Fans won't want to miss this original canon story set in the world of the Emmy® Award-winning Netflix animated series The Dragon Prince , with story by the creators of the series and of the New York Times bestselling Through the Moon (The Dragon Prince Graphic Novel #1). Learning magic is no easy thing, even for young Claudia. Despite a bit of help from a book of spells created by Kpp’Ar, her father’s former mentor, it’s all she can do to keep things from blowing up in her face―often with spectacularly messy results. But a spell book isn’t the only thing that Kpp’Ar left behind when he suddenly and mysteriously vanished. In his wake stands the Puzzle House, a bizarre tower full of magical traps, tricks, contraptions, and―what else―puzzles. Claudia is sure that the old mage left a gift for her and her brother, Soren, somewhere deep within its walls, and she is determined to find out exactly what it is. Can Claudia and Soren uncover all the mysteries hidden within the Puzzle House? Or will they discover a darkness that will change them forever?
A really abrupt ending, probably because this is just intended to set up something that will happen later on in the show. Will definitely work best for those who love Claudia as a character, because everyone else who appears kind of gets short changed.
12/6/24 Oh I am losing my MIND over this and what seems to be coming in season 7 (looking at you, season 7 episode 2 “True Heart”). Very glad I read this close to the S7 release date, haha!
This is so cute but also SO devastating if you are up to date on the show. I’d be smiling over little Claudia and Soren and then want to cry the next panel because of good old dramatic irony.
⤿ it was okay!! it makes me so sad to see claudia before she was manipulated but also how she deals with the aftermath of her mother leaving. also there’s a little bit of background info ab k’ppar and the map that only the true of heart can see that’s introduced in the show in s7 of “the dragon prince” on netflix
Short and sweet! I love Claudia and Soren and the world of The Dragon Prince so I had a lot of fun, but this volume was definitely less about answering questions about their family life before the events of the show , and more about setting up things for season 6, with some nice insight into Claudia and Soren as kids. Either way I had a good time and the art was lovely!
A VER le voy a poner 5 estrellas a todos los comics y libros que lea del príncipe dragón pero para mi este ha sido el más flojo. callum mi niño te adoro <3 y amo a soren y claudia pero esperaba un pelín más de la historia. igualmente muy buen libro ❣️
I love the Dragon Prince graphic novels, especially the prequel ones. Where I did enjoy Through the Moon I personally prefer the prequels (Bloodmoon Huntress and now Puzzle House) because I enjoy gaining further insight into the histories of the characters as well as learning about deeper parts of the world's lore and history that may not be featured much or at all in the series. It's nice to see parts of the lives of certain characters we don't see in the show, such as more domestic parts of Runaan and Ethari's marriage in Bloodmoon Huntress, and the more fatherly side of Viren in Puzzle House. This one also shows us King Atticus, the father of King Harrow and grandfather of Ezran/step-grandfather of Callum who is someone not explored in the series. Though I didn't enjoy Puzzle House as much as Bloodmoon Huntress (That's mainly due to bias, anything featuring Runaan and Ethari is going to take priority for me), Puzzle House is still fantastic. There's something beautifully bittersweet about seeing Claudia and her family before the death of Avizandum and all the havoc it causes. Before dark magic and Aaravos' influence corrupts both herself and her father, before Viren's corruption leads him to beating Soren down and drives a wedge between the siblings. Obviously in earlier seasons of the show we are shown that Claudia and Soren are fairly close but there was still a slight rift between them even before season 1. Here we get a glimpse at a much closer bond. I just really like seeing Viren be tender father, especially knowing that shortly before this story takes place must have been Soren's sickness, a few years previously I'd say looking at how old the siblings must be here. And Claudia's clear admiration and love for her big brother and Soren's protectiveness over his sister adds so much more weight to their side of the show's story. Hints towards things that are only recently being featured in the show and things that previously have been mentioned in other pieces of Dragon Prince media play an interesting part here. Viren's mentor Kpp'ar playing an interesting role in Claudia's childhood, a younger Callum bringing up his birth father who is someone rarely brought up while talking about grief, and unicorns being an important motif here are all things that caught my attention. If you're familiar with certain parts of Xadia's lore you'd be familiar with the documented fate of the unicorns which adds an eerie depth to the story. We also get some extra world building which all the books and graphic novels have been adding to which I really enjoy as each season of the show only has 9 25 minute long episodes so extra details in different formats really allows a deeper glimpse into everything. I am also hoping to see Kruha the giant return maybe in the series. Mostly because I'd love him to meet Terry. I wouldn't mind seeing the next graphic novel be maybe about Terry, just a little suggestion. Finally, I just want to talk about Felia Hanakata's art. It's something I love about Puzzle House and Bloodmoon Huntress as art style is a very important factor for myself, and I think a lot of people, when it comes to graphic novels. Not only is Hanakata's art sweet and wonderfully expressive but it's a wonderful match for the show's art style. Hanakata manages to translate the show's style perfectly to the page and is able to stay so true to the characters and their designs. I hope Hanakata continues to illustrate the series.
