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The Black Widow

(Gabriel Allon #16)

Daniel Silva

4.32 · Rating details · 23,365 ratings · 1,974 reviews

A network of terror.
A web of deceit.
A deadly game of vengeance.

Legendary spy and art restorer Gabriel Allon is poised to become the chief of Israel’s secret intelligence service. But on the eve of his promotion, events conspire to lure him into the field for one final operation. ISIS has detonated a massive bomb in the Marais district of Paris, and a desperate French gover ...more

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Hardcover, 528 pages

Published July 12th 2016 by Harper

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· 23,365 ratings · 1,974 reviews

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Aug 06, 2016 Alex is The Romance Fox rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: adventure-mystery-crime-thriller, authors-p-z, historical, series

Daniel Silva has entertained and even educated us, throughout the last 15 novels featuring the brilliant and enigmatic hero, Gabriel Allon - Israeli intelligence agent, super spy extraordinaire, art restorer, family man. We have been taken on journeys to different places throughout the globe, met a cast of varied, interesting and compelling characters. Creative and inventive plots filled with present day situations and past history that affects our lives today.

The Black Widow, the latest 16th b ...more

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Jul 15, 2016 Marvin Fein rated it did not like it

For over fifteen years, Daniel Silva has rewarded his readers with one of the best spy/action heroes of the last half century. Not only were the books page turning thrillers but they illuminated subjects such as the Holocaust and the Israeli-Palestinian tensions.
With Black Widow, Silva has departed substantially from his former format. He has written an anti-Obama/Clinton political polemic with very little of Allon in the book. It is fitting that the book blaming the rise of ISIS solely on Ameri ...more

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Jul 12, 2016 Lewis Weinstein rated it really liked it

Shelves: crime-and-thrillers

Another excellent high tension Gabriel Allon story, this one more frightening than most since it deals with current unresolved and perhaps unresolvable terrorist acts. I won't say more about the plot since I don't want to spoil it. It's a good read.

HOWEVER ... With one important exception, Silva repeatedly expresses great disdain for a not at all disguised President Obama, which I find overdone and offensive. On the other hand, there is almost no criticism of Israeli actions which, in my mind, h ...more

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Jun 09, 2016 Jessica Jernigan rated it it was amazing

I’ve been rereading the Gabriel Allon novels this summer, and, while I still find the early installments entertaining, it’s been interesting to see how much Silva has grown as a writer. The Black Widow is his best yet—which is bittersweet, since it seems that Allon really is about to assume a less active role. There’s the sense, in this novel, that one era is coming to a close and a new era is beginning. And, if this is the darkest of Silva’s stories so far, it’s because the real world is provid ...more

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May 29, 2017 Peter rated it really liked it

Shelves: thriller, historical-fiction

A gripping spy thriller from Daniel Silva that reaches for heights set by John Le Carre but does not quite get there. The Black Widow was my introduction to Silva, even though he's been a prolific author for years and I'm a lover of spy novels and thrillers. How I let this excellent writer go unnoticed for so long, I do not know.

I enjoyed the first quarter of the book; thoroughly adored the second two quarters of the book; then found the last quarter didn't live up to the intelligence of the mi A gripping spy thriller from Daniel Silva that reaches for heights set by John Le Carre but does not quite get there. The Black Widow was my introduction to Silva, even though he's been a prolific author for years and I'm a lover of spy novels and thrillers. How I let this excellent writer go unnoticed for so long, I do not know.

I enjoyed the first quarter of the book; thoroughly adored the second two quarters of the book; then found the last quarter didn't live up to the intelligence of the middle of the book.

Let me explain. The book told in closely held third person from mostly Gabriel Allon's (a recurring Silva character) point of view but also from the Black Widow's perspective started out slow--the first quarter. Silva spent more time than was necessary to acquaint the reader with his myriad characters. The author offered up a compelling teaser and then relaxed and leisurely introduced each of his characters and their motivations. While I'm a lover of Le Carre and his sometimes slow and deliberate pacing, Silva's character introductions lacked Le Carre's tension and were needlessly long. Maybe it's a commercial necessity to make sure new readers know the history of characters he's written about many times. It didn't seem necessary.

