A Death in Cornwall by Daniel Silva

A Death in Cornwall is Silva's 24th Gabriel Allon novel and was his 2024 publication. It is one of my favorite series of books and I look forward to a new novel every July. Unfortunately, I am usually 1 July behind. 

Allon, the former head of Israeli intelligence,  has now, in retirement, transitioned to being a full time art restorer working for his wife Chiara in Venice, Italy. They have twins and many times he is responsible for being the parent in charge. However, he still dabbles in international intrigue when it involves something to do with art theft, restoration or forgery. 

Allon has lived in Cornwall off and on during his days as a spy when he wanted to become incognito. It was because of this and his connection to a young detective, Timothy Peel,  that he became involved in the case of a murdered art historian, Charlotte Blake. She had been researching the whereabouts of a Picasso painting at the same time the "Chopper" serial killer was operating in the same area. Was she his/her victim or was there another murderer on the loose?  

The Picasso had belonged to a Jewish family and was confiscated by the Nazis during the Holocaust. In tracing its provenance, he discovers that it is being held in the Geneva Freeport. The reader always learns something in Silva's novels. As it is owned by a shell company, one of the many created by the corrupt law firm of Harris Weber, the machinations expose the length and depth the owners will go to protect the painting and its worth, influence the selection of a new English Prime Minister, and discredit an upstanding journalist. 

As is the case in all of Silva's novels, the plot twists and turns as he reintroduces characters from the past - Christopher Keller, Rene Montjean, Sarah Bancroft, Ana Rolfe, and Ingrid Johanson. It is more of a page turner than some of the Allon novels and still lets the reader travel to many European locations. The descriptions of the group in Monaco were especially interesting. 

The 2025 Allon, An Inside Job, arrived today so I must finish book club books before embarking on that one.  
 

The Collector by Daniel Silva

Finally caught up with the Daniel Silva books on my TBR shelf, although this was read sporadically while I was trying to read my way through the Pittsburgh Arts and Lectures series books as well as the Gables Book Club books. The Collector is the 23rd in the Gabriel Allon series and Silva just keeps getting better in his craft with each of them. 

Despite the fact that Allon is supposed to be in retirement, he is recalled back into service as the master spy and art expert that he has practiced in his past. He needs to track down a painting that had been stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. It seems that within the secret safe of Lukas van Damme, a very rich shipping tycoon, an empty frame was found that would match that painting  - The Concert by Vermeer. Van Damme had been murdered and it was argued that the murderer was also the one who stole the painting. As he investigates, the trail leads to him Denmark and a cybersecurity expert, Ingrid Johansen. She is also a renowned thief and Allon soon recognizes that she could be an ally in resolving the crimes. 

In inimitable Silva fashion the novel takes on a much more serious theme as the investigation leads to a possibility of a nuclear war between the United States and Russia. With the introduction of Ingrid, he has created another strong character who works with him in averting the crisis and the resolution of the crimes. The plot is intricate and one of the best in the series. 

It is amazing how Silva is almost prescient in knowing world events before they happen. In this novel, the Russian war with Ukraine plays a large part in how the events materialize. The tensions between Moscow and the U.S. are also underscored. Silva's books are masterpieces in spy and politics and never fail to entertain. It will be interesting to see how and if he includes Ingrid in his 2024 book which will be published in July!

 

The Cellist by Daniel Silva

The best laid plans are often sidetracked by life's interruptions. Because our book club was canceled for April, I felt I had ample time to read a number of books before the May book club. However, IT,  happened and my free time, airplane, and travel time were usurped. 

It took me a bit longer to finish Silva's 2021 book than I had expected. Drawing on many characters from past novels, The Cellist takes place as the world is in the grip of the pandemic. There are countless references to lock-downs, masks, and COVID-19.

The book begins, as many of his do, with the very suspicious death of Viktor Orlov, a close friend of the Israeli intelligence commander, Gabriel Allon. The body is discovered by Sarah Bancroft, who had worked with Allon in previous novels and is now working at Isherwood Fine Arts. When she finds Orlov at his desks, she strongly believes that he was poisoned by some sort of nerve agent. Her connection to Orlov was in regard to money she was to collect for the restoration of a painting the gallery had sold to a Russian oligarch.She  In a very convoluted way, this leads to the introduction of the cellist in the novel's title - Isabel Brenner, who works for RhineBank, AG in Germany as a money launderer. Allon devises a scheme to find Orlov's killer and recruits Brenner to become his prime operative. 

From a London, to Geneva, to Zurich to France, Jerusalem and even Wilmington, DE, Silva whirls the reader through a maze of banks, concert halls, museums and villas as he delves into the money laundering schemes of Russia and its wealthy leader, Vladimir Putin. The novel's culmination is at the January 6th Insurrection in Washington, an ending that Silva completely rewrote having been an eyewitness that day while being in Washington on business.  One of the hallmarks of the Gabriel Allon and Silva books is how closely they are tied to the geopolitical real-world events. This was no exception and provides the author a virtual soapbox from which he can deliver his political views, which are quite critical of the 45th president and his followers. The author's notes at the end of the book are illuminating and indicative of the research that Silva does for his novels.

This wasn't one of my favorite Allon books, but a good read, nonetheless. It is my intent to finish the 2022 novel before his new tome is released in July, 2023. Too many books and not enough time.

