In Kianola, we follow the journey of Nole, a young boy, and his friendships. From school lunches to fantastical in-game adventures, we witness the epic world of Enix bring them together. Through real-life insecurities and the healing power of true friendship, Kianola takes you on a roller coaster of emotions. Their friendship ebbs and flows, sometimes growing weaker, sometimes stronger, but they keep reconnecting over shared loves: games and the universal struggles of growing up.

Let me tell you, this book had a hold on me, and I was the first to be surprised. Kianola rekindled my enjoyment for young adult fiction and gave me throwbacks to my own gamer journeys.

The quests and battles were written so well, the conversations felt real, and the main character was so easy to root for. It reminded me of just how powerful connections forged through games can be (and how easy it is to get lost in the digital world).

I also thoroughly enjoyed how present and supportive Nole's parents were; supportive families often feel left out in MG/YA, so this was refreshing to see.

Gamer guys and gals, this one’s for you!

I really enjoyed the use of friendship and how it worked in the video game in the story. The characters had that charm that I was looking for and felt realistic for the story. The plot was everything that I was wanting and enjoyed getting to go on this journey with the characters. Nathan Roth wrote this perfectly and am excited to read more.

This story follows Nole, a socially awkward eighth-grader who faces the all-too-familiar challenges of middle school, like bullying, crushes, and self-esteem issues. To escape reality, he immerses himself in the virtual world of Enix, where he essentially rebrands himself as a confident and brave character, finding a sense of belonging in the game.

Through Nole's journey, we witness his gradual transformation as he incorporates the courage he finds online into the real world. Roth portrays the duality many children and young adults experience today, where one is grounded in reality and the other forged in digital spaces. He captures the quests and battles well and truly reminds gamers just how strong the connections you make through gaming are.

follows Nole, an ‘awkward eighth-grade introvert’ who uses gaming as escapism from the struggles of middle school. At school he faces bullying, whereas in Enix he’s a brave adventurer.

‘Kianola is a tale of friendship, self-discovery, and imagination, capturing the journey of growing up across two worlds.’

Overall I really enjoyed this book! I can see a younger audience really resonating with the themes of friendship and the struggles Nole faced at school. From feeling different to the other kids (he wore glasses where no one else did) to unrequited first crushes and being bullied - this story really brings out important themes.

The friendships in the novel are what made it for me - from real life in the school yard to fantasy gaming quests we see how his friends enrich his life and help him along. This is a powerful message to send to younger readers and one that the author gets across really well. The idea that friendships may hit stumbling blocks (so falter slightly) and other times they may be brought closer together but they always come back around.

Gaming is such a huge part of young peoples lives and this was a perfect depiction of how it can bring children closer together - bonds created over a shared interest.

Overall a great read!

ARC copy provided by BooksGoSocial & NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Cute and relatable for many teens out there. Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for this free eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I am re-exploring middle-grade books this year and this was a great addition to that category on my shelf.
Nole, Dapple and Kia were adorable in their own ways as they figured out life and love throughout the story. The character arcs were unexpectedly really deep and satisfying.
The fact that these friendships deveoped through an RPG was super interesting to me and their interactions within Enix were my favourite. I couldn't wait with Nole for him to log in.
The serious issues discussed without being didactic -- body image issues, bullying, eating disorder and dealing with rejection -- were refreshing to have in a middle-grade book.
I really liked some of the juxtaposition of the game onto real life and the aesthetics of the really beautiful world of the game.
I am looking forward to reading more by the author and in the genre.

Kianola finds a way to be equal parts slice of life novel and that of fantasy, as the very real world of middle school is almost seamlessly woven into that of the digital world the main character finds himself exploring. I really liked this aspect, as Nathan Roth put great effort into making the world of "Enix" feel just as real as Nole's middle school. Emotes and character actions were described as more than just simple keystrokes, and suddenly instead of reading about a young boy playing a video game, I'm instead reading about the many adventures his character goes on. There are moments Roth reminds us it is just a game with all the privileges that entails such as having more than one character and being able to resurrect after death. The focus changes from one world to the other and back again as Nole navigates both and finds his social and romantic lives are more lively in the game, eventually firmly settling back into the real world as he tries to "level up" in real life as he did in the digital, fantasy one. This is a very fun read and I recommend it to anyone who's looking for something a little different. As a first book it's a pretty excellent start. I give it 4.5 stars out of 5.