Whiteout 1
Rucka, Greg
Lieber, Steve (ILT)
Paperback
List Price:                 $13.95
booksXYZ price: $9.07

Originally released in 1998 by Oni Press in four issues it was later collected into a trade paperback.  Whiteout was also one of the first graphic novels I ever read.  It was assigned for a class I took on women heroines in literature.  I immediately began looking for the second installment (you can buy one here), winner of a 1999 Eisner Award.  A film adaptation for the series was released on September 11, 2009 which didn't have very good reviews - but don't let that stop you from buying the novels.  Adaptations are always tricky buisiness.  Greg Rucka's high contrast black and white style is captivating, as well as the seeming reversal of background color (usually black, since Whiteout is based in Antartica the background when they're outside is white, giving a starkness to the scenes not otherwise present). 

Summary

Art by Steve Lieber. Compiles issues #1-4. You can’t get any further down than the bottom of the world—Antarctica. Cold, desolate, nothing but ice and snow for miles and miles. Carrie Stetko is a U.S. Marshal, and she’s made The Ice her home. In its vastness, she has found a place where she can forget her troubled past and feel at peace…. Until someone commits a murder in her jurisdiction and that peace is shattered. The murderer is one of five men scattered across the continent, and he has more reason to hide than just the slaying. Several ice samples were taken from the area around the body, and the depth of the drilling signifies something particular was removed. Enter Lily Sharpe, who wants to know what was so important another man’s life had to be taken for it. But are either of the women prepared for the secrets and betrayals at the core of the situation? (You can read an excerpt at Greg Rucka's website - just click here.)