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The English Assassin (Gabriel Allon #2)
by
Daniel Silva
A master writer of espionage" (Cincinnati Enquirer), Daniel Silva makes his Signet debut with his most acclaimed novel to date... Framed for the murder of a millionaire banker, Israeli spy by trade and art restorer by preference, Gabriel Allon, will have to fight for his life-against an assassin he himself helped train.
ebook, 416 pages
Published
February 25th 2003
by Signet Book
(first published 2002)
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Daniel Silva- The English Assassin (Signet Books 2003) 3.25 Stars
Former Israeli spy, now turned art restorer, Gabriel Allon is being tossed back into a past he left behind. In Zurich, Switzerland he is called to restore a painting for a rich banker only to discover the banker dead. Framed for the murder he must dig through old Nazi history and Switzerland’s past connections to the old regime. Going against him is the English Assassin, someone he trained.
The introduction was pretty good. It got m...more
Former Israeli spy, now turned art restorer, Gabriel Allon is being tossed back into a past he left behind. In Zurich, Switzerland he is called to restore a painting for a rich banker only to discover the banker dead. Framed for the murder he must dig through old Nazi history and Switzerland’s past connections to the old regime. Going against him is the English Assassin, someone he trained.
The introduction was pretty good. It got m...more
ENLIGHTENING PAGE TURNER
What I liked most about "The English Assasin" in terms of entertainment was its unrelentless action, chapter after chapter and of course its underlying message.
This very riveting fast paced novel begins when Israeli Mossad agent and art restorer by profession, Gabriel Allon, is assigned to go to Switzerland, to restore a painting of a very rich Swiss art billonaire and found that this man has been murdered at his residence
The dead man holds a secret that will be unveiled...more
What I liked most about "The English Assasin" in terms of entertainment was its unrelentless action, chapter after chapter and of course its underlying message.
This very riveting fast paced novel begins when Israeli Mossad agent and art restorer by profession, Gabriel Allon, is assigned to go to Switzerland, to restore a painting of a very rich Swiss art billonaire and found that this man has been murdered at his residence
The dead man holds a secret that will be unveiled...more
May 25, 2010
Zohar - ManOfLaBook.com
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2009
In this second installment of the Gabriel Allon series we find our sensitive and scarred spy taking on the Swiss bankers who helped the Nazis during WWII and are still hiding old Jewish money and treasure under the boardwalks of Zurich.
As in the first novel, "The Kill Artist (Gabriel Allon)", the reluctant Israeli spy Gabriel Allon is joined by a world famous woman, this time though she is a violinist named Anna Rolfe, on his adventures. As in his previous novels, Mr. Silva brings back characte...more
As in the first novel, "The Kill Artist (Gabriel Allon)", the reluctant Israeli spy Gabriel Allon is joined by a world famous woman, this time though she is a violinist named Anna Rolfe, on his adventures. As in his previous novels, Mr. Silva brings back characte...more
Nov 28, 2009
Kathleen Hagen
added it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2009-audio-books,
2009-mysteries
The English Assassin, by Daniel Silva, b-plus, narrated by John Lee, produced byBooks on Tape, downloaded from audible.com.
This is the second book in the Gabriel Allum series. Allum is an Israeli who is a gifted painting restorer which he often uses as a cover to perform services for Israel. He was called to Switzerland to restore a painting, but found the owner dead. The owner’s daughter was a gifted violinist, and she told Gabriel that her father had a hidden room full of impressionist paintin...more
This is the second book in the Gabriel Allum series. Allum is an Israeli who is a gifted painting restorer which he often uses as a cover to perform services for Israel. He was called to Switzerland to restore a painting, but found the owner dead. The owner’s daughter was a gifted violinist, and she told Gabriel that her father had a hidden room full of impressionist paintin...more
This is the first Daniel Silva book I have read and I wasn't disappointed! The stories first chapter grabs you immediatley and it's tough to put this book down. Gabriel Allon is the art restorer/ Isarali secret agent who is called upon to restore a Raphael in the Rolfe home in Sweden. When he arrives, he finds the owner of the home dead and he is later arrested for the murder.
I haven't read the other books about Gabriel Allon but I didn't feel as if I missed out on much. I was able to get into t...more
I haven't read the other books about Gabriel Allon but I didn't feel as if I missed out on much. I was able to get into t...more
This is the second book by Daniel Silva featuring protagonist Gabriel Allon. Allon is a semi-retired Mossad agent whose day job is now as an art restorer. In this particular book, he is initially hired to to clean a Raphael owned by a millionaire banker in Zurich. But when he gets there, the banker has been murdered, and the Zurich police think Allon is responsible. The ensuing events lead the reader through the Nazi looting of European art treasures in WWII, especially those in the hands of Jew...more
DON'T READ THIS IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK.
