Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me access to the free advanced digital copy of this book.

Love the cover, the title and of course the images are what draw you in. This is a middle grade title and I wouldn't recommend for high school age.

'Star Knights' with story and art by Kay Davault is a graphic novel about animals change in to powerful knights by cosmic power.

Tad wants to be a heroic Star Knight, but he is mocked as being a lowly tadpole and an undesirable animal. When Tad gets the chance to save the Star King and take him back to the moon. Can Tad prove that mud-dwellers can be heroes and overcome his self-doubt?

I really liked everything about this story, from it's powerful lesson to the really fun artwork. I think this would be a great story for young readers to read.

I enjoyed this book far more than I expected. I'm not always a big fan of fantasy, especially when it involves witches and transformative magic, though I find it easy to digest in graphic novel form. This is built on a familiar premise - a team of highly magical heroes with unique abilities that they use to protect the innocent and make the world a better place. But Davault quickly moves us out of expected territory. We realize pretty early on that all is not as it seems with the Star Knights. We have a clear social hierarchy that is bound to be turned on it's ear by the story's resolution. While the ultimate reveals are fairly predictable, the characters are charming and the story is compelling. There is the perfect level of tension for middle grade readers. Just a touch of fear without ever becoming properly frightening and a fair dose of humor as well. This is a solid choice for most middle grade readers.

First, the art is beautiful and adorable and magical and if nothing else about this book was good, it's worth reading this book to see it. Second, the story is sweet and adventurous and has lots of feelings (some uncomfortable, but in the way that encourages growth) and it's totally the real reason to read this book. It touches on learned bias and discrimination, and points outs that just because a lot of people believe a thing, i.e. certain people are unworthy because of their race (or species, in this case), that doesn't make it true. This theme is skillfully woven into the story; the reader is aware of it, but not hit over the head with it, it's presented more as a lesson Tad, the MC, learns over the course of the adventure. Tad is told that, as a frog, he can't be a Star Knight because he's a "mud dweller," but as Tad learns, it's who he is inside that makes him worthy, not what's on the outside. Tad's character gets the most growth, but secondary characters, in particular Cygnus, one of the current Star Knights, get growth too, which was nice. At the end, the bias is still there in the world of the story, but some are starting to challenge it, and I appreciated the acknowledgement that things take work and change doesn't happen overnight, but it does happen. I also liked putting the idea into readers' heads to question these beliefs when one comes across them; more people should do that. Lastly, it's a fun story! It has adventure, a quest, peril, magic, mystery, and friendship, all the good things necessary for a tale to be satisfying.
P.S. seriously, that art!

#StarKnights #NetGalley

This was thoroughly delightful. The art is beautiful, the character designs are unique, and the story lovely. The mythos here is really neat and I love the way it wraps up. Definitely worth it for fans of magic, especially of the magical girl transformation sequence variety.

Star Knights follows the story of a little frog who wants something more. This book is a magical journey that is sure to entertain middle-graders and beyond. The illustrations are adorable, and the genuine kindness and growth of the characters makes the story a sweet one. I think the plot could have been mapped out a little better, but overall it was still very entertaining!

While the concept is great, I just couldn't get into 'Star Knights' and fear if I reviewed it, it wouldn't be fair to the title as I didn't finish it.

Making wishes on stars is natural. The problem is that making the wrong wish can change your life, and not necessarily for the better. What would you do if a wish went wrong, when you were trying to either fit in or be the hero? Worse, what if you couldn't handle the power that such a wish gives you?

Tad the frog learns this lesson the hard way. All his life, he's learned that the Star Knights. with their leader Stella, protect their planet from a Swamp Witch, and all amphibians ostensibly do her bidding. He loves the Star Knights, but none of the creatures in the pond will befriend him, except for one figure in the mud. Then he sees a figure fall from the sky, in a rainstorm of stars. Hoping that it's Stella and the Star Knights, he goes and uses a wish to transform himself into one of them. A figure he calls the Star Prince greets them, but wants to tell him something important. A spider named Astrid also comes along for the journey.

This story shows that appearances may be deceiving, and history can change in narrative over time. Tad finds out that the Knights are not the clear-cut heroes, and that the Swamp Witch may not necessarily be the villain they need to defeat. He also has to face his inner loathing about being a frog, and if he wants to be a knight, or protect his friends.

We don't always need someone special to save the day. Some days we need the right wish, and the determination to fulfill it.

