Hannah the rock-abilly elven mage, Violet the hipster dwarven fighter, Dee the atheist human cleric, and Betty the hippy smidgen thief comprise the Rat Queens, a rowdy mercenary crew in the fantasy town of Palisade. Volume one follows these women as they recover from a night of heavy drinking only to find themselves targeted by a series of assassination attempts. Someone is systematically murdering the local adventuring guilds, forcing the foul-mouthed quartet to slice through goblins and trolls to uncover a conspiracy involving local military officials and vengeful figures from their pasts.
This graphic novel serves readers who enjoy subversions of high-fantasy tropes and role-playing game archetypes. It appeals to those looking for female-driven stories where the protagonists are allowed to be violent, crude, and morally grey. Readers walk away with a modern take on sword-and-sorcery tropes that prioritizes personal camaraderie and dark humor over epic destiny or traditional heroism. It functions as a bloody, fast-paced antidote to the self-serious nature often found in the fantasy genre.
Practical, outward-looking, clear-cut and escapist; an easy read.
Best for readers like The Escapist Adventurer. Which reader are you?
- Published
- 2014
- Language
- EN
