The Dragon Lord Saga is a graphic novel series overflowing with wild adventures, humor, and hopeful heroism.
*The Dragon Lord Saga by Jonny Jimison. Rabbit Room.
- Martin and Marco, 2019.
- The River Fox, 2021.
- Dragons and Desperados, 2025.
- Reading Level: Middle grades, ages 10-12
- Recommended For: Ages 10-12
When Martin leaves his little brother, Marco, to join the king’s knights, he dreams of adventure, glory, and winning the affection of Princess Robin by rescuing her from the notorious bandit, the River Fox. Marco is content to stay at home, but instead finds himself on his own adventure with a talking horse he names Scout. After meeting a messenger who was cursed with sleeplessness after peeking inside a secret, smiling satchel entrusted to her by the mysterious Weepy Bob, Marco considers it his duty to deliver the satchel to the king. While Marco encounters a large spider named Old Bill (kin to Shelob or Aragog, perhaps?) and is taken prisoner, Martin is captured by the River Fox.
The second book opens with Old Bill selling Marco and his horse as slaves to a caravan of nomads, and Princess Robin rescues Martin, who still believes he is somehow a hero. Marco makes friends of other captives in the desert, including an old lady who calls herself a queen, a purple giant named Tombow who is searching for his glow-in-the-dark friend Miranda, and the energetic Juni who helps them escape. Martin discovers that the princess is more capable than he is (though he won’t admit the fact) and he and his friend Lingo are forced to join the River Bandit’s band.
So when do the dragons come into the Dragon Lord Saga?
In book three Martin struggles to prove himself (and his love) to Princess Robin in the midst of growing tension among the bandit gang and Marco meets Weepy Bob in a wild western town. The story grows intriguingly bigger and more complex as the characters get separated, biting scarab beetles cause mayhem, Scout refuses to care about any interests but his own (but he can’t forsake Marco altogether), and we hear speculation about Princess Robin’s history with the dragons eleven years ago. Dragons appear, there’s a runaway wagon to escape from, and a secret is revealed about the king. Throughout, Martin’s faithful friend Lingo naively plays both spy and double agent but remains a deeply loyal knight.
Jimison proves himself an excellent original storyteller with a series that is worthy of fandom. My boys kept stealing the books off my desk, slowing down the review process, and we are looking forward to the next installment.
Bottom Line: The Dragon Lord Saga is humorous and action-packed, great for boys, girls, and reluctant readers.
*indicates a starred review (the best of the best in its field)
Recommended Reading at Redeemed Reader: 3 More Graphic Novels
- Review: Starred review for this graphic novel adaptation of The Hiding Place!
- Review: Ben Hatke’s graphic novel Things in the Basement takes an intrepid protagonist through centuries of art and symbolism.
- Review: In Mendel the Mess-Up, an accident-prone Jewish boy turns his weaknesses into strengths against rampaging Cossacks.
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