THE ORDER

5 stars out of 5

As a frequent reviewer of soon-to-be released books,

mostly from authors I've never heard of before, I'm always amazed at how good they are. It's rare, in fact, for me to give less than four stars out of the maximum five. Here and there, though, I try to work in something from a favorite author, usually one from a favorite series - like this one.

And it is then that I realized the difference between good and, well, as  perfect as a book can get. The writing is superb as always, and it doesn't hurt that it features Israeli spy and art restorer Gabriel Allon, who's held the No. 1 spot on my all-time book "hero" list ever since he was written into existence.

It starts off with a shocker: The Pope, a good friend of Gabriel, is found dead. The official line is that he died of natural causes, but another of Gabriel's long-time friends, an archbishop and personal secretary to the Pope, thinks otherwise and asks Gabriel to meet him in Rome to discuss the matter. Among the topics is a not-so-secret organization called the Order of St. Helena, which is comprised of ultra-conservative Catholics, including some who live and work as Vatican higher-ups. Also on the agenda is the presumed existence of a priceless historical book - one that could hold the power to bring the Catholic church to its knees. Needless to say, Gabriel is intrigued; despite his beautiful and talented wife Chiara's misgivings about his giving up hard-earned vacation time, he agrees to at least look into things.

Of course, nothing is ever as easy as it seems. Before long, Gabriel is up to his unusually green eyes in a dangerous endeavor, for which he asks for help from the crew from his Israeli agency (always happy to see their appearance together with more-than-usual involvement from Chiara). The action part seems a little slower and, to a degree, less physically dangerous than usual, but then let's face it: after 19 other books, Gabriel isn't exactly a spring chicken anymore and has the good sense to avoid potentially life-threatening confrontations when possible. 

Be advised, too, that the story has a political bent; if you believe the current U.S. leadership represents the Second Coming, or believe every word in the Bible is sacred truth that must be interpreted literally, you may take issue with parts of this book. Neither is an issue for me - and few topics intrigue me more than the history of Judaism and Christianity. Only hunger (my husband's, not mine) that forced me into the kitchen kept me from polishing off this one off nonstop.

The ending brings a bit of a surprise, plus a few hints about what the future might hold for Gabriel, Chiara and their young twins. I'm already chomping at the bit for the next one so I can find out how all that plays out. 

The Order by Daniel Silva (HarperCollins, July 2020); 455 pp.