40 éléphants #1

Subtitled "Florrie, Doigts de Fée," this 2017 Grand Angle album from writer Kid Toussaint and artist Virginie Augustin opens with a striking cover that frames a red-haired young woman in a flat cap and heavy coat — bag clutched tightly — looming large above a determined group of period-dressed women advancing together, some visibly armed with a knife and an axe. The warm terracotta palette and Art Nouveau corner flourishes give the whole composition a period elegance that makes the undercurrent of danger all the more compelling. It's a beautifully composed introduction to what promises to be a sharp, atmospheric story of women operating on their own terms.