Rat Queens, Vol. 1: Sass and Sorcery

If you’re looking for an M-rated series that is full of swordplay, sorcery, and sass, and you don’t mind a bit of gore thrown in for good measure, you’ll love this. Betty, Dee, Hannah, and Violet are mercenaries for hire who can drink a troll under the table, use language that would make an orc blush, and mercilessly eviscerate baddies. Off on a minor “quest” in order to make up for their drunken brawling, this kick-ass quartet soon realizes that someone or something wants them very dead. Making them dead, however, is far easier said than done. It’s not just the fantastic pacing of Wiebe’s (Peter Panzerfaust, Debris) text or former video game designer Upchurch’s blood-sprayed action sequences, but also the characters themselves that drive the story relentlessly forward. Possessed of very different body types, personalities, and idiosyncrasies, and not afraid to share exactly what they’re feeling, the Rat Queens are refreshing characters whose story will leave readers thirsty for more. (June)