Chinese gangsters and Israeli intelligence face off in Paris - Israel's bestselling book of 2017, perfect for fans of Homeland, John Le Carré and Mick Herron
When an Israeli tech entrepreneur disappears from Charles de Gaulle airport with a woman in red, logic dictates youthful indiscretion. But Israel is on a state of high alert nonetheless. Colonel Zeev Abadi, the new head of Unit 8200's autonomous Special Section, who just happens to be in Paris, also just happens to have arrived on the same flight.
For Commissaire Léger of the Paris Police coincidences have their reasons, and most are suspect. When a second young Israeli is kidnapped soon after arriving on the same flight, this time at gunpoint from his hotel room, his suspicions are confirmed - and a diplomatic incident looms.
Back in Tel Aviv, Lieutenant Oriana Talmor, Abadi's deputy, is his only ally, applying her sharp wits to the race to identify the victims and the reasons behind their abduction. In Paris a covert Chinese commando team listens to the investigation unfurl and watches from the rooftops. While by the hour the morgue receives more bodies from the river and the city's arrondissements.
The clock has been set. And this could be a long night in the City of Lights.
Review
A timely addition to the canon of international thrillers ... races along with pace and verve to a satisfying ending (Adam LeBor Financial Times)
This is deeply enjoyable espionage thriller with plenty of juicy details about modern spycraft, and although he is sometimes as sardonic and cynical as John Le Carré, Alfon's style is light and relaxed. He invests his heroes, Bond-esque spymaster Colonel Zeev Abadi and his beautiful, brilliant deputy Lt Oriana Talmor, with his own agreeable sense of humour . . . A spy novel with lead characters that are genuinely likeable. (Jake Kerridge Daily Telegraph.)
Some terrific action sequences in this fiendishly complicated yet pacey thriller. Readers who relish technical detail will appreciate the wealth of information about the Israeli intelligence services, cheek-by-jowl with political shenanigans, Chinese gangsters and mysterious blonds (Laura Wilson Guardian 2019-01-19)
A genuinely thrilling espionage novel . . . Chinese gangsters, French detectives, Russian models and charismatic, backstabbing Israeli spies, all locked into a brilliantly choreographed danse macabre. (John Williams Mail on Sunday.)
I can't remember any previous Israeli thriller so brilliant, lean and sleek . . . A novel for our post-truth times, totally believable and impossible to put down. (Aharon Lapidot Israel Hayom.)
Alfon takes over from John Le Carre and the old masters of the spy novel. (Guy Horowitz Haaretz.)
Alfon breaks the limits of previous generation thrillers and creates the 21st century spy novel, sleek, highly political, funny, romantic and unforgettable. (Talma Admon Maariv.)
Thriller of the year... I'm in love with this duo of intelligence officers, they'll never let me down. (Galit Dahan-Carlibach NRG.)
Best novel of the year... John Le-Carre and scores of Mossad agents can happily retire and leave room for Dov Alfon and his Unit 8200 wizards, who change the shape of espionage thrillers with enormous talent, depth and intensity. A masterpiece. (Shay Golden Makor Rishon.)
The best Israeli thriller ever written. (Meira Barnea-Argaman TV Channel 2.)
About the Author
Dov Alfon, brought up in Paris and Tel Aviv, is a former intelligence officer of Unit 8200, the most secretive arm of the Israeli Defence Forces. He was editor in chief of Israel's most influential newspaper, Haaretz, and chief editor of the leading publishing house Kinneret-Zmora. A Long Night In Paris, published in Israel to rave reviews, topped the best seller charts for 24 weeks. His previous projects have been called "fantastically creative" by the Guardian, "revolutionary" by The Paris Review and "incredibly inspiring" by The New Yorker. This is his first work of fiction.