As attuned as always to current geopolitical concerns, but substantially less compelling than Silva's previous novels.
Gabriel Allon goes after the deadliest weapon at the Russian president’s disposal—his money.
When CIA agent–turned–art dealer Sarah Bancroft finds the dead body of Viktor Orlov, a wealthy newspaper publisher and Russian dissident, the grim discovery leads Gabriel Allon, the head of Israel’s intelligence service, to a treasure trove of documents detailing massive financial crimes. Once he tracks down the woman who leaked these documents, Gabriel may finally have the tools he needs to take down the autocrat in the Kremlin. “A nuclear bomb can only be dropped once. But money can be wielded every day with no fallout and no threat of mutually assured destruction.” This bit of wisdom comes from a Russian operative Gabriel captured in The Other Woman (2018), and Silva makes a persuasive case that the best way to neutralize the threat of troll farms and disinformation campaigns is to starve these operations of cash. But this is a thriller, not an essay in Foreign Policy. It turns out that money laundering isn’t inherently exciting, and Silva does little to make it so. Identifying the shadowy figure who manages the Russian president’s fortune is easy, as is infiltrating his world. All the characters in this universe are types, but most of them are crafted with verisimilitude sufficient to keep the reader engaged. The titular cellist, Isabel Brenner, is a beautiful blond blank. It’s not at all clear why she makes the transition from functionary at a dirty bank to amateur spy willing to risk her life to ruin oligarchs. In previous novels, Silva wove in chapters written from the points of view of the bad guys. This technique creates dramatic irony, and it has given us some truly terrific villains—horrifying sadists and gleeful monsters of corruption who make excellent foils for the nearly superhuman Gabriel. Past installments have also given Gabriel's team more to do, and it’s impossible not to miss them and their spycraft.
As attuned as always to current geopolitical concerns, but substantially less compelling than Silva's previous novels.Pub Date: July 13, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-283486-7
Page Count: 480
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2021
A standout in the series.
The sixth adventure of Harvard symbology professor Robert Langdon explores the mysteries of human consciousness, the demonic projects of the CIA, and the city of Prague.
“Ladies and gentlemen...we are about to experience a sea change in our understanding of how the brain works, the nature of consciousness, and in fact…the very nature of reality itself.” But first—Langdon’s in love! Brown’s devoted readers first met brilliant noetic scientist Katherine Solomon in The Lost Symbol (2009); she’s back as a serious girlfriend, engaging the committed bachelor in a way not seen before. The book opens with the pair in a luxurious suite at the Four Seasons in Prague. It’s the night after Katherine has delivered the lecture quoted above, setting the theme for the novel, which features a plethora of real-life cases and anomalies that seem to support the notion that human consciousness is not localized inside the human skull. Brown’s talent for assembling research is also evident in this novel’s alter ego as a guidebook to Prague, whose history and attractions are described in great and glowing detail. Whether you appreciate or skim past the innumerable info dumps on these and other topics (Jewish folklore fans—the Golem is in the house!), it goes without saying that concision is not a goal in the Dan Brown editing process. Speaking of editing, the nearly 700-page book is dedicated to Brown’s editor, who seems to appear as a character—to put it in the italicized form used for Brownian insight, Jason Kaufman must be Jonas Faukman! A major subplot involves the theft of Katherine’s manuscript from the secure servers of Penguin Random House; the delightful Faukman continues to spout witty wisecracks even when blindfolded and hogtied. There’s no shortage of action, derring-do, explosions, high-tech torture machines, attempted and successful murders, and opportunities for split-second, last-minute escapes; good thing Langdon, this aging symbology wonk, never misses swimming his morning laps. Readers who are not already dyed-in-the-wool Langdonites may find themselves echoing the prof’s own conclusion regarding the credibility of all this paranormal hoo-ha: At some point, skepticism itself becomes irrational.
A standout in the series.Pub Date: Sept. 9, 2025
ISBN: 9780385546898
Page Count: 688
Publisher: Doubleday
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2025
Despite the stakes, the heroine’s second adventure is a generally lighthearted anti-caper.
Gabriela Rose, the recovery agent famed for being able to find almost anything, goes looking for the Rosetta Stone. And that’s only the beginning.
You didn’t know the Rosetta Stone was missing? That’s because the British Museum, wanting to keep its theft hush-hush, has been displaying a copy in its place. And Gabriela’s involvement is equally secretive. Her ex-husband, Rafer Jones, has pressed her to find it because his idiot cousin, Harley Patch, who improbably became president of the Searl and Junkett bank, has taken it upon himself to insure a slew of priceless artifacts—many of which have now gone missing. The stone, as it turns out, is surprisingly easy to find. Following the trail of Leon Blake, a new operations officer at the museum who quit two days after the theft, and John Mackey, a museum security guard who was shot to death that same day, Gabriela successfully beats out rival recovery agent Ahmed Ed Ghaly, who’s been tasked with bringing the stone back to Egypt, in the hunt. An altogether more elusive prize is the golden inner coffin of Tutankhamen’s half brother, unofficially dubbed “Brendan.” This search is more dangerous, too, because Ahmed kidnaps Harley to make sure that Gabriela turns the coffin over to him. Jim, the Cairo cabbie Gabriela hires to drive her around, takes to calling himself Jim Bond once he sees her in action; and he’s on to something—not because the fate of the free world hangs in the balance, but because “the heist to end all heists” gradually dissolves into an amusing, episodic travelogue whose climax feels like just one more picturesque tableau.
Despite the stakes, the heroine’s second adventure is a generally lighthearted anti-caper.Pub Date: Nov. 11, 2025
ISBN: 9781668027479
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2025
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