cover image Black Guard: Wicked City, Vol. 1

Black Guard: Wicked City, Vol. 1

Hideyuki Kikuchi, . . Tor/Seven Seas, $9.99 (265pp) ISBN 978-0-7653-2330-9

Japanese horror master Kikuchi (Vampire Hunter D ) creates a dark, visceral horror fantasy of a demon-infested Tokyo, where a covert force of powerful humans struggle to prevent worldwide chaos. Renzaburo Taki, a member of the titular Guard who can restructure matter at the molecular level, is partnered with Makie, a beautiful demon who betrays her kind and fights for humanity in the ongoing secret war. Together, they're tasked with protecting the legendary sorcerer Giuseppe Mayart, who arrives in Tokyo to sign a peace treaty between man and demonkind. Mayart has plans of his own, sending Taki and Makie on a wild goose chase as the forces of darkness do everything possible to undermine the treaty. Readers looking for gory, erotic supernatural fun will enjoy Kikuchi's wild imagination and Jennyson Rosero's understated b&w illus. (Oct.)