Maverick, the YA imprint of Mad Cave Studios, announced Beat Every 1-Up, a new graphic novel by Lan Ptts and Joe Hunter.
Listen up! This is the fisticuff-filled tale of Princess Helia of Terrager! A natural-born fighter since childhood, Helia must head out into the wider world when her soon-to-be-husband is groom-napped on their wedding day by the atrocious ape and would-be world conqueror, Gogo. But what does a sheltered princess know of the other realms? Turns out, not a whole lot.
Luckily, Helia is joined by her (only) friend and bodyguard, the ice witch Sidra. Together, the pair will brave the deserts of Flaterra, the blizzards of Frosterra…uh, you get the idea…until they’ve rescued the wayward prince, thwarted Gogo, and punched every henchman they can find. And maybe, by the end of their journey, Helia and Sidra will realize their connection goes beyond mere friendship…
“If Beat Every 1-Up had dropped when I was a kid, it would’ve rewired my brain,” said Lan Pitts. “I would’ve drawn these characters in the margins of every notebook and tried to recreate the fight scenes in my backyard. It’s fists, feels, and first love—the kind of story I didn’t know I needed back then, and the one I’m proud to help bring into the world now.”
Beat Every 1-Up arrives on March 17, 2026.
