Life in a Russian (money) Laundromat
As I write this there are 11,633 reviews for Danial
Silva’s “The Cellist” posted on Amazon. As a result, this review will be much shorter
than usual. Silva writes a very fast-paced spy thriller led by his protagonist
Gabriel Allon, the head of Israel’s secret intelligence service. The story
opens with the assassination of a disaffected Russian oligarch in London by a
nerve agent. We then find Allon teaming up with Isabel Brenner who works as a
compliance officer at a very corrupt German bank that serves as a money laundromat
for Putin and the Russian oligarchy. She is also a very talented cellist, hence
the title.
Silva takes us into the innerworkings of money
laundering and the use of Russian cyber warfare in inducing Americans to follow
the violent leads of far rightwing sects which goes so far as assassination.
Readers will get a very real sense as to how powerful the role of Russian money
is in the West and how far Putin will go to achieve his ends. It is an easier
read than many of the long articles on the subject in, say The Washington Post.
For the full Amazon Review see: Life in a Russian (money) Laundromat (amazon.com)
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