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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
81 of 105 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Moscow Rule: "Death solves all problems. No man, no problem,
By
This review is from: Moscow Rules (Gabriel Allon) (Hardcover)
(4.5 stars) In his eighth Gabriel Allon espionage thriller, Daniel Silva moves from investigating the historical crimes of the past, often related to the Holocaust, and their effects on the present, to crimes of the present and their possibly catastrophic effects on the future. In this intense and absorbing novel about uncontrolled arms sales, the biggest threat to the future comes from Russian arms dealers, aided by Russia's president and former KGB operatives who are now unimaginably wealthy independent brokers and contractors. These arms merchants operate with impunity, selling all manner of weapons to terrorist organizations throughout the Middle East and Africa.
Gabriel Allon, formerly with the Israeli Mossad, is on his honeymoon in Italy when he is contacted by Ari Shamron, the grand old man of Israeli security. Allon, a trained art restorer, has been working for the Pope, but the recent assassination of a Russian journalist who may have had information he wanted to reveal to the West brings him out of retirement and back into action. When the murdered man's Russian editor-in-chief is also murdered, Allon travels to Russia, where he learns the name of a Russian arms dealer, Ivan Kharkov, who has been supplying Hezbollah, and who now appears close to selling sophisticated weapons to al-Quaeda. Kharkov and his wife are collectors of Mary Cassatt paintings, and the fascinating art world which has added so much life to other Gabriel Allon thrillers in the past is also a major aspect of this novel. Art dealers, down-in-their-luck gentry who own prized artwork, and, in the case, of Allon, restorers, all play unexpectedly major roles in this effort to prevent Kharkov from selling advanced weapons to al-Quaeda. As the high-stakes plotting by the conjoined security services of England, the US, Italy, and France builds to a crescendo, Allon follows the action through various countries leaving multiple murders, beatings, car crashes, and betrayals in his wake. Always, the fine hand of the Russian mafia is pulling the strings, purportedly with the aid of the Russian president. Silva keeps the action moving briskly, and his ability to convey the atmosphere of disparate locations adds depth and drama to the plot. The characters, even the minor ones, are paradigms of the countries they represent, imbued with the cultures of their homelands, rather than mere stereotypes. His major characters are complex and carefully drawn, and the action and underlying themes of the novel are intelligent and thought-provoking. As always, Silva creates a complex and exciting story, but this time the focus is on contemporary politics, rather than on the past. Providing evidence that future catastrophes are shockingly easy to inspire, given the venal nature of unscrupulous international arms dealers, Silva employs his formidable talents to create a terrifying picture of a cynical world--and a warning for the future. n Mary Whipple The Marching Season: A Novel The English Assassin A Death in Vienna Prince of Fire
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
I'll be sure to pick up more Silva...,
By
This review is from: Moscow Rules (Gabriel Allon) (Hardcover)
The middle book of my "Russia" trilogy (Child 44, this and then The Secret Life of Moscow), this happened to be my first Daniel Silva. While it follows a character--Gabriel--from his previous book and references some connections, characters and scenarios from it, I didn't find it difficult to follow Moscow Rules at all without having read the others.
Moscow Rules begins with Gabriel on holiday in Italy with his new wife. He's trying to get some downtime in after what was apparently a rather stressful experience from the last book, and is working diligently on restoring a painting for the Vatican. He gets an urgent call from his boss from the Israeli counter terrorism unit that a member of the much-oppressed Russian press has requested a meeting with Gabriel--and only Gabriel--to give him information about a possible impending attack on Israel and the U.S. They agree to meet, but the journalist is murdered before he can tell Gabriel anything, forcing Gabriel to travel to Russia to learn what the journalist died trying to tell him. Although this is a spy novel, it's in no way a James Bond- or Jason Bourne-esque book--it's not about some superman taking down the world's biggest supervillians (or the world's biggest quasi-evil omnipresent secret government organizations, in the case of Bourne). It is a mystery thriller--although you learn fairly early on who the "villain" is, it takes most of the book to figure out what he's really planning--but Gabriel is no martial-arts gun-toting killing machine. It's much more a thinking man's game, and Gabriel is genuinely helped, not hindered, by his organization. The elaborate ruse set up to meet with the crime bosses' wife has that Thomas Crowne Affair/Ocean's Eleven type of feel to it, which I enjoy just as much as a good Bourne fight scene. Although I can't say how this book compares to his others, I can say it was entertaining enough to make me want to read more.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another excellent Silva,
This review is from: Moscow Rules (Gabriel Allon) (Hardcover)
There are abundant reviews that describe the story line, some in great detail; so that's covered. I would like to throw my hat on the side with those who view Moscow Rules as one of Silva's best to date. All are excellent, and I completely enjoy the Gabriel Allon series for multiple reasons, so perhaps I am biased at the outset. But I do believe that Silva spins a tale here that at least matches the intrigue, and suspense of the others. This book fosters the "I just couldn't put it down" reaction of his previous efforts.
What continues to amaze me is the obvious depth of knowledge that Silva possess about the ins and outs of the cities and towns, and countryside of Europe, and Isreal, and now two major cities in Russia. Such depth of knowedge adds solid foundation to his stories, and depth to the images of imagination. This is yet another excellent Gabriel Allon series, and I do believe you will love it, start to finish.
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