Adapted from the Anthony Horowitz novel by Antony Johnston (text), Emma Vieceli and Kate Brown (illus). Scorpia: the graphic novel (Alex Rider #5). Walker Books Australia, 1 Feb 2016, 176pp., $19.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781406341881
Friday. 1700 hours. Venice. Alex Rider foils attempted robbery; mysterious boat appears in the canal; plot to kills thousands of children revealed.
Friday. 1830 hours. London. Mystery solved; children saved; Alex Rider unexpectedly shot, possibly fatally.
Phew! What a reading ride! I’m a complete newcomer to Anthony Horowitz’s Alex Rider series and to Antony Johnston’s graphic novel adaptations, but I was quickly hooked by Scorpia: The Graphic Novel, adapted from the fifth book in Horowitz’s ten-book series. The story moves along at a cracking pace. Fourteen-year-old Alex is captured by international espionage agency Scorpia and sent on a mission to MI6 in London. Adults in both organisations seem untrustworthy, but who is telling the more plausible lies – Scorpia or MI6? Was Alex’s father a traitor to his country or was he a saviour in disguise? Who should Alex believe?
Quite apart from Alex’s own family mystery, there is the small problem of Scorpia’s plan to kill thousands of children in London—part of a plot by Scorpia’s Middle Eastern client to destroy the accord between the UK and the US. Alex is in the thick of it all. Will he deactivate the satellite dishes that can transmit deadly terahertz beams into the bodies of unsuspecting children? Will he escape the clutches of Scorpia? Will he ever trust anyone at MI6 again? Is he even alive?
Sadly, book six in the series, Ark Angel, is not yet available as a graphic novel, but I can always track down Horowitz’s original to see what happens next. In the meantime, there’s the series website to help sate my appetite for vicarious danger and adventure. While Horowitz’s novels each run to nearly 400 pages, the graphic novel adaptations are under 200 pages and are illustrated in full colour. Vieceli and Brown’s drawings and colourings for Scorpia: The Graphic Novel heighten all the action and drama of the story. For readers who enjoyed Felice Arena’s Andy Roid books, Alex Rider, either in graphic format or in the original text version, could prove a great series to read next.
For ages 9+
Reviewed by Tessa Wooldridge
