Portrait of a Spy (Gabriel Allon 11) by Daniel Silva

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After failing to stop a suicide bomber attack in London, master art restorer and assassin Gabriel Allon is summoned by the CIA and is faced with an organization riddled with dissent--and ill-equipped to deal with the deadly new face of global jihadist terror.

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Gabriel Allon has been hailed as the most compelling creation since "Ian Fleming put down his martini and invented James Bond" (Rocky Mountain News). A man with a deep appreciation for all that is beautiful, Gabriel is also an angel of vengeance, an international operative who will stop at... read more (warning: may contain spoilers)

In a dangerous world, one extraordinary woman can mean the difference between life and death. . . .

For Gabriel and his wife, Chiara, it was supposed to be the start of a pleasant weekend in London -- a visit to a gallery in St. James's to authenticate a newly discovered painting by Titian, followed by a quiet lunch. But a pair of deadly bombings in Paris and Copenhagen has already marred this autumn day. And while walking toward Covent Garden, Gabriel notices a man he believes is about to carry out a third attack. Before Gabriel can draw his weapon, he is knocked to the pavement and can only watch as the nightmare unfolds.

Haunted by his failure to stop the massacre of innocents, Gabriel returns to his isolated cottage on the cliffs of Cornwall, until a summons brings him to Washington and he is drawn into a confrontation with the new face of global terror. At the center of the threat is an American-born cleric in Yemen to whom Allah has granted "a beautiful and seductive tongue." A gifted deceiver, who was once a paid CIA asset, the mastermind is plotting a new wave of attacks.

Gabriel and his team devise a daring plan to destroy the network of death from the inside, a gambit fraught with risk, both personal and professional. To succeed, Gabriel must reach into his violent past. A woman waits there -- a reclusive heiress and art collector who can traverse the murky divide between Islam and the West. She is the daughter of an old enemy, a woman joined to Gabriel by a trail of blood. . . .

Set against the disparate worlds of art and intelligence, Portrait of a Spy moves swiftly from the corridors of power in Washington to the glamorous auction houses of New York and London to the unforgiving landscape of the Saudi desert. Featuring a climax that will leave readers haunted long after they turn the final page, this deeply entertaining story is also a breathtaking portrait of courage in the face of unspeakable evil -- and Daniel Silva's most extraordinary novel to date.

Characters edit see section history

Gabriel Allon: Assassin, spy, art restorer, husband.
Adrian Carter: director of the CIA's National Clandestine Service
Rashid Al-Husseini: only son of a former Yemeni government minister; born in America; charismatic Islamic cleric.
James Mckenna: Assistant to the president for homeland security and counterterrorism, aka the Terrorism Czar.
Sarah Bancroft: daughter of a wealthy Citibank executive; youngest woman ever to earn a PhD in art history at Harvard; joined the CIA after her boyfriend was killed during the 9/11 terrorist attack.
Dina Sarid: An Office terrorism expert.
Mikhail Abramov: Israeli assassin and field operative.
Eli Lavon: regarded as the finest street surveillance artist the Office had ever produced.
Malik al-Zubair: Palestinian from Zarqa called the master of terror; expert bomb-maker.
Graham Seymour: deputy director of MI5.
Zoe Reed: journalist for the American business news network CNBC.
Mr. Lovegrove: A hired bidder at Christie's.
Chiara Allon: Gabriel's wife
Julian Isherwood: A lover, owner and cherisher of art masterpieces. Owns a gallery in London.
Rafiq al-Kamal: former chief of Zizi al-Bakari's personal security detail; now works for Nadia.
Uzi Navot: chief of Israel's secret intelligence service
Ellis Coyle: Bored uethical man.
Ari Shamron: Spy master of Mossad
Yossi Gavish: top officer in Research, the Office's analytical division.
Oliver: Art dealer in London. Competitor of Julian.
Christie: Auction house for rare pieces of art.
Zizi al-Bakari: Nadia's father; "financier of mass murder".
Rena: Best friend of Nadia.
Farid Khan: Suicide Bomber
Yvette Dubois: Madame Dubois is Nadia al-Bakari's executive assistant.
Samir Abbas: Banker that helps finance terriorists.

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Quotes edit see section history

“High blood pressure. It started on Inauguration Day, and it rises and falls in relation to the terrorist threat level. It's sad to say, but after ten years of fighting Islamic terror, I seem to have become a living, breathing National Threat Advisory.”
Adrian Carter
“God, but I hate it when journalists use the word 'narrative.' There was a time when novelists wrote narrative and journalists were content to report facts.”
Adrian Carter
“Cyberspace was like a forest in winter. The terrorists could hide there for a time, hatching their plots and organizing their forces, but they could not come or go without leaving footprints in the snow.”
“I've always found it best to avoid the truth. It invariably leads to unnecessary complications.”
Ari Shamron
“We have a purpose. We believe our cause is just. They believe in nothing except their thirty-five-hour workweek, their global warming, and their annual six-week vacation in the south.”
Ari Shamron
“Oil isn't the only thing flowing from Saudi Arabia to the West. There's also a great deal of intelligence in the pipeline. The Saudi GID is constantly tipping off the CIA and the European services about potential plots and suspicious individuals. Occasionally, the tips contain actionable intelligence, but most of it is complete and utter crap.”
Ari Shamron
“There's an old proverb that I'm particularly fond of. It says the veil that hides the future from us is woven by an angel of mercy.”
Ari Shamron
“Heaven knows I'm no expert, but it seems to me the terrorism game is a bit like the art trade. It has its peaks and valleys, its good seasons and bad, but it never goes away.”
Julian Isherwood

Organizations edit see section history

Isherwood Fine Arts: Julian Isherwood's Gallery
CIA: Central Intelligence Agency
MI5: Add a description of this organization.
The Office: Israel's foreign intelligence service.

First Sentence edit see section history

It was the Rembrandt that solved the mystery once and for all.

Series & Lists edit see section history

This is book 11 of 12 in Gabriel Allon. (standard series)

Preceded by The Rembrandt Affair, and followed by The Fallen Angel.

This book is in 2011 Published Books. (community list)

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

Daniel Silva (Author)

First Edition edit see section history

Original Language: English
Publisher: Harper
Country: USA
Publication Date: July 19, 2011
ISBN: 0062072188
Page Count: 455

Classification edit see section history

Library of Congress: Add the Library of Congress Classification.
Dewey: 813.6

Notes for Parents edit see section history

Reading Level: Adults

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Subjects edit see section history

Books › Mystery & Thrillers › Thrillers › Spy Stories & Tales of Intrigue

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Portrait of a Spy (2011) (edit title/settings)

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