Silver

In a single moment 13 people across European cities martyr themselves. The only clue accompanying the burnings are cryptic messages in the form of a prophesy by Michel de Nostredame and an excerpt from the third secret of Fatima. The world is promised 40 days and nights of terror that will shatter faith. This is the powerful opening of Steve Savile's thriller Silver. Sir Charles Wyndham's team of brilliant warriors and technicians, codenamed Ogmios, puzzle together the truth through a journey that takes them to London, Berlin, and the Vatican itself. Behind the bloodshed they discover a plot to kill the Pope. As they fight to prevent this, the team must take on a fanatical group called the Disciples of Judas, which has risen in the Middle East. The Disciples want the true story of Judas proclaimed to the world. They believe Judas was in a highly volatile relationship with Mary and Jesus that twined love and betrayal. We see Judas mourn the man he could have been, the life he may have had, if he'd not loved so well the man destined to die on the cross. Love, power, fear, treachery are woven together for the faithful in this novel. Jesus spread a message of religion based on love without fear. He took them out of the temples and back to the earth. But there have always been those who would use religion to control others and spread dread. Savile expertly composes a tale of how terrorism has changed and now strikes where average citizens expect to feel safe. For the terrorists understand that fear can break even strong people. Fear can take a person to the point where death is a mercy. These terrorists understand that there is power in tragedy on a mass scale. How do even the best of mankind fight against the misdirection, subterfuge and bloodshed of war -- when even the most beautiful things are cloaking betrayal in their finery? The members of the Ogmios must find a way. Since this is a European religious thriller, it is easy to compare it to The DaVinci Code. But that seriously negates the originality and intelligence of Savile's work. His work demands to to be read on its own terms. This is his first action thriller steeped in history and religion, and he has created a novel worthy of being considered among the best. Savile weaves complex action throughout Silver involving many characters and time periods. His imagery is vivid, specific, and original. Berlin, Rome, and London come alive on the page. We feel the terror of the public, cook under the sun's heat, and see the grimy buildings. His characters are 3-dimensional, flawed, and entertaining to follow. As with all of us, their imperfections and uniqueness make them stronger. He is able to reveal many character traits through very organic, realistic dialogue and the way the characters experience their surroundings. Silver deserves to be on everyone's must read list. Savile has written an entertaining, intelligent, enthralling work that leaves readers longing for the next book in Ogmios

SILVER - The Novel, by Steven Savile Book Review by author Brian M Logan By far Savile's most satisfying and comprehensive novel to date (which is high praise indeed), Silver - The Novel, is a nail-biting page turner destined to proffer him a seat at the same table as James Rollins, Jeff Long, Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. Fans of Dan Brown will especially enjoy Silver - The Novel, I suspect, as thematically there are similarities with several of Brown's earlier works. But, unlike many who have followed Brown, Silver - The Novel is not a pale imitation of Brown's oeuvre, but rather a unique and wholly original story that re-imagines the last days of Our Lord (and his relationship with Judas Iscariot and Mary Magdalene) and brilliantly follows the premise through to the modern day. So if conspiracy, religious fervor and evil doers terrorising an unsuspecting world is your thing, then this is most definitely the book for you. Highly recommended.

Silver is best thing since Forsythe's Day of the Jackal. Better than Dan Brown in every respect, Steven Savile's SILVER is not a DaVinci Code imitator in any sense of the word; rather it is a fantastic plot twisting about on a brilliant premise and a story wonderfully woven with no missteps, no gaffs, no holes or crazy leaps. The astonishing historical theme is interspersed perfectly as a foil for the modern day story of a dangerous cult as horrifying as any terrorist cell one can imagine--a secret society among us that makes the Knights Templars pale by comparison. After capturing the reader up with a powerful opening scene that plays out so vividly and visually as to read like a film script, Savile's deft writing carries the reader along a plotline that has the feel of fate at every step. Part of that feeling of fate is the fact of an author completely and wholly in control of his craft. Vivid characterizations of an international team of heroes with a plethora of flaws and Savile's smart dialogue and well-wrought inner monologue held together by action at every turn provides the reader with every pleasure a reading experience should have (but so often lacks). Savile's premise is uniquely tied to the history not of Jesus and Mary so much as Judas and Mary, and it is cleverly and efficiently weaved into one of the most well-crafted international thrillers I have read since Forsythe's The Day of the Jackal. I hope it is OK for this veteran professor of English, this lifelong reader, this author of some fifty novels to say I loved Silver...loved, loved, loved it and could not put it aside. Without giving away the plot or the surprises, let me add that no book has left me as surprised at its ending as has Silver. In closing, I will add one more caveat: "If you love international thrillers replete with theological puzzles and a team pitted against true evil that mirrors our world today, you won't beat SILVER. Steven Savile is in complete control of his material and not afraid of a complex plot. He beats Dan Brown hands down anyway you dice it. Silver is Masterfully Accomplished Work and should win awards if there is a God in charge of awards." --Robert Walker, author of Dead On & Children of Salem, and City for Ransom

Where do I start with SILVER? It is a page turner, amazing read, and fast paced and with loads of twists and turns and some hellish surprises. Certainly at the top of my list for Book of the Year. The characters are flawed, the locales in the post-9/11 terrorist world, which adds a whole new tier to the DA VINCI CODE imitators (but this certainly is no copy-cat!), easily putting him in a league of his own and every bit as good as James Rollins and Steve Berry in the genre. Not getting this book is a grave mistake.

Silver is best thing since Forsythe's Day of the Jackal. Better than Dan Brown in every respect, Steven Savile's SILVER is not a DaVinci Code imitator in any sense of the word; rather it is a fantastic plot twisting about on a brilliant premise and a story wonderfully woven with no missteps, no gaffs, no holes or crazy leaps. The astonishing historical theme is interspersed perfectly as a foil for the modern day story of a dangerous cult as horrifying as any terrorist cell one can imagine--a secret society among us that makes the Knights Templars pale by comparison. After capturing the reader up with a powerful opening scene that plays out so vividly and visually as to read like a film script, Savile's deft writing carries the reader along a plotline that has the feel of fate at every step. Part of that feeling of fate is the fact of an author completely and wholly in control of his craft. Vivid characterizations of an international team of heroes with a plethora of flaws and Savile's smart dialogue and well-wrought inner monologue held together by action at every turn provides the reader with every pleasure a reading experience should have (but so often lacks). Savile's premise is uniquely tied to the history not of Jesus and Mary so much as Judas and Mary, and it is cleverly and efficiently weaved into one of the most well-crafted international thrillers I have read since Forsythe's The Day of the Jackal. I hope it is OK for this veteran professor of English, this lifelong reader, this author of some fifty novels to say I loved Silver...loved, loved, loved it and could not put it aside. Without giving away the plot or the surprises, let me add that no book has left me as surprised at its ending as has Silver. In closing, I will add one more caveat: "If you love international thrillers replete with theological puzzles and a team pitted against true evil that mirrors our world today, you won't beat SILVER. Steven Savile is in complete control of his material and not afraid of a complex plot. He beats Dan Brown hands down anyway you dice it. Silver is Masterfully Accomplished Work and should win awards if there is a God in charge of awards." --Robert Walker, author of Dead On & Children of Salem, the INSTINCT and RANSOM series