Italian Renaissance is a magnet to me. This tale of espionage takes a man and a woman on secret missions for their respective countries throughout palaces and back alleys in Venice. It is distaste at first sight and they relish a battle of witty exchanges and poisonous banter while in and out of their disguises.

Even though I had to zoom in to better read the texts and that got tiresome, I managed to have a lot of fun with the mischievous sense of humour. The panels are plentiful, drawn in colourful, slightly caricaturesque style and suffused in unlawful humour.

The oppossing spies clash whenever they meet in their double persona, yet an undercurrent of attraction pervades their encounters when they are disguised and popping all over roofs, punching bad guys and searching for clues or dogdging each other’s victories.

The missions show devious characters, beautiful renditions of Venice and twisted mysteries, especially the second adventure. This looks like a glimpse of a longer arc plot that will continue in future comics which I would love to read to find out if this couple falls for each other and tease all the secrets out of Venice. Very entertaining and funny.

Venezia by Lewis Trondheim with art by Fabrice Parm is a dated graphic novel, and the tale is one that we have seen a million times before, mixing secret identities with a love hate relationship.

It’s misogynistic to the core, and at times attempts to disguise this by positing Sophia/The Black Scorpion as a mastermind that can save herself and quip back faster than Giuseppe/The Eagle can. However, this is rendered redundant by the artistic choices of the novel to cater to the male gaze and to have Sophia fall in love with a man who clearly cannot respect her.

I found the story to be confusing; in the first section there was no clear resolution and it seems that other readers have had the same difficulty. The story, when present, was slow and repetitive, which doesn’t assist you in following the overall plot. The second half had a much more intriguing premise, but it seems that this is just an attempt to use Leonardo da Vinci’s name to sell it.

I liked this- it definitely immersed me in the Venetian setting! It's essentially two stories about the same two main characters in one edition, and I actually really liked that. I was entertained and would definitely be excited for a sequel.

This was so fun and action packed. I enjoyed the beautiful art, the characters and the over all feeling of nostalgia I got from just reading it! There is so much adventure in this one! I found myself racing through and just having a great time! Watching our main characters start as rivals and discover more as the comic unfolded was so rewarding.

This is fun and I would definitely love to add it to my shelf at home!

This is an awesome graphic novel! The two main characters are normal people by day and spies by night. They have many chance encounters and despise each other at first but then as their missions continue to intersect...

The art style in this is beautiful and full of colorful European images. The characters are also funny and fun to follow. However I would say this graphic novel is definitely adult, so just be aware of that. This is such a fun book, I highly recommend you pick this up if you like graphic novels or spy stories!
I think the only thing that kept me from giving it 5 stars is that I would have liked to see more of the spy characters interacting with their home countries/ the head quarters they are spying for. But I really like spy agency stories so that might just be a personal preference. Overall though I loved this!

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for the free copy!

This graphic novel tells a story about two spies who enter Venice, both on a mission. The woman is disguised as an opera singer and the man as a painter. They immediately hate each other, but sparks are flying. Who will accomplish the mission? Will they kill each other in the process? Read this fun graphic novel to find out!

I enjoyed this story and the romance. I was a little thrown by the number of text bubbles - they made the already detailed art a little harder to look at. Definitely worth reading, though. I think graphic novel fans will enjoy this one.

Venezia by Lewis Trondheim, 98 pages. GRAPHIC NOVEL
Europe Comics, 2019. $9.
Language: PG (5 swears, 0 “f”); Mature Content: PG13; Violence: PG
BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS - OPTIONAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
Giuseppe and Sophia hate each other by day, but their alter egos The Eagle and Black Scorpion are falling for each other. As these two spies compete to accomplish the same tasks for their employers, their feelings start to get in the way. Will Venice be able to survive those with harmful intents?
I liked the idea of this story, but I found the execution to be too corny and repetitive. I felt like the two heroes were doing and saying the same things every other panel, and my interest decreased with every page. Also, the content seems to be written for more of a high school audience except for the humor that feels more immature. The mature content rating is for innuendo, mention of pornography, and nudity.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

Two people are running to hire a boat. The man and the woman are in immediate dislike of each other and rather childish about it. The woman gets the boat but at a price. Then they discover they are renting rooms in the same house. What they don't realize? They are both masters of disguise, spying on the same meeting. When they run into each other as their alter egos, they are able to work together.
The artwork is fabulous and the storyline is fun. There is a little bit of gap in some of the story lines but I wonder if that is translation. Overall a fun book.

Four stars
This book came out November 20
ARC kindly provided by Europe Comics and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

***Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review***

A rollicking, fun graphic novel with cool illustrations.

I really enjoyed this graphic novel. It was entertaining, romantic and the drawings were beautiful and detailed.

A fun, action-packed graphic novel with two strong main characters who keep crossing paths over the course of their adventures. With the beautiful art style and a plot that keeps you guessing and begging for more and more of the hilarious dynamic between the two leads, I couldn't have asked for much more.

A massive thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the free copy!

Not my kind of artwork and I couldn't understand how the first part of the story ended. All in all it's enjoyable but not memorable.

This graphic novel was hugely entertaining right from the first frame. The drawings are colourful and delightful. The story is so funny, and the dialogue is snappy. I love the fact that Da Vinci is part of the plot (though making no actual appearance), and that both the male and female lead are equally adventurous and competent at what they do.

I’d recommend this to anyone who is a fan of graphic novels, humour and adventure.

I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Superheroes, secret identities, and a hunt for a mysterious DaVinci tome in sixteenth century Venice! I feel like this was written just for me.

A cute, sweet, and unique graphic novel that is both a paean to the genre and also an original spin on it. Great art and formatting as well.

One small warning: There are a lot of cultural stereotype jokes in this. I didn’t find them at all offensive and would urge you to also remember the era in which this story takes place, but if this is something you’re sensitive about, this may not be the graphic novel for you.