Once Silva accomplished his introduction, and we slipped into the middle half of the book, the gripping suspense began. My advice: if you read this book and find it slow at first, don't give up, read on. The middle part of this book was pure gold and comparisons to Le Carre are valid. The voice of the characters and the jeopardy he puts them in brought a level of suspense and tension that is up there with the best.

The last quarter of the book disappointed. I'm sure some will have read it and feel awestruck by the sheer size and scope of the ending. I understand that view but felt that Silva substituted size and scope for intelligence. He expertly created several fantastic characters and pitted them against each other in the smartest way possible, then ended the story not with the surgeon's scalpel, but instead with the butcher's cleaver. I expected more. Still, four stars and highly recommended.

Note: I listened to this and didn't read it. ...more

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Aug 02, 2016 Enb rated it did not like it

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 b 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.

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.

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.

In sum, I think the book would have been better if Silva had focused more on developing his characters and telling a story he hasn't told before. Not sure I'll read the next one if this is how he'll write them moving forward, which is too bad because I've really liked this series on the whole. ...more

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Jul 06, 2016 The Real Book Spy rated it it was amazing

Read this review and more at www.TheRealBookSpy.com

Gabriel Allon, the wayward son of Israeli intelligence, returns to star in his sixteenth novel authored by Daniel Silva. Set shortly after the events of last year’s The English Spy, Gabriel is finally nearing the day when he will forever leave behind his dangerous work in the field to instead sit behind a desk as director of Israel’s foreign intelligence service, known simply as the Office.

Gabriel, who apart from being the Office’s most legend ...more

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Aug 09, 2016 L.A. Starks rated it it was amazing

Wow! A classic Daniel Silva novel--the best yet. Much has been made, and rightly so, of Silva's prescience. However, like all good thriller authors who dive deeply into their characters and settings, it is possible to extrapolate a fictional but very credible future from the present as Silva has done here.

(For example, in Strike Price, the Chechen in the opening scene was written and accepted for first publication well before the Tsarnaev brothers' Boston attack.)

What I particularly liked was t ...more

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Mar 01, 2017 Barbara rated it liked it

Shelves: women-of-mystery-2017

3.5 stars

In the last few 'Gabriel Allon' books the Israeli agent has been preparing to take charge of his country's spy agency, 'The Office.' Gabriel's just about to start the top job when ISIS terrorists stage horrific attacks in France and Belgium. 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.

To get close to the elusi
3.5 stars

In the last few 'Gabriel Allon' books the Israeli agent has been preparing to take charge of his country's spy agency, 'The Office.' Gabriel's just about to start the top job when ISIS terrorists stage horrific attacks in France and Belgium. 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.

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. She also cruises ISIS sites online, claiming to want revenge against the western murderers who killed her fiance. After a few months ISIS recruiters approach Leila, and she agrees to work for the Caliphate. This is when the REALLY dangerous part of Natalie's assignment begins.

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.

The rest of the story plays out with plenty of suspense, tragedy, and heroics....plus a teeny bit of romance.

If you're familiar with previous stories in the series - which usually involve people running all over the world assassinating enemies - this book takes a different tack. A large portion of the narrative describes Natalie's training to be an operative. By the end I almost felt I knew how to be a spy myself (though I'd never in a million years have Natalie's courage).

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.

Recommended to readers who like espionage stories, especially fans of Gabriel Allon.

You can follow my reviews at http://reviewsbybarbsaffer.blogspot.com/ ...more

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Jul 16, 2016 Leah rated it liked it

Good plot and story, although the author's disdain for President Obama was distracting and tiresome.