Soren and Claudia head into Viren's mentor's Puzzle House to try and find a present that he left behind for them. 110 pages later, and it's not really clear what the point of this story was other than to introduce another character who'll probably show up in the show at some point (like the Bloodmoon Huntress from the previous OGN). I like that these have a direct impact on the series itself, but I'd also like a little more substance.
I'm loving these graphic novels! The tv series for The Dragon Prince is a favourite and the books and graphic novels are extending our connection to the characters. In this we we get to know Claudia better and it's nice to see she was pure of heart when she was younger.
Okay I've been middling to below average on the previous two comics but this one is by far and away the best of the 3 out so far which I did not expect at all. Puzzle house is really fun, well paced and an engaging read.
First of putting us in the perspective of a young Claudia and Soren is something I didn't realise I needed. I think this is exactly what the comics need. These two have such good chemistry it just seems safer to make a story featuring them. Claudia shockingly is a much more endearing and active protagonist than Rayla was in the previous two comics (surprising if you know what they're actually like in the show lmao) The concept of a puzzle house is so cool and imaginative and had just the creepy atmosphere I needed for the bloodmoon huntress but never got. It also has great comic timing all in service via amazing paneling. The slide they kept falling in was hilarious. There's also a surprising amount of Heart in this book which creates for an ending that may seem happy on the surface but with the context of the show and knowing what Claudia will do with that info given and what she eventually becomes it can be seen as sinister and tragic depending on the perspective. I absolutely love how multifaceted the ending is. I genuinely feel sad that Claudia was once a child pure of heart who was trusted with information on the unicorn knowing that it all falls apart as she grows up. Damn this was really well done I gotta say. The reason I didn't give this 4 stars is because once again the emotional conflict doesn't feel as well integrated. She's coming off her parents divorce and can't vent or express her anguish as she wishes it all well and done but doesn't really tie all too well with the puzzle house. Maybe there should be a segment where she is met with a conflict or puzzle that requires her to confront her demons in order to solve it? The reason I give this one more of a pass that Bloodmoon huntress is simply because it has more going on to it than Bloodmoon huntress ever does. Overall this is the right direction for these books to go in. I'm sorry to Nicole Andelfinger I'm not familiar with her other works and I'm sure they're good but from just one comic I just don't have faith in her to write for this universe, yes bloodmoon huntress was that poorly written. Peter Wartman has my trust and Xanthe Bouma art also makes for a great pairing.
As is tradition at this point, I've bought this as a Christmas present for my girlfriend and figured I might as well read it before I give it to her.
It's a quick story, more focused on Claudia than Soren (but that's usually their dynamic anyways). Since the characters here are younger, the story slightly felt that way too but it definitely had a sense of adventure and puzzle solving. For me the entire story feels like a puzzle even now.
If I'm not mistaken, we get more information about younger Viren and his mentor in the first novelization book? I haven't read it but my girlfriend did and I vaguely remember her explaining that to me so hopefully this sheds a bit more light on the whole situation. I also do wonder if any of this will tie into the actual show, especially the ending.
