HOTBLOOD!

A Centaur in the American Old West

[rot-iron]

2012, 2015, 2020, 2022, 2025

Eve Rook is from my new graphic novel Hotblood!, Vol. 1: The Land of Promise, out 9/9/25.

➔ PREORDER | bsky | ig

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I grew up in New Jersey and went to college in Rhode Island. When I first started drawing Hotblood! in 2013, I'd never seen the American interior and had to rely on books and image search for reference.

In July 2018 I moved to California and drove across the country alone in a 20-year-old car that didn't have air conditioning. Looking back, that trip was probably the first step towards redrawing the comic – I fell in love with the land (and my car). Seven years and three cars later I've been able to spend a lot of time traveling around the US and Canada as far south as Austin and as far north as Juneau. That experience inspired the setting of the Mad Cave edition of Hotblood! in a way that would never have happened otherwise. ➔ PREORDER | bsky | ig

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Reference sheets for Elen and Rook - I threw these together so that the team at @alkaliblue could get an idea of how a sphinx and a centaur work as composite animals. Elen is my ideal woman...

*HOTBLOOD! Vol. 1: The Land of Promise is a neo-noir Fantasy/Western about bestiality and the Transcontinental Railroad, Publishers Weekly said it was "good," and I'm drawing Vol. 2 for September 2026.

WATCH THE PV ▶️ youtu.be/AzioM_FIyEY

BUY MY HORSE YAOI ▶️ tinyurl.com/hb1tlp

[hotbloodcomic]

HOTBLOOD! VOL. 2: THE VALLEY OF KINGS SEPTEMBER 8, 2026

"After a fire, you can see farther. Everything is red."

Alta California, 1880: Evander Rook–alias John Davidson–is a centaur on the run. When his trail leads to two unidentifiable corpses in the ruins of a house fire, it’s the job of US Marshal Iban Zarco to bring him in, dead or alive...but it's not that easy. As he gets closer to his quarry, what started as a routine investigation will lead Zarco to the edge of everything he’s ever known.

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How is the Mad Cave edition different from what was printed for the 2018 Kickstarter? The script was rewritten, every page was redrawn, the page count has doubled to accommodate the new story, and even the trim size has changed.

You can follow me for further updates on bsky or instagram.

Thank you! 

[alkaliblue]

Happy Year of the HORSE! 🧨🐎 Our team is celebrating by sharing some exclusive behind-the-scenes production artwork from the Hotblood! PV

[alkaliblue]

Hotblood! PV: behind-the-scenes (pt. 1) 🐴 🕊️ 🔅

Full PV here

[alkaliblue]

Excited to share our DEBUT PROJECT 🐎💨

Toril Orlesky's cult classic webcomic HOTBLOOD! is back with a revised print serialization. It's been awesome collaborating with her to bring the new art to life!

HOTBLOOD! Vol. 1: The Land of Promise AVAILABLE NOW

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WE DID IT! WATCH OUR PV! I'M SOOOOOOO PROUD OF THIS!!!!!!!

The promotional video for HOTBLOOD! Vol. 1: The Land of Promise is finally online! I helped a bit with backgrounds and character sheets but @alkaliblue did all the real work... it's my dream to produce an animated film, I'm so grateful for the opportunity to team up with ALKALI BLUE 💙 We have a lot of behind-the-scenes material to share, so please follow their studio account!

[alkaliblue]

Anyone here like horse yaoi? 🐎✨

Stay tuned...

Please support Toril's work! 📚 Hotblood! Vol.1 The Land of Promise https://tinyurl.com/hb1tlop

[hotbloodcomic]

HOTBLOOD! VOL. 1: THE LAND OF PROMISE SEPTEMBER 9, 2025

In the red days of the West, centaurs and humans coexist. The year is 1871 and centaur Evander Rook finds himself at rock bottom, working for would-be robber baron Asa Langley–a human! As the unlikely pair get closer, Rook finds himself caught up in Asa's ambitions and they are both forced to reckon with the ghosts of their interwoven pasts.

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FAQ

How is the Mad Cave edition different from the 2016 Kickstarter omnibus? The Mad Cave edition is totally different (night and day, sun and moon) from what was printed for the 2016 Kickstarter – the script was rewritten, every page was redrawn, and even the trim size has changed. Vol. 1 is a reboot of the omnibus, while Vol. 2 covers Zarco and Vols. 3 and 4 will be all-new material!

Will the Mad Cave edition be published internationally, or possible to order internationally?  This is really important to me! I’m making moves to have it localized––my agent has a lot of experience in this area––but Mad Cave has world rights and it’s ultimately up to them. In the interim, it should be possible to order the US edition internationally because it will be distributed through mainstream channels via Simon&Schuster (Amazon, B&N, Bookshop.org, etc).

You can follow me for further updates on bsky.

The new comic has already been called “postmodernist,” “cinematic,” “breathtaking,” and “a generational achievement” so I really hope you check it out!!

Thank you!