An excellent mystery/thriller/spy novel and I look forward to reading the other books written by this author.

Audio - Review of Secret Servant

Plot - Quick, flowing, until the very end, the bit about the wedding could have been left out or confined to a quick five or ten minute, at the most a short chapter. It was nice to know they finally did get married but the details, I found to be unnecessary.

The story was not only timely but also very realistic; the course of events could have easily been written in any newspaper. But we the reader or listener, get to hear or read all those little details that couldn't be released to the public. There's something tantalizing about knowing the details that the author stated that were not released in any official document. Pretend that only you and the characters are privy (along with the thousands of other people who read the book) to the book's `For Your Eyes Only' information.

Characters - I will definitely read or listen to more books in the series. I loved the characters. I found the fact that the main character not only serves in an intelligence role but is able to maintain a separate and normal existence as an art restorer as a relief to all those other one dimensional James Bond types. Gabriel Allon, the main character is perfect for the simple reason he isn't. He has to do what he has to do. He is not without feelings but he knows when and where those feeling are appropriate. He's not some young stud that runs around bedding women without a second thought; he has an ex-wife with major problems, though I wasn't sure of details. But still it's wasn't dismal, sad but it didn't drown in self-pity. I plan to go back and read the rest of the books in the series after I read Moscow Rules. He's a man who's lost a child, a grown son, so you know he's not some young whippersnapper. He's intelligent, well organized, a man that you want to know, at least as an art restorer.

The majority of the rest of the characters were well rounded, enjoyable and at times, scary. I wanted to know more about the characters and not just the good guys. It would be nice to learn what happened to them after the book ended which to me indicated an emotional investment that I developed for the characters. The use of characters were perfect, some had small but crucial roles.

Settings - Wonderfully described, detailed without being boring or slowing the story down.

Narrator - Excellent, I enjoyed the narrator's work a great deal, while the voices of the females character were not perfect, they within a tolerant range. It's not easy for a man to do a female voice without it sounding awful or laughable. Don't get me wrong it's no better for a female doing a male voice. It is truly an art when a narrator can nail the voice of a character of the opposite sex.

Bottom line, a fantastic book with great characters and a terrific story.

The premise is intriguing; a terrorist plot perpetrated at locations around London causes death, destruction and a diversion to the kidnapping of the daughter of the ambassador from the United States.

Through a mysterious link used by a murdered author - who had maneuvered within the shadows of terrorism and intelligence - Israeli spy Gabriel Allon finds himself on the trail of the perpetrators and the mysterious mastermind who goes by the codename of the "Sphinx."

Author Daniel Silva does a masterful job in linking stories culled from the front pages of newspapers and magazines - along with little-known historical facts - to lend an air of credibility the pursuit through Europe, but ultimately falls short with the use of typical scenarios found in less than thrilling thrillers.

Allon has unbelievable recuperative powers - though he is viciously pistol-whipped, assaulted by several thugs and near a massive explosion - which makes him more super hero than human agent. The dialogue between Allon and the terrorists seems best in a cartoon-styled plot, as the tough guy banter sounds like boasting juveniles on a school playground. And there are story lines that come to an abrupt halt, which lead to many more puzzling questions than answers.

Silva has built a franchise with the exploits of Allon. But this novel builds up to a large thud...and it isn't just the noise of the bad guys getting their comeuppance in the end.

I find it amazing that the author keeps coming up with fresh plots and an exciting story with mostly the same key characters. Gabriel Allon, the Israeli operative, comes out on top once again. Islamic terrorists kidnap the daughter of the U.S. ambassador to England while she's taking her daily run in Hyde Park. They request a swap for an important sheikh who is in prison in Colorado. Then, when that request is refused they accept a ransom offered by her wealthy father. However, they deviously plan on killing her in a spectacular fashion on Christmas morning. Allon is, of course, the hero. But even though Allon seems super human he does it in a believable fashion.

`The Secret Servant' by Daniel Silva

This was my first time reading Silva and his Israeli Spy / Assassin / Art Restorer, Gabriel Allon...I was not disappointed. In fact, I've already gone and ordered his other Allon novels with plans on reading them chronologically.

In `The Secret Servant', our hero, Gabriel Allon tracks a radical Islamist terror cell responsible for the abduction of a prominent American. The story is smart, current and incisive that you'll find a frolic of a read.

For fear of giving anything away, I'll say simply, that Mr. Silva has woven a fine spy tale that hooked this generally strict non-fiction reader and it comes with my recommendation...for whatever that's worth.

