Ruse was a CrossGen comic book title. It ran for twenty-six issues from November 2001 to January 2004 before it was forced to end by the bankruptcy of CrossGen. The first half was written by Mark Waid and the last half by Scott Beatty; nearly the entire series featured pencils by Butch Guice. The series also had three spin-off issues, each called Ruse: Archard's Agents and all written by Chuck Dixon. The critically-acclaimed series was known for complex plots, the witty repartee between the two protagonists, and being of an unusual genre in comic books (Victorian-era detective fiction).

Brimming with eroticism and intrigue, VEILS incorporates computer-manipulated photography and lushly painted art to tell the story of Vivian Pearse-Packard, who, newly married to the abusive, alcoholic son of a British ambassador, finds herself in an exotic land thousands of miles from her home and family. Vivian embarks on a sensual journey of self-discovery as she visits the Sultan's palace and is invited to enter that most forbidden of places: the harem. Is the lure of the forbidden worth the ultimate price?