Positively delightful. This was such a wholesome read.

In a world where frogs, salamanders, and other mud dwellers are considered ugly and creepy, Tad -the most freaking adorable frog I’ve ever seen- is bullied relentlessly. Tad dreams of becoming a star knight, even though stars haven’t rained from the sky in ages, and mud dwellers aren’t worthy, and Tad may be just a little terrified of everything. Regardless when stars do start to fall again, Tad transforms and an epic quest begins.

This was precious. The dialogue and sound effects were so funny and the expressions were priceless. The colors and art style captured my love from the first page and I can’t wait to own a copy of this to pour over rather than reading it on a screen.

All in all, I loved every minute of this. The panel composition has so much energy that it pulls you forward at breakneck sped and doesn’t let go, plunging you into this world were the animals are absolutely ruthless. An endearing tale about wishes, friendship, and poor self esteem.

Give this wholesome story a try. You won’t regret it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this book in exchange for an honest review.

I LOVED THIS SO MUCH. I thought it was so sweet and endearing. I loved the friendship, but more importantly, this was a fantastic story about not letting others define you and creating your own power and not listening to preconceived notions of others. I love love LOVED this!

In this adorable graphic novel, we follow a frog named Tad who wants to be accepted by the other creatures in the forest in which he lives. His biggest dream is to become a Star Knight so everyone will love and accept him.

Tad ends up getting his wish and becomes the Star Kings personal knight! But, not everything is as it seems. Tad ends up on the adventure of a lifetime.

I sincerely hope that there will be more in this series! I love Tad and his friends so much! I want to put them in my pocket and protect them at all cost!

Thank you to Kay Davault, Random House, and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me a copy!
I like the story! I thought it was pretty cute! It was a bit fast for my liking but I loved the art style and the design elements throughout the comic. I think Tad was a really cute character design and I loved seeing all of the different styles of characters throughout the whole story. I do think this comic is for a bit younger audience so I would definitely recommend it for dealing with the topics discussed in the book.

Super cute graphic novel. Really reminded me of sailor moon which gives it a major nostalgia feel for parents of younger kiddos. Bright and fun illustrations. Def something that would fly off our our shelves.

**Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's for the eARC in exchange for a review. This in no way changed my rating**

This was really cute!

The graphic novel follows a frog named Tad and his salamander friend (I will admit I thought he was an axolotl) as they dream of being Star Knights, a group of animals that became anthropomorphic knights after being gifted stars and wishing on them. As "mud dwellers", Tad and his friend, Stello, are discriminated against by the furrier woodland animals and birds because they are thought to be in service to the Marsh Witch. The Marsh Witch is said to have turned the first Star Knights into what are called "fallen fauna", giant monster animals that make it unsafe for the others to roam after dark.

The story revolves around discrimination and bias, friendship, and the idea that an accepted narrative isn't always the truth. The art work was really engaging and cute. My favorite character ended up being a spider named Astrid. I don't like spiders outside of books, but Astrid's design was super, super cute. I really liked her as a character, as well. Tad had a satisfying arc, as did another character named Cygnus who is a much smaller character. Nonetheless, I thought she had a full arc despite taking up space on fewer pages.

I would happily add this to a library shelf or classroom. I would recommend for anyone maybe 7+. The story had important lessons and I think it's relevant to this time. It's nice that it was infused with a little magic, too.

4.5/5 stars

2 stars! Thank you Netgalley for the arc. This plot was so muddled and the world building was non existent. I can't imagine any of my students (middle school) reading this and thinking that it has a good plot. The art work was fantastic and what gave it 2 stars instead of 1.

I review books for possible purchase by a school library. While this wasn't my style of book, I know many of our students will enjoy it, so I will recommend it to our student reviewers.

Entertaining and sweet, Star Knights is perfect for graphic novel fans who like K. O'Neill and Noelle Stevenson. A frog in a magical marsh makes a wish on a fallen star and becomes a star knight! But saving the marsh might be more complicated than our little frog thought.... There's themes of friendship and learning to not judge others. Recommended for libraries with large and popular graphic novel sections.

Loved the illustrations. Really neat story. I hope this becomes a series. I’d love to see what happens to the characters in future.

Sweet story suitable for fairly young children. Good messaging about not being a bully or being mean to others. The little frog wants to be a hero and will do anything to be the hero! Tad learns to believe in himself and how to take responsibility for his actions.
Charming ARC to get to read.