The Marching Season: A Novel

by Daniel Silva

Hardcover, 1999

Status

Available

Call number

F SIL MAR

Publication

Random House (1999), Edition: 1st, 418 pages

Description

Fiction. Suspense. Thriller. HTML:The #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Gabriel Allon series presents the second thriller featuring former CIA Agent Michael Osbourne, following The Mark of the Assassin. When the Good Friday peace accords are shattered with three savage acts of terrorism, Northern Ireland is blown back into the depths of conflict. And after his father-in-law is nominated to become the new American ambassador to London, retired CIA agent Michael Osbourne is drawn back into the game. He soon discovers that his father-in-law is marked for execution. And that he himself is once again in the crosshairs of a killer known only as October, one of the most merciless assassins the world has ever known...

Media reviews

My comments

*** SPOILERS! *** SPOILERS! *** SPOILERS! *** I am afraid I found "The Marching Season" rather sloppy, meaning that the scenario was not always convincing and in some aspects it contradicted the previous book ("The Mark of the Assassin"), for a number of reasons (in no particular order): 1)

Obsourne appears to have forgotten that it knows the identity of the killer, referring to him only as October, and not mentioning his real name at all, even though he has read his file and knows who he is (in fact, he expoilted this knowledge at the end of the previous book to unerve the assasin). 2) In the previous book, the Director orders the elimination of October, to cover up all tracks to his organization. October manages to escape, pressumably eliminating in the process his would be killers. However, in "The Marching Season" there is no information on how October managed to escape. Even more strange, there is no explanation as to why October chooses to work again for the guy who set him up. In fact, the Director is having face to face meetings with October, without being afraid that the latter will kill him, even though October has killed for less. 3) In "The Mark of the Assassin", October is about to quit, having enough money. Even though the loss of his girlfriend may have made him having second thoughts, it does not appear that he was so desperate to get back to business, being forced also to ruin a handsome face. Furthermore, he goes and kills the plastic surgeant without even trying to make it look like an accident (the guy was drank and alone so it would have been relatively easy to do so), thus alerting the authorities. 4) October continues to use the boat house in Amsterdam that belonged to his killed girlfirend. I can't believe that he does so so easily, without being afraid that the authorities will be able to track it down and put it under observation. 5) The way the organization meets and after each meeting destroys a villa, is the best way to attract attention. First of all, it is rather difficult for people who are having senior positions in intelligence agencies or private/public organizations to disappear of the face of the earth for 2-3 days, at least 3-4 times a yeat to attend such meetings. Second, the blowing up of the meeting place is bound to eventually attract attention. Even if you can get away with it in a remote part of some desert or jungle, you cannot expect not to raise interest when you do it in Mykonos, probably the most famous Greek island. Especially, with the members of the organization having to stay in different hotels in Chora (the village was too small to house them), and then trying to find a not that small number of Range Rovers with dark windows (how many of those can you find in a Greek island?), march as a convoy to the villa, have the meeting and then just after departure blow the villa up. I mean, the Greek police and intelligence services are not top class but their people are not mentally retarted either. 6) I cannot understand why the people watching the house with the guns in N. Ireland were still there when the terrorists went to kill them. By that time, MI5 and CIA knew what the terrorists would do and therefore they should have removed their people from around the house, in case they attract attention. 7) Everybody knows that you don't use the famous Downing Street no. 10 door to get into the PM's house. This is only used for official visits. There are many other entries to the house, and much less conspicuous ways to get in. I cannot imagine a MI5 or CIA person using that door at 3am! A reporter hanging around would make a story the next day. 8) I find difficult to believe that the Queen knows by heart the code names of secret operatives. Furthermore, handing Osbourne his knighthood in a face to face meeting with only the two around, as if it is a London souvenir, also is not plausible. I am sure her Majestry in her long career has awarded knighthoods to a number of secret agents and there must be some formal procedure about it. 9) Finally, overall I found the story rather boring, just a single thread of action going on, with mostly predictable turns. Certainly, not the best moments of Daniel Silva. I wonder if it is a mere coincidence that Osbourne disapperead after this second adventure of his to be replace by Gabriel Allon. Having said the above, I have thoroughly enjoyed the rest of Daniel Silva's books and I remain a great fun of them. George

Show Less

User reviews

LibraryThing member theportal2002

It started off with good pace and just kept on going. Never a dull moment.

