Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.

This book was received as an ARC from HarperCollins Children's Books - HarperCollins through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

Madeleine Roux has done something only a few YA authors have done, take a dominant franchise such as Dungeons & Dragons, and write a satisfying thrilling adventure that will leave you begging for more. We meet Zelli, a human disguised as a minotaur so she can attend Dungeon Academy where Dragons and Monsters alike are taught to hate, fear, and kill humans. Zelli learns in class about Allidora Steelstrike, a human adventurer feared by the dragons & monsters, and she discovers she is ancestrally connected to her which forces her to take a dangerous quest to discover the secrets and the truth of the person Zelli truly is. Along for the ride, Zelli befriends a vegan owlbear, a cowardly kobold, and a shapeshifting mimic, her only friends in the academy. Reading along I was expecting her friends to find out Zelli is a human, but like all exciting adventures I did not see unexpected twists happening that eventually lead to a meaningful ending.

A franchise adventure truly for the books. This book deserves 5 stars.

I was so thrilled to see a middle grade novel, WITH PICTURES, staring a misfit adventuring party in the D&D world! Having played D&D for over two decades, Zilli's adventuring party is exactly what every party should be. An amazing bunch of weirdos forming lifelong friendships while they explore dungeons. Zilli is a human in a world where humans are the enemy, but she manages to be nearly invisible to her peers, until she realizes she has a striking resemblance to a hero of old. Now she and her friends want to find out the truth and ultimately find their place in the world. Such a great novel! I hope it inspires more kids to try out Dungeons and Dragons.

A standard fantasy novel in the framework of Dungeons and Dragons. If you like dungeon crawl video games, give this one a try.

Interesting take on dungeons and dragons. I’ve never played the game, but know some that do. I enjoyed the parts where she was getting to know the other monsters and learning about the world that had raised her. But those times seemed to move very quickly and we’re glossed over. While the action scenes, which should have moved faster, were drawn out and things got a little boring. I would like to try the second book if there is one, but these will not become part of my personal collection.

This was a cute read. It's got a great message about found family and finding your place in the world, and I love that the "monsters" are the heroes and embraced. I grew up really hating a lot of books that villainized the magical creatures or removed the magic of the story by the end. It killed the story for me, but this definitely would have been such a good book for child me.

My one nitpicky complaint is that this was shelved as a graphic novel on Netgalley--hence why I requested it--and it's not at all. It's a children's chapter book with some illustrations. I was pretty peeved to find this out as I was not interested in reading a full chapter book and wanted a cute little comic romp to read between some of my heavier fantasy reads. So just be aware of that. It's definitely a J FIC chapter book.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher I was able to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
***
Dungeon Academy: No Humans Allowed is a fun middle grade Dungeons and Dragons adventure that follows Zelli(dora) Stormclash.
Zelli is a student at Dungeon Academy where monsters and creatures train to become the things adventurers meet and fight against. She is also the thing that all the students are warned against, a human. Her Minotaur mothers have been raising her as one of them since she was found in a basket and she wears a headband with horns attached and a tail pinned on to allow her to attend the academy.
When Zelli learns about the most recent students who were sent out to the villages not returning she takes it upon herself to look beyond the academy to find them and also, possibly, hopefully the great human adventurer who looks startling like her Allidora Steelstrike. Along for the ride comes some of her fellow academy students, a vegan owlbear, a blustery kobold and an booksmart mimic.
***
This book was a fun read. I mostly requested it because of the author, whose work I’ve enjoyed in the past, and also because I’ve been slowly getting into D&D the last year or so with some friends and wanted to see how it’d be interpreted in a book.
Zelli is a great character with a heart of gold, struggling with her place in the world. She knows she’s not a Minotaur but she has been raised by them and loves them and looks up to them but struggles knowing what humans usually are and do to creatures. She has questions about why she was left by her mother and wonders if her place isn’t to be among other humans.
Zelli’s companions are fun and an interesting sort and definitely add to the enjoyableness of the adventure they go on. Even someone not familiar with D&D should be able to find this book enjoyable, the art inside helps illustrate some of the characters for those unaware of what some of the creatures are and it’s just really nice and fun artwork.
Would definitely recommend for those readers looking for an adventure.

It was a little difficult to get into. If you are unfamiliar with the D&D universe, you are a bit lost with the sudden mention of other species with little to no description. However, once you get into the story, it's fun.

'Dungeons & Dragons: Dungeon Academy: No Humans Allowed' by Madeleine Roux with illustrations by Timothy Probert is an ebook adventure for younger readers based on the popular role playing game.

Zelli goes to Dungeon Academy, but there is something different about her. She is human but her mothers dress her like a minotaur. One day in class, she reads about a famous adventurer that looks very much like her. She is joined by an oddball group of friends, including a vegan owlbear, but what will happen once she finds what she thinks she wants?

This is a good story about finding yourself and the right group of friends along the way. The illustrations were good as was the feel of the D&D lore. All I know is i now want an owlbear for a friend.

I received a review copy of this ebook from HarperCollins Children's Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.

“Meant to be” – a phrase weighed down with so many expectations… especially when you are an orphaned human who has been adopted by two female minotaurs while attending Dungeon Academy. Zellidora is forced to disguise herself so that she is not caught in the open as a gross human!!

It is in her History of Horrible Humans class that she learns about the greatest human adventurer, Allidora Steelstrike… Hmmmmm, Allidora looks the spitting image of Zelli. It’s enough of a connection to spur her to action. She wants to find out her true lineage. To shed her fake horns, her fake tail, and maybe be herself…

With the help fo the other Bad News Owlbears… Yep, a vegan owlbear, a shapeshifting mimic, and less-than-courageous kobold all reach out to Zelli and join her gang. Off they go to the see what else there is in the world, besides the prejudices of Dungeon Academy.

