Review by Frank Plowright

Irina Svetlanova is a Soviet assassin in the compelling XIII series, a remorseless killer introduced in eighth volume Thirteen to One and seen several times thereafter. Her recurring threat ensures she’s a prime candidate to have her backstory examined in this associated series, following that of the man she worked for The Mongoose.

Ironically, it’s likely Irina will have greater appeal to readers who’ve never come across the character, as Eric Corbeyran’s greatest challenge is to find anything likeable or sympathetic about her. In the core series there’s not a shred of decency or compassion to Irina. Corbeyran supplies sympathy via a tragic backstory of a young girl in a Belarussian orphanage discovering her best friend has been murdered by a visiting Soviet officer, and spins the story from those circumstances, showing a resourceful and single-minded Irina from the start.

Philippe Berthet was the artist Jean Van Hamme selected to work with him on the ancestry of Largo Winch, so obviously highly regarded by the creator of XIII. Van Hamme only works with the best, which is an instant pointer to Berthet’s quality. At times his precise linework, relative simplicity and facial expressions bring Jaime Hernandez to mind, as per the sample art, but Berthet’s his own artist. He uses shadows occasionally, and will supply areas of solid black ink, but otherwise he works very much in the European clear line style, with great attention to detail.

Corbeyran’s method of playing out events results in a generally predictable action thriller, and as the plot is the priority there’s no great emotional depth to Irina beyond her original circumstances. The message seems to be that she’s already the person seen in the core series, and that just needed bringing out. There’s also a role for NSA agent Jessica Martin, and the best moment is the epilogue section in which Corbeyran drops a startling revelation reconfiguring everything we’ve read. Unfortunately, though, it’s a rare storytelling lapse on Berthet’s part and how a pivotal moment occurred is far from clear.

Next volume Little Jones looks at the youth of primary supporting character Agent Jones.