The English Spy

By: Daniel Silva

Narrated by: George Guidall

Length: 12 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's Summary

Audie Award, Best Male Narrator, 2016

Number one New York Times best-selling author Daniel Silva delivers another stunning thriller in his latest action-packed tale of high-stakes international intrigue featuring the inimitable Gabriel Allon.

First there was The English Assassin.

Then there was The English Girl.

Now comes The English Spy....

Master novelist Daniel Silva has thrilled readers with 17 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. His brilliant hero, Gabriel Allon - art restorer, assassin, spy - has joined the pantheon of great fictional secret agents, including George Smiley, Jack Ryan, Jason Bourne, and Simon Templar.

Following the success of his smash hit The Heist, Daniel Silva returns with another blockbuster - a powerhouse novel that showcases his outstanding skill and brilliant imagination and is sure to be a must -listen for both his multitudes of fans and growing legions of converts.

©2015 Daniel Silva (P)2015 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic Reviews

"Guidall's warm, lived-in voice brings so much to the experience, somehow always conveying understanding of and sympathy for the human dimension in the most terrible scenes of mayhem, the most morally ambiguous situations. His attention and pace never falter, and he is wonderful at the accents, including several flavors of Irish, along with Russian, Iranian, and an uncanny Israeli." (AudioFile)

Disappointing

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

I was expecting a book like the others in the Gabriel Allon series -- interesting, engaging, hard to put down. Instead, this book is disjointed and hard to follow. It feels like it is three or four different books poorly spliced together.

Has The English Spy turned you off from other books in this genre?

I'm certainly not going to stop listening to books in the genre, but it may be the last Daniel Silva book I buy.

What about George Guidall’s performance did you like?

He's one of my favorite readers. If it hadn't been for him I might not have finished the book.

9 of 9 people found this review helpful

Convoluted, confusing, and boring.

Any additional comments?

Too little plot for so many hours. Jumped around and tried to connect every piece of past books into one story which was a stretch.

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

Daniel Silva just keeps getting better

This is my only review of Daniel Silva book since my negative review of Marching Season which was written very early in his career. I am a fan of all 16 of Silva's Gabriel Allon series which started very well and has only gotten better as he matured as a writer. If more than 5 stars were allowed the English Spy would get more. The English Spy brings back one of my favorite Silva characters, the English assassin and ex-spy living on Corsica, and "rehabilitates" him to a British spy agency. Gabriel Allon, now in his 50's, simply gets better with age. He is supposed to take over leadership of the office, an Israeli spy agency, but we;ll have to wait for the next Silva book to see.

Of all of the well read mystery/thriller series Silva's Allon is the most complex and tragic. But with the children born to him and his young wife Chiara at the end of The English Spy there is hope. The tragic Leah remains in the picture.

This book confirms that Daniel Silva is THE master of the mystery/thriller/spy genre if any doubt remained.

George Guidall has one of the easiest to listen to voices of all narrators. He is, as always, excellent.

21 of 24 people found this review helpful

Silva Keeps Allon Relevant & Current

Mixing a rich set of characters, both good and evil, with a fast-moving, intriguing plot, Daniel Silva once again keeps the deeds of Gabriel Allon fresh and interesting.

Moreover, George Guidall's performance makes this Allon adventure an excellent audiobook. Guidall's spoken command of gender, age and accents is superb. As a result, he really brings to life SIlva's knack for great dialogue between key characters.

In my opinion, the English Spy is one of Siva's best Gabriel Allon books!

15 of 17 people found this review helpful

Thriller, little mystery. Predictable outcomes.

I enjoyed this addition to the Gabriel Allon series, but much of the text is background and recollections of events earlier books. That is necessary to make the book self-contained, but for those of us who have read/listened to them all, it is redundant. If I were reading, I could skip ahead, but that is hard to do when listening. Allon is as indestructible as ever, but he has aged and matured. By the end of the book, he's ready for a change of life. Does this signal the end to the series or the beginning of a new chapter?

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

just couldn't get into it

I'm a big fan of Daniel Silva. I've read/listened to ask of his books. but this one never hooked me. the settings and characters changed too frequently and too quickly. the scenes were truncated and not well chronicled. I found myself regularly rewinding the book to try to catch up with the story, but it just never settled in.

15 of 18 people found this review helpful

Another great spy story from one of the best!

Would you consider the audio edition of The English Spy to be better than the print version?

George Guidall is magnificent as always.

What did you like best about this story?

An amazing plot line that's brings together England, Rusdia, Ireland Israel and brings the story full circle encompassing many details from previous novels.

What does George Guidall bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

he is an amazing narrator and the range of voices and accents he uses in this book were just wonderful. Well done.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

yes I couldn't wait for it to be released. I'm a huge fan of Daniel Silva and of of course Gabriel Allon and his team from the office.

Any additional comments?

as an Irish Jew I was disgusted at the very one sided view of the "troubles" in Northern Ireland. While there were many brutal members of the IRA who were terrorists it is unfair of Daniel Silva to paint the Irish with so broad a brush, even his description of present day Dublin paints a picture of thugs pushing drugs. Unnecessary could have been more even handed.

11 of 13 people found this review helpful

Terrific spy story

I enjoy returning to familiar characters yet the story changes. I'm looking forward to the next phase when he will be chief.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Weak plot

I got very disappointed with the lack of twists in this book.... The story is very predictable and it is not consistent with the other Gabriel Alon stories.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Just finished the book and Wow!! What a ride!!

Would you listen to The English Spy again? Why?

I would definitely listen again. The story pulls you in from the very beginning and you're off to the races. No down time. Lots of twists and turns and you feel like you are right there IN the story with the characters! I'll go back because I so enjoy hanging out with all of them.

Who was your favorite character and why?

My favorite character are Gabriel Allon & Christopher Keller. I love how they have developed over the years and how they play off of each other. Eli Lavon is on my favorites list too. His million year relationship with Gabriel and his amazing talents are priceless.

Which character – as performed by George Guidall – was your favorite?

I love it when George is Christopher Keller. The accents are so fun and well done.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Hang on to your hat, you're going on a heck of a ride with The English Spy!

Any additional comments?

Read the whole series by Daniel Silva. Each book is so well researched and written. It's fiction based in reality. Most authors make up their stories but Daniel Silva takes real places and events, inserts his cast of characters, his vast knowledge of the intelligence business and tradecraft then a totally plausible story line and away you go.

5 of 7 people found this review helpful