The Sixsmiths is not your typical family-oriented situation comedy. Sure, the Sixsmiths have a nice house in the suburbs. There's Mom and Dad, with a daughter and son in the house and an older daughter, Jezabelle, who is estranged from the family. Ralf, the father, has just been laid off his job, and he's trying valiantly to find new work to support his wife, Annie, and the twins, Cain and Lilith, who have transferred from private to public school because of cutbacks in the family budget.

Oh, and they're Satanists.

The religious aspects of the Sixsmiths' lives are presented with dry, deadpan humor. Sacrifices and sex magic are as mundane to them as other church rituals are to the general populace around them. In fact, the Sixsmiths are probably as normal -- if not more so -- than the people among whom they live and work.

This Australian import is drawn from a webcomic by J. Mark Smith and Jason Franks. While it falls short of biting social commentary, it certainly provides plenty of food for thought, suggesting that, beneath the veneer of accepted social mores, people aren't really all that different. Hmm.

Because of its webcomic origins, the book is presented in brief, black-and-white vignettes that follow a general plotline. Some are funnier than others. Some are even a little touching. The final sequence is startling, and leaves you hanging for the inevitable sequel.