Red Winter is a surprising bit of warmth on a cold night, a touching tale and one of the most compelling books of the year so far.

Compulsive Comics, a collection comprising reprinted stories by Eric Haven, is a wonderful bit of weird. His draftsmanship evokes some sort of sweet spot between ‘70s underground comix, ‘90s alt-comics, and classic serialized strips featuring strange creatures and square-jawed, Flash Gordon types.

Part one of acclaimed European writer-artist Enrico Marini’s American debut is an instant Batman classic.

Reading Batwoman is a bit of a frustrating experience, mostly because this mix of interesting ideas and gorgeous art leaves a lot of the potential on the cutting room floor.

If nothing else, the Demon series—capped off in this fourth volume—has a protagonist responsible for one of the largest piles of dead bodies in comics history. But the book is a lot more than body count. In fact, the deaths come so rapidly and easily that they become more of a background noise, a dark comedy element than a tragedy.

One of Brian K. Vaughan’s many (seriously, how does he do it?) ongoing projects, this series with illustrator Cliff Chiang (Wonder Woman) and colorist Matt Wilson (The Wicked + the Divine) at first seems like an homage to ‘80s sci-fi—think Stranger Things but with paper delivery girls and a lot more swearing.

A compilation of strips that appeared in the Guardian, Baking with Kafka presents Scottish cartoonist Tom Gauld at his hilarious best. Many of the strips find their subjects in the areas of writing and literary pursuits, which Gauld reveals to be rich sources.

Rock Candy Mountain is, simply put, goddamned delightful.

From husband and wife collaborating team Brigitte Findakly and Lewis Trondheim, Poppies of Iraq is a deeply touching original graphic novel, simultaneously intimate and universal.