Any book that makes me feel like I'm on a Dungeons and Dragons adventure is immediately an A+ to me! This graphic novel is vibrant with beautiful color and creative storytelling. I cannot wait for the sequel!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read a free copy of this graphic novel in exchange for my honest opinion.
Even though this novel is aimed at a lower age group, I still found the characters to be interesting, the storyline engaging, and the artwork beautiful. This was a quick and easy read that made me smile at the end, Kayla's character and her selflessness was quite inspiring!

Tells rather than shows. Exciting plot. Plain dialogue. Pleasant and immersive art. Diverse characters with vibrant worldbuilding. Kayla is honorable and adaptive. Brief yet solid relationships. Presents exhilaration mixed with comfort. Recommended for those looking to escape from the harshness of reality. Overall, an average read.

I feel lucky to have stumbled upon Kingdom Riders from the creative team of Shannon Eric Denton and Marcus To. This was a fun book for all ages.

Kingdom Riders features our main protagonist Kayla as she risks everything in a Kingdom Race to save her friend Mal from unfair servitude.

What is a “kingdom race”? Oh, let me tell you. They are awesome. A handful of riders on the backs of giant monsters in a race! It’s so good. Pick your poison: a giant toad, alligator, bat, deer, etc.

The art and colors in this book really bring it to life. Marcus To and Luis Antonio Delgado crushed it. Each of the “creatures” in the races is unique looking and so are the riders themselves.

Speaking of art, I was initially drawn to the book by the fantastic cover from To and Delgado. It’s gorgeous. I can get into those minimalist covers, but I always love covers/posters like this that show nearly every character in it. That’s the good stuff.

This is one of my favorite books so far this year. It has a fun and intriguing story. The artwork is fantastic. I hope to see more of this in the future.

Thank you Netgalley and IDW Publishing for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

What an intriguing story!
Usually, when I read a graphic novel, the art style is very important to me, but so is the story.

Starting to the art style, it is very pleasant, not too bright and overwhelming. I loved the fact that the characters were so diverse and the backgrounds where always completed, making you feel like you were part of the story.

Now, the story. It presents an after-war world, where high-caste are obviously, a pain in the ass usually, treating the others however they want. But Kayla won't accept that, not anymore. The political system says that whoever wins the race, can be the next leader, so many people want to win, which can make the race very dangerous.
The characters feel very human, having both good and bad characteristics, showing fear, compassion, sadness and so on.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me the chance to read this book in exchange for my honest opinion

Thank you IDW Publishing and NetGalley for the advanced electronic review copy of this awesome book. This is such a fun, quick paced adventure! Great, well-developed characters, fast moving plot, and awesome illustrations makes for an amazing story. Fingers crossed for another volume as the ending had some unresolved issues and hinted at continuation of the story. Highly recommend!

Thank you IDW publishing and NetGalley for providing me with this arc in exchange for my honest review.

Fantasy at its best… The art was out of this world, the story was exciting, adventurous and it had heart. I couldn’t put this down and I feel grateful I got the chance to read, review and enjoy it!!

My favorite character was Kayla’s giant mud toad Grok. I loved him so much! The relationship between Kayla and Grok was so cute and heartwarming and it and her other old and new friends, made this very hard and dangerous world filled with monsters (beasts and humans ;)) feel a bit lighter and even fun sometimes.

Kayla is one of many war orphans and a great rider! We see her getting something Lord Sul needs for his race banquet. She’s the only one who can. Lord Sul is supposed to set her friend Mal free but he doesn’t keep his word. Kayla is a low-caste but anyone who is sponsored can enter the race, a regional qualifier for the kingdom races. She gets Lord Sul to sponsor her and if she wins, he promises to set Mal free.

Kayla’s going to race with her best friend, a giant mud toad called Grok who is quirky and honestly adorable. Very different from the giant beasts and their relentless riders, they will be riding against. The race route, the beasts and the glowing avatar they had to follow were all very impressive!! I’m not going to spoil what happened next but Kayla and Grok are so amazing and skilled and the more the story evolves, the more I got to witness how big Kayla’s heart is! She gets to meet many awesome and interesting characters along the way and we learn that the current ruler doesn’t want anyone to win the kingdom races and that someone who helped her has ulterior motives of revolution! So of course I can’t wait to read volume two!!

Thank you to NetGalley and IDW Publishing for an ARC of Kingdom Riders by Shannon Eric Denton in exchange for an honest SPOILER FREE review.

Kayla is a young and ambitious girl with big dreams of escaping a life of servitude and seeing the world, finally being able to make choices for herself instead of doing what someone else wants her to do. After making a bargain, Kayla is given an opportunity at freedom and embarks on an incredible journey with her best friend to forge their own story.

This is a great graphic novel that will appeal to all age groups and is suitable for budding new readers looking to get into fantasy for the first time. A very easy read with good prose and an intriguing storyline that keeps the pages turning. This is going to be the beginning of a great new graphic novel series, lots of magic and mystery with a fun twist on what is considered a "hero" in this world. World building is good, and I look forward to follow up books to see how it develops.

Overall, I think this books target audience is for younger readers and is completely appropriate with no gore, foul language, explicit references or violence. I enjoyed the story and will definitely pick up any sequel books to find out what has happened with these characters and to see where their journey takes them.

This was a fun read about a girl who adventures and works for the high castle noble. After her friend's sentence is extended for something she didn't do she makes a deal with the high castle noble that if she wins a race her friend will be free. After she wins the race things for her and her friend change and they go on an adventure of a lifetime. Can't wait to read more of this series.

Race through an exciting and dangerous fantasy world on the back of a toad in this wildly original combination of Hunger Games and Amulet.

