Moscow Rules

Moscow Rules by Daniel Silva  430 pp.

I'm almost done with this series until the new one comes out in July. This time Gabriel Allon is spending a quiet honeymoon in Italy with Chiarra and a painting from the Vatican to restore. His idyllic break is interrupted by a message from a Russian journalist demanding a meeting. The journalist dies in Allon's arms, the victim of a Russian assassin. What begins as a brief meeting ultimately takes Allon to Russia, England, France, and Russia gain in order to find the missile launchers sold by former KGB agent, millionaire arms dealer, Ivan Kharkov. His informant is the highly guarded wife of the arms dealer. Allon uses his artistic talents to forge a painting by Mary Cassatt in order to make contact with Kharkov's wife.

While not my favorite in this series, Silva does a great job of portraying the self-centered, overbearing, pure evil of Ivan Kharkov. And Allon's possibly career ending injuries at the end left me worried even though I know there are Allon books that follow this one. (Maybe I like this character a little too much.)  The inclusion of Allon's cohorts, Uzi Navot, Eli Lavon, Sarah Bancroft, and the inimitable Ari Shamron always adds to the story.