While some series grab me instantly, I’ve had mixed feelings about Daniel Silva’s series centered on art restorer and master spy Gabriel Allon. On one hand, Allon is very interesting, both in his restoration work and when called on to use his other talents. On the other hand, at times it feels like he is too perfect. Nearly everything he touches seems to turn to gold. The Confessor is no different.

Allon is working on a restoration in Venice when he receives word that a noted Jewish scholar was assassinated in Munich. Benjamin Stern, the deceased, also happened to be a friend of Allon’s. Stern was working on a book about the Holocaust that would have upset a large number of people. Allon must follow the clues to find out who wants to prevent the truth from being told. There’s a conspiracy that reaches up into the highest echelons of the Vatican.

The fallout from what happened during the Holocaust was still very impactful in 2004, when the book was published. There were many secrets kept to protect certain institutions and people. The Roman Catholic church was no different. Revelations in The Confessor really don’t come as much of a surprise anymore, though. I’ve read numerous books over the years that have talked about the complicity of the Church with the Nazi government during those years. It’s one reason I believe the Church is reacting as it has to what’s going on in my own country now.

Allon is a sympathetic character. He lost his wife and son in an attack, which is one of the reasons he has pulled away from the world of international spies and spends more time restoring art. It takes something like this, involving an acquaintance, for him to be drawn in. I could sense both his reluctance and the pull he feels to investigate. Daniel Silva has done a great job developing the character. His nemesis in this is a person of deep faith who feels called to keep the conspiracy going and continue to hide what actually happened. There’s nothing more dangerous than someone who has something to hide and is driven by his own misguided faith to hide it.

The idea of a Jewish spy helping the Roman Catholic Church is a bit novel, but with the number of books that have had assassinations of the Pope as their central theme also lessens the impact a bit of The Confessor. I think it was likely much more groundbreaking when it was first released. I’ve read at least two other books with this theme, including a Tom Clancy novel. That the conspiracy comes from those on the inside who don’t want the truth to be revealed is a bit of a twist. The tension and pacing were really great as Allon does his best to help the world heal, rather than to keep trying to cover up things that only lead to more people dying.

The audiobook is narrated by John Lee. I enjoy listening to him, and he does a great job with the reading. He doesn’t get too crazy with how he voices each character, and yet makes them distinctive.

I did enjoy The Confessor. I liked how Silva has the new Pope want to change things and how others want to prevent it from happening. The scenes of him behind the closed doors of the Vatican as he struggles to do what he believes is the right thing are handled very well. I could feel his conflict as he knows he’s putting himself in danger, but also knows what he feels called by God to do. Both the Pope and ALlon want the world to heal. If it were only that simple.

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