First time visiting BookBrowse? Get a free copy of our member's ezine today.

Book Summary and Reviews of The Black Widow by Daniel Silva

The Black Widow by Daniel Silva

The Black Widow

by Daniel Silva

  • Critics' Consensus:
  • Readers' Rating:
  • Published:
  • Jul 2016, 544 pages
  • Rate this book

  • Buy This Book

About this book

Book Summary

#1 New York Times bestselling author Daniel Silva delivers another spellbinding international thriller—one that finds the legendary Gabriel Allon grappling with an ISIS mastermind.

Gabriel Allon, the art restorer, spy, and assassin described as the most compelling fictional creation "since Ian Fleming put down his martini and invented James Bond" (Rocky Mountain News), 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 government wants Gabriel to eliminate the man responsible before he can strike again.

Acclaimed novelist Daniel Silva has thrilled, entertained and educated readers with eighteen thoughtful and gripping spy novels featuring a diverse cast of compelling characters and ingenious plots that have taken them around the globe and back—from the United States to Europe, Russia to the Middle East. From its shocking opening to its explosive denouement in Washington, D.C., The Black Widow reveals itself as Silva's most timely and powerful novel yet. Following the success of his smash hit The English Spy, this electrifying thriller showcases Silva's consummate skill and brilliant imagination, and is sure to be a must read for his multitude of current and future fans.

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Reviews

Media Reviews

"Starred Review. One of fiction's greatest spies.... Allon remains as compelling as ever…. A dark thriller for difficult times." - Kirkus

"Starred Review. Fascinating, suspenseful, and bated-breath exciting…. Silva proves once again that he can rework familiar genre material and bring it to new life." - Publishers Weekly

"Starred Review. Silva builds suspense like a symphony conductor ... but the novel also affords a sobering, insightful, and multifaceted look at the overwhelming complexities of the seemingly interminable war in the Middle East. And, for series fans, Silva introduces a new and richly conceived character who is likely to become a regular cast member. A winner on all fronts." - Booklist

"A stunning new thriller of high stakes international intrigue…. Silva's most timely and powerful novel yet." - Broadway World

"The Black Widow probably is the most important book of the summer, no matter who you are or where you live in America." - Hugh Hewitt

This information about The Black Widow was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

Write your own reviewwrite your own review

Lynne Dean

Always thrilling!
I have read all of Daniel Silva's books, including the three he wrote before the Gabriel Allon series began. I requested my small city library where I volunteer to get them, I order a signed edition for my personal collection, and I now get I get the book version each year as the new book is released just as I leave for vacation. I have read each book at least twice ,always rereading the last in the series before receiving the newest book. The characters have become family, and I always look forward to the reunion. Mr. Silva's knowledge of current world events leads me to think either he can predict the future or has very high placed sources in many of the worlds secret services. I recommend these books to everyone!

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Author Information

Daniel Silva Author Biography

Photo: John Earle

Daniel Silva knew from an early age that he wanted to become a writer, but his first profession would be journalism. Born in Michigan, raised and educated in California, he was pursuing a master's degree in international relations when he received a temporary job offer from United Press International to help cover the 1984 Democratic National Convention in San Francisco. Later that year Silva abandoned his studies and joined UPI fulltime, working first in San Francisco, then on the foreign desk in Washington, and finally as Middle East correspondent in Cairo and the Persian Gulf. In 1987, while covering the Iran-Iraq war, he met NBC Today National Correspondent Jamie Gangel and they were married later that year. Silva returned to Washington and went to work for CNN and became ...

... Full Biography
Author Interview
Link to Daniel Silva's Website

Other books by Daniel Silva at BookBrowse
  • The Messenger jacket

12 more...

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

More Recommendations

Readers Also Browsed . . .

more thrillers...

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Top Picks

  • Book Jacket
    The Most
    by Jessica Anthony
    In November 1957, Kathleen and Virgil Beckett are living at Acropolis Place, an apartment complex in...
  • Book Jacket: Pink Slime
    Pink Slime
    by Fernanda Trias
    Unsurprisingly, the 21st century has been something of a boom time for environmental disaster in ...
  • Book Jacket: Becoming Earth
    Becoming Earth
    by Ferris Jabr
    The idea of Earth as one living, breathing organism is an age-old one, found in belief systems all ...
  • Book Jacket: Long Island Compromise
    Long Island Compromise
    by Taffy Brodesser-Akner
    Taffy Brodesser-Akner's second novel, Long Island Compromise, is centered around the Fletchers, a ...

BookBrowse Book Club

Book Jacket
The Story Collector
by Evie Woods
From the international bestselling author of The Lost Bookshop!

Members Recommend

  • Book Jacket

    We'll Prescribe You a Cat
    by Syou Ishida

    Discover the bestselling Japanese novel celebrating the healing power of cats.

Wordplay

Solve this clue:

K U with T J

and be entered to win..

Book Club Giveaway!
Win Before the Mango Ripens

Before the Mango Ripens by Afabwaje Kurian

Both epic and intimate, this debut announces a brilliant new talent for readers of Imbolo Mbue and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

Enter

Your guide toexceptional          books

BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.