"Mouse Guard: Winter, 1152" by David Petersen

When we last saw the stalwarts of the Mouse Guard, they were facing a cold, hard winter in the aftermath of betrayal by one of their number. In volume one of the series, Fall 1152, David Petersen introduced us to Leiam, Kenzie, Saxon and Sadie of the Guard, their leader Gwendolyn, the mysterious guard known as the Black Axe, and the town of Lockhaven. The Guard is charged with protecting the routes between the mouse towns and with fighting threats against mousekind. The wonderful art (also by Petersen) combined with a rip-roaring action tale to produce one of the most purely fun graphic books I've read in ages.

Petersen does not miss a beat in volume two, Winter 1152. The Guard, charged with requesting supplies from other towns so Lockhaven can last the winter, is scattered across the icy landscape. There they face all manner of threats and through these, bits of mouse history are revealed. Petersen succeeds in immersing the reader in the world of the Guard, creating bizarre and beautiful worlds. This is the kind of thing graphic media does best.

Who lives? Who dies? What is the nature of the new threat facing Lockhaven? I don't wish to give anything away, suffice it to say that nothing is a throwaway, and the consequences of past actions seem likely to linger into the future. While there are some things that seem predictable about this series, there is much that is surprising as well. Petersen's imagination and improving (!) artwork make this worth a read. One can only hope that Spring, 1153 is on the way.