- Johnny

I heard Mr. Silva promoting his book on a radio show and although I've kind of burned out on the super-spy genre, the book was so highly recommended by the show's host, I thought I'd give it a read.

This is the first book by Mr. Silva that I've read, although this is the 7th(?) of the series so I came to this book not knowing the characters. Perhaps I'm just burned out on the genre, or maybe I hadn't developed loyalty to the characters that one might get after reading the series, but I just didn't get in to this book very much. It was a decent read and had some exciting parts, but it also had a number of moments of boredom that put it in the 3 star category with me. I can't really say what I objected to without spoiling things, but it seemed to me there were lots of loose ends, unnecessary digressions, and improbable plot twists that kept the story from being as coherent and suspensful as I had hoped it would be. If I had it to do again, I think I'd rather have picked this one up from the discount bin.

An excellent writer of thrillers but is Silva an Israeli agent? He seems to be propagandizing on behalf of the Cheney-Netanyahu clique.

Daniel Silva gets increasingly better. Secret Servant kept me in the game from the first page to the last.

Daniel Silva may just be the best spy/thriller writer these days and "The Secret Servant" is the latest proof in his series featuring the Israeli Spy, Gabriel Allon.

This time, Allon finds himself in the middle of a hijacking of a U.S. Ambassador's wife. Allon deals with the politics of the Europeans, the politics of the U.S. and the reality that to fight terrorism means to be willing to kill or be killed.

The plot is compelling, the writing is excellent and the dialogue and the action means you don't want to put the book down. I won't give away other details, but Silva seems to have his pulse on the realities of the Middle East and the fact that the terrorist world is a dangerous place where European and U.S. leaders play "politics" instead of playing tough.

Read this book. You will not regret it.

another great novel by Daniel Silva.....Why is he so underrated? Daniel Silva is one of the best writers out there. His novels are fast, fun, entertaining and certainly educating.....A great read.....

I've read three or four of Silva's Gabriel Allon series, all designed to sound the alarm about jihadist terroism. It seems that Israeil counterterrorism activities, in the character of Allon, are becoming indispensible--at least in their fictional incarnations--to the US and UK, who lack the survivalist will that drives the Israelis. This is perhaps why the series is becoming predictable. Silva is by no means an elegant writer, but he constructs a decent plot and moves his characters around in interesting ways. The occasional didactic lesson is put in the mouths of Allon or one of his counterparts. lest we lose sight of the heroic struggle necessary to battle jihadists. The Egyptian situation is painted here in brushstrokes suggestive of the role played by oppressive totalitarian regimes in fostering radicalism amongst their own peoples. Given the radicalized generation about to emerge from Iraq, Silva should have no trouble finding new material, and continuing to refine his place as the leading thriller writer in English of this genre.

I reviewed this and gave it one star because altho I like most of Silva's stuff I didn't care for this. I see that review has disappeared. I'm putting in another and still rating it one star but I won't say anything about my reasons because obviously Amazon has some sort of censorship in place for this author.

I have always enjoyed Silva's books but this one was a total exception. To me the element that set him apart was the humaneness of his perception, something not in evidence here. I always enjoyed the parts dealing with art restoration, also not much in evidence here. This book reads like something written by a right-wing Israeli politician, as if the real Daniel Silva had died and some paper pusher in the government took over to continue the series. The radical Muslim who changes his errant ways is persuaded to do so by the brutality of the Egyptian secret service, not Israeli brutality, by all accounts (including their own) not much different. Bad Arabs, always. And the professor whose killing starts off the book is presented as being wise and far-seeing in his denunciation of Islam so of course he should have free rein to say whatever he likes (and I think he should). However anyone who questions anything about the Holocaust does not have the right to say so and should be locked up. The hypocrisy is pretty much from start to finish. For a far more nuanced and believable book read Fade by Kyle Mills, where the real ambuigity in human behavior is presented realistically and not as the propaganda in this book.

Nobody does espionage thrillers better than Silva. The Gabriel Allon books, while sometimes coming precariously close to caricature, are compelling, thoughtful action books. While Allon is portrayed as a superman, he also is seen as a level-headed operative who deals justice in the black and back alleys of the world with a clarity that is rare in fictional spydom. And, as always, Silva gives us a jarring lecture on the perils of jihadism -- especially in Europe -- in our modern and dangerous world. And finally, this book -- like the other Allon offerings -- is just a darn good read that will grab you on page one and hold you till the end.