Saturday, February 28, 2009

2009 Book 11: The Secret Servant




Book #:
123

Book Title:
The Secret Servant

Author:
Daniel Silva

Publisher:
G. P. Putnam's Sons

Pub. Date:
2007

Pages:
380

Started:
February 24, 2009

Finished:
February 28, 2009

Time to Read:
5 Days

Back Cover / Inside Flap:
"When we last encountered Gabriel Allon, the master art restorer and sometime officer of Israeli intelligence, he had just prevailed in his blood-soaked duel with Saudi terrorist financier Zizi al-Bakari.  Now Gabriel is summoned once more by his masters to undertake what appears to be a routine assignment: travel to Amsterdam to purge the archives of a murdered Dutch terrorism analyst who also happened to be an asset of Israeli intelligence.  But once in Amsterdam, Gabriel soon discovers a conspiracy of terror festering in the city's Islamic underground, a plot that is about to explode on the other side of the English Channel, in the middle of London.
The target of this plot is Elizabeth Halton, daughter of the American ambassador to the Court of St. James's, who is to be brutally kidnapped. Gabriel arrives seconds too late to save her. And when he reveals his face to the plot's masterminds, his fate is sealed as well. Drawn once more into the service of American intelligence, Gabriel hurls himself into a desperate search for the missing woman as the clock ticks steadily toward the hour of her execution. The search will take him from Amsterdam to Germany to the very end of Denmark. It will thrust him into an unlikely alliance with a man who has lost everything because of his devotion to Islam. It will cause him to question the morality of the tactics of his trade. And it might very well cost him his life."


Stars:
****

Review:
I've had the pleasure of reading several Daniel Silva novels in the past, and I am never disappointed.  Silva uses the perfect mix of action and backstory to leave a reader feeling well-informed and compelled to keep going as the story continues to develop.  Gabriel Allon is a well-defined hero - he has a tragic past and a complicated present, but does what is right even when it would be easier to walk away.  The story line of The Secret Servant could be ripped straight from today's headlines and unlike some authors, Silva never turns to overdone cliches or writer's tricks to accomplish his aim of an excellent story.  Rather, he masterfully displays his talent and the story goes from there.  Definitely recommend - enjoy!



If you have read or are planning to read this book, please make sure to stop back by and leave me a comment to let me know your own thoughts!

From my library to yours,

Tiffany

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