The Messenger | Daniel Silva

The Messenger | Daniel Silva | (deliver this message) Silva Hasn't Lost His Edge!!

books:

The Messenger

	The Messenger Daniel Silva Putnam Adult, 2006 - 352 pages average customer review:based on 117 reviews view larger image
	for more information click here

highly recommended

Gabriel Allon, art restorer and spy, has been widely acclaimed as one of the most fascinating characters in the genre and now he is about to face the greatest challenge of his life.

Allon is recovering from a grueling showdown with a Palestinian master terrorist, when a figure from his past arrives in Jerusalem. Monsignor Luigi Donati is the private secretary to His Holiness Pope Paul VII, and a man as ruthless as he is intelligent. Now, however, he has come to seek Allon's help. A young Swiss guard has been found dead in St. Peter's Basilica, and although Donati has allowed the official inquiry to determine that it is suicide, his instinct tells him that it is murder-and that his master is in grave danger. He has trusted Allon in the past, and he is the only man he trusts now.

Allon reluctantly agrees to get involved, but once he begins to investigate he concludes that Donati has every right to be concerned, as, following the trail from the heart of the Vatican to the valleys of Switzerland and beyond, he slowly unravels a conspiracy of lies and deception. An extraordinary enemy walks among them, with but one goal: the most spectacular assassination ever attempted.

Filled with remarkable characters and breathtaking double and triple turns of plot, The Messenger solidifies Silva's reputation as his generation's finest writer of international thrillers.

for more information click here

Silva's Best

I have enjoyed all six of the Silva books I have read--especially the Gabriel Allon stories. "The Messenger," however, is the best of an excellent lot!! It is fast paced and tightly written. Not a word is wasted. The action and the characters are believable, and the concept (Saudi financing of Islamic terrorism) is most timely. Silva does a very good job of reminding the veteran reader of (or acquainting the first time reader with) Allon and how he became what he is. There is no real need to read the series in order.

The book moves smoothly between Israel, the Vatican, London, Paris, Washington, the Carribean and Switzerland. The characters are nicely developed, and the reader gets an exposure to the worlds of art, espionage and international terror. The discussions about Impressionism and Van Gogh were particularly enjoyable.

"The Messenger" is superb. It is Silva's best, and it stands at the top of the heap along with the best of Nelson DeMille and Michael Connelly. Strong praise from where I sit.

for more information click here

(deliver this message) Silva Hasn't Lost His Edge!!

Consistency is something that is highly overlooked these days. And if Daniel Silva is anything these days with his work, it is highly consistent. He is consistent in giving us high caliber reads, with great suspense, and he takes it up a level each time! That's what I really enjoy in an author, and he has Gabriel Allon to weave us through each time. "Prince of Fire" was by far his greatest work with Gabriel. But that doesn't mean that "The Messenger" is a bad read. It is nothing short of a GREAT read. If you've thought about doubting Daniel Silva, I've got a message for you. There is an edge that he has that he hasn't lost! That's what makes him great!

Gabriel is needed once again. He had a great showing his last time, so lets make this one even better! Right? And things immediately get crazy. From the pope, to malicious behavior from al-qaeda, this man of Israeli intelligence is on a mission. And he's going to employ the help of Sarah Bancroft, who's already had a hard lesson from the 9/11 attack. A sneaky billionaire is teamed up with a lethal terrorist, and they can't be caught. But with a team led by Gabriel Allon, they just might watch out.

This is spy fiction, and this is great stuff! Daniel Silva walks you through this, he sometimes runs you through this, blow by blow. The suspense is high level. Its so good, you almost hate to see it end when that final page is read.

What can I say? I really like Silva. And I REALLY like his work! That means that I have more books to check out!!

for more information click here

Spy vs Jihad Inc.

Silva is at the top of the heap when it comes to the modern day spy novel. His novels feature interesting and compelling characters and the storylines seem realistic and current. "The Messenger" tackles the challenges of fighting against global jihad. In the book, the characters fight against Jihad Inc. in a way that you wish our intelligence agencies could fight against it--call it the Jack Bauer approach. I've read two of Silva's novels so far and have not been disappointed.

Smooth as silk

I thought this book was one of his best and gave it to my wife to read. I had doubts about her reaction, but she keeps asking me if all of Dan Silva's books are this good. The answer is simply yes. He is an excellent author.

for more information click here

Read them in order...

... because you'll have to be a fan to get through this one.

The author no longer recounts in detail scenes from earlier stories or extensive character descriptions. This was a welcome change, but it did seem a bit ridiculous to find Gabriel Allon striding into the audience of the Pope without a little back story.

"The Messenger" was a disappointment after the cultural insight and emotional depths reached by Silva's writing in previous installments, "The Prince of Fire" and "A Death in Vienna." It felt like the sort of installment that's just meant to get the characters in position for the next (usually much better) volume.

That said, it did not make me any less likely to read the next volume.

for more information click here