Daniel Silva · 2014 · thriller

Daniel Silva's 2014 novel. When a fallen British spy is murdered at his Lake Como villa, Gabriel Allon is pressed to recover the world's most famous missing painting - a Caravaggio stolen decades before. The hunt runs through Paris and the vaults of Geneva to a small Austrian bank, where Allon uncovers a fortune in looted art and cash hidden for the Butcher of Damascus.

1. 1
   Lake Como

   A fallen British spy turned art trafficker is found murdered at his villa on Lake Como, and to clear a friend accused of the killing, Gabriel Allon agrees to hunt for the fabled Caravaggio Nativity, stolen decades before.

2. 2
   Paris

   To find one stolen masterpiece, Allon must steal another. His gambit draws him through the shadowy European trade in looted art, from Marseilles and Corsica to Paris, chasing a buyer who deals in blood-soaked treasure.

3. 3
   Geneva

   In the sealed vaults of the Geneva Freeport, where the rich hoard stolen canvases as secret currency, Allon uncovers the true prize behind the Caravaggio: a fortune in art and cash being laundered for the Syrian dictator.

4. 4
   Linz

   The trail ends at a small private bank in Austria, where a lone account manager stands guard over the Butcher of Damascus's plundered billions - and Allon mounts a daring operation to seize them and turn them against the regime.