A laundry list of things to love about this one:

Cute illustrations that part of me wanted to just jump into. (You ever get that feeling??)
I’m always in for a “Monsters are people too” tale… Ummm, Sesame Street was my favorite show growing up!!
LGBTQ+ Rep: One character uses they/them pronouns and Zelli’s adoptive parents are lesbian minotaurs.
I read several chapters with my 8-year-old and she enjoyed it. Most importantly for the D&D fan in me, the author includes many of the D&D details, classes of characters and other key ideas. Will this turn the littles in my family into dice-rollers!?!?!!?
One criticism: Some of the writing is uneven; I thought there were some pacing issues. Background info vs pushing plot forward…
Overall, a very fun read that belongs in middle-school libraries, bedside tables, and book shelves.

Check out this preview and this trailer.

4 out of 5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley, HarperCollins Children’s Books, and the author for an advanced copy for review.

Thanks to NeGalley and HarperCollins for an advanced copy to review! Super great middle grade novel about finding yourself in a fantasy setting. I love D&D and this was so great. The illustrations went really well with the story and were fantastically done. The characters were so perfect and even if you might not know all of the monsters, the author does a great job of explaining what they all are without the textbook explanation. Perfect for young D&D fans and fantasy readers alike.

A cute, middle grade adventure novel, Dungeon Academy: No Humans Allowed provides a fun look at what life is like for people in the D&D universe who aren’t adventurers. The pacing is quick and the style witty, it mostly manages to avoid the twee-ness that’s a problem in middle grade literature. The cast of characters is also inclusive in several encouraging ways; the main character, a precocious human girl with dark skin and natural hair, was adopted and raised by two female Minotaurs. Another character uses they/them pronouns. There are also very cute illustrations throughout that sometimes interact with the text.

This was a really cute, engaging, and charming entry in the "Monsters are people too" genre of fantasy books. Mix in some destiny, some "the adults won't believe us," and some "team misfit" fun and you have a middle grade book that is action packed, thoughtful, fun, and clearly set up for a long series. It uses the core monsters and classes of D&D well, the illustrations add a to to the narrative, and while the character growth is somewhat standard hero's journey, there are some interesting choices made around family and destiny. Looking forward to reading more of this!

Overall, I think this was a cute story and a good book for children that are interested in D&D. It isn't necessarily a beginner story for those interested in starting dungeons and dragons. The characters were cute and so was the story. I like the art as well. That being said, I would recommend it more so for kids already invested in D&D related stories and games due to having prior knowledge.

This is a solidly cute chapter book. I admit that when I saw the ARC I asked for it because the cover art was adorable and it was listed as a graphic novel. It’s actually a heavily illustrated chapter book. It would have been adorable if it had been a pure graphic novel. It’s about a human girl left in a basket and raised by a pair of minotaur women. She’s “disguised” as a minotaur herself, though very poorly disguised and attending a school for young monsters. It’s a pretty wholesome story, aside from the child abandonment…. about friendship and family. It would be a fine choice for a kid of the right age who likes fantasy.

As a big fan of D&D, this middle grade story made me happy to my soul. The academy trains monsters and magical creatures. Zelli is a human. Her parents disguise her as a minotaur so that she can blend in with the other monstrous students. She does her best to not get noticed, but it's a bit difficult to hide what you really are, especially when attending classes like "The History of Horrible Humans.''

This book is just so much fun! The illustrations are wonderful, and the humorous adventure is entertaining. Perfect middle grade book! As an adult and RPG player, I enjoyed it too!

The fun story also has some important lessons on embracing differences and the importance of true friendships.

Loved this book!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Harper Collins. All opinions expressed are entirely my own**

Dungeons & Dragons: Dungeon Academy: No Humans Allowed! is very entertaining and will make you laugh a lot.

I thought this was going to be a graphic novel but it turned out to be a novel with beautiful illustrations. I loved the artwork but wished there was more illustrations sprinkled in each chapter.

Dungeons & Dragons: Dungeon Academy: No Humans Allowed! is a great story. I liked the themes of friendship and acceptance. Zelli’s story was awesome. She goes on a journey to find out who she truly is and even makes some friends along the way.

I really enjoyed the fun premise of Zelli being a human at an academy full of monsters. What person who played Dungeons & Dragons as a child didn’t picture themselves in a dungeon fighting alongside their favorite monsters??!!

I look forward to reading book 2 but I do hope it has more illustrations.

Stay awesome and keep reading!

"Dungeons & Dragons: Dungeon Academy: No Humans Allowed!" is a fun, tongue-in-cheek coming of age story for fans of the classic tabletop RPG.

I would not call "Dungeon Academy" a graphic novel; it's a novel with illustrations. The artwork is simple, but cute, and it's fun to see the sweet and spunky Zelli as a girl of color in a fantasy universe.

My biggest criticism of "Dungeon Academy" is that the story heavily relies on the reader's familiarity with the world of "Dungeons & Dragons." This is not an introduction for the uninitiated; readers will need to know about owlbears, kobolds, gelatinous cubes, beholders, and more to get the many references and jokes in the book. Despite this, I would recommend "Dungeon Academy" to D&D-loving parents and kids who are looking for a lighthearted dungeon adventure.

This story is about unexpected friendships and finding out where you belong. Is Zelli, the only human, secretly dressed as a Minotaur, does she belong with the humans or with the monsters she grew up with? This is the first of a series. I liked it, it was cute. The illustrations were spot on and it was about finding out who you are and what you want from life. It isn't wrapped up neatly, but it end with Zelli having friends. It was good.

Yes! A solid start to what I hope will be a long-running series, involving all the characters, creatures, locations, and enchantment there is to love within the worlds of D&D.