Game of Pets Book 1: The Boy Who Knew Too Much

by Aaron Blabey

Mega-bestselling author Aaron Blabey, creator of The Bad Guys, is back!

OK, here’s the

Thanks to a diabolical intergalactic game show, we are all cooked.

Luckily, Griff, an 11-year-old kid with innumerable allergies, just got told by a talking axolotl named Bob that Griff is the only one who can save us.

I mean, that’s kind of good news, right?

Trouble is, Bob’s prophecy comes with a “Watch your back, man…your PETS are not what they seem…”

Prepare to have your mind blown and your cats and dogs under heavy suspicion. It’s time to buckle up for an insane, laugh-out-loud new series, 260 million years in the making…

208 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication September 29, 2026

About the author

Aaron is an Australian author of children's books and artist who until the mid-2000s was also an actor. His award winning picture books include Pearl Barley and Charlie Parsley, The Ghost of Miss Annabel Spoon and the best-selling Pig the Pug.

In the field of acting, he is probably best known for his lead roles in two television dramedies, 1994's The Damnation of Harvey McHugh, for which he won an Australian Film Institute Award, and 2003's CrashBurn, before retiring from performance in 2005.

Reviews

[Melanie Dulaney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Somewhere out there in the universe is a Game Show with the goal of its animal players to get humans to destroy their planet Earth and they are using pet avatars that look like smaller versions of them to coerce people into doing things like pollute the oceans, let carbon emissions get out of control and eat up the habitats of lynchpin animals so they will go extinct. Enter loner and odd ball kid Griff and an axolotl who can communicate with him telepathically and is certain that Griff is the only one who can save the world.

Ridiculous plot but that’s why kids love Blabey’s Bad Guys graphic novel series so this one will likely also entertain the middle graders who are OK with more text and less illustrations than graphic novels but enough sketches and assorted side bars and inserts to keep the over the top sarcastic (but socially relevant) humor going.

Recommended for libraries with an audience for the absurd likely in grades 4-7.

Note: This retired librarian gives this new series starter 3 stars because she doesn’t care for this type of humor but middle grade readers will likely rate it at least 4 stars.

Profanity: none
Violence: farcical attempt to control the behavior of humans and destroy the world
Sexual content: none
Representation: Griff is Caucasian and Tallulah is Black.
LBGTQ+: none

Thanks for the early look with an eARC, Edelweiss and Odd Dot.

[Panda Incognito · Rating 2 out of 5]

In this bonkers story, aliens are running an intergalactic game show with the objective of getting humans to destroy Planet Earth. The aliens have inflitrated earth through people's pets, and these pets use mind control to get their owners to make destructive choices.

The main character is a severely allergic, neglected boy who is desperate for the companionship of a pet. He ends up with Bob the axoltl, who reveals to him what is happening. This book is the first in a new series, so the author spends considerable time on set-up, and then kicks off the beginning of the adventure.

Kids love Aaron Blabey's other books, and I expect that they will enjoy this as well. However, I personally did not like it. The humor didn't land well for me, because the main character's situation seemed more tragic and depressing than funny. Also, even though the premise is amusing, I didn't think the author found the right footing between comedy and seriousness when it came to the environmental message.

Some of the absurdist humor also made it difficult for me to suspend disbelief. Things were just too over-the-top for me, especially when there's no explanation given for things that break the laws of nature. And I'm not referring to the talking animals! I can suspend disbelief about things like that just fine, but there were action sequences that didn't follow the laws of physics.

This book has hybrid prose and comics elements, just like the author's other chapter book series. However, unlike The Bad Guys and Cat on the Run, this one is a step up in terms of the story's complexity and the number of words on each page. This book will appeal to existing fans who have gotten a little older, and can be a good challenge for younger kids who want to read the new series.

I personally did not care for this book. I thought it was depressing and disappointing. However, Aaron Blabey is so popular with young readers that I'll be curious to see if this series takes off with them.

I received a temporary digital copy through NetGalley, and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

[Mrs. G · Rating 5 out of 5]

Join Griff and Bob who are on a mission to save Earth from the "Players" in space who are out to destroy the planet. The enlist a former Marine to drive them to Washington, DC to reach an environmental activist who will hopefully know what to do.

Griff is easily relatable for both kids and adults who remember their childhood. The humor is top notch and will have you laughing so loud your family will think something is wrong with you. The pictures are fun and add to the silliness. It was heart breaking, yet touching at the same time. If you have ever known a kid who felt invisible, or been that kid, you will gravitate to Griff.

Our family enjoyed this book and it's silly nature. We will definitely read book 2 to see what else Griff, Bob and Carol get into. The vocabulary is more middle school leveled and concepts are more mature also. It is by the creators of Bad Guys, so there is some crude remarks made in jest.


***NetGalley ARC Reader***

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book seems like a cross between "The Incredibly Dead Pets of Rex Dexter" and "Dungeon Crawler Carl". It was funny and I am looking forward to the next book to see how things go.

[Mindy Lou Who · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a fun, yet wild ride for sure. First, like most kid’s books that I tend to read, I read it with my kiddo. We both loved it, though maybe not quite as much as we both loved Bad Guys, by the same author. It was about on par with Cat on the Run and even had a cameo or two from characters from previous series, which was pretty fun. This book is also the start of another series for Aaron Blabey. With the premise (almost there) it basically had to be a series. And without further ado…
Griff decides he needs he needs a pet. So he heads to the pet store. There are a few problems. He’s allergic to so many things with fur. Fish really freak him out. To the point that he passes out. So they decide on an axolotl. He bikes home with the tank and that’s when he starts to hear the voices. And they’re reading his mind. And other voices are discussing things that are very destructive to our planet. Then he finds out the main voice IS in his mind AND reading his mind AND it’s his axolotl. That’s when things REALLY go south.

I’d like to thank Aaron Blabey, Macmillan, and Netgalley for letting me enjoying this book in exchange for an honest review.