This is one of the earlier Gabriel Allon adventures. The Israeli art restorer + sometimes agent is more conflicted than in the later novels. He's not yet hooked up with Chiara, his love interest in the later books -- and, in fact, exhibits an attraction to the concert violinist who's the daughter of a former Nazi "facilitator" in Switzerland who wants to make amends in his later years for illegally acquiring some art that had been pillaged from Jews b...more
This is one of the earlier Gabriel Allon adventures. The Israeli art restorer + sometimes agent is more conflicted than in the later novels. He's not yet hooked up with Chiara, his love interest in the later books -- and, in fact, exhibits an attraction to the concert violinist who's the daughter of a former Nazi "facilitator" in Switzerland who wants to make amends in his later years for illegally acquiring some art that had been pillaged from Jews b...more
To me there have always been two classes of thrillers :
1. Too much carnage and mayhem : Where the key figures in the plot line go, bodies drop like flies swatted out of the air and things tend to get destroyed. The factor of disinterest that I have in such a genre is that the mind goes numb to all this damage.
2. The silent,subtle kind of a thriller : Not much of a noise & the plot drives the adrenaline rush through the reader's veins. Needless to say it requires the steady hands of a season...more
1. Too much carnage and mayhem : Where the key figures in the plot line go, bodies drop like flies swatted out of the air and things tend to get destroyed. The factor of disinterest that I have in such a genre is that the mind goes numb to all this damage.
2. The silent,subtle kind of a thriller : Not much of a noise & the plot drives the adrenaline rush through the reader's veins. Needless to say it requires the steady hands of a season...more
The English Assassin is another fine novel. Daniel Silva provides the reader with his usual blend of action, excitement, intrigue, and plot twists -- all set within the historical context of the secret world of the Swiss banking system from WWII to the present.
In a reprise of Gabriel Allon, the art restorer and sometimes Israeli spy from the Kill Artist, Silva spins a tale of a secret Swiss society, long-ago collaboration with Nazi Germany, and a quest to recover art treasures plundered by the...more
In a reprise of Gabriel Allon, the art restorer and sometimes Israeli spy from the Kill Artist, Silva spins a tale of a secret Swiss society, long-ago collaboration with Nazi Germany, and a quest to recover art treasures plundered by the...more
Já andava com este autor debaixo de olho há imenso tempo mas, porque já estou fartinha dos Dan Brown da literatura, fui sempre deixando para depois.
Este Assassino Inglês, que comprei em livro de bolso, foi uma aposta que não ainda não sei se terá sido “ganha” ou não.
Não desgostei do livro. Mas não o achei fantástico. Lê-se bem (característica típica deste género de história) e até tem um tema fabuloso – a posição da Suíça na segunda guerra mundial e a sua responsabilidade no desaparecimento de o...more
Este Assassino Inglês, que comprei em livro de bolso, foi uma aposta que não ainda não sei se terá sido “ganha” ou não.
Não desgostei do livro. Mas não o achei fantástico. Lê-se bem (característica típica deste género de história) e até tem um tema fabuloso – a posição da Suíça na segunda guerra mundial e a sua responsabilidade no desaparecimento de o...more
How neutral were the Swiss during WW II? Their banking privacy laws allowed their bankers to deal with Nazis as well the rest of world on an equal basis - a situation some of the bankers misused to enhance their own personal wealth and art collections.
This book envisages a situation where some of the old Swiss bankers who had colluded with the Nazis, now trying to bury their sins, even going to the extent of using even the services of an English assassin.
The book has all the ingredients for an e...more
This book envisages a situation where some of the old Swiss bankers who had colluded with the Nazis, now trying to bury their sins, even going to the extent of using even the services of an English assassin.
The book has all the ingredients for an e...more
The English Assassin follows Gabriel Allon, art restorer and Israeli spy (retired, sort of) as he tries to figure out why an old Swiss banker who hired him to restore a painting ended up dead just before Gabriel arrives for the meeting. Without giving away too much Gabriel’s hunt for the truth leads him to discover that what some Swiss did during WWII was about to come to light and the banker was killed to keep it all quiet. With the help of the banker’s daughter, a world-famous violinist and so...more
Second in this series, this book quickly updates the reader on what has happened since the end of the first book. I found this a much more even volume, with all the thrills and spills you would expect of an espionage thriller. The characters are large as life, the villains suitably nasty, and in the end Gabriel achieves his goal, but not always as the reader might have expected.
