Son of Hitler

June 1, 2018
Pierre Moreau is just a lowly baker in Nazi-occupied France. Or so he thinks. When Cora Brown, a British intelligence agent, tracks him down shortly after he single-handedly takes down a handful of Nazi officers in a fit of revenge, she has some startling news for him: he's Hitler's illegitimate son, and he's in a unique position to infiltrate his father's inner circle and assassinate him. Del Col and Moore's story is packed with classic espionage-thriller turns, such as coded messages hidden in baked goods (though the madeleines Pierre bakes look nothing like the shell-shaped classic in the artwork), double-crossing agents, bloody shootouts, blackmail, and a rookie operative with a hair trigger, who fouls up the plan. McComsey's luminous monochromatic artwork makes great use of highlight and shadow on his realistic figures, which only adds to the noirish atmosphere. Pierre's story drags a bit in the middle, but a twist toward the end sends the story careering toward the conclusion, which takes a hearty swipe at contemporary American politics. Hand to fans of WWII-era spy comics.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)