Hyperspace Theories

Many Star Wars fans, including the team here at FANgirl, have long urged the franchise to release a novel centered on Padmé and her political career. That moment has finally arrived from Disney Lucasfilm Press, in the form of the Young Adult novel Queen’s Shadow by E.K. Johnston, who previously wrote the YA novel Ahsoka. As usual, we begin with our meta segment, in which we consider influential forces and figures that have shaped the Star Wars franchise. Part of what makes this Padmé novel special is that Johnston is one of the first Star Wars creators from the Prequel Trilogy generation to attain the opportunity to contribute as a professional. In interviews, she shares that she first saw The Phantom Menace on her fifteenth birthday, and immediately built her fandom around Padmé, Sabé, and the rest of Amidala’s handmaidens. From fanfic to her career as a published author to books about Ahsoka and Padmé, Johnston brings priorities, values, and emphases to her Star Wars work that differ greatly from most contr