Arsène Lupin #3

Part of Soleil's Collection Détectives BD, this 2001 French-language album adapts Maurice Leblanc's beloved gentleman thief in the story "Victor de la Brigade Mondaine." The cover — drawn in a clean, ligne claire style — captures two stylishly dressed figures in a tense, dynamic standoff: a woman in a tan coat brandishing a pistol faces a sharp-suited man in blue who returns the aim with equal cool. It's a wonderfully spirited image that perfectly bottles the wit and danger at the heart of Lupin's world.