6 more

LibraryThing member gophergolfer

Not Silva's best. A mystery about a CIA agent employed to be in Ireland at the time of the troubles to protect his father-in-law who is the US Ambassador to the Court of St. James. Action against splinter groups of the IRA,etc. Quick read

LibraryThing member ZoharLaor

In the sequel to “Mark of the Assassin”, ex-CIA agent Michael Osbourne is recouping from his physical injuries and gets bored out of his mind playing Mr. Mom. When Osbourne’s father in law has taken a position as the USA’s ambassador to the Court of St. James Osbourne willingly comes back

to the CIA in order to investigate a new Irish terrorist group as well as protect his relative. Osbourne manages to foil the plot, but the group takes out a contract on his life.

The plot actually has two main parts, the Irish terrorists who call themselves “The Ulster Freedom Brigade”; the second is about Osbourne and the two parts are closely related.

This book has most of the same characters as its prequel, but the book is not as enjoyable. The pace is fast but the story is predictable, about half way through (if not sooner) I already figured out the ending which, this time, had no twists.

This is an OK thriller, I liked Silva’s other books better.

Show Less

LibraryThing member PghDragonMan

I have come to enjoy the Gabriel Allon series of spy stories from Daniel Silva. The Marching Season is not exactly part of that canon, but it does share some characters and has another character who could have served as an extended character study for Gabriel.

This book and the Allon series are

connected through the story of Adrian Carter, a CIA operative who becomes head of the CIA, a role continued in later books. Also present is Ari Shamron, Gabriel Allon’s boss at the Mosad. In Marching Season, he is a minor character, still in charge of Mosad Operations, and a character of dubious moral fiber. The third thread that connects the two is a mysterious assassin, known primarily by his cover name, October. Like Allon, he is an artist, as well as an accomplished assassin, has a physique like a cyclist and can pass for different nationalities.

The Marching Season stands on its own merits, and stands very well indeed, but these similarities were too noticeable not to comment on. Silva’s writing style is as fluid as his more recent works. Despite his penchant for detail, I found it annoying from a technical point that he constant used “clip” in place of “magazine” for the device that holds bullets in an automatic weapon. This technicality did not bring down the rating, however.

The plot is well constructed and plausible, but there were not enough twists to really elevate this story beyond four stars. If you are a fan of Gabriel Allon, this will fill in some of the backgrounds of the characters in that series. If you like old school spy novels, this is a good addition to your bookshelf: very little in the way of gadgets but lots of stalking, intelligence gathering and trying to outguess the other guy.

Show Less

LibraryThing member utbw42

Wow, great book. I'm glad I took Vince Flynn's recommendation and started reading Daniel Silva because his books are outstanding. This one was tense from start to end, and I thought it ended on an unexpected, yet great note. Maybe someday Silva will revisit the world of Michael Osbourne. On to

Gabriel Allon next....

Show Less

LibraryThing member RonWelton

The Marching Season picks up where Daniel Silva's The Mark of the Assassin leaves off. Michael Osbourne has recovered from his wounds received in his encounter with the assassin, Jean-Paul Delaroche, code named October, and is now bored and yearning for activity. Delaroche's hand wound received

from his encounter with Osbourne has healed but has left "an ugly, puckered scar ... which he could do nothing about ... except to conceal it." The Society for International Development and Cooperation has thrived and has paid Delaroche for another assassination, that of the leader of Hamas, Ahmed Hussein. In killing Hussein, Delaroche has changed his modus operandi and has avoided his customary three shots to the face. Hussein's assassination is another successful venture for the Society which seeks "to promote constant, controlled global tension through covert operations." The group also is moving to subvert the treaty by assisting a newly formed Protestant terrorist cell, "the Ulster Freedom Brigade" (UFB) which has already committed one assassination and two violent bombings.
When Senator Douglas Cannon, Osbourne's father-in-law is appointed as President Beckwith's ambassador to the Court of James, the UFB is thwarted in an assassination plot against him. The group is erased except for its head of intelligence, Rebecca Wells. The society arranges for her to team up with Delaroche who now has had his appearance change drastically by plastic surgery. The society fears for interference from Osbourne and decides to eliminate him. Monica Tyler, head of the CIA and a member of the Society, agrees.
This novel is somewhat over-the-top in its denouement, but it is a good read.

Show Less

LibraryThing member Jthierer

This was a pretty typical spy thriller, nothing too special (although I did appreciate that the 'villains' of the piece weren't Arabs for once), but gets the job done. Silva does make an effort to give his main character and main antagonists an interior life, but I'm not sure how successful he

really is in that effort. Ultimately, I was only mildly disappointed to find Michael Osbourne doesn't appear in a third book.

Show Less

Fewer