What bothered me the most is the lack of detail. Literally, every background feels so empty and detached. There's multiple panels where we see just one shade of a wall and one shade of a carpet (the carpet also randomly changed color at one point). What gets me is that we know these places from the show so the artist(s) only needed to copy them and add some background details. There are a few full page illustrations that could've been beautiful but instead they're just blobs of 2-3 colors. It pains me because it's clear the artists have crazy talent but it genuinely feels like a 3rd draft. Docking the star for that.
Either way, it's a fun quick read if you're a fan and something to do while we wait for season 6!
I am enjoying the graphic novel additions to The Dragon Prince series. This book, like the previous ones in the series add a little extra story telling that isn't essential to the series.
However, while the other books in the series told a complete isolated story. I felt this graphic novel started somewhere in between stories I want to know more about - it's either clever or frustrating since I want more. There's the mention of Viren's wife who left and that Soren was deathly ill and the disappearance of Kpp'Ar.
This story follows a young Claudia and her first experiments with magic. This gives us a glimpse into Claudia struggling with the abandonment of her mother and the disappearance of a mentor, and projecting those feelings into a fierce curiosity of magic. While i appreciate seeing Claudia in these early stages, I'm far more curious about the other big events that are only casually mentioned.
It's a clever way to write a story since it really does give us a true insight into how Claudia is coping with all of these things - only in the background, instead of the forefront of her mind. We see here what is the beginning of her magic journey.
It was a quick read and the pictures were nice. I kind of felt disappointed because it didn't really answer any of the questions that they were searching for. I have a feeling that certain things from this book will appear in the series, like the giant meeting Claudia again. I felt they just added Soren and Calum in the book to include familiar characters. I don't really like Claudia as a character, but the book mostly centered on her. It felt like Soren didn't really do anything and wasn't needed to be part of the quest. Just really there for Claudia to ignore and push around. I guess like in the series, so some things don't change. Anyway, I liked the art and the book was interesting. K'ppar was searching for something, maybe trying to learn about Aaravos. Since in the latest season Rayla found him trapped in a coin, Virin did something to him. Or he trapped himself in there. Oh well, what know until the next season coming out.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I'm a really big fan of the tv series, and I was really looking forward to this graphic novel. Viren, Soren, and Claudia are my favorite characters, and I was interested in seeing more of their family's history. Especially after some big reveals in season 5 about Viren's past. It's really nice to get a glimpse of what Viren was like as a father before becoming so corrupted by dark magic, and how he was a lot more tender with both of his children. I also liked seeing how Claudia's reaction to all of the changes in her life, and how she was using her obsession with magic as a way to distract herself from missing her mother. The only thing I was disappointed with was we didn't get to actually see Soren and Claudia's mother, but I think the writers might just be saving that reveal for a future season. Overall, this is a must read for fans of the series.
First. Don’t insult my intelligence by attempting to get me to view Viren as a good father nor a good person. I’m confident he killed Kpp’ar and engineered his wife’s disappearance.
Second. If Claudia had this life changing journey that got her through her trauma why did she continue to be everything Khoru believed her not to be. She had a put heart once. You think this experience would arm her against falling for her father’s tricks. It just makes this story feel cheap knowing what choices she makes later.
(I should also say I am MAD BEHIND on the Dragon Prince. So maybe she was redeemed? The last thing I watched was her reviving Viren and waking up with full white hair.)
This story was great and would have been perfect if I had never watched n Dragon Prince ya feel?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I want to grab little Soren and Claudia and hide them away from the world and every bad thing. No but seriously seeing young Claudia so eager to learn magic and so genuinely pure is heartbreaking in a way. When we meet Claudia in season 1 she is extremely similar to the young Claudia we meet in this book she's eager to learn magic and genuinely wants to do the right thing but as the seasons go on we still see that same spark in her of wanting do magic and wanting to do the right thing, but her sense of what the right thing is has changed greatly. Now she is starting to go down a path of darkness trying to not only follow that sense of good or help her family but also because of her curiosity with magic. To see Claudia in her "purist form" of hope and curiosity is so nice to see and I hope one day we get to see this Claudia again.
