NOTE: We teamed up with Joan Reardon for this Dad Rock Dragon Quest Giveaway. All opinions are our own; we were under no obligation to give a positive review. Giveaway prize provided by the author.
Your new fav summer read just dropped! Dad Rock Dragon Quest by Joan Reardon may be filled with thrilling adventure, magical creatures, and all sorts of epic challenges, but on the way to all that excitement is the journey. And for Zadie Drake, being stuck in the car mile after mile, hour after hour, with her mom’s boring new boyfriend Lloyd is about the worst thing she can imagine – especially when his taste in music totally stinks.
🎸BEYOND THE PAGES: Author Joan Reardon shared Dad Rock Dragon Quest Fun Facts HERE!
As an aspiring rockstar, Zadie doesn’t have time for boring music. Thankfully, she’s got a pair of headphones, a perfectly curated playlist, and phenomenal taste in classic rock hits to soundtrack her own adventure.
Want to know what Dad Rock Dragon Quest is all about? Check out the synopsis below.
A girl’s awkward road trip with her dad and her mom’s new boyfriend turns into to an epic quest to rescue a dragon from poachers in this “fast-paced, exuberant, and genuine adventure” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) perfect for fans of Fablehaven and Wilderlore.
Aspiring rockstar Zadie Drake’s world flipped upside-down the moment her mom started dating Lloyd Clutterbuck—a boring risk analyst with an aversion to all things fun. Since Lloyd moved in, he’s made it his mission to drain every drop of joy from Zadie’s life—putting strict limits on her guitar sessions, nitpicking her every move, and filling the house with his utter dullness. Naturally, when Zadie’s daredevil park ranger dad invites Zadie and her older sister to spend the summer at his cabin, Zadie can hardly contain her excitement. But Zadie’s joy is short-lived when her mom announces that Lloyd will be tagging along.
Soon after arriving at the cabin, Zadie begins to suspect that there’s more to her dad’s job than meets the eye. Her suspicions are confirmed when family secrets make an explosive entrance in the form of a fire-wielding poacher who kidnaps her dad’s best friend—an enormous, ice-breathing dragon. The revelations launch Zadie and her family into a cross-country rescue mission of epic proportions. As tensions spike, tempers flare, and the family’s differences become glaringly obvious, Zadie realizes her family’s most daunting challenge might not be rescuing the dragon but working together.
Dad Rock Dragon Quest
AUTHOR: Joan Reardon
PUBLISHER: Aladdin
DATE: June 3, 2025
You’ll have to read the book to see how the whole rescue of her daredevil park ranger dad’s ice-breathing dragon companion goes, but thankfully, Zadie has shared her playlist so you can rock out while you read.
Want to WIN a copy? We teamed up with author Joan Reardon for a giveaway of Dad Rock Dragon Quest! Grab your favorite adult and have them enter below for your chance to WIN!
Rock Out to Zadie Drake’s Summer Playlist:
Here are a few words from Zadie herself (written by Joan Reardon) about curating a summer playlist and all of her amazing picks so you can create your own.
ZADIE: There’s nothing worse than being stuck in a car with someone you hate, aside from being stuck in a car with someone you hate for almost eleven hours while they blast pop hits of the 70s, 80s, and 90s on five rotating CDs while driving exactly the speed limit. If you’ve experienced the second option, I feel for you, because you know what it feels like to go on a road trip with my mom’s stupid boyfriend Lloyd. Luckily, we live in the twenty-first century, and we have something called noise canceling headphones, which can help a bit, with the right playlist. The best choice of music is, was, and always will be classic rock. I also happen to be a rock expert, so I know the perfect songs to add to a summer playlist loud enough to drown out Billy Joel’s We Didn’t Start the Fire.
So, without further ado, here’s the perfect rock-and-roll playlist:
🎸Since You Been Gone – Rainbow
🎶Lookin’ Out My Back Door – Creedence Clearwater Revival
🎸Stuck In The Middle With You – Stealers Wheel
🎶‘39 – Queen
🎸Free Ride – The Edgar Winter Group
🎶Rock and Roll – Led Zeppelin
🎸Into the Mystic – Van Morrison
🎶Over the Hills and Far Away – Led Zeppelin
🎸House Of The Rising Sun – The Animals
🎶Good Times Bad Times – Led Zeppelin
🎸Seven Seas of Rhye (from A Night at the Odeon – Hammersmith 1975) – Queen
🎶Dream of the Archer – Heart
🎸Fortunate Son – Creedence Clearwater Revival
🎶Jump – Van Halen
🎸Spirit in the Sky – Norman Greenbaum
🎶Octopus’s Garden – The Beatles
🎸Old Man – Neil Young
🎶We’re Through – The Hollies
🎸Silver Springs – Fleetwood Mac
🎶Blitzkrieg Bop – Ramones
🎸Everywhere – Fleetwood Mac
🎶Hocus Pocus – Focus
🎸Hungry Heart – Bruce Springsteen
🎶Don’t Cry – Guns N’ Roses
🎸Tightrope – Electric Light Orchestra
🎶Immigrant Song – Led Zeppelin
🎸Dust in the Wind – Kansas
🎶Hells Bells – AC/DC
🎸Born To Be Wild – Steppenwolf
🎶One – Three Dog Night
🎸Baba O’Riley – The Who
🎶Thunderstruck – AC/DC
🎸Danger Zone – Kenny Loggins
🎶For Whom The Bell Tolls – Metallica
🎸Sweet Child O’ Mine – Guns N’ Roses
🎶Ramble On – Led Zeppelin
Dad Rock Dragon Quest Giveaway:
WHAT DO I WIN?:
TWO (2) lucky winners will receive a hardcover copy of Dad Rock Dragon Quest by Joan Reardon, generously provided by the author herself.
HOW DO I ENTER?:
Grab a parent or guardian and have them fill out the form below by June 20, 2025 at 11:59pm ET.
Giveaway runs from 06/06/25 at 04:00 pm ET through 06/20/25 at 11:59 pm. Open to US residents ONLY. Be sure to read the fully detailed rules HERE before entering.
NOTE: THIS GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED AND THE WINNERS HAVE BEEN CONTACTED.
You must be 18 or older to enter. Please, only ONE entry per person. If selected as a winner, we will provide your parent/guardian with an affidavit to confirm that you are a valid winner who has permission to win. They will be REQUIRED to sign and return the affidavit to YAYOMG! to claim your prize. Prizes will NOT be mailed out without signed parental consent.
✨DAD ROCK DRAGON QUEST: Find out the inspo behind the story directly from the author with these FUN FACTS!
