New Kieran Larwood? Yes please! Already a huge fan of The Five Realms series I had high expectations for this and it did not disappoint!
Amazing characters forming a mini found family, D&D style quest styled like reality TV game show.
So much fun and heart, simple yet fully realised world building, underdogs showing everyone up, humour, high stakes and a journey of self belief.
The illustrations were gorgeous and really added to the narrative, a winning combo! Really looking forward to more from this new series.
Thanks to Nosy Crow and Netgalley for an arc all thoughts are my own and left voluntarily.

A really fun read from a fantastic author/illustrator team. Kit is a gnorf (half gnome, half dwarf) living with his parents in Grotville. When a Dungeon Running team fall foul of a monster and replacements are sought, Kit assembles an unlikely team to go up against older, bigger and more experienced competition - including his horrible bully. A really fun read for lower key stage 2.

Kit lives with his parents in Grotville and, like everyone else, is excited for the Dungeon Running season final. When one of the competing teams is involved in a disaster with a frost dragon, an opening comes up in the league for a new team and Kit sort of accidentally decides to join up.

I requested this book, less because the story appealed to me and more, because it looked like it would have a gaming theme to it, which I knew would appeal to the children I work with.

Also, Kieran Larwood AND Joe Todd-Stanton - what's not to love?

I really enjoyed the story and illustrations and ended up reading the book in one sitting. The story moves so quickly and the action is constant and exciting and made me think of some of my favourite children's books, which is always good for giving recommendations at school. The group of friends reminded me of those in Oliver and the Seawigs (my favourite of the brilliant Philip Reeve and Sarah McIntyre books) and Kit and Grotville made me think of Mort and Brutalia in Rachel Delahaye's amazing Mort the Meek books. I can already think of the children who'll want to borrow it first when it's out and I've added it to my collection.

I received this book from NetGalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book a lot! I read it whilst attempting to keep in mind what a child would like with the aim to review it as such, but truthfully, I kept forgetting lol because even as an adult, I was just having so much fun with it! There were a lot of pages that made me genuinely giggle.

This is a story about Kit, a clever lad but a pretty weak fighter, Thorn the Vegan vampire healer and Sandy the barely magical mage. Their adventure to win the trial and finish the dungeon was well written and highly enjoyable. Also, Kleekoo is the MVP and I will fight anyone who says otherwise lol

The illustrations are delightful, really funny and the simple yet charming style lends itself perfectly here.

Really great first installation of what I am sure will be a wonderful series of books.

Absolutely 100% recommend this!

Review to come closer to the release day on blog/goodreads/other places.

I received this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange of an honest review.

How could I resist this delightfully fun looking book? I do love a good fantasy book especially when it features monsters, dungeons. 

In this delightful book we read about the Dungeon Running League! In which teams go to battle monsters (and often other teams) to get the most points, find treasure and win grand prizes and be the Dungeon Runner Champion. I mean, that already sounds like I want to be part of. I would absolutely LOVE to go through a dungeon. Well, at first let's go for an easy one, but I definitely wouldn't mind them getting harder and harder. Oh, and I love that teams were made of a Healer, Mage, Fighter. I wouldn't mind being either of those three. Though Healer would be fun, but if I can be the kind of Healer that also kicks ass? Not just heals and stands there, but is also able to be a tank? YES! 

Back to the book! When Kit learns that there is going to be a competition because a team in the Dungeon Runner League met their unfortunate end he immediately goes for it. And I love that. I mean the boy has zero people for his team. He is not the best fighter. But he is dedicated. He is motivated. He even runs to his grandpa (who is a champion) to tell him (which made me giggle because it was so cute). And I love how he doesn't give up even when finding out that he needs to find team members. He just tried his best! And later on in the competition he showed that you don't always need to have strength to be a great fighter. OK, it definitely helps (thankfully he does find an item later on), but also having friends on your side and being smart helps out a lot as well. You are just rooting for this little guy. Hope that his dreams will be coming true!

And I love his teammembers, Sandy (a mage who can mostly just do sandcastles with cute little flags) and her pet Mister Pinchy and then there is Thorn a vegan (or is he) vampire. I just love these two characters and I love how despite everything they tried their best in the competition. They were such great characters and I am just rooting for both of them. I cannot wait to see them grow to get even stronger. Even better. 

The competition, the dungeon? It was just oodles of fun and I love the puzzles. OK, the start was a bit rough given things, but I loved how things continued and I was just cheering so hard. I love that we got to see some of the other teams as well. There are some interesting ones in this competition. Oh and the ending to it all? Fab! 