Not all the good guys are likeable....but this adds to the intrigue and depth of character that the author creates so w...more
Not all the good guys are likeable....but this adds to the intrigue and depth of character that the author creates so w...more
Loved it. Just enough exposition to put the reader in the scene. Solid plot. Loved the historical aspect.
The book as a whole is good but I was disappointed by a few points.
I've begun to anticipate the twist in the third act now and it keeps the story from being predictable. But I just wish I liked the main character better. This is the second novel where it ends with Gabriel recuperating after having his ass handed to him. I loved the Englishman. And Anna was interesting. And I loved Jacqueline...more
The book as a whole is good but I was disappointed by a few points.
I've begun to anticipate the twist in the third act now and it keeps the story from being predictable. But I just wish I liked the main character better. This is the second novel where it ends with Gabriel recuperating after having his ass handed to him. I loved the Englishman. And Anna was interesting. And I loved Jacqueline...more
Ok - I am just going to read all 10 of Silva's books. They are all page turners with short chapters. Once you start, you can't stop. I still think that Moscow Rules and The Messenger are my favorites, but I will have to go through all ten to make sure. His later books delve into the complicated personality of Gabriel Allon a little more, and he is one of the reasons I love these books so much. I kepp wondering who could play an Israeli Art restorer on the big screen. The location of this book wa...more
Good fun! I've been slowly getting into a lot of espionage-based novels and Silva with this journalistic background and love for all things Mossad and clandestine warfare make his books exciting, and easy to read. Perfect for a long-haul train or plane ride.
Can't wait to read more Gabriel Allon stories...
The character development of Allon is crafted really nicely, with Silva keeping a nice amount of information suppressed in order to keep the reader interested…
The same applies for the main anta...more
Can't wait to read more Gabriel Allon stories...
The character development of Allon is crafted really nicely, with Silva keeping a nice amount of information suppressed in order to keep the reader interested…
The same applies for the main anta...more
As with the first book, this one combines action, adventure, moodiness, a little romance, and amazing insights into parts of the world with which I'm completely unfamiliar. The detail that Silva includes is remarkable. In this one, we learn a lot about Switzerland, it's history and participation in WWII, and the art world in general.
Gabriel Allon is an unusual man, and hard to get to know as a reader. Not because Silva doesn't do a masterful job of creating and evolving him, but because that's w...more
Gabriel Allon is an unusual man, and hard to get to know as a reader. Not because Silva doesn't do a masterful job of creating and evolving him, but because that's w...more
Had listened to a Daniel Silva book several years back but this was the first one I'd read. I very much enjoyed it....His main character, Gabriel Allon, is an art restorer/Israeli spy. This book centered around paintings stolen by the Nazis during WWII and the role of the Swiss during the war. It is well written - plot moves rapidly and also the background on the Swiss was most interesting. Having spent time in Switzerland this past spring, more insight into the mindset of that country is apprec...more
I like the Allon character; this book is earlier in the series than any others I've read.
Very interesting and thought-provoking story line. I found myself skipping over one of the 'interrogation' scenes toward the end of the book, but other than that the violence didn't seem to be overdone.
The reader of this audiobook did Gabriel Allon with a middle-Eastern accent throughout. Well, good that he could keep it up and separate from the German, Swiss, Italian, English and Corsican accents, but for s...more
Very interesting and thought-provoking story line. I found myself skipping over one of the 'interrogation' scenes toward the end of the book, but other than that the violence didn't seem to be overdone.
