Former spy Gabriel Allon divides his time between Venice and Cornwall. Although he no longer has an official role in spy world, his day job, restoring famous and valuable paintings, is literally watching paint dry. When Edward Knight, a British billionaire, seeks help to find his missing wife, Alice Winter, Allon can’t resist. Fortunately, Allon’s wife, Chiara, who runs the Tiepolo Restoration Company, where Allon is the star, once worked in the “business” and appreciates her husband’s amazing spy skills.
Alice disappeared from Ibiza where she was vacationing with three of her Cambridge friends, Sophie Maxwell, a lawyer, Ella Burns, a banker, and Phoebe Chadwick, an international relief worker. Alice was once a journalist and after interviewing Knight for a story, they began an affair and married. Marriage to a billionaire has a dramatic impact on Alice’s lifestyle. “Now she was a boldface name in Tatler. The it girl.”
Phoebe had suggested Iceland for the annual reunion, but Alice vetoed that choice and instead booked the getaway for a villa on Ibiza where she would cover the cost. Phoebe objected, but with the other women excited about the trip, soon gave in. However, after an argument with Alice, Phoebe left the villa and took the next plane back to London. The next morning, Alice disappeared.
Allon blamed Julian Isherwood, a respected dealer of Italian and Dutch Old Master paintings, for getting him involved in Alice’s disappearance. Looking to raise money for a new exhibition, Isherwood coaxed Allon to attend, aware that he would be the big draw. Edward Knight had offered his estate, Wickham House, for the party. As expected, the crowds came, all eager to see Allon in person. The hostess, however, never appeared.
The next day, Edward Knight appears at Allon’s cottage in Gwennap, Cornwall. The Spanish authorities found Alice’s rental car wt the bottom of a ravine near the villa. Because of Alice’s high profile, Edward did not want to go public with Alice’s disappearance. “This matter needs to be handled quietly by an experienced professional,” Knight tells Allon, adding, “someone like you.”
Allon’s search would begin in Ibiza, but soon take him all over. Two people he can trust, Timothy Peel, a local Cornwall police officer, and Ingrid Johansen, a professional thief and computer hacker, soon come on board to help. When a ransom demand is made, Allon takes over the negotiations. There are many calls with an automated voice naming a sum that is astronomical, but one Knight is willing to pay. Allon, however, urges caution on Knight’s part, emphasizing that the kidnappers aren’t going to harm Alice while the back and forth continues.
Allon soon realizes that Alice is more than a bored trophy wife. He also discerns that Knight has secrets, one that is so dangerous Allon has not choice but to get pulled into a world he left behind.
In the book’s “Author’s Notes,” Silva said an incident at the Copenhagen Airport on September 22, 2025, was the inspiration for Ransom. A major drone incursion at that airport caused continent-wide travel delays and disruption. Then Danish defense minister described the drone incursion as a “hybrid attack” carried out by a “professional actor,” most likely Russia. While the fighting in Ukraine continues, many believe Vladimir Putin is using such tactics to wage war against the West. Silva cites other recent events in these notes, which certainly gives pause.
Within the novel, whenever NATO leaders come together, they agree not to share any intelligence with the U.S. In one scene, they refuse to take a phone call from someone pushing to get information. Trump? Most likely. Ransom is fiction, but between the lines Silva is reflecting the tenuous poison Trump has placed our country in.
Ransom
Daniel Silva
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