I loved seeing baby Claudia and Soren going on an adventure! Seeing Claudia so young and sweet still breaks my heart. Soren seems surprisingly more pensive as a child than he’s portrayed in the show most of the time.
I want to know more about Soren’s illness? Did Viren do something sketchy to heal him??
I’m very intrigued about Kpp’ar now. Why did Viren trap him in a coin? Perhaps Kpp’ar disapproved of whatever Viren might’ve done to heal Soren and needed to be silenced?
And of course I need to know more about the MAP now! Where does it lead? Did Claudia follow it? I bet season 5 Claudia won’t be able to see the contents NOW, with how unstable she is and everything she’s done. Will it and/or Kruha come into play in the show? So many questions!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I accidently timed my reading of this perfectly. I read this in the middle of season 6 just before the episode explaining what happed to Viren's tutor.
I liked this one, we get to see Soren and Claudia as kids and how they all were before everything hit the fan at the start of the show.
I loved the puzzle elements of this book too. However rating is a little lower just because had I read this way before or after that episode I would of felt let down as there isn't much plot to the book.
Claudia is my favourite character on this franchise. And she is currently getting narratively abused non-stop as the series advance. A cute lovely story with great art and family moments with the mage fam does not compensate at all given what has been done to her in the last season of the show.
And don’t even get me started on the toxic relationship they have forced on her. FUCK. THIS. SHOW.
But yes, the art is great, and little Claudia and Little Soren are adorable.
Little Soren and little Claudia are sooooo cute!!!! And I just love Soren's attitude. And Claudia was really funny and stubborn. I'm still really curious as to what happend with Kpp'Ar and I still think that there are a lot of unanswered questions about Claudia and Soren's family. Like why did the mom left? And what was wrong with Soren? And the map on the last page!!?? What was that for? Finding unicorns or what? And what was Kpp'Ar planning on?? So many unanswered questions.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
While this one was a little more lore-focused, it still managed to do a character study like the last “Dragon Prince” graphic novel I read. This time, Claudia was the focus. No spoilers, but it does manage to dig a little bit into her childhood and sets up some important parts of her character. (Watching the series before is definitely recommended.) Still a fun read and also felt like an episode of the show on the page.
Spoilers for the tv series. I enjoyed this a lot. Little Claudio and Soren were fun to read about and also it was nice to see Viren alive again (yes, I know he was evil but like, his character was so complex). The art was really pretty and I enjoyed the story and thought it was cute. I wish this had a few more tie ins to season seven, but it was still great. I loved the tv series and hope that there’ll be more graphic novels and a spin off. I love all these characters a whole lot.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
It's a very interesting book! i loved the plot, and the story behind it! It linked a lot towards the newest season with Verin's mentor, and how he killed him. I loved Claudia's and Soren's design! the artwork is stunning! Honestly, they added the monster that Claudia encountered, yet we see no more of him, i would have loved to see him in the seasons! Maybe a little appearance in The Dragon King ? 10/10 book !
If Bloodmoon Huntress was Rayla's origin story, this is Claudia's. I really like Claudia as a character and also like the whole puzzle house idea. It was a little sad to see Viren from a long time ago. Not much of note really happens until the very last page and then there's a huge cliffhanger. Hopefully it'll be addressed in a future book or TV series.
This is exactly the type of Dragon Prince content that should exist. Young Claudia and young Soren adventuring while Claudia wrestles with her mother’s absence and father’s emotional distance? A weary, worn-out Viren struggling to be present for his children while suppressing recent tragedy and trauma? A glimpse into the time before Harrow took the throne?
did not expect this one to be my favorite out of the comics. but the way it portrayed claudias emotions was beautiful, and bittersweet, i saw myself in her. and it just made me love claudias character more then i already did. it was also bittersweet to see little claudia and soren interacting before the acts of the series. i loved this book, I RECOMMEND IT!!
This one is a lot better if you have seen at least the first season of the show so you have some idea of who these characters are. Also there is a carrousel in this that would make a great amusement park ride.