July 15, 2019
Gabriel Allon partners with a dubious ally in the Middle East. When a 12-year-old is abducted from an exclusive private school in Geneva, Allon, head of Israeli intelligence, is among the first to know. The girl's father is Khalid bin Mohammed, heir to the Saudi throne, and he wants Allon's help. KBM was once feted as a reformer, ready to bring new industries and new freedoms to his country. When he makes his appeal to Allon, though, KBM is the prime suspect in the murder of a journalist. If KBM immediately makes you think of MBS, you are correct. Silva mentions Mohammad bin Salman, Saudi Arabia's real-life heir apparent, in a foreword. But anyone who recognizes KBM as a fictional echo of MBS might find this book to be more old news than fresh entertainment. In his last few novels, Silva has turned his attention to current world affairs, such as the rise of the new Russia and the threats of global terrorism. In novels like The Other Woman (2018) and House of Spies (2017), the author was inventive enough that these works felt compelling and original. And, in The Black Widow (2016), Silva wrote much of the story from the point of view of the French-born Israeli doctor Allon recruited for an undercover mission while also expanding the roles of a few familiar secondary characters. Allon is a wonderful creation. In the first several novels in this series, he posed as an art restorer while working for Israel's intelligence service. He adopted a variety of personas and gave readers access to people and places few of us will ever see. Now that he's a public figure who can no longer invent alter egos, his world is smaller and less fascinating. The pacing here is slow, and any sense of urgency is undercut by the matter of what's at stake. Ultimately, this is a narrative about removing one horrible Saudi ruler in order to reinstate a less horrible Saudi ruler. This might be solid realpolitik, but it's not terribly compelling fiction. It may be time for Silva's hero to retire from the field and let his protégés take over.

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August 5, 2019
In bestseller Silva’s sophisticated 19th thriller featuring art restorer and Israeli intelligence director Gabriel Allon (after 2018’s The Other Woman), Crown Prince Khalid bin Mohammed, the future king of Saudi Arabia, secretly seeks Allon’s help to rescue his daughter, who’s been kidnapped from her school in Geneva, Switzerland. Though Allon is a former enemy, the prince believes Allon is the best man for the job. Allon reluctantly agrees for political reasons, only to have the rescue attempt come to a tragic end in Southern France. He soon realizes, however, that the kidnapping is part of a bigger plot involving members of the Saudi royal family and his old adversaries, the Russians, who hope to permanently alter the balance of power in the Middle East. Allon and his crew of veteran agents race around the world on a mission to thwart the bad guys. Though order is ultimately restored, the novel ends with an unexpectedly violent conclusion. As always, Silva delivers sharply drawn characters, a complex plot, and vivid backgrounds that add to the book’s realism, even if at times Allon’s own abilities seem too good to be true. Series fans will find plenty to like, and this is an excellent introduction for new readers. 10-city author tour.

July 1, 2019
In August 2018, Silva began working on a novel about a Saudi prince who hoped to modernize his country, based on Mohammad bin Salman. The writer's plans changed shortly thereafter when MBS was implicated in the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi last fall. This novel, rewritten from that first draft, still centers on a Saudi crown prince, here called Khalid bin Mohammed (KBM), but Silva also brings the murdered journalist into the story. In Silva's telling, Khalid remains redeemable if deeply flawed. We see both the flaws and the humanity in the despot following the kidnapping of his daughter, which takes place in the book's opening chapters. In an audacious alliance, Khalid turns to Gabriel Allon, chief of Israeli intelligence, for help in finding his daughter, and Allon, seeing the possibility for positive change in the Middle East, reluctantly agrees. The elaborate and fascinating premise set, Silva goes on to do what he has done so masterfully through 21 previous spy thrillers: combine ever-intensifying suspense with the multiple interactions between a familiar team of deftly portrayed characters?Allon's colleagues, along with spymasters from the UK and U.S., as well as, in this case, the alternately infuriating and intriguing Khalid and several figures from previous novels, including American Sarah Bancroft, art historian and dabbler in the secret world. Fans of the series will be especially glad to learn that the notorious Soviet mole from The Other Woman (2018), Rebecca Manning, is back, too, again with her sights set on Allon. It all adds up to an irresistible thriller, built on the realpolitik of today's Middle East but deepened by the universality of human tragedy. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Would Gabriel Allon approve of the way his adventures zoom to the top of best-seller lists? Decidedly not, but that's one thing he can't fix.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)