Jar Binks, Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, Darth Maul, Darth Sidious, etc.
However, our main character, Queen Padmé Amidala Naberrie, is amazing. Obviously, if you are a Star Wars fan you most likely know about how incredible and powerful Padmé is. If you don’t, well, let me just say that Padmé is a strong, empowering, protective, compassionate, selfless woman. I think we should just appreciate that Padmé became the queen of Naboo at the age of fourteen, and she rocked at it. Seriously. Her love for Naboo is unparalleled, and that love for her home planet fuels her to solve all of its problems. I can’t express enough how strong and powerful Padmé truly is. Also, since I grew up watching her in Star Wars episodes 1-3, it was really awesome to get to see how she became queen and what she did in her new position immediately after.
An issue that I had with the characters was that there are so many introduced in Queen’s Peril, and yet we hardly get any information about them. Pretty much the other characters besides Padmé are in the novel purely because they were in the movies. Even Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Anakin Skywalker do not get any huge recognition or parts in the novel, even though in The Phantom Menace they are a huge part of the movie and it’s ending. Considering that Anakin Skywalker was the entire reason they won the Battle of Naboo, I find it odd that him winning the war for Padmé isn’t even mentioned. However, many parts in Phantom Menace were skipped over in Queen’s Peril, which I’ll talk about later.
Personally, it was really hard for me to keep all of the handmaidens straight, which I guess their plan was to make it hard to distinguish who was who for the safety of Padmé, but still. I constantly had to go back to the page where the girls decide what their new names are going to be so I could understand who was who throughout the book. It was inconvenient but I guess their plans worked? Anyways, I loved how there was more attention on the handmaidens than there was in the movie. Also, I should mention that there is LGBTQ+ representation in the novel, which I loved (as there is very little representation in the Star Wars universe). Sabé falls in love with the daughter of a neighboring planet’s ruler, and Yané and Saché confess their love for each other before the Battle of Naboo.
Overall, the character building was good, just not perfect.
~Writing and Setting~
I had no issues with the writing; E. K. Johnston described everything perfectly, and I had a clear understanding of what was going on throughout the book.
The setting in Queen’s Peril is amazing. Practically every planet mentioned was described to some amount of detail, even the ones that weren’t necessarily important to the plot. The entire novel is about Padmé doing what she can for Naboo, her home planet, so I’d say that the setting definitely affected Padmé and her choices. We learn a lot more about Naboo than we do in The Phantom Menace, which I greatly appreciated. Not only do we learn about it’s politics, but we also learn about what Naboo is known for throughout the galaxy, what the citizens do for a living, and how involved Naboo is with other planets in its sector. While not everyone might find this information interesting, it satisfies me to finally be able to learn more about Naboo and how it made its mark on Padmé.
~Plot~
The major issue with Queen’s Peril lies with the plot. Honestly, I feel like E. K. Johnston tried to pack too much into one novel which ended in leaving key details and events out. As mentioned before, Queen’s Peril takes place before and during The Phantom Menace (Episode 1 of Star Wars). The beginning of the novel was at a perfect pace for me and all made sense. However, once you get to the second half of the novel (where it overlaps with The Phantom Menace), it is really hard to keep track of what is happening, even if you have watched the movie. So many events and information is left out during the second half of the book that I constantly had to refer back to my knowledge of he Phantom Menace to understand what was happening. For example, all in one chapter we see Padmé get captured by the Trade Federation, then all of a sudden she is in space with Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan, then they’re stranded on Tatooine, and all of a sudden they’re at Coruscant. Not a chapter later they’re back on Naboo and in the next chapter they’ve won the battle, but Qui-Gon’s dead so they have to host a funeral for him. There is no mention of how Padmé escapes the Trade Federation, why she’s stranded on or gets off Naboo, why Anakin is at Coruscant and the battle with them, how they win the war, or even how Qui-Gon dies. There’s so many places where critical information is missing that it was slightly confusing to read (even though I’ve watched the movie a bunch of times and knew what was supposed to be happening). I don’t know whether E. K. Johnston didn’t want to bore fans with information they already knew, but then why have the second half of the novel overlap with The Phantom Menace? It would have been much better for the novel to recreate The Phantom Menace but have it from Padme’s point of view. However, I was able to overlook the fact that major events were missed and appreciate the first half of the novel.
~Overall Review~
I really enjoyed Queen’s Peril by E. K. Johnston, but would recommend that the reader be familiar with The Phantom Menace and Star Wars before reading, otherwise they most likely will be confused with the second half of the novel.
“Whatever happened next, however it was recorded and remembered, she was entirely on her own.”
‘Star Wars Queen’s Peril’ by E.K. Johnston is a story from the other side of Trade Federation’s blockade of the planet Naboo during The Phantom Menace era.
We’ve already seen the ins and outs of the liberation of the Naboo people and the role Amidala plays in standing against that incursion.. to a degree. So, we don’t see a lot of that here. Incidents like the ousting of Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum, the introduction of Jar Jar Binks, the Skywalker pod racing, the Maul hangar duel, and the death of Qui-Gon are mentioned.. but mostly they act as historical landmarks on the timeline.. allowing us to draw the parallels between the two stories.. and know where we are.
What’s wonderful about this book is that it’s more of an intimate portrait of Padme and her inner circle. It begins before she even rises to power. I enjoyed learning about the steps it took her to get there and seeing a bit of what she was like, separated from the Queen persona.
I also learned a lot about things I’d always questioned and that was deeply satisfying.. like the reason she dressed as she did in the first place. I’d always found those costumes of hers to be so.. well.. gaudy. But to learn the extent of their purpose.. which was as heavily layered as the costumes themselves.. that was fascinating. Seeing the group of girls develop the Queen’s image together was amazing, how and why they adopted the things they did.
“He found the weak points, the cracks where the light got out, and shoved the darkness in.”
Watching her go in as an idealistic citizen.. a smart, powerful female protagonist.. and surround herself with others like her, that too was intriguing. It gave me a whole new appreciation for a character I’d honestly never been that fond of. She was more than ‘able,’ she was calculating and driven. She knew how to show humility without seeming weak.
If I’d read this book before The Phantom Menace, I feel like I would have see in through an entirely different set of eyes. Actually, now I think I need to go back and experience The Phantom Menace again armed with the knew knowledge. Some of the early glimpses of Darth Sidious and Maul are especially interesting.
“Most would have flared out in glorious rage, taking untold numbers with them into the blackness of the void, but not Maul. Maul was made for better things, and his anger was his fuel.”
I loved getting to know the handmaidens. Each of them had distinctively different skills they brought to the table and their personalities and backgrounds were just as diverse. This story gave those supporting characters real depth.. and though I started out unsure of one of them, she absolutely had my respect before long.
Watching her build those relationships, along with the relationships between herself and her Queen’s Guard was so much fun. She was at times.. frustrating.. for her protectors because she didn’t just let them walk all over her, but she chose her battles carefully.. giving in on some issues and standing strong on others.
In hindsight, I picked up this title thinking I was going to read a story about the Queen.. and I did.. but I had no idea how well I’d get to know all those close to her. How much I’d come to like the handmaidens and Captain Panaka and his intelligence officer wife. This story isn’t just hers, it’s theirs.. and I loved every minute of it.
(More reviews like this at Betwixt The Sheets.)
(I received this title as an ARC. All opinions are mine and freely given.)