#books queensshadow ekjohnston starwars disneypublishing handmaidens padme

[juanjohnl]

QUEEN’S SHADOW REVIEW

“I am Queen Amidala. This is my decoy, my protection, my loyal bodyguard. I’m sorry for the deception, but it was necessary to protect myself.”

How does one become a handmaiden to the queen of Naboo? How is she trained? Does she just need makeup and hair training or should she be able to not only defend herself but also her queen? If called upon to impersonate the queen herself, what preparation does she need to credibly fool not just a potential enemy, but more importantly people who know the queen well?

If she doesn’t make the final cut, does that mean she’s of no use? 

Not only that, once the queen’s term of office is complete, what happens to the handmaidens? How do they apply their training to other walks of life? Do they even want to move on to a new life, or do they prefer to stick with their former queen?

And if they do stick with the former queen, how do they incorporate things like a love life? How do they balance a life of service to one woman while being romantically involved with someone else?

As for the former queen herself, how does she transition from ruling a planet with all the challenges that brings — including an invasion — to working in an entirely different political environment like the Galactic Senate? Once she’s in this environment, does she want to stay in it or pursue other interests? 

Given the clothing she needs to wear — whether as a queen or a senator — is that clothing merely meant for decoration or could it deflect a blaster bolt? If the queen or senator needs to be in more than once place at the same time, is it physically possible for her to switch with a chosen double with minimal time needed to make the change?

If you — like a good chunk of Star Wars fans — grew up watching the prequel trilogy and ever wondered who were the mysterious women who made up Padme Amidala’s retinue in The Phantom Menace, rarely leaving her side, always seeming part of the background, then E.K. Johnston’s “Queen’s Shadow” is the book for you.

“Queen’s Shadow” is set between Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones, with Padme, the newly appointed senator from Naboo, and her handmaidens navigating their way through galactic politics. 

Johnston takes Padme, Sabe, Dorme, Corde, Rabe, Eirtae, and other handmaidens and fleshes out their characters. Each one has a strength, whether it’s being a good shot with a blaster, an expert computer hacker, a makeup artist or something else. Some have the physical bone structure and are able to mimic Padme’s voice so well that even old family friends are fooled. Padme may have been the one elected queen or appointed senator, but she and her handmaidens operate as a team.

“Queen’s Shadow” also features Padme’s first interactions with characters like Mon Mothma, Mina Bonteri, Rush Clovis and others, so fans of The Clone Wars cartoon series will likely get something out of this book, too. 

A sizable chunk of the book is spent with Padme meeting and interacting with Bail Organa of Alderaan, and anyone familiar with Star Wars knows the end result of that.

In navigating the Galactic Senate, Padme has the additional burden of being the one who helped depose Chancellor Valorum and bring on the rise of Palpatine, her fellow Nabooian. Many of her Senate colleagues naturally have an initial distrust of someone who, while so young, brought on such a change in the chamber. Consequently, she needs to work to establish allies in order to pass legislation.

Reading a Star Wars book about women and written by a woman is really amazing, particularly in the smallest of details — like the interactions between Padme and her handmaidens, or how clothing or makeup is applied — that chances are most male writers most likely would not “get” the same way.

Johnston gives the senator and her handmaidens agency, whether it be intellectual, physical or sexual. When they want something, they go after it. Like the rest of humanity, some handmaidens are portrayed straight, some bi, some gay and some you’re just not sure. That’s who they just happen to be.

The book takes the term “Handmaiden” and gives it a strength that it may never have had before. Just because they’re able to blend into the background unnoticed doesn’t mean they’re not capable of defending Padme when the situation calls for it. That said, Padme is thoroughly capable of taking care of herself when the need arises. 

The handmaiden that gets the most attention is Sabe, Padme’s closest friend and the one who most often switches with Padme as queen or senator when needed. 

Sabe gets to go on her own mission with Tonra, the nephew of Captain Panaka and a sergeant in the Royal Security Forces. Their budding romance is a delight to read.

One thing’s for sure: After reading this book, you’ll never watch the Prequel Trilogy — or for that matter The Clone Wars TV series with the episodes that feature Padme — the same, regardless of whether you’re a fan of those series or not.   

E.K. Johnston’s “Queen’s Shadow” is now available for purchase in hardcover, digital and audiobook formats (with Cat Taber — the voice of Padme in the Clone Wars series — narrating).