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Jul 12, 2016 Jason rated it it was ok

I love the spy parts of the Allon series, but this book is really just a vehicle to write nasty things about "the American President" and blame Obama for all the woes of the world and to espouse the divine righteousness of Israel in dealing with the Muslims/Arabs. The last few books started to get more political, but they never took away from the story or the characters. This book is almost all political statement with very little else going for it. I hope Silva gets back to writing actual spy n ...more

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Jul 18, 2016 Ware rated it it was amazing

Reading The Black Widow during the summer of 2016 is absolutely terrifying. The fictitious events within its pages dovetail with the real events of Orlando, Paris, Nice, and Brussels.

After an ISIS operative bombs a Jewish museum in Paris, killing one of Gabriel Alon's close friends, the French more or less blackmail the Israeli government into having Alon lead a search for the mastermind, a mysterious man called Saladin. To do so, he must insert a young Israeli female physician into the vipers n ...more

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Aug 22, 2016 Jim rated it really liked it

Shelves: books-read-2016, mystery-suspense-thriller

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.

Gabriel, new father to twins, is about to be named the Chief of The Office. Before this promotion though he will have to go back into the field for one final operation. ISIS detonates a massive bomb in a Jewish neighborhood of Paris. One of the victims was a frie 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.

Gabriel, new father to twins, is about to be named the Chief of The Office. Before this promotion though he will have to go back into the field for one final operation. ISIS detonates a massive bomb in a Jewish neighborhood of Paris. One of the victims was a friend and associate of Gabriel's. She was also the owner of a Van Gogh which she left to Gabriel in her will. The French though are holding the painting hostage. The price? Gabriel, the master Israeli spy and back from the dead, must head the operation to deal with those responsible. The mastermind is known only as Saladin, named for the famed warrior who united the Muslim world and captured Jerusalem from the Crusaders. Nothing is known about the modern day Saladin. Not his real name. Not even his nationality. The Paris bombing is soon followed by another deadly bombing. This time in Amsterdam. Gabriel has a plan. He will insert an agent into the most dangerous terrorist group in the world. She will become a recruit, a time bomb, a black widow. His choice for the black widow? Dr. Natalie Mizrahi, a Jewish physician who is fluent in French and Arabic. Before she can pose as a recruit for ISIS though Gabriel must recruit her to work for The Office. Can they succeed? Can they eliminate Saladin and his network before they unleash their next attack?

As I had mentioned this book almost seems to be something out of today's headlines. In addition to the bombings in Paris and Amsterdam the relationship between Israel and America is chilly thanks to the Iran nuclear deal. But in order to stop ISIS the old friendship must prevail. Israel, France, Jordan, and America all partner in this global war to stop terrorism. Some have commented negatively on the plot of recruiting a woman to infiltrate the target as having been done before but it works. This was a fast paced, page turning, stay up late to read one more chapter book. Highly recommend. I don't think fans of Gabriel Allon will be disappointed. The question is what becomes of the series when Gabriel becomes Chief? ...more

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Apr 08, 2016 Skip rated it it was amazing

Shelves: thriller

In his foreword, Silva talks about his decision to leave his plot the same as it was prescient about all of the violence that has occurred recently by terrorists. Starting with a horrific bombing of a Jewish Center in Paris, Gabriel Allon is compelled to find the mastermind by recruiting someone fresh to penetrate ISIS. He is almost too successful as the female doctor plays a central role is the subsequent mayhem perpetrated by the mastermind (code named Saladin.) The intelligence forces of Fran ...more

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Jul 17, 2016 Bobbie Kalman rated it liked it

Not as good as previous books. I wish he would not insert his political feelings in his books.

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Aug 06, 2016 Steven Z. rated it it was amazing

