The Heist audiobook

I've been reading Daniel Silva's books since he began writing them. I have to say that this is his best novel to date. He keeps getting better and better. I absolutely loved THE HEIST!!! Daniel Silva is the best thriller writing alive today. His characters feel like they are part of my family. And the topics he chooses to move his stories forward not only entertain me, they educate me. He uses current events; hot topics in all his books. And his research is second to none! This latest page-turner even had me shedding a tear at the conclusion. I can hardly wait until next summer when I hope Gabriel Allon will return once again. Thanks, Daniel, for giving us this fabulous story.

Another great book by Daniel Silva in which the legendary agent Gabriel Allon, who also works as an art restorer in his spare time, uses his spying skills to trace a lost piece of art by Caravaggio, which had also disappeared in reality about 50 years ago. The search leads him to an underground network of stolen art trafficking for the most dangerous people on this planet. Silva reveals before us the tragic fate of Syria and the story about the eye doctor from London, liberal and enlightened on paper, who eventually became the most awful and cruelest dictator the country has ever seen, even more than his infamous father. Silva describes in an authentic and fascinating way the horrors in Syria, the consequences of war, and the ones who'd gotten away but haven't forgotten. What I absolutely love about Sliva's books is that they have, beyond their carefully crafted plots, plenty of knowledge in a variety of areas - from art to the Middle East politics. It's fun to read books that have added values, and Silva's book fit this definition perfectly!

... another excellent Silva, exciting and fast-paced. It is, as some have said, somewhat formulaic, but the formula works so well it is not at all objectionable, at least to me. Silva stays just close enough to actual current events to make it very real, and events since it was written make it even more real, almost like historical fiction in the present instead of the past.

I love a great hero; from Tarzan to Perry Mason to Harry Potter, the good guy gets my attention every time. Over many years of reading, favorites have emerged - characters whose personalities are so appealing that I look forward to reading about them again and again and, were it possible, with whom I'd love to share a beer (or two) and what I have no doubt would be interesting conversation for a couple of hours.These guys have been on my Top 10 list for quite some time now (in case any are unfamiliar to other readers who might want to give them a try):10. Forest ranger Joe Pickett (author C.J. Box) 9. Manhattan bookstore owner and part-time burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr (Lawrence Block)8. Prison chaplain and former police officer John Jordan (Michael Lister) 7. Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension agent Virgil Flowers (John Sandford) 6. Psychologist and police consultant Dr. Alex Delaware (Jonathan Kellerman)5. Cleveland private eye Milan Jacovich (Les Roberts) 4. The mysterious Roarke, husband of police lieutenant Eve Dallas (J.D. Robb, a.k.a. Nora Roberts) 3. British 007 agent James Bond (Ian Fleming)2. Boston private investigator Spenser (Robert B. Parker) And in the No. 1 spot? None other than art restorer and accomplished Israeli spy Gabriel Allon, who's the star of this book. In it - the 14th in the series - his beautiful (and younger) wife, Chiara, is pregnant with twins; they've been living in Vienna, where Gabriel is helping restore a major work of art. When a friend discovers the torture and murder of a former British diplomat who apparently has turned to trafficking stolen art, Gabriel begins to investigate - learning that the works of art may be a cover for a Syrian dictator to hide scandalous amounts of money. The chase, as usual, takes Gabriel to several countries where he dons different disguises as he and his team put together an involved operation to bring the dictator to his knees and, hopefully, locate the stolen art (in particular, a Caravaggio that's been missing for decades).Many characters from previous books return in this one, and perhaps a little too much space is given up to explanations of who they are for the benefit, I suppose, of making sure new readers know the background rather than simply trying to fill up pages. Also, the ending is predictable and a bit abrupt - reasons that prompted me to give this one 4 stars rather than 5 (although I'm willing to go 4-1/2 if that were possible).But in the end, it's a great adventure and a pleasure to read. I always enjoy the historical information that's sprinkled liberally throughout (even if it's not always factual). I honestly can't say this book is the best of the bunch, but it sure held my attention throughout.

Three pages into the novel and you do a collective sigh of relief as a big smile spreads across your lips. You know that feeling; it's the one you get when you realize you've found a novel that is an instant guarantee it's going to take you on a great, well paced, interesting ride into the dark underworld of espionage.Daniel Silva's Gabriel Allon, the top of the game assassin for the Israelie Mossad, is at his best in this one. Allon has never been one-dimensional as a character. He's always been a complex soul with his own specific ghosts to deal with. But this journey is a classic.You'll have to read the book for yourself. But I'd lay money down (if I had any money, by the way) on the table and bet that you'll fall in love with Gabriel Allon.

No review this time. Standard Gabriel Allon. Predictable story but fun to read.

Mr. Silva delivers his stories in a most clipped & precise manner. Descriptions of people, places & things unfold as if it was a film playing before your eyes. There is not one wasted sentence or word in his novels & so it is with “The English Girl.” The story races along at lightening speed but if I were to say this is an ‘easy’ read that would erroneously imply that the plot is lacking – which it is not - so let me just say it is a book you won’t want to put down. Every component required for a spy novel is evident & then some - in spades!Having read all the previous Allon novels I keep waiting for the author to run out of steam just as other authors who write a recurring character do – but to date Gabriel Allon is as entertaining & exciting as ever.“The English Girl” takes a different tack in that for at least the first half of the book Gabriel is primarily on his own with only the help of one other ‘associate’ & this ‘associate’ is not even one of his regular team. The recurring team appears at about Pg. 294. Unusual for Gabriel, but I do believe Gabriel has made a new ‘friend’.“Gabriel reached out and ripped the stud from Lacroix’s right ear.” (Pg. 92) It is only Gabriel Allon – master assassin, art restorer & spy who could possibly have you cheering him on in such a violent act. Bravo Gabriel!This is as close you’ll ever get to the perfect spy novel with a perfect protagonist & cast of characters. While real life does not produce perfection it is pure enjoyment to read. As for a real Gabriel Allon – well, we can all but hope & dream.If you have read any of the previous Allon books this one will not disappoint. If you have not – start with this one at your own peril because if you do you will immediately want to go back to the very beginning & read them all. This is #13.

