"Prunella and the Cursed Skull Ring" by Matthew Loux is a charming graphic novel for young readers. When Prunella discovers a mysterious skull-shaped ring, she transforms into a skeleton girl, leading to her exile from a monster-fearing town. As she befriends undead pirate Captain Rip Skeleton and a fiery floating skull, Prunella's journey challenges preconceptions about monsters, offering a whimsical tale of acceptance and unlikely friendships. Loux's skillful storytelling and vibrant illustrations make this an enchanting adventure for readers who enjoy themes of magic, understanding, and companionship.

I was really drawn into this graphic novel by the artwork. I thought it was very vibrant and cute, something that children would love. I liked the message of this story, where you can accept people despite their differences and not to fear them

Prunella is such a relatable character for young readers as she tries to discern good from evil and right from wrong in her new world. This graphic novel has fantastic, colorful illustrations that keep you turning the pages. My son read it in one sitting and asked when he can read the next in the series— a win for sure!

This is a spoiler free review.

Prunella and the Cursed Skull Ring is a terrific and very entertaining illustrated book. Prunella is a young girl who is forced out of her town and into a world of Monsters! She treks through the wilderness and befriends several creatures who are not that scary at all once you get to know them. The messages in this book about not judging a book by its cover, acceptance, and being kind to others is integrated so well into the story. I really think both children and their parents will enjoy reading this one.

Prunella comes from a small town that fears and hates monsters. The town's folk are so scared of monsters they built a great wall around the entire town just to keep monsters at bay. One of the most frightened individuals in town is Prunella's mother. Her mom really does not like monsters and fears anyone who is different. During the story Prunella sees how different she is from her mother and how being kind to those who are different is such an important trait to have.

When Prunella discovers a special ring in her garden she experiences firsthand how people or monsters will be kind to you if you are kind to them. Prunella also discovers kindness is a superpower and not a weakness. Through her kindness and the kindness of others she finds the acceptance she's been searching for.

The artwork in Prunella and the Cursed Skull Ring is awesome. The illustrations fit right in with the tone of the story. I like how Prunella stands out from the rest of the people in her town. She has bright red hair and is tinier than most people. After Prunella finds the skull ring she stands out even more. Once Prunella sets off on her adventure she meets creatures on her journey who like that she is different than most little girls.

The artwork of the monsters is great too. I noticed when Prunella and the readers first encounter the monsters they seem creepy and scary. Then we find out these creatures are not bad at all, then the illustrations become much more friendly and welcoming.

Matthew Loux wrote and illustrated Prunella and the Cursed Skull Ring and I think he did such a great job creating a monster filled world where children and their parents can both enjoy it. If you like monster stories or books with great messages for your children, this a great story to read together.

Stay awesome and keep reading!

Prunella and the Cursed Skull Ring Review

Creative Team:

Written and Illustrated by Matthew Loux

Interesting concept with pretty obvious messaging. Young readers will relate to Prunella as a character, her sense of invisibility and search for identity. The story is easy to follow and the art is charming.

Full review on No Flying No Tights - https://noflyingnotights.com/blog/2022/08/24/prunella-and-the-cursed-skull-ring/
"Prunella and the Cursed Skull Ring is a very fun comic to read, and I imagine many young comic readers will appreciate the humor, fun illustrations, and affirming story. I recommend it for children’s and elementary graphic novel collections."

"Prunella and the Cursed Skull Ring" is a wonderful, illustrated story about a girl thrust from her home and into a world of monsters. As she goes about her adventures she comes to realize that good and evil; right and wrong; kindness and cruelty; monstrosity, and humanity are not always what they seem on the surface.

This was an interesting Graphic Novel, that I would recommend!

I received an e-ARC from the publisher.

It's fun to meet the different monsters and the illustrations are quite memorable, but the writing and story aren't quite there for me.

I found this to be very charming. Definitely for fans of my other skeletal fave: Yorick and Bones.

For Libraries: A good fit for children/middle grade graphic collections.

This book was so much fun. Prunella is a little girl who likes to garden, and while doing so she finds a special ring. Upon putting this ring on her finger, she goes from human to skeleton and becomes a monster. She gets kicked out of town, other monsters, and realizes that monsters are nothing more than other creatures. Most are good and willing to be your friend if you were willing to be friendly in return. This book was simply lovely. Between the message of acceptance and being pure at heart, to the fantastic and fun illustrations, this book was a joy to read from beginning to end. I want to see more adventures from prunella.

Thank you First Second Publishing and NetGalley for the advanced electronic review copy of this wonderful book. Such a fun and heartwarming story! Lovely, very expressive, detailed artwork makes this story even better and more fun to read. Can’t wait to share this delightful book with young readers.

This was so great! I loved all the characters and Prunella's journey. I will definitely purchase this for my library.

Prunella and the Cursed Skull Ring was a lot of fun and had some great humor! It was such a heartwarming and fun read!

Very cute graphic novel with great art. I really liked the Time Museum so I was excited to read another title by Matthew Loux. This is a story about a little village that hates monsters even though they nothing about them. Their fear leads them to wall off their city. Prunella is magically cursed and turned into a monster. She is kicked out of the village and left to fend for herself where the monsters live. Soon she finds out that there is nothing to fear from monsters and makes many new friends. A good message for kids about the ignorance of prejudice.