While discussing his new book THE BLACK WIDOW in the Music Hall in Portsmouth, NH author Daniel Silva pointed out that the Paris bombing described in his sixteenth installment of his Gabriel Allon series was a complete fabrication. In light of actual events that seem to coincide with the book’s publication, Silva seems clairvoyant, a trait that allows him to create plausible scenarios when compared to real events. In part, this characteristic is responsible for the popularity of his work, along While discussing his new book THE BLACK WIDOW in the Music Hall in Portsmouth, NH author Daniel Silva pointed out that the Paris bombing described in his sixteenth installment of his Gabriel Allon series was a complete fabrication. In light of actual events that seem to coincide with the book’s publication, Silva seems clairvoyant, a trait that allows him to create plausible scenarios when compared to real events. In part, this characteristic is responsible for the popularity of his work, along with the development of the Gabriel Allon character over the years. In THE BLACK WIDOW, Allon is about to become the head of the “Office,” the nickname for Israeli intelligence when a bomb explodes in the Marais section of Paris, known for its Jewish population. The attack was centered on a conference organized by Hanna Weinberg, the head of the Isaac Weinberg Center for the study of Anti-Semitism in France. The jihadi attack is successful and we learn about a man who goes by the nomenclature of Saladin.

What follows is one of Silva’s best books as the author presents an accurate reality that hopefully will never visit America. Through Silva’s characters the reader is exposed to an accurate history of the Islamic State or ISIS and the background presented affords the reader the expertise that Silva has tapped in preparing his novel. Many names will be familiar to Silva’s audience as they were developed in previous Allon books. However, a new person emerges as one of the most important that Silva has ever created. Her name is Natalie Mizrahi, a physician who immigrated to Israel because of the treatment of Jews in France, a subject that Silva treats as he argues that Islamic terror is a serious problem for Jews in France, and that the French government has been very laissez faire in dealing with it. Dr. Mizrahi is recruited by Allon and trained to penetrate ISIS and gather intelligence concerning Saladin’s plans. Saladin is a former officer and intelligence operator in the Saddam Hussein’s Iraq. Once the United States invaded Iraq and defeated Saddam’s forces Washington pursued the mistaken policy of “debathization.” Because of this error hundreds of Saddam’s Sunni officer core had nowhere to turn. Saladin, like many others joined al-Qaeda in Iraq under Abu Musab al-Zarqawi which eventually morphed into ISIS.

Throughout the novel Silva makes many astute judgements that currently affect the war on terror. For example, the Brussels’ neighborhood of Molenbeek is presented as an ISIS oasis in the middle of the Belgian capitol. Silva critiques President Obama’s Middle East policy (without mentioning his name) and statements concerning ISIS that he totally disagreed with. The state of French-Israeli relations, the bureaucratic battles within the Israeli intelligence community are delved into, as is the sour relationship between Washington and Tel Aviv. It is obvious that Silva has done a great deal of research in preparing his novel. As I was reading the dialogue I had the feeling that I was reading from the works of Scott Shane, Michael Weiss, and Joby Warrick who have written extensively on ISIS and the war on terror, and lo and behold when I read Silva’s acknowledgements he cited these excellent journalist/historians.

What is fascinating about Silva’s approach is how realistic and believable his scenarios and characters are. His description of turning Dr. Mizrahi into the Israeli agent Leila Hawadi is eye opening. Further, the Mizrahi/Hawadi character’s indoctrination by ISIS is very disturbing as she witnesses the caliphate up close and what their raison detre is, as well as the actions they are planning. Silva takes the reader on a thrilling voyage that I fear someday might come to pass. If you are a fan of Silva’s previous efforts, you should find THE BLACK WIDOW a very satisfying read.
...more

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Jul 17, 2016 Monnie rated it it was amazing

It's hard to believe this is the 16th book in the series featuring Gabriel Allon, perhaps my all-time favorite "hero." He's a sought-after restorer of priceless paintings, a spy, soon-to-be chief of Israel's secret intelligence service (albeit reluctantly) and, with his beautiful wife Chiara, the father of twins Raphael and Irene. So much do I love the books that I didn't even break a sweat at the thought of 544 pages - much longer than most books I read these days - and once I started, I admit It's hard to believe this is the 16th book in the series featuring Gabriel Allon, perhaps my all-time favorite "hero." He's a sought-after restorer of priceless paintings, a spy, soon-to-be chief of Israel's secret intelligence service (albeit reluctantly) and, with his beautiful wife Chiara, the father of twins Raphael and Irene. So much do I love the books that I didn't even break a sweat at the thought of 544 pages - much longer than most books I read these days - and once I started, I admit to getting testy when something or someone interrupted my progress. By the end of the first few chapters, I knew this would be a 5-star-plus read for me.

