⋙ Read The Mark of the Assassin AUTHOR SIGNED Daniel Silva 9780297817895 Books

The Mark of the Assassin AUTHOR SIGNED Daniel Silva 9780297817895 Books

Download As PDF : The Mark of the Assassin AUTHOR SIGNED Daniel Silva 9780297817895 Books

The Mark of the Assassin AUTHOR SIGNED Daniel Silva 9780297817895 Books

While I am new to this writer, I am not new to his genre. I had read only one other book by this writer, "The Black Widow". I did a review of that book and headlined it as "scary". At that time I wasn't sure I wanted to read him any further. But...here I am.
This was without question one of the best books, by any author, I have read. The plot line is superb. The rising action builds, subtly, to the anti climax, which explodes in your face. The characters, both protagonist and antagonist, are believable and well defined. The best mark I can give a book is to say that it grabbed me from page one and did not let me go until page last. This book fit that level of captivity to the tenth degree.
Daniel Silva does his research so thoroughly that the story line comes out as a fact based read rather than as a work of fiction. I read a lot of counter terrorism and covert ops. This is some to the best stuff I've ever found.
I expect to be reading this writer for some time. That he is so prolific only makes me more a fan.


Tags : The Mark of the Assassin (AUTHOR SIGNED) [Daniel Silva] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. With breathtaking plot twists, complex characters, and a villain who is among the most ruthless, diabolical creations in modern thriller,Daniel Silva,The Mark of the Assassin (AUTHOR SIGNED),Villard Random House,0297817892,VI-0297817892,Fiction,General,Espionage & spy thriller

The Mark of the Assassin AUTHOR SIGNED Daniel Silva 9780297817895 Books Reviews

I have read quite a number of the Gabriel Allon series and did not realize this was written previous to those. I was expecting the same level of action and suspense. It was mind-numbingly boring for the first 125 pages. I am surprised I stuck with it but, am so glad I did. Mr. De Silva redeemed himself for the rest of the book - it was what was accustomed to expecting from him.
An excellent book with well developed characters and a great plot. With all that goes on in politics, especially those connected with political operatives it certainly is believable. Our public officials are supposed to serve the people, but the cost of funding a campaign requires Money donors who have their own agenda. Murder and corruption make for good story telling in fiction but sometimes creep into real life. Congrats to the author for a great story. I am definitely going to read book 2.
A 16 year old boy, a woman, and a man were hiding in a ditch to avoid detection. The word was given and they crossed over. But something went wrong. The boy took out a gun and shot the woman and the man three times in the face. Years passed and a jet liner was taken off with over 200 passengers and was shot down. A body was found outside the land area with three gunshots to the face. The launcher was also found by his side. No witnesses as to what went down. But the body found was not the shooter. Enter the political parties and started pointing fingers at a certain group of radicals. Three of their camps were blown up. Election year. But one man stood out and was investigating the scene and thought to himself, this is not how it went down. There is another player in this game. And so the search begins.
The book itself is above average in action and complexity and if it's the first time you've read Daniel Silva, you'll likely enjoy it very much. But for me, a veteran of more than a dozen Gabriel Allon books, it falls a little flat. This is an early Daniel Silva book and the main character, Michael Osborne, is just not as fully developed as is Gabriel Allon, the protagonist in most of Silva's other books. The descriptions of the locations are as spectacular and detailed as Silva usually provides and the plot and action are as crisp as normal, but unfortunately, the one-dimensionality of the main character just kind of negated all of that. Perhaps it's the fact that I'm so familiar with Gabriel Allon that it is ruining this character for me. Allon is so deep, so multi-talented and multi-layered. Osborne is just like Flat Stanley in comparison.
Daniel Silva has become yet another spectacular spy/political thriller novelist that has been on the scene for years that I’m only now just discovering as I delve deeper and deeper into this genre…and in this excellent book, The Mark of the Assassin, I’m learning that I’m not even getting his best work; this novel is a very early effort (1998), with a character (CIA Case Worker Michael Osborne) that he’s already long since retired (following this work and a single follow-up). But if his “new” go-to creation, Gabriel Allon, and that continuing storyline is anything like what we experience here, then I’m sure to become a lifelong fan.

With “Assassin,” Silva immediately impresses with high political intrigue, supreme action, heavy plot twists and, above all, superior literary skills…this novel takes off from the very start and is high octane throughout, exactly what one wants from a book like this. I knew this book and this author had struck a heavy chord when an extremely frustrating airport experience in Phoenix, which finally ended in two long delays and a resulting mechanical failure, was severely lessened when I was able to make major inroads into this plotline. THAT is the mark of a great novel in my mind!

This work begins with the shoot-down of a U.S. passenger airliner over Long Island as it departs from Kennedy International. A stinger missile, launched from a small boat off of Montauk is quickly determined to be the cause, raising immediate terrorist concerns. The culprit’s body however is discovered with the launcher and three bullet holes in his head, only adding to the mystery. Our protagonist, CIA Case Officer Michael Osborne immediately recognizes this as the signature of a mysterious assassin ultimately known as October, clouding the terrorist view and setting the stage for our story.

In parallel with this gruesome act, we’re slowly introduced to a subversive, secretive society involving the highest of the power players in Washington and the power elite, the huge money gambol that focuses specifically on the defense contracting world here, and all prior to a Presidential election. Leveraging this sad occurrence for popular support in Congress, incumbent President James Beckwith garners not only backing for a massive missile defense program (and sure defeat for his Democratic foe Andrew Sterling), but a huge increase in his popular opinion poll numbers.

Weaving these two disparate paths into a brilliantly cohesive tale involving world politics and global geography (Silva is amazing at describing locales throughout Northern Europe, Washington D.C and Long Island), we watch as Osborne and October inevitably collide, learning that it was October who’d also tragically killed Osborne’s first love, a story that in and of itself that has deeper meaning as this plotline unfolds. Both men, we discover, have a much more introspective side and Silva spends much time exploring that, adding much depth to this storyline.

The only minor quibble that I’d make with the book is that Silva seemed to go extremely overboard by establishing each character as a smoker…each scene had each character light up and light up again…it got to be almost distracting! I don’t know if he was trying to symbolize the spy/terrorist/underworld business as tension filled to the extent that only tobacco can be the salve but, man!! Even Osborne’s pregnant wife is jones-ing for a cigarette! I hope this dynamic disappears quickly from future works…

Minor quibble aside, this is a fantastic work, full of all the nuances, action, intrigue and literary skills one wants from the spy/thriller genre. Daniel Silva obviously went on from this early work to become a major author and it is clear to see why…I am certainly looking forward to reading much more in his catalogue and if one is looking to see the birth of genius, The Mark Of The Assassin is an excellent place to start.
While I am new to this writer, I am not new to his genre. I had read only one other book by this writer, "The Black Widow". I did a review of that book and headlined it as "scary". At that time I wasn't sure I wanted to read him any further. But...here I am.
This was without question one of the best books, by any author, I have read. The plot line is superb. The rising action builds, subtly, to the anti climax, which explodes in your face. The characters, both protagonist and antagonist, are believable and well defined. The best mark I can give a book is to say that it grabbed me from page one and did not let me go until page last. This book fit that level of captivity to the tenth degree.
Daniel Silva does his research so thoroughly that the story line comes out as a fact based read rather than as a work of fiction. I read a lot of counter terrorism and covert ops. This is some to the best stuff I've ever found.
I expect to be reading this writer for some time. That he is so prolific only makes me more a fan.