Synopsis (from
the publisher):
The death of a journalist leads Gabriel Allon to Russia, where he finds
that, in terms of spycraft, even he has something to learn. He's
playing by Moscow rules now.
This is not the grim, gray Moscow of Soviet times but a new Moscow,
awash in oil wealth and choked with bulletproof Bentleys. A Moscow
where power resides once more behind the walls of the Kremlin and where
critics of the ruling class are ruthlessly silenced. A Moscow where a
new generation of Stalinists is plotting to reclaim an empire lost and
to challenge the global dominance of its old enemy, the United States.
One such man is Ivan Kharkov, a former KGB colonel who built a global
investment empire on the rubble of the Soviet Union. Hidden within that
empire, however, is a more lucrative and deadly business: Kharkov is an
arms dealer—and he is about to deliver Russia's most
sophisticated weapons to al-Qaeda. Unless Allon can learn the time and
place of the delivery, the world will see the deadliest terror attacks
since 9/11—and the clock is ticking fast.
— ◊ —
— ◊ —
Moscow Rules
A Gabriel
Allon Mystery
Daniel
Silva
Putnam (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 0-399-15501-5 (0399155015)
ISBN-13: 978-0-399-15501-7 (9780399155017)
Publication Date: July 2008
List Price: $26.95
— ◊ —
Review: Daniel
Silva's eighth novel of espionage and international intrigue, Moscow Rules, has Gabriel Allon
summoned by Israeli intelligence from his holiday in Umbria to Moscow
to look into the death of Aleksandr Lubin, a Russian independent
journalist and the bane of the new Russia's existence.
Lubin was on a mission to expose the offenses of Ivan Kharkov, the son
of a senior KGB officer and boy wonder of KGB’s Fifth Chief
Doctorate. When the Soviet Union began to crumble, Kharkov amassed a
fortune in banking, investing heavily in energy, raw materials and real
estate. He became one of the newly minted billionaires of the new
Kremlin. His holdings included shipping and air freight with branches
reaching across the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Lubin was
investigating the rumor that Kharkov was amassing dangerous arms to
sell to al-Qaeda in order that they could continue their assaults on
the United States and their allies. Allon, as a member of
Israel’s foreign intelligence service, brings together and
manages a group of spies and counter spies, negotiators and mediators,
and must travel around the world in order to stop the sale of the arms
to al-Qaeda. Time is quickly running out.
Although the primary plot of Moscow
Rules is a tremendously absorbing account of the potential of
global war, the interesting subplots within the story are also worthy
of mention, most notably the loving and amusing marriage of Gabriel and
Chiara Allon that is in marked contrast to the volatile marriage of
Ivan and Elena Kharkov. There are also the deep rooted and entertaining
friendships between Allon and members of the "Office" (Israeli
intelligence). The fusion of the critical threats of terrorism with the
relative normalcy of the personal lives of the agents is remarkably
well done and the intricate scheme that Allon conceives to foil the
arms sale encourages the reader to keep turning the pages.
Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of Moscow Rules and to FSB Associates for providing a copy of the book for this review.
Review Copyright © 2008 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved
Have you read Moscow Rules? How would you rate it?
Mysteries in this series …
The
Kill Artist
Random House (Hardcover), January 2001
ISBN-10: 0-375-50090-1 (0375500901)
ISBN-13: 978-0-375-50090-9 (9780375500909)
The
English Assassin
Putnam (Hardcover), February 2002
ISBN-10: 0-399-14851-5 (0399148515)
ISBN-13: 978-0-399-14851-4 (9780399148514)
The
Confessor
Putnam (Hardcover), February 2003
ISBN-10: 0-399-14972-4 (0399149724)
ISBN-13: 978-0-399-14972-6 (9780399149726)
A
Death in Vienna
Putnam (Hardcover), February 2004
ISBN-10: 0-399-15143-5 (0399151435)
ISBN-13: 978-0-399-15143-9 (9780399151439)
Prince
of Fire
Putnam (Hardcover), February 2005
ISBN-10: 0-399-15243-1 (0399152431)
ISBN-13: 978-0-399-15243-6 (9780399152436)
The
Messenger
Putnam (Hardcover), July 2006
ISBN-10: 0-399-15335-7 (0399153357)
ISBN-13: 978-0-399-15335-8 (9780399153358)
Moscow Rules
Putnam (Hardcover), July 2008
ISBN-10: 0-399-15501-5 (0399155015)
ISBN-13: 978-0-399-15501-7 (9780399155017)
Omnimystery keywords for Moscow Rules ...
Location(s) referenced: Moscow, Russia.
