Publishers Weekly
★ 07/04/2016
Bestseller Silva's riveting 16th novel featuring the legendary Israeli art restorer and spy Gabriel Allon (after 2015's The English Spy) finds Gabriel on the trail of a secret ISIS terrorist known as Saladin after a vicious attack in Paris kills Gabriel's longtime friend Hannah Weinberg, the leader of the Isaac Weinberg Center for the Study of Anti-Semitism in France. One of the escaped Paris terrorists, Safia Bourihane, has been dubbed the black widow, but far more interesting is another black widow, this one created by Gabriel himself. Natalie Mizrahi, a doctor in Jerusalem, is recruited, trained, and inserted into a massive operation to locate Saladin so Gabriel can kill him. Gabriel process of turning a civilian into a spy and the meticulous maneuvering of his team are fascinating, suspenseful, and bated-breath exciting. The satisfying open ending promises more to come in the Saladin saga. Silva proves once again that he can rework familiar genre material and bring it to new life. Nine-city author tour. (July)
From the Publisher
Heart-stopping.” — Washington Post
“A literary powder keg.” — Huffington Post
-”An exceptional spy thriller, well written and timely, weaving history seamlessly into a sumptuous page-turner of a novel.... Longtime fans will revel in familiar faces... and Silva’s understated but deft writing.... For newcomers, well, what are you waiting for?” — Minneapolis Star Tribune
“Silva builds suspense like a symphony conductor.... A winner on all fronts.” — Booklist, starred review
“The Black Widow probably is the most important book of the summer, no matter who you are or where you live in America.” — Hugh Hewitt
“Slow-burn suspense.... We stayed up way too late... but we justified the sleeplessness as a learning opportunity: amidst the action, Silva gives a surprisingly thorough crash course in the history of ISIS and the Middle East.” — iBooks Reviews
“To say that Daniel Silva is a best-selling author is a bit like saying Henry Aaron was a decent home-run hitter.” — Dallas News
“One of fiction’s greatest spies.... Allon remains as compelling as ever…. A dark thriller for difficult times.” — Kirkus, starred review
“Fascinating, suspenseful, and bated-breath exciting.” — Publishers Weekly, starred review
“A stunning new thriller of high stakes international intrigue…. Silva’s most timely and powerful novel yet.” — Broadway World
“A bit James Bond meets Jason Bourne and…sure to keep you on the edge of your seat.” — D'Marge
Minneapolis Star Tribune
-”An exceptional spy thriller, well written and timely, weaving history seamlessly into a sumptuous page-turner of a novel.... Longtime fans will revel in familiar faces... and Silva’s understated but deft writing.... For newcomers, well, what are you waiting for?
Dallas News
To say that Daniel Silva is a best-selling author is a bit like saying Henry Aaron was a decent home-run hitter.
Washington Post
Heart-stopping.
Broadway World
A stunning new thriller of high stakes international intrigue…. Silva’s most timely and powerful novel yet.
iBooks Reviews
Slow-burn suspense.... We stayed up way too late... but we justified the sleeplessness as a learning opportunity: amidst the action, Silva gives a surprisingly thorough crash course in the history of ISIS and the Middle East.
Hugh Hewitt
The Black Widow probably is the most important book of the summer, no matter who you are or where you live in America.
starred review Booklist
Silva builds suspense like a symphony conductor.... A winner on all fronts.
Huffington Post
A literary powder keg.
Washington Post
Heart-stopping.
D'Marge
A bit James Bond meets Jason Bourne and…sure to keep you on the edge of your seat.
starred review Booklist
Silva builds suspense like a symphony conductor.... A winner on all fronts.
Dallas News
To say that Daniel Silva is a best-selling author is a bit like saying Henry Aaron was a decent home-run hitter.
Minneapolis Star Tribune
-”An exceptional spy thriller, well written and timely, weaving history seamlessly into a sumptuous page-turner of a novel.... Longtime fans will revel in familiar faces... and Silva’s understated but deft writing.... For newcomers, well, what are you waiting for?
Washington Post
Heart-stopping.
Huffington Post
A literary powder keg.
Broadway World
A stunning new thriller of high stakes international intrigue…. Silva’s most timely and powerful novel yet.
D'Marge
A bit James Bond meets Jason Bourne and…sure to keep you on the edge of your seat.
Colleen Kelly
-”An exceptional spy thriller, well written and timely, weaving history seamlessly into a sumptuous page-turner of a novel.... Longtime fans will revel in familiar faces... and Silva’s understated but deft writing.... For newcomers, well, what are you waiting for?
Politico on The Heist
Silva is a true genius with his portrait of the Israeli assassin-art restorer facing new, real world complexities.
Fort Worth Star Telegram on The Heist
Ingenious.
Huffington Post on The Heist
Praise for Daniel Silva:“Magnificent….This book has all the elements you love about Silva’s writing-his way with a plot, his incomparable characters, and the range of emotions he piles into his pages.
AUGUST 2016 - AudioFile
The audio brotherhood of narrator George Guidall and Silva’s spy Gabriel Allon is hard to beat. Sixteen episodes of the exploits of this international assassin, spy, and art restorer have not dulled the tension and originality of this thriller, which seems ripped from the headlines. In fact, Silva’s foreword notes that the recent Paris bombings seemed hideously similar to the events that challenge Allon. Listeners follow Allon as he slingshots between the Middle East, Paris, and Washington, DC, gathering information on an ISIS mastermind. George Guidall’s skilled storytelling and his ease with accents and pace are just two specific elements that can be pinpointed in the success of this audiobook. Beyond these, a subtle combination of astute skill and experience creates the best possible listening. R.F.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
★ 2016-06-22
A fitting (supposedly) final mission for one of fiction's greatest spies.A bomb explodes in the Marais district of Paris, a region known for its large Jewish population. One of the victims had a personal connection to Gabriel Allon, the man poised to become the next chief of Israel's intelligence service, and that's why the legendary assassin and spy joins the hunt for a terrorist mastermind known only as Saladin. Allon has been trying to escape his past since he first appeared in The Kill Artist (2000), so it's no surprise that Silva must provide a lure if he's going to get his hero back into the field for one last mission. But the 16th installment in this series is marked by a subtle shift in emphasis. Allon remains as compelling as ever, but Silva is clearly preparing readers for a world in which his hero takes a supporting role. Two members of Allon's team—Mikhail Abramov and Dina Sarid—seem poised to play a larger part in future novels. But it's Allon's newest recruit who takes center stage here. Dr. Natalie Mizrahi is a French-born Israeli. As Leila Hadawi, the daughter of Palestinian refugees, Natalie becomes part of the terrorist network ruled by Saladin. This is not the first time agents have gone undercover in one of Silva's novels, but Natalie's experience is the most harrowing. A Jew hiding in the heart of the so-called caliphate, she knows that a single misstep will result in her own horrific death. More than that, she knows that failure to complete her mission will mean hundreds—if not thousands—more deaths. Before he became a novelist, Silva was a journalist stationed in the Middle East. His Gabriel Allon novels have tracked—and, in some cases, anticipated—the rise of the Islamic State group. In his foreword, he notes that he began writing this story before the Paris attacks of 2015. A dark thriller for difficult times.
