• A Death in Vienna

  • By: Daniel Silva
  • Narrated by: John Lee
  • Length: 10 hrs and 15 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (2,877 ratings)

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A Death in Vienna  By  cover art

A Death in Vienna

By: Daniel Silva
Narrated by: John Lee
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Publisher's summary

Joining the ranks of Graham Greene and John le Carre, the newest master of international suspense, Daniel Silva has crafted a novel of astonishing intricacy and intelligence.

Sent to Vienna to authenticate a painting, the art restorer and sometime spy Gabriel Allon is sidetracked by a photograph that throws his world upside-down. Could it really be the face of a man who during the last days of World War II had brutalized his mother on the Death March from Auschwitz?

Questions abound when Allon, driven by an intensity he had not felt in years, begins to investigate, discovering in the process that the hunt for one man is a hunt for many-and a network of unimaginable evil spanning sixty years.

©2004 Daniel Silva (P)2004 Books on Tape, Inc.

Critic reviews

"John Lee gives a masterful performance.... All the accents, from Italian to German, sound perfect.... And his pacing is excellent, always in tune with the action. A riveting narration." (AudioFile)

"[A] world-class practitioner of spy fiction.... Silva writes with style, economy and a sure command of the historical record…a skillful novelist who does justice to the often heartbreaking material without exploiting it." (The Washington Post Book World)

"Superbly crafted narrative of espionage and foreign intrigue....Action and suspense abound, but this is serious fiction with a serious purpose." (Publishers Weekly)

"Daniel Silva has now indisputably joined the ranks of Graham Greene and John le Carre." (Chicago Tribune)

What listeners say about A Death in Vienna

Average customer ratings
Overall
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Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • 2 Stars
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  • 1 Stars
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Never forget!

German atrocities during WWII are never a pleasant subject to deal with. This novel makes a salient point. You can destroy a people but you will never destroy their need to seek revenge against those that committed these deeds. Silva handles this in a fast paced exciting manner that hits all the right buttons. Gabriel Alon is an agent for Israel whose family was wiped out during the Holocaust. Over fifty years later a friend is murdered in Vienna under suspicious circumstances. This sets into motion an exciting investigation that turns up all of the old hatred.

If you enjoy a vast pace action novel, this should be your cup of tea.

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20 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Another Fine Silva Novel

Daniel Silva is a superb writer and storyteller. "A Death In Vienna" is one of his best. The narrotor is a fine match for this story and he added much to my enjoyment.

Leonard Stearns
Boise, Idaho

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18 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Please learn Italian!

Contrary to what other reviewers have said about John Lee's "fine" reading, John Lee cannot pronounce the simplest Italian. For instance, he mispronounces, veneto, polizia, trastevere...Given how crucial Italy is to Silva's plots and characters, Lee should take a few basic lessons. And after one or two mistakes shouldn't the editors and producers made the same suggestion?

Despite how Lee's bad Italian grates on my ear, I still love Silva's books. I've listened to two and will buy others. But if really lame mispronunciations make you shudder, think twice before putting yourself through Lee's botched reading.

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13 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

This is a mystery novel, not a documentary!

I am very disappointed by this book. Instead of the historical intrigue / mysterious thriller I signed on for, what I found was a thinly veiled documentary. The book goes on and on and on AND ON about the horrors of the holocaust.
YES--we know! The Nazis were terrible people. They killed millions of people. WE KNOW. Now, do you have anything else to say? Because my impression of this book was that I was going to be entertained by interesting characters and a well meshed storyline with several different layers and as much intrigue as action.
What this book gives is frequently two characters alone in a room going on and on and on about their personal experiences under Nazi captivity. If I wanted to know about the horrors of WWII, I'd watch the Discovery Channel. Worse than that, you have one character "teaching" another about the holocaust. Therefore the reader has to delve in to every disgusting nuance of what was war.

If the author wants to write about Nazi concentration camps, then great, by all means do that. But don't write that same book and call it "A Death in Vienna." This in ENTERTAINMENT. Not your personal soapbox.

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12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars

holocost satire

germans killing jews was a terrible crime. tricking people into buying this crap is also a crime. this has no catharsis or redeeming value. read the first line of my review and save your money and 10 hours of your time

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Quite a Special Novel Indeed

The story was exciting. The message was deep. And the abilities of the reader greatly complemented the narrative style. The voices, accents and characterisations were superb throughout and the reader did much to aid the impact of the "first hand accounts." The testimonies seemed to resonate long after the words had dissipated. This was my first Silva, but I have immediately started another feeling somehow engrossed in the stories of the past and their impact on today's political climate.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Not Silva's best work

The narration of this story was first rate, and for the first time in my audible membership I started searching for downloads by the same narrator rather than title or author. Unfortunately the story line and the book's outcome were so predictible that I tended to use it as bed time listening. I found setting the sleep timer on my ipod for 15 minutes usually meant I didn't hear it turn itself off. All in all a little disappointing. Silva is one of the better contemporary writers and his previous books like The Confessor are first rate thrillers with interesting characters and plot turns. This book, the third in his Holocaust trilogy is a little too predictable with Nazi villains like paper cutouts from a 1950s comic book. In the final couple of hours of the narration I found myself wanting it to end. My recommendation is to choose something else by Silva.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars

Slow start gets better but too late.

The first quarter is slow going with two-dimensional characters brought out in bewildering numbers, only to provide background for a plot too quickly revealed. It gets better and provides some insight into the Holocaust and current events in Europe and the Middle East. But hey, this is supposed to be a spy thriller. On that ground, it wobbles slightly then peters out. Better than some on the market but can't hold a candle to Le Carre' or many of the other tried and true.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Israeli Spies

Daniel Silva writes a great story. His series about an Israeli spy rings true in today's political/news events climate. There are more clever twists and turns than I can remember--a good reason to read it again. And buy the next in the series. Maybe he will have a son to follow in his footsteps? :)

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Awesome listen

This one hooked me from the first ten minutes. The Narrator is a perfect match for this book. Excellent job. The story told by Gabriel Allons' mother is an amazing bit of writing. I was a little confused of the names of the characters, but rewinding helped. Listen....you may learn something.

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4 people found this helpful