Episode 288 – Shadows of the Empire
The Worst Bestsellers
Worst Bestsellers
4.5 • 609 Ratings
🗓️ 4 May 2026
⏱️ 87 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
May the 4th be with you! (If you’re listening to this on the day it comes out! If not: may the Force be with you.) In honor of this faux Star Wars holiday, we read Shadows of the Empire by Steve Perry. We were joined by writer and Star Wars enthusiast Nanci Schwartz to discuss this story that’s more than a video game and less than a movie. Many Bothans died to bring you this episode.
Readers advisory: Here.
Footnotes: Episode 173 – The Courtship of Princess Leia
Gungans and Daddies: All That Jizz
Coming up next: Adult Braces by Lindy West.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to the worst bestsellers, where we read about the non-consensual courtship of Princess Leia so you don't have to. |
| 0:16.7 | I'm Kate. |
| 0:17.9 | And I'm Renata. |
| 0:19.2 | And for this episode, we read Shadows of the Empire by Steve Perry. |
| 0:24.0 | Joining us to discuss this novel that could have been a video game is Nancy, science fiction |
| 0:28.8 | author and puncher of sexist aliens. Hello, Nancy. Hello. Thank you for having me. |
| 0:35.7 | Of course. We are delighted to have the foremost Star Wars expert in my friend's group on for an that is dropping on May the 4th. |
| 0:49.8 | Nancy, I want to say happy May the Fourth be with you day. |
| 0:55.3 | Thank you. |
| 0:56.6 | I am a May the Fourth begrudging acceptor. |
| 1:02.6 | I'm an orthodox Star Wars person. |
| 1:05.2 | I think Star Wars Day should be May 25th, but I'll accept any Star Wars accept any Star Wars love. May the 4th is too commercial |
| 1:13.2 | these days. It really is. Plus my, plus my anniversary is May 25th. Oh, there you go. All right. Well, |
| 1:21.2 | if you are listening to this episode on the day that it premieres, it is May the 4th, and we decided to |
| 1:26.9 | just get a little fucking cute about it |
| 1:29.1 | and put out a Star Wars episode. So |
| 1:30.9 | I hope you all remember to leave |
| 1:33.1 | out your blue milk for |
| 1:34.8 | Jedi Santa. |
| 1:39.2 | George Lucas, maybe. |
| 1:44.0 | He will come down your chimney and drink your blue milk and leave you another slightly different edition of a film. |
| 1:54.9 | No, you got to buy it. |
... |
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