That doesn't mean, however, that a few things weren't a bit bothersome - the first of which is that the emphasis is far more on politics and history than on the characters. Chiara barely plays a role, and even Gabriel doesn't seem to be at the forefront as much as in previous books. There is almost tedious detail about the relationships (pro and con) among various countries like Israel, France and Syria, and the author makes it abundantly clear what side of the political fence he's on. That's not all bad, mind you; even though I've crabbed about other authors' crossing the line of putting their personal political agendas ahead of the story - and this one comes close to doing just that - Silva manages to write around it all in such an interesting, totally engaging way that in the end it didn't matter a whit to me (the historical parts, in fact, I thoroughly enjoyed).

As the book begins, Gabriel hasn't yet assumed the mantle of intelligence chief; in fact, he's officially dead (not really, of course, but for all intents and purposes beyond the Israeli agency, he was killed off a while back). Just as he's about to be resurrected to take on his new responsibilities, ISIS sets off a bomb in Paris. With so many dead and wounded and the entire country in shock, the French government seeks help from Gabriel and his agency in finding out who was behind the dirty deed.

It's an offer Gabriel can't refuse, and he sets off on what could be his final mission before "retiring" behind a desk (assuming he survives, of course). Early on, he recruits and trains a multi-national Jewish female doctor named Natalie who will infiltrate the ranks of ISIS in the hope of getting close enough to the caliphate to learn what the next target(s) will be. In fact, the book is more her story than Gabriel's; she is to be transformed into a Muslim "Black Widow," - a woman who lost a husband at the hands of non-Muslim terrorism and wants nothing more than revenge (and the glory that will come when she dies as a martyr).

The story follows all that happens to her as well as the interaction among the government agencies that are involved. In between are chases that lead to blind alleys, shady characters doing their thing and horrific strikes, and threats of even more strikes, by ISIS terrorists. Can Gabriel and his team (with the help of the good doctor) bring whoever is running the ISIS show to his knees in time to prevent an even more horrendous disaster? I know the answer, and if you read this terrific book, so will you.
...more

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Apr 01, 2017 Hope Mueller rated it really liked it

Always enjoy the Gabriel Allon cast of characters. This installment is not bloated as some of the earlier in the series became. Although somewhat predictable, immersing yourself in this world for a period is like visiting friends, comfortable and entertaining. Always love the history lessons built in, along with the scary level of premonition found in these books.

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Jul 10, 2017 Cheryl rated it really liked it

Shelves: adult-fiction, espionage, mystery-suspense-thriller, other-cultures

Gabriel Allon is once again in top form in this timely novel! Called in to service to thwart a terrorist attack by ISIS, Allon places an agent, a would-be recruit, into the heart of the caliphate in Syria.

She is a young doctor who travels from Jerusalem to Paris and then to Syria in an attempt to learn the identity of the plot's mastermind, an elusive leader who calls himself Saladin.

This novel is tense and suspenseful, while building a sense of urgency and foreboding that will hold your intere ...more

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Mar 28, 2017 Thyago | MrsMargotBlog rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2017readings, travel, series, war, espionage

http://mrs-margot.blogspot.pt/
This is a story that flows naturally, with an easy reading due to its small chapters and I must say it was my first reading of this highly successful author, but this book is the 16th in a series entitled "Gabriel Allon" and although Read very well as an independent reading, because the author knows how to contextualize everything, the truth is that I believe that there may be details and even relations with some characters that we would understand better if we ha ...more

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Feb 29, 2016 Steve Sparks rated it it was ok

I am a big fan of Silva, so it pains me to give this book a 2-star rating. Normally, I would never give 2 stars because I don't finish books that warrant that rating. But I did finish this because I have read everyone of his other books and I really like the Allon character and Silva's writing. Like his other books, this one was well-written and fast-paced. I have 4 problems with it, which are a little hard to describe without spoilers, but I'll try. (1) In this book Allon almost felt like a sec ...more

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Jul 13, 2016 Dazz rated it liked it

I absolutely love the Gabriel Allon series, but I'm afraid this latest is a disappointment.
I love the reoccurring characters, but after 16 episodes they are starting to wear a little thin. Especially since the author feels the need to explain them in every book, using essentially the same boilerplate. It is starting to get cheesy.

