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The Black Widow: The true crime book of the year

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For what it’s worth, I think that Saladin is one of Silva’s best villains and a worthy foe for Gabriel Allon. I love the mystique around his true identity, which only adds to the overall suspense of the story. More specifically to this book, I found his expositions on politics to be especially heavy handed and clumsy. Again, we get it... You don't like President Obama. I wouldn't be bothered by that if it hadn't been such a distraction from the narrative in this novel. There was way less Gabriel Allon and way more potshots at the current administration. I think Silva is at his best when he's telling stories, not beating us over the head with his political views. In the past, he has been very successful at showing us how complex the political situation in the Middle East is when he is telling people's stories. Saladin, for all his ambition and ruthlessness, has managed to keep his true identity a secret. Everyone from Jordan’s GID to America’s CIA, and, of course, the Office, know him by reputation and name only. Smoking him out will not be easy, especially for a young doctor working as a newly trained, and first-time spy. Comienza con un atentado terrorista que te deja sin palabras, en donde inocentes son acribillados sin piedad; marcando el inicio de una investigación entre agencias de inteligencia que se traduce en infiltraciones y persecuciones que te mantienen enganchado. Con este libro (el tercero de la serie que he leído) puedo entender porque Daniel Silva es el No. 1 en este género. A woman whom Gabriel knew (she appeared in Silva’s sixth Allon novel, The Messenger) was among those killed in the explosion. She happened to be in possession of a very rare and famous painting that is valued at more than twenty million dollars. In the event of her death, she had arranged for the painting to go to Gabriel. Knowing this, the French confiscated it from her flat and are holding it until he finishes aiding them with their investigation.

A pesar de ser una novela de espionaje internacional y plantear una trama un tanto compleja, se entiende perfectamente, el autor hace énfasis en el conflicto valiéndose de los hechos históricos que han llevado a la formación de tamaño grupo terrorista, y nos hace comprender de manera sencilla de dónde proviene su fanatismo y cómo lo contagian. De seguro, a otras personas tanto como a mi me pasa, nos resulta impensable caer en tal extremo, pero los hechos nos han demostrado que efectivamente existe. Regardless of how things play out in the future, I have nothing but total trust and confidence in Daniel Silva and wherever he’s planning to take this franchise. I love Gabriel Allon and have read all of the previous 15 books, but I found this book tiresome for a few reasons. First, Daniel Silva has apparently never met a non-beautiful woman worth writing about. As a female reader, this has gotten quite old by now. Isn't it enough to make the new woman featured in this book a multi-lingual, courageous doctor? Can't she just be normal looking and still be worth writing about? I've found Silva's insistence on creating a world populated almost exclusively by beautiful women to be a bit annoying throughout the series, but it was especially wearing in this novel, perhaps because Silva is once again relying on the trope of inserting a beautiful girl into a terrorist network. You'll notice that the female terrorists had to be beautiful, too.It was interesting to read that the author had written this book before the bombings in France took place this year. I am so impressed by the research that is done with each book that he has written. The vivid imagery is truly astounding. Powerful. “ISIS doesn’t crucify only because it is cruel. It crucifies because, according to the Koran, crucifixion is one of the proscribed punishments for the enemies of Islam. It crucifies because it must. We civilized Westerners find this almost impossible to comprehend.” It seems that this may be the last book in the Allon Series, which makes me feel pretty sad. I have loved this series for years and Gabriel Allon has become one of my favorite fictional secret agents. Hopefully he will make a "guest" appearance in future books. While this won’t be the first time Gabriel runs an operation in France, it does mark the first time that he’s doing so with their blessing. In fact, they requested his services and even strong-armed him into helping out. Second, Silva repeatedly uses the same boilerplate language to describe Gabriel and the other members of the Lightning team from one book to the next. While I appreciate the need to introduce new readers to the characters, his reliance on the exact same language from one book to the next starts to feel like he's phoning it in, and limits the opportunities to deepen the characters and describe them with more nuance. I wish he would mix it up a little.

I enjoyed the book but - to be honest - I prefer the earlier Gabriel Allon tales where he's more involved in the action. Still, this is a good thriller with a minor cliffhanger ending. I look forward to the next book. Daniel Silva is the master of spy thrillers and one of the best authors on the planet. To not read his books and call yourself a fan of the genre is nearly criminal.