 

 

The Other Woman by Daniel Silva

Daniel Silva is my go-to author when I want a well crafted, complex, entertaining, and mind expanding novel. With the coronavirus lock down, it has been good to read some books that have been on the to read shelves for a few years. Because Silva books are not short novels, one needs a block of time to really digest and enjoy them. 

In The Other Woman, Silva builds on his previous Gabriel Allon stories. This time he assembles his team to ferret out a mole within the MI6 bureau in London. He pulls in much of the story of Kim Philby, who was a double agent for the British Intelligence. Silva interweaves the fictional characters, including a daughter of Philby into his novel to provide the thrilling escapades of a new mole in the intelligence venue. 

The book's premise to aid with the defection of a Russian agent in Vienna ends tragically and Allon is blamed publicly for the blunder. In order to save his reputation and that of the Office, he becomes aware of a traitor who has ingratiated him/herself into the intelligence agency of a foreign service. The key to the operation is an elderly woman, who in Andalusia is writing her memoirs, The Other Woman. 

With his sometimes rival Graham Seymour, the two embark on a quest to find the mole that has been supplying the Russians with sensitive information. They set their sites on Alistair Hughes, who was the MI6 head in Vienna. They realize that this was the impression that the Russians wanted to give and so the two plod on. They pour over file after file until they realize the Philby connection. With that knowledge, they launched a plan that would uncover the mole's identity and bring him/her into custody.

As in all of Silva's novels, the twists and turns keep readers on the edge of their seats. He is so gifted in the way that he allows Gabriel Allon to showcase brilliance and resilience. To detail any more of the plot, would be to spoil it for those who want to read it for themselves. The reader sits on the fence between dying to know what will happen and not wanting the book to end. A must read for all spy novel fans.

House of Spies by Daniel Silva

I am always a year behind on Daniel Silva's books, but that's OK since I know I always have one waiting for me every July. Last year's read was The Black Widow and my July read this year was House of Spies, the 17th installment in the Gabriel Allon series. It takes place about 4 months after The Black Widow with nearly the same group of characters. 

Allon has been promoted to the Director of the Intelligence Office on King Saul Boulevard. Appearing with him in this book are his arch rival, Uzi Navot, Ari Shamron, the former director, Christopher Keller, Mikhail Abramov, and from The Black Widow, Natalie Mizrrahi. 

After terrorist attacks by Isis in France, the West End, and Washington, Allon is determined to bring Saladin, the ISIS leader down. Because Natalie nursed him back to health, she is one of the few who can identify him. The path to Saladin is traced to assault rifles from the London attack through a gallery in Saint-Tropez and the Moroccan desert. Along this path Allon and his crew manage to blackmail the drug kingpin, Jean-Luc-Martel and his companion, Olivia Watson into providing information and setting a meeting with Saladin. 

The action becomes quite the cat and mouse game with Keller, once a British special Ops figure, assassin, and now an MI6 officer, in the midst of the planning and execution. It is an intriguing plot that attempts to rid the world of this radical leader. Allon builds a coalition of Israel, France, and the US to carry it all out. Somewhat true to life, the French and the British have the bulk of the action here while the United States' role is somewhat diminished. One realizes, also, that even if Saladin is captured or killed, there will be other who will carry on his war, in just what arena is undetermined. 

Silva is truly a gifted author who keeps the reader on the edge of his seat, turning pages as quickly as possible. As far as this reader is concerned, he is a must-read author, who continues to hone his craft.

The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen

The critical acclaim for The Sympathizer is well earned and deserved. From the onset, the reader knows that this is a book that is an important contribution to the collection of world literature. To be sure, it is not the easiest of books to read, but a story that will resonate well into the future. 

In a trend for books today, the novel is told by an unnamed narrator who is writing his confess for the commandant. It begins as Saigon is about to fall and so many are trying to escape as quickly as they can. The Narrator lives with the General, on whom he is to spy,  and is given the task to compile a limited list of names of those who could be evacuated with the General. The escape is not without peril as the Narrator's best friend's, Bon, wife and son are killed on the tarmac. The Narrator's handler, Man, is likewise a communist, while Bon is a patriot. 

Escaping to Los Angeles, Bon and the Narrator share an apartment and Bon works for the General who opens a liquor store. The Narrator goes to work for the Department of Oriental [sic] Studies at the university where he meets Ms. Mori, with whom he begins a relationship. From this point the narrative turns into a cat and mouse espionage adventure.  The General believes that there is a mole in his organization as he begins to reorganize an army to return to Viet Nam to fight the communists. The Narrator informs the General that, indeed, there is a spy and it is the crapulant major, who is handled.

The Narrator returns to Viet Nam as a consultant on a movie that is being produced and the plot thickens as to explosions, torture, the revelation of who exactly Man is, and the final statement in the book, "We will live!"

The writing is exquisite and sophisticated. The sentences are crafted so well and the characters developed to a degree that is not often seen in fiction today. Sympathy, is the underlying theme of the novel, hence the title. The Narrator shows sympathy at nearly every turn in his life. He is able to understand people and their beliefs, even though they might not align with his. He is a communist, to be sure, but also can sympathize with the General and his desire to reclaim his native country. 

It was an interesting talk that Nguyen gave for the Ten Literary Evenings. One point that really came through was his life as a Vietnamese man in America - you never quite feel at home in your life. When you are with your family in a typical Vietnamese home, you feel as an outsider to the American way. When you are on the outside in the midst of American culture, you are not at home with your heritage. A good point for all of us to remember as we deal with refugees in our country.