I suppose its hard to come up with a story that is truly original, but seriously you might as well just re-read le Carré's Little Drummer Girl.
Unfortunately one cannot ...more

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Jul 24, 2016 Amy rated it it was ok

Didn't we do this before? Smart young heroine gets trained as a spy and infiltrates a very bad man's evil network. Sadly, one of my favorite summer guilty pleasures has gone steadily downhill the past few years. Not sure if Gabriel Allon will return next year or not, but sadly I might have to retire.

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Jul 25, 2016 Kent Beck rated it liked it · review of another edition

Sad and polemical end to the series

One shot at Obama I could stand but too many and they are just annoying. I not be reading any further sequels.

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Aug 27, 2016 Ed rated it liked it · review of another edition

I downgraded this book from 4 stars to three because the more I thought about it, the more disappointing the end game was. Daniel Silva has crafted a page turning spy thriller populated by strong, memorable characters and present Israel's more muscular approach in confronting ISIS than the US via his protagonist Gabriel Allon. Unfortunately, without divulging the plot, the ending left justice deferred until the authors next book. I would think that Daniel Silva would find it completely unnecessa ...more

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Jun 29, 2016 Lisa Barbour rated it it was ok

This is my favorite series of books, but I was very disappointed in this one. I got tired of the political comments, the plot was nothing new, and Gabriel Allon didn't have much to do. I will reread the others in the series, but unfortunately, this book was not for me.

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Aug 13, 2016 Robert James rated it it was amazing

Great book. If you want a lesson on how ISIS started and the current US policy toward ISIS all wrapped up in a thrilling Allon adventure, this book is for you. And if it's not for you, you should read it anyway.

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Mar 27, 2017 Tom Mathews rated it really liked it

Shelves: mystery-crime-thriller, group-reads, read-in-2017, spies-and-war-stories, middle-east

The 16th adventure of art historian turned Israeli assassin Gabriel Allon is entertaining and reads like the author has put a lot of research into his subject. I use the term 'reads like' because there are very few people who have a comprehensive knowledge of the inner workings of ISIS. The ISIS that Silva created in his book differs only slightly from the ISIS of my imagination.) I haven't previously read any of Daniel Silva's books but that didn't hinder my enjoyment if this book. There was so ...more

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Aug 22, 2016 Anna rated it it was amazing

Exceptional!

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Aug 04, 2016 Harpercollins Canada rated it it was amazing

The Black Widow by Daniel Silva is the 16th novel in Daniel Silva’s Gabriel Allon series – and yet, it’s been hailed his most timely and most powerful novel yet. Below I will explain why, but first, some context:

Gabriel Allon is the protagonist in Silva’s internationally bestselling thriller and espionage series. Allon works for Israeli intelligence on international missions. His ancestors are of German decent; most notably his grandfather, who was a German expressionist painter. This is the ins ...more

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Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
The Black Widow; 4 Stars	1	12	Apr 30, 2017 12:03PM
The Mystery, Crim...: * March/April 2017 Group Read: The Black Widow, by Daniel Silva	19	199	Apr 16, 2017 03:13AM
What will Silva do now?	3	38	Feb 18, 2017 03:15PM
Crime, Mysteries ...: Black Widow, The - November 2016	20	71	Dec 19, 2016 07:56AM
Monthly Best-Sell...: THE BLACK WIDOW, by Daniel Silva	1	9	Aug 24, 2016 09:29AM
Daniel silva	1	24	Jun 02, 2016 10:13AM

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About Daniel Silva

Daniel Silva

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Daniel Silva was born in Michigan in 1960 and raised in California where he received his BA from Fresno State. 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 polic ...more