Lady S. #12

Philippe Aymond's spy thriller Lady S. reaches its twelfth chapter with "Rapport de forces," and the cover sets a tense, sun-baked mood immediately. In the foreground, a blindfolded blonde woman holds a blindfolded child close — both clearly in jeopardy — while in the desert distance a lone gunman stands over a second silhouetted figure, pistol in hand. Sébastien Gérard's warm, arid color palette and Aymond's precise linework make this 2016 Dupuis entry feel every bit as gripping as the espionage genre demands.