The reader of this audiobook did Gabriel Allon with a middle-Eastern accent throughout. Well, good that he could keep it up and separate from the German, Swiss, Italian, English and Corsican accents, but for s...more
Book 2 in the GABRIEL ALLON SERIES
The English Assassin is a terrific read, From start to finish, this is electrifying stuff: the murder of a Swiss banker leads Israeli agent Gabriel Allon and the banker's daughter, a classical violinist troubled by the past, on a race through Europe to uncover a Nazi-Swiss conspiracy to loot Jewish-owned art masterpieces.I was vaguely familiar with the rape of Art by the Nazi's during WW2 but this book really explained it very well and it was very ingightful. Th...more
The English Assassin is a terrific read, From start to finish, this is electrifying stuff: the murder of a Swiss banker leads Israeli agent Gabriel Allon and the banker's daughter, a classical violinist troubled by the past, on a race through Europe to uncover a Nazi-Swiss conspiracy to loot Jewish-owned art masterpieces.I was vaguely familiar with the rape of Art by the Nazi's during WW2 but this book really explained it very well and it was very ingightful. Th...more
Oct 10, 2011
Kandice
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
books-read-in-2011,
action-adventure
I've read this book before and wanted to revisit the series as I quit reading at some point despite having enjoyed it. I normally don't care for spy stories, or political stories, or stories about any of the wars. So I can't really say why this series is different, and I've enjoyed it so much. Perhaps it's because all of the characters are extremely human and damaged in some way. Each character has a back story that makes them neither all good or all bad but some mix of both as most of us are. I...more
A "beach read" for the hot summer days. Gabriel Allon is an art restorer sent to Switzerland to look at a painting. When he arrives, he discovers the body of the patron dead. He closes the door and begins to fit the pieces of this puzzle together. The story, although fiction, is instructive of the history of Switzerland (it's a company, not a country) and it's relationship to Nazi Germany. Money, gold, and paintings from Paris flowed into the vaults. The Nazi's received funding and armaments. On...more
This second book in the Gabriel Allon series was a definite improvement on the first. I still don't see the comparison with John LeCarre though. Having read most of LeCarre's works I think there is still a definite gap between the two. LeCarre redefined the genre. Silva, while writing intriguing novels that keep the reader engaged, has not yet convinced me that he is able to craft the kind of psychological spy novel that we find in LeCarre's The Spy Who Came in From the Cold, for example. Noneth...more
This is an entertaining series that is also thought-provoking. In this book the hero, Israeli agent and assassin Gabriel Allon is sent in his capacity as art restorer to the home of a Swiss banker, whom he finds dead. After interrogation, the Swiss expel him and warn him to stay out of the country. He is assigned to protect the daughter of the dead man, a concert pianist.
I won't go into the plot anymore. What I found especially interesting was the background of Switzerland's collaboration with t...more
I won't go into the plot anymore. What I found especially interesting was the background of Switzerland's collaboration with t...more
There are two sides to this book. On one hand it has one of the most interesting story arcs that I have had pleasure to encounter in a thriller since DeMille's "Lion's Game". On the other hand I can't shake off the feeling that this book would have been even better if the author was able to breath a little "life" into his main characters. Unfortunately, all the main protagonists felt stilted and a bit thin, which spoiled an otherwise excellent thriller. Nevertheless, an eloge has to be given for...more
This is a fast-paced, action thriller. I have read other Gabriel Allon books and enjoyed them. This one didn't disappoint. It does cover some older ground with Switzerland's role in WWII and whether that is as surprising now as it might have been when the book was written. By now, that story is well known, so it is no longer the fringe story of thriller spy novels. For that reason, the book lacked the powerful punch that Ludlum's books held when they first came out, or even a decade after they w...more
4.5 stars. Why does GoodReads not allow 1/2 stars? So frustrating. Anyway, I loved this book and thought it was a solid improvement over Silva's initial Gabriel Allon novel. Less of a love story (though it's still crammed in there) and more of a great spy novel. Silva uses the history of the Nazi plunging of Europe's art in a fascinating way as a backdrop for this tale. Fast-paced and fun, it is a great read. Took away a star (half-star) for the forced ending, but don't dwell on that if you're c...more
I had no expectations. The book was sat at the back of my sister's spare room and I was getting desperate having already read three books in a week.
The story built intrigue and depth very quickly. There was a back story that seemed important from the off but having never read a previous story I didn't find it essential to this plot at any stage.
This is an excellent story that makes reference to Nazis and Swiss banking secrecy but never becomes a non-fiction conspiracy manifesto. It's a great r...more
The story built intrigue and depth very quickly. There was a back story that seemed important from the off but having never read a previous story I didn't find it essential to this plot at any stage.
This is an excellent story that makes reference to Nazis and Swiss banking secrecy but never becomes a non-fiction conspiracy manifesto. It's a great r...more
Reading speed coming back nicely now. Blew through this page turner in just over 24 hours.
Awesome story - would make a great movie. But then I will probably be saying that about every book in the Gabriel Allon series. I had read about 3-4 of them before, but I have gone back now and am reading the entire series, in order.
Gabriel Allon - Mossad assassin who hunts down terrorists and enemies of Israel worldwide under the cover of an art restorer. Great reading, great characters, lots of European a...more
Awesome story - would make a great movie. But then I will probably be saying that about every book in the Gabriel Allon series. I had read about 3-4 of them before, but I have gone back now and am reading the entire series, in order.
Gabriel Allon - Mossad assassin who hunts down terrorists and enemies of Israel worldwide under the cover of an art restorer. Great reading, great characters, lots of European a...more
Not the best by Silva.
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Daniel Silva began his writing career as a journalist for United Press International (UPI), traveling in the Middle East and covering the Iran-Iraq war, terrorism and political conflicts. From UPI he moved to CNN, where he eventually became executive producer of its Washington-based public policy programming. In 1994 he began work on his first novel, The Unlikely Spy, a surprise best seller that w...more
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