This might be the best short story I've read this year. The first thing I noticed were the amazing illustrations. The drawings are so cute, there is so much to look at, it's so beautiful and fun and I really love this art style.

The story is so much fun. I loved the humor, it had me laugh out loud a few times. I love how kind every one is in this story, it's so refreshing. Finally a book without an evil villain!

I got a warm, fuzzy feeling while reading this book and I felt like the message behind the story is that you can also love your chosen family in life; your friends.

I can't wait to read more by this author, to be honest. I did notice that he wrote more graphic novels and I'm very curious right now.

A girl discovers a skull-shaped ring that transforms her into a skeleton girl, earning her the ire of her monster-fearing neighbors in this delightfully weird and macabre story by Time Museum creator Matthew Loux. The town turns on her, including her indifferent mother, who mistakes a lushly groomed dog for her daughter, banishing her and setting Prunella off on a journey to find a way to reverse the curse. She meets other monsters on the way, all of whom readily accept her, and realizes that maybe the so-called "monsters" aren't the villains after all. Befriending Captain Rip Skeleton and a floating skull named Francis, Prunella quickly becomes a story of friendship and adventure, leaving Prunella with decisions to make at the end of her journey. Cartoony artwork makes for a friendly cast of ogres, skeletons, and ghosts. Prunella is a young girl with a head of ample red hair held with a bow that stays intact through her transformation. Give this one to your Margo Maloo fans. A good purchase for graphic novel collections that like a little dark humor.

Prunella and the Cursed Skull Ring has a starred review from Kirkus.

Matthew Loux has developed a solid fanbase with his Time Museum and Salt Water Taffy series, and if you happen to enjoy those two series, then you will absolutely enjoy his newest story. Prunella and the Cursed Skull Ring tells the story of a young girl who has heard the rumors about her town being a breeding ground for monsters but just doesn't really care to believe them. That is, of course, until she discovers a ring that turns her into a skeleton that proves to be similar to everything she's heard. 
While Prunella isn't really ostracized from her community, there is a sense of general disdain that she both receives and reciprocates to those around her. This is probably more likely due to the village's desire to keep monsters out (a play on communal trauma, perhaps), and they are willing to do whatever it takes to do so even if it means they're effectively isolated from the outside world. This plays out painfully for Prunella when she puts the ring on and the village subsequently banishes her. While reading Prunella's story, it's hard not to compare it to our own world and politics, and it can be uncomfortable to read at times because it does feel like a terrifying depiction of our own reality.
However, it is on her journey to break this curse that she discovers that the ones her village has tried to keep out are actually better than the people doing the banishing. This is where an already strong story really shines, as Prunella not only learns about friendship, but she learns about love and acceptance of herself, too. We see the effect that prejudice and not only has on individuals, but on entire communities, and the artwork supports even these really deep themes well. Loux has mastered the art of letting his, well, art, speak for him: indeed, there are parts of this short read where there are no words, and it is up to the reader to decipher what is going on. It is this kind of storytelling that really forces the reader to engage with this world and all the baggage it brings. It is a lot of "show, don't tell," and it works really well especially as Prunella has to answer the most important question: does she even want to break the curse?
This is an emotional story with incredible art, and an ending that is both earned and a little too hopeful. It is a beautiful story of a young girl who realizes that her community is not as great as it has pretended to be, and that it is in our drive to be inclusionary that we really build the village we want. Stories like these make us believe in change, and growth, and in that respect, it accomplishes what it set out to do. It also pushes us to look inward, but not just at ourselves: no, it asks us to look at who we keep around us and question whether that is how we want to spend the time we have.

Thank you Net Galley and First Second Books for the Advanced Readers Copy.

Graphic novel with very cute art, and fun supporting characters. Doesn’t feel fully developed, the plot is very linear with very little turmoil. I never feel like the main character is actually upset that she finds herself being a skeleton. Also the ending is a pretty big let down. For a kids comic I would have loved to have seen more critical thinking skills shown by the main characters, where she has to problem solve herself. Instead it’s just her wandering and going “I have a problem” and then another character goes “have you tried_____” and then she tries it. The whole book is just a skeleton kid going around to make monster friends, which I usually like, it’s just usually done with more character growth which is entirely lacking from this book. Great idea, fun character design, I love seeing more graphic novels made for kids, but I think with a little more story telling effort they can turn this ok story into a great story that kids will want to read for generations.

Spoilers below:


The ending of the book has the main character (who is a child) run away from her human village and become a monster, instead of trying to help the villagers understand the monsters. She never once even goes, “your wrong about them, monsters are my friends” instead she just runs away from the negativity around her and doesn’t try to fix anything. Yes having kids prove adults wrong, and striving for acceptance despite differences is cliche but it’s a tried and true formula.

A fun and memorable ending for this graphic novel would be Prunella shouting to the villagers “they’re not the monsters you are!” Then journeying back to the temple where the ring was made, and finding a way to turn the whole village into “monsters”. Then when prunella returns to the village she finds everyone getting along. They tell her it was hard and they hated it at first, but being able to remove your limbs at will is pretty nifty, they even created a new sport that utilize all the perks of being a monster. Then Prunellas mom shows up who is also a skeleton, saying something silly like, “now that I’m a Skeleton nobody knows how old I am, I’ve decided to get into modeling, like I’ve always wanted to” This is the sort of ending I would like to see, but that’s just me.

I really enjoyed the theme of loving oneself and being different is not something to be feared or hated.
I also loved the artwork!