“Evil Incorporated”There are plenty of action/thriller writers who try to capture “ripped from the headlines” issues and pontificate upon them within the confines of a fictional story, but mostly their efforts feel biased or partisan and all they really accomplish is to ruin an otherwise good story. There are also plenty of action/thriller writers who create stories in exotic locales and then proceed to fill their pages with mind-numbing descriptions that are better suited for a tourist guide (Dan Brown, anyone?).Then there’s Daniel Silva … he’s absolutely a brilliant writer and his talents are on full display in THE HEIST – and with Silva, you get both the real-world issues and the exotic locales in a way that actually enhances the story rather than detracting from it. In the past, Silva has used his enigmatic spy/assassin/art restorer Gabriel Allon to take on the PLA, Russia and Iran. This time the “real-world” issue Silva tackles is the Syrian regime that he appropriately titles “Evil Incorporated,” and it’s done exceptionally well.The chase begins when Allon’s work restoring a painting in Venice is interrupted by a request to assist in a murder investigation – and it quickly carries him to Corsica, Paris, London, Geneva, Munich and Jerusalem. To catch a mysterious collector of stolen art and a murderer, Allon resorts to stealing a masterpiece to use as bait … but when the identity and motivation of the collector are revealed, the stakes are raised and what began as a murder investigation evolves into a massive intelligence operation.The tradecraft, plotting and characters are phenomenal. The prose, dialogue and pacing are even better. I’m confused by Silva’s critics who claim this series has become stale and too formulaic –Gabriel Allon remains one of the best continuing series characters in modern fiction and Daniel Silva is still leading the way among today’s top thriller writers. If you like spy/thriller/action novels then you should read this book.

Mesmo depois de uma "relação" com alguns anos, não consigo deixar de ler a saga de Gabriel Allon. São sempre verdadeiras lições de politica e de arte, descritas de uma forma primorosa, mas ao mesmo tempo leves, sem a carga que habitualmente estes temas carregam.

Italy had been blessed with two things in abundance: art and professional criminals. Much of the art, like the art in the church, was poorly protected. And many of the criminals were bent on stealing every last bit of it.Gabriel Allon, onetime operative and the future head of Israeli intelligence (aka “the Office”) is in Venice restoring a Veronese canvas when he is summoned by the head of the Carabinieri’s Art Squad, General Cesare Ferrari. Gabriel’s friend, London art dealer Julian Isherwood, is being held as a suspect in the murder of a former English spy turned art smuggler, whose body he found at a villa in Lake Como. It’s a set up, but Ferrari is after bigger game: the Holy Grail of stolen art, a Caravaggio taken from a church in Sicily 45 years earlier. Isherwood will be released, on condition that Gabriel helps track down the stolen masterpiece. How? By placing another valuable artwork on the black market: a sting.General Ferrari wore a business suit, a woolen overcoat, and dark glasses that shielded his all-seeing prosthetic eye from view. Gabriel, dressed in denim and leather, looked like the troubled younger sibling, the one who had made all the wrong choices in life and was once again in need of money…”In my experience,’ the general added, ”the best time to find a stolen painting is immediately after it has changed hands. We have to move quickly though. Otherwise we may have to wait another forty-five years.”Both the art world and espionage are murky: Gabriel goes to Paris to see art fencer, Maurice Durand (a minor player in other titles in the series) who explains that while some of the “museum of the missing” is in the hands of private collectors, others are stolen as a hedge by the rich, a source of raising money if other assets are seized or frozen. When two men discover the body of a forger / art restorer, with links to the death in Lake Como, the search takes a more sinister turn.Gabriel draws on human resources from “the Office”, and has over the years made shrewd alliances in other intelligence services: MI6’s Graham Seymour and Christoph Bittel of the Swiss counter-terrorism division. Then there are the “bad” guys – London-based Russian ex-pat billionaire Viktor Orlov and Corsican crime boss Don Anton Orsini, with his English assassin, former SAS, Christopher Keller – once adversaries, now friends. All play a role in the heist – the emptying of a despot’s bank accounts in tax havens across the world. Naturally, they need inside help, and not everything runs to plan.Research aside, Daniel Silva’s writing is notable for its refreshing lack of extreme violence and foul language. In its place, a main character whose life has been blessed with love and dogged with tragedy, he suffers regrets and sleeps little during an operation. Though many of the characters appear in earlier and later books, each can be read as a standalone as the author provides brief biops to bridge the gap, and hints at later character development.Keller made a show of thought. “I’ve never really enjoyed killing people, you know. It’s just something I’m good at.” - “I know exactly how you feel, Christopher.”Verdict: Another interesting and thoughtful read, blending recent events with fiction.

This was the best one so far. Great plot twists and low body count. Love all the art world info as well as the insights into the conflicts in the Middle East.

I have read all of Daniel Silva's novels and thoroughly enjoyed them. The Heist is no exception. Gabriel Allon, art restorer and former Mossad agent, is back doing what he does best, restoring masterpieces and tracking down and foiling terrorists. The plot is long with many twists along the way. Silva constructs his edifice very skillfully and brings each novel to a satisfying conclusion.I await the next Silva novel in which Allon will become a father and take over the reins of the Israeli intelligence service.

Depth of action, great research, sympathetic characters and a strong feeling of portent for Allon both personally and professionally combine to make this another excellent book by Daniel Silva.