As a great fan of the Allon series, I unfortunately found this one a bit disappointing. Although most mystery/thriller series follow a formula, Silva has deftly kept his stories from feeling formulaic…until now. Additionally, the dialogue seemed a bit lazy in this installment.

Another great novel in Gabriel Alon series. Up to the same excellent caliber as all of the previous titles.

Ok this is petty but it's EITHER the Rijksmuseum OR the Van Gogh Museum... NOT the "Rijksmuseum Van Gogh." Yes, these museums are very close to each other in Amsterdam... but they're not the same!!! He even mentioned the "Rijksmuseum Van Gogh" in the ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS so clearly this was some bizarre editing miss. I just couldn't get past it haha.

Interesting book, but there's a lot going on. You really have to pay attention to follow all the international players and places.

Interesting idea. To catch a thief by stealing a painting.

I quite like this idea. Somewhat different from the others. I thought it was good that there was a change in the storyline and just the approach. Although I wonder when the main character will ever get some rest. Would be interesting if this was ever made into a movie.

A good read.

I keep reading Daniel Silva's Gabriel Allon novels even though the really have past their peak. While the story is always entertaining, it is the same formula every time. If you like the genre, you will like this book but it is not fabulous.

I don't know how if I just didn't notice before because Silva's stories kept me so engaged, but his writing is just so amateurish and vapid that this book got annoying quick. Add that to a LOT of anti-Arab bigotry, cliched characters, and a plot that cancelled itself out (it turns out none of it was necessary to the resolution), and you've got a book that will get no more than a 1-star rating from me. I've kept up with the series till now, as Silva is one of the few modern pulp writers I can stand (mainly because he doesn't curse in every other sentence and because his plots are usually pretty good)--but his flare for creating a story seems to be waning, so not sure I'll keep reading on.

Not exactly one of my favorite books, and the first 275 pages desperately drag. However, if you can fumble through those pages, it gets interesting. If it hadn't taken 275 pages, I would have given the book more starts-- this includes better dialogue.