Rating: Summary: A THROWBACK Review: Who knew working for an agency seeking reparations for victims of the Nazi era was so dangerous? It sounds like a job for lawyers and accountants. Not in Daniel Silva's Vienna, where the fortress-like Wartime Claims and Inquiries office is blown up by an agent known as the Clockmaker. Art restorer Gabriel Allon, a former Mossad assassin, is asked by his legendary ex-boss to investigate. The fast-paced plot leads Gabriel from Vienna, to the Austrian Alps, Israel, Rome, Argentina, Zurich, Munich and back again. In the process Silva gives his readers a short course on the mechanics of Hitler's Final Solution.Gabriel discovers that the mastermind is an octogenarian Sturmbannfuhrer who played a key role in the Holocaust. He is sitting on a 2.3 billion dollar hoard of Nazi loot with which he hopes to re-establish fascist governments across Europe. Silva's spy thriller, the final book of a trilogy featuring Allon, is a throwback. While LeCarre and other practitioner's of the genre have found new evil empires with which to frighten us, Silva still mines the Nazi motherlode very effectively. In 2004, it is reassuringly quaint to read about a CIA that can locate and compromise terrorist assets held in secret Swiss bank accounts and a Mossad that can pull off bloodless kidnappings against its murderous enemies.
Rating: Summary: ENJOYABLE THROWBACK Review: Who knew working for an agency seeking reparations for victims of the Nazi era was so dangerous? It sounds like a job for lawyers and accountants. Not in Daniel Silva's Vienna, where the fotress-like Wartime Claims and Inquiries office is blown up by an agent known as the Clockmaker. Art restorer, Gabriel Allon, a former Mossad assassin, is asked by his legendary ex-boss to investigate. The fast-paced plot takes Gabriel from Vienna, through the Austrian Alps, to Israel, Rome, Argentina, Zurich, Munich, and back again. Along the way Silva gives his readers a short course in the mechanics of Hitler's Final Solution... Silva's spy thriller, the final part of a trilogy featuring Allon, is a throwback. While LeCarre and other practitioner's of the genre have found new evil empires with which to frighten us, Silva still mines the Nazi motherlode very effectively. It is reassuringly quaint, in 2004, to read about a CIA that can locate and compromise terrorist bank accounts in Switzerland and a Mossad that can defang its enemies bloodlessly.
Rating: Summary: Another great effort from Silva Review: With A Death in Vienna, Silva provides the third book in a trilogy centered on the treatment of the Jews in WWII. In a reprise of Gabriel Allon, the art restorer and sometimes Israeli spy from previous novels, Silva spins a tale of intrigue that keeps the reader turning the pages. The core characters from previous efforts are complemented by a new cast of believable characters that come to life within the pages. The story provides the usual action, excitement, and intrigue that are Silva?s trademark. At the same time, deep emotional issues (some known to readers of previous works and some newly introduced in this latest effort) facing Gabriel provide an added dimension to the action. If you read and enjoyed The English Assassin and The Confessor, then A Death in Vienna is a must.
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