*Genre* Suspense/Thriller*Rating* 4.0*Review*As “The Fallen Angel” opens, Gabriel Allon, renowned art restorer, retired Israeli Spy and assassin, and savior of the Holy father, is working at the Vatican in an effort to restore a 17th century painting by Caravaggio. This, of course, doesn't last very long.Once again Gabriel is called to duty. This time it’s by his friend Monsignor Luigi Donati who asks for Allon's help in investigating the appearance of a suicide by Claudia Andreatti, curator of antiquities for the Vatican who found some discrepancies while taking inventory of the Vatican's artifacts. Almost immediately, Allon suspects foul play and the chase to find the person responsible is on. “Rule number one at the Vatican,” Donati said. “Don’t ask too many questions.” Pg 34Gabriel is lead on a wild ride that takes him into the antiquities market that is fraught with fraud and savory characters. Later he is reunited with his crew in order to capture a known terrorist who may or may not have some important information on a pending attack on Israel or the Jewish people in Europe. For readers who haven’t read this series yet, Allon has been protecting Israel from all enemies foreign and domestic since 1972 when he was called to duty after the Munich Olympic debacle that lead to the slaughter of Israeli athletes. Lately, he gets to the point of retirement with his wife Chiara, only to be pulled back into action to save his homeland and those he loves from Iran and it’s subordinates.The one thing you can count on from any book that is released by Daniel Silva is the intense research he puts into a certain subject. In this case, the subject at hand is the antiquities market and those who operate under the veil of secrecy. He also thoroughly researches the current political atmosphere that has torn the Middle East apart for thousands of years and apparently, there's no end in sight. The story also focuses its attention on Pope Paul VII who is traveling to Israel in an attempt to build bridges between the Jewish people and the Catholic Church which turned its eyes away from what was happening in and around Europe during World War II and doesn’t have a good track record in doing what’s right.Although the speech is fictitious, one of the best lines was: "Those who would perpetuate human suffering in the service of politics must be condemned as strongly as those who would inflict in in the first place." This strongly worded condemnation was aimed direction at Iran.The story takes the reader from the Vatican, to Jerusalem, Paris, St. Moritz, Berlin, northern Denmark, and then to Vienna. By the end of the book, you are wondering how much more Gabriel and Chiara can take before they walk away and finally retire.A quick read that will leave readers in suspense wondering what will happen next. Gabriel Allon is still one of my favorite heroes and I'm hoping we haven't seen the last of him.
GizmosReviews
*Genre* Suspense/Thriller*Rating* 4.0*Review*As “The Fallen Angel” opens, Gabriel Allon, renowned art restorer, retired Israeli Spy and assassin, and savior of the Holy father, is working at the Vatican in an effort to restore a 17th century painting by Caravaggio. This, of course, doesn't last very long.Once again Gabriel is called to duty. This time it’s by his friend Monsignor Luigi Donati who asks for Allon's help in investigating the appearance of a suicide by Claudia Andreatti, curator of antiquities for the Vatican who found some discrepancies while taking inventory of the Vatican's artifacts. Almost immediately, Allon suspects foul play and the chase to find the person responsible is on. “Rule number one at the Vatican,” Donati said. “Don’t ask too many questions.” Pg 34Gabriel is lead on a wild ride that takes him into the antiquities market that is fraught with fraud and savory characters. Later he is reunited with his crew in order to capture a known terrorist who may or may not have some important information on a pending attack on Israel or the Jewish people in Europe. For readers who haven’t read this series yet, Allon has been protecting Israel from all enemies foreign and domestic since 1972 when he was called to duty after the Munich Olympic debacle that lead to the slaughter of Israeli athletes. Lately, he gets to the point of retirement with his wife Chiara, only to be pulled back into action to save his homeland and those he loves from Iran and it’s subordinates.The one thing you can count on from any book that is released by Daniel Silva is the intense research he puts into a certain subject. In this case, the subject at hand is the antiquities market and those who operate under the veil of secrecy. He also thoroughly researches the current political atmosphere that has torn the Middle East apart for thousands of years and apparently, there's no end in sight. The story also focuses its attention on Pope Paul VII who is traveling to Israel in an attempt to build bridges between the Jewish people and the Catholic Church which turned its eyes away from what was happening in and around Europe during World War II and doesn’t have a good track record in doing what’s right.Although the speech is fictitious, one of the best lines was: "Those who would perpetuate human suffering in the service of politics must be condemned as strongly as those who would inflict in in the first place." This strongly worded condemnation was aimed direction at Iran.The story takes the reader from the Vatican, to Jerusalem, Paris, St. Moritz, Berlin, northern Denmark, and then to Vienna. By the end of the book, you are wondering how much more Gabriel and Chiara can take before they walk away and finally retire.A quick read that will leave readers in suspense wondering what will happen next. Gabriel Allon is still one of my favorite heroes and I'm hoping we haven't seen the last of him.
