Kingdom Riders

May 27, 2024
After the high king Khan Fitzen saved Autiria from a century of war, he founded the fatal Kingdom Race, a Hunger Games–esque competition meant to determine the realm’s next rulers. War-orphaned animal whisperer Kayla cares less about political authority and more about freeing herself and her best friend Mal from their credit debt. Thus compelled, Kayla claims victory at a regional qualifying race atop her large, golden-eyed mud toad Grok and advances to the next leg—a team-up match. Enigmatic sponsor Tig and his attendant mage offer Kayla a place on Team Autiria, a trio of young, motivated riders. Unbeknownst to them, Tig has purposefully assembled this team, hoping that, should they win, they’ll shift the kingdom’s brutal customs toward compassion. As Kayla faces off against new dangers from fellow riders, she must trust her sharp instincts, honorable heart, and new teammates if she wants to survive—and come out victorious. Denton (Monster Born) and To (Marvel’s Voices) balance bracing action sequences with quieter world- and character-building moments that showcase unique fantasy creatures, intriguing political machinations, and an eclectic human and alien population rendered in various skin tones, some fanciful. Ages 9–12.

June 21, 2024

Gr 6 Up-Kayla is about to buy her best friend Mal out of indentured servitude when a chance encounter extends her credit-debt with the authorities who keep strict societal order after a fierce hundred year war. Incensed, Kayla enters into a gladiatorial race to win Mal's freedom, and between her low-caste status and her mount Grok-an enormous technicolor toad-she is marked as an unlikely but populist candidate for victory. Autria, the titular kingdom, evokes Avatar: The Last Airbender, with a pan-racial cast in an Asian-inspired setting populated with fantasy beasts of burden, while the society-spanning race harkens to "The Hunger Games." Those books interrogated moral complexity; Kayla instead seems fashioned in a model more parallel to the "Paddington" films: a resourceful naif who inspires community by guilelessly doing the right thing. In technical execution-in terms of both illustration and broad story structure-this ticks all the boxes, but almost every scene is overwritten, which drags down the action-packed story. While the heartfelt intent of the protagonist is on the page, the omnipresent exposition dulls Kayla's intended accessibility and makes both her charisma and the comic antics of her sidekick mount feel stilted instead of effortless. VERDICT Ambitious, and executed with its heart in the right place, this first volume promises massive, world-changing stakes from the simple gifts of the heroine, but likely won't charm readers as much as its protagonist charms everyone she meets.-Benjamin Russell

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