A Death in Cornwall

A Death in Cornwall, by New York Times best-selling author Daniel Silva, was originally published in 2024. Silva draws upon his experiences as a journalist in writing his Gabriel Allon series. The series began in 2000 with The Kill Artist, and A Death in Cornwall is the 24th book in the series. The Gabriel Allon books are spy novels, part of the thriller and mystery genres. Silva also draws upon his experience converting to Judaism in writing Gabriel as a retired Israeli spy and art restorer who often is involved in returning art stolen from Jewish people during the Holocaust. A Death in Cornwall explores The Destructive Influence of Extreme Wealth, The Commodification of Art, and The Ubiquity of Political Corruption.

This guide refers to the Harper Collins hardcover edition.

Content Warning: The source text and this guide feature depictions of violence (including gun violence), murder, and death. They also mention the Holocaust.

Plot Summary

The novel begins with Vera Hobbs, a resident of Cornwall, discovering that her neighbor Charlotte Blake has been murdered. Charlotte was an art historian who was researching an untitled surrealist painting by Picasso. While the police generally think that she was killed by a serial killer known as “the Chopper,” detective sergeant Timothy Peel believes that Charlotte was killed for what she discovered in her research. He calls his old friend, retired Israeli spy Gabriel Allon, to help with the investigation.

Gabriel discovers that the surrealist Picasso painting belonged to a Jewish family but that it was stolen from them during the Holocaust. It is locked in the Geneva Freeport and owned by a shell company called Oil on Canvas (OOC)—one of many shell companies created