The Secret S.T.E.A.M. Society is made up of a group of students from different grade levels that come together with their good friend, Toot, who is an exchange student from another planet, to learn, teach and understand the world and the universe around us. Ride into the sunset with the adventures of The Secret STEAM Society! When their teacher introduces their next lesson on horses, Thea is a little nervous. She’s never seen a horse before, much less rode one. It’s up to George and Toot (a secret student from another planet) to help Thea overcome her fears by learning as much as she can about these majestic animals. Together, the students travel through time, shrink down to microscopic size, and travel to the very edge of our universe and back again to learn all there is to know about horses. Kids who love Magic School Bus will devour this tale, as the kids learn through adventure!

TITLE: Secret STEAM Society: Horses

Writer and Artist: Trevor Mueller and Gabriel Mayorga

Publisher: Mad Cave Studios / Papercutz Imprint

Protagonists: Thea, Toot, George, and the rest of the team

Antagonists: No one, really. It’s not that kind of book.

Well this is a bit different than usual! You could say it’a a horse of a different color!

When I’m reviewing a comic book, graphic novel, or manga, it has historically always been a plot-driven tale about protagonists and antagonists. There is fighting, adventure, comedy, romance, and/or fantastical elements in play as we study characterization, conflicts, and adventure.

Today’s book is more of an educational venture than an action-packed one. As noted in the publisher’s quote above, Secret STEAM Society: Horses is very much like an extensive episode of Magic School Bus. It’s a lesson on everything you could ever want to know about horses.

I’m not really familiar with Secret STEAM Society books, but the principle of them seems to be that there is a school for youngsters where they have adopted an alien classmate named Toot from the planet Cancri. Toot uses his advanced alien technology to help the students learn things on a level they otherwise could not experience!

The writing by Trevor Mueller in this book is very thorough and complete, and it doesn’t hold anything back. We get the evolutionary history of horses and their history of movement here on Earth. We get in-depth descriptions of their biology and what makes them up. What they eat, what they excrete, what they do, and how they are built to do it… it’s all contained in the writing here. And Mueller doesn’t have his characters speak down to his audience; he is thorough and describes things as they really are. The characters will occasionally clarify the harder-to-grasp concepts, but by-and-large, Mueller has faith in his age-appropriate readers to keep up.

Gabriel Mayorga’s art is up to the standard that Mueller sets. The art is bright and vibrant, but the horses are realistically drawn, as are all of the details around them. Mayorga is spot-on doing the art here and handling all of the details that Mueller wants him to put down. We see the inside workings of these creatures and their origins in grand spectacular detail.

The target audience for Secret STEAM Society: Horses is probably tweens that are super into these equine beasts. It’s definitely too intense and scientific for younger children, but when you get into being a teenager, the weird base story with Toot the alien might be a bit too immature for them. But I could be wrong there; it’s been a long time since I was 14. Kids at that age might not be as mature as I’m giving them credit for.

What I’m getting at is that I’m worried that this book’s audience might be really niche. You are already aiming specifically at folks who are SUPER into horses, but also of a certain age where this book will really hit for them and not be either too complex or too silly.

I do hope Secret STEAM Society finds its audience, because it’s clear that a lot of work and passion and talent went into it. It’s a very well-made and informative book that can be beneficial for anyone to read. I sure didn’t know as much about horses before I read it as I do now.

You can find Secret STEAM Society: Horses in bookstore on February 10th, 2026 and in comic book shops on February 11th, 2026!

Until next time, take care!