Can the Gabriel Allon series get any better? This may be the best book in the series to date. Daniel Silva's writing skills continue to grow. The story could be something straight out of the news headlines. Silva's prescience is uncanny. Mizrahi’s scenes are especially compelling, as the magnitude of her mission is never lost on the reader. Silva has done a tremendous job developing her character just enough to make the readers care about her, while at the same time allowing her to remain somewhat of a mystery. That balance allows for some really intense moments later on, as the story eventually takes several surprising turns. Proving once again to be one of the best authors of his generation, Daniel Silva delivers a stunningly brilliant plot, with a final act that is sure to leave readers speechless! To get close to the elusive Saladin, Gabriel has to insert an agent deep into ISIS - a very difficult task. To accomplish the feat Gabriel recruits Dr. Natalie Mizrahi, a French-born physician who emigrated to Israel. Natalie - who speaks French, English, and Arabic - is given the secret identity 'Dr. Leila Hadawi', a woman of Palestinian ancestry. As Leila, the new agent works as a doctor in a Muslim neighborhood in France.

In this 16th book in the 'Gabriel Allon' series, the Israeli agent is after an ISIS terrorist. The book can be read as a standalone, though familiarity with the characters is a bonus. La viuda negra” es el Libro #16 de la Serie Gabriel Allon, y pufffff como me ha gustado! Éste ha sido un thriller más que apegado a la realidad actual, y nos muestra el mundo convulso en el que vivimos a raíz del fanatismo religioso. Adam Kirsch comments on the challenge that ISIS poses in this book, and for the Allon series generally: Another interesting point at the end of the book the author gives us a brief explanation about several facts that he wrote in his book and some bridges connecting with previous books. It is a book that goes to the detail of everything, these details enrich this story.The ISIS headhunter arranges for Leila to take a month-long vacation in Greece. After a couple of days, however, Leila is spirited off to Syria - where she's interrogated by a top ISIS official. Apparently passing muster, Leila starts training to be an ISIS terrorist. Meanwhile, she keeps her eyes and ears open for information about Saladin.

After 18 years behind bars alongside notorious names including Rose West and Myra Hindley, she is released. In the last few 'Gabriel Allon' books the Israeli agent has been preparing to take charge of his country's spy agency, 'The Office.'Con los primeros capítulos, descubrimos un personaje que está detrás de la ejecución del atentado, una mujer intrigante, sin escrúpulos, resentida y ávida de venganza por un fallecido de esta guerra de ideologías, y es definitivamente… una viuda negra. A partir de una serie de sucesos las pistas nos conducirán a otro personaje: Saladino, quien es la mente maestra y se considera el nuevo Mesías del Estado Islámico; siendo éste el principal objetivo a detener. But at the heart of these stories is Gabriel Allon, a man who has such a colorful history with the legendary Office but has sacrificed much in his personal life as a result. It is a compelling story, not only of the Jewish people as they strive to find a homeland, but of the struggle of Gabriel Allon to heal and pursue the values he holds important. All of this was brought out in a very sensitive way as he looked down at his two beautiful babies and knows that one day, they will ask him why. And his answer will be, "You exist in this place, you sleep peacefully in this land tonight, because of people like me." Despite the fact that the novel is a bit of a dark read, it does end with a sense of hope. The good guys will fight on. That is the stuff of movies, and hopefully of reality. Its ending however leads me to believe that Mr. Silva intends to continue another frame of the story in the next novel of the series. The story does not quite feel complete. Several Israeli citizens, as well as Gabriel's friend Hannah Weinberg, are among those killed in France. So Gabriel postpones his promotion (once again) to chase down 'Saladin', the ISIS mastermind who planned the bombings. La narrativa se mantiene fiel al estilo del escritor que tanto le ha resultado, mantiene los saltos entre escenarios y personajes, siempre con buenas descripciones, ambientaciones y diálogos perfectamente balanceados dentro capítulos bastante cortos; haciendo que disfrutes de una lectura amena, ágil y súper adictiva.

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