What an enjoyable graphic novel! Well-written and well-illustrated, perfect for fantasy fans everwhere!

Girl power, selflessness, family, doing the right thing no matter what the cost. This graphic novel touches on all these subjects, accompanied by some amazing action illustrations. The graphics reminded me of He Man and Masters of the Universe cartoon from the 80s/90s. I could definitely see this adapted for the screen. Looking forward to reading more about Kayla and her team of riders.

Netgalley Review

Star Rating: ★★★★★

I really enjoyed this one! Definitely a conceptvi hadn't read before. The main character is a Fiesty ornery girl that we still don't know a lot about and I'm excited to see what secrets she's hiding. The side characters are also really fantastic! Even though we didn't get to see much of the big bad guy, you see enough of him that you get a good idea of what to expect from him. Really glad I got this ARC it was great!

Like always read it and decide for yourself!

How do I explain how much I love this book and this world? I NEED A SEQUEL IMMEDIATELY.
Ok, ok, listen up. Grok the mud toad is the cutest thing to come along since I don't-even-know-what. The bond between Kayla (the main character) and Grok is enviable. And wouldn't you rather ride an awesome, leaping, tongue-slurping MUD TOAD than some old dragon?? I know I sure would. Although to be fair, all the other riders' animals are super-cool too. Plus all the non-rider animals that inhabit the world and just amble around the pages, nonchalantly showing up to add even more magical verisimilitude to this already whimsically wonderful world. It makes me think of the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender (the original animated show).
The art is also top-notch. It's got enough detail that it doesn't feel like a lot of the bare-background comics being churned out now due to shortening timelines, but the linework and detailing is all well-chosen so it never feels busy or messy. And the lettering is spot-on throughout.
Characters - oh, the characters! Even the minor characters have personality quirks and unexpected moments. Kayla is endearing without being obnoxiously perfect (or obnoxiously imperfect in that sort of perfect way...you know what I'm talking about). She's hot-headed and a little full of herself, which is just what she needs to be in order to be able to pull this off.
Pull what off, you ask? GO READ THE BOOK. You can thank me afterward.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this eARC for unbiased review.

Rating: 4 stars

Kingdom Riders is a graphic novel aimed at children age 9–12 years. I would highly recommend it for kids around that age but even as an early 30s adult I very much enjoyed it. I will most definitely read the next volume in the series if there is one.

The plot felt very reminiscent of 90s cartoons I use to watch. The summary of this book says it’s similar to the Hunger Games and at first I felt this comparison was a little strong but the similarities became more apparent as the story went on.

The characters were a highlight of the book for me especially the main character, Kayla. She is a very admirable and likeable protagonist. I loved Kayla’s friendship with Mal and the beginning of her friendship with her teammates who were all great characters. I know my younger self would have been enamoured by a few of the them. Some of the speeches and discussions with each other were very motivational which I hope inspire any child that reads this book.

The art of the novel is easy to follow and I’m sure that was no small feat when it came to illustrating races. The character and creature designs stood out the most though. Very fantasy and drew me into the story immediately.

Kingdom Riders I’d rate a solid 4 stars. I always enjoyed myself and felt eager to read the next part. I have a feeling my younger self (around the age rating of 9-12) would have rated it 4.5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and IDW Publishing for granting me an Advance Reader Copy. All opinions are honest and my own.

This is a fantasy graphic novel and a highly action packed read. You follow Kayla and her wonderful sidekick Grok, a larger than life frog, on some risky ventures. Kayla's friend, Mal, finds herself in a difficult situation. Kayla tries to help and signs up for the Kingdom Races, which she new nothing about, in hopes it will help her best friend, Mal. Kayla is willing to risk her life as a rider and shows what riding with honor really means. This was such a great read, loved everything about it. So many unexpected characters and paths that developed throughout the story. I highly recommend this highly adventurous graphic novel where you never know where the story will take you. If you love a highly competitive fantasy this is your story.

I'm so greatful to have received this ARC in exchange for my honest review. Truly worth the read! #KingdomRiders #NetGalley.

I initially equested this book for my son,but in the end we both enjoyed so,so much the story.
We loved how loyal and selfless Kayla is, even though she's been through so much herself.
Team Kayla & Grok!!!

I love the art style in this book so much. The animals are adorable, the actions scenes are easy to follow. The story is engaging and fun.

This was fun! Consistently good art, likeable characters, and an intriguing plot all add up to an exciting start to this new series.

Thanks to NetGalley for sending me an ARC of this graphic novel.

Kingdom Riders felt like watching an episode of a cartoon I would have watched when I was younger. The art was fun and vibrant and the story was fast-paced. I found some of the pages to be a little cluttered and hard to follow and that hampered my overall enjoyment of the story. Also, though Grok was adorable, I was very distracted by all of the written interpretations of Grok's noises. He is a giant toad and instead of a croak or a ribbit, the author made up a variety of other sounds like, "grobbit" or "brobbit." I don't know why I found them so distracting, but they always took me out of the story.

Despite those issues I did have fun with this overall and I do think I would read more by this author. This story ended in the midst of the action, so I would like to read a continuation of the story.

Kayla and Grok superiority! A super fun and interesting read with great graphics, storyline, and characters you root for at every turn of the page. Grok and Kayla are such a dynamic, hilarious duo it's hard to not love the antics they get up to. The characters are also loveable and hateable in certain instances as Kayla navigates living as a peasant and the dangerous world of racing she's forced into. It gave me a mix of Hunger Games / Sonic X vibes but I think it's appropriate for all ages.

Thanks to IDW and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.