Bonus points for the fun map at the beginning of the book! Always a big win for me in any book!

The illustrations were also a delight and I love how they really felt like a part of the story, telling the story at times. I love how the two presentators of the Dungeon Runner League (Dirk and Jenny) had their conversations and told us all about what was happening in the a Dungeon Run. Oh, and I love love the little character cards we got when we met a new character. With names, stats, and more. 

I was NOT a fan of the bullying in this book. Seriously. I wouldn't have minded winning over a rival, but this bullying just made me unhappy. 

But all in all. I would highly recommend this book to all looking for a fun, magical, fantasy-filled ride. Full of dungeons, competitions, danger, and fun illustrations! Be sure to read it.

Dungeon Runners Level 1 Hero Trial. 

An action packed adventure following Kit who longs to be a dungeon runner. Follow him through Level 1 and meet his new found friends, not forgetting the hilarious commentators Jenna and Dirk!  With short chapters and beautifully detailed illustrations, this would be perfect for readers aged 7 and up. Great to see a new series from Kieran Larwood. Thank you #netgalley for the arc, I thoroughly enjoyed the adventure!

This was a really fun read. Who doesn't love a book with an underdog, especially when that underdog is a Gnorf (part gnome, part dawrf). Another favourite were the hedgepigs - so cute! This story is ultimately about friendship, and how you can overcome difficulties if you try hard enough. Having a granpa who was a hero was a sweet touch, especially as he continually encouraged AGAINST becoming a dungeon runner!

Overall, a very fun book, with some great illustrations!

another one for younger readers, but my gosh is this brilliant! Overcoming bullies, finding unusual friends, entering a dream competition, gorgeous illustrations… this has it all! What a dream pairing that Kieran Larwood and Joe Todd-Stanton are!

I have read and loved The Treekeepers and all of the Podkin series (to date), so I was very pleased to be able to read this one early (I already had it on pre-order). I loved the three, very different, main characters. So much adventure was packed into the story and I was really rooting for Kit and his friends throughout. This is definitely one that I’ll be reading with my Year 4s at work. Fantastic illustrations! I am looking forward to the next one in this series. Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers.

What an absolute joy this is!

Always wanted to introduce your kids to Dungeons and Dragons at a child-friendly level? Loved those RPG books? Want something that packages this up with found family, humour, and a strong message about overcoming obstacles, building friendship, trusting yourself, and never discounting something or someone from how they appear? Kieran Larwood is ON IT, and superb illustrator Joe Todd-Stanton is here to bring it to life with character art that is immensely appealing. A short, snappy story, feel-good and filled with exciting puzzles that leaves you wanting more. And there WILL BE.

Perfect for children of all ages. I can see how this would appeal to the 6-12 range but also, to me, a fully grown adult

I am a huge fan of Kieran Larwood and when I heard about this new book with illustrations from Joe Todd-Stanton I had to request it and it did not disappoint! This is a D&D style adventure story following Kit as he creates a team to try out to become Dungeon Runners. I loved every second of reading this.

There are so many different species included in this book, with each character given a scoring card like you'd see in a Top Trumps. I thought this was a really nice addition and it brings the game-show element of the book to life. I also really liked the humour in Dungeon Runners, such as having a vegan vampire and a mage who knows only one spell - to create sandcastles. While it is a children's book so we know who will inevitably win the competition, I found that how the characters solved the problems they came across wasn't predictable and kept me wondering.

While being a very fun adventure story with great characters, this book also touched on some topics that are important for children to read about, most importantly bullying. This was a big part of the book from the beginning and a big motivating factor for pushing Kit into the trials. It also shows how the underdogs can come out on top, and how you look or your size isn't the most important thing.

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this book and the illustrations really elevated the experience and helped me picture everything so vividly. I would recommend this to all children within this age range as it is a fantastic book!

Thank you to Nosy Crow and Netgalley for this ARC.

Fun read, will definitely appeal to those looking for some younger d&d type stories or those who love quests and adventure. The illustrations are svery good and bring a lot to the story, particularly liked the character sheet style illustrations with the various strengths and powers on.

I am a huge fan of both the author and the illustrator and that is why I requested this book. And it certainly does not disappoint. It is a fun story about a gnorf trying to take part in a dungeon running competition. It takes the whole idea of creating-your-own-monster to a new level with the way mythical creatures are combined here. As an adult, when I read it, I thought about how reality game shows and SNS have taken hold of our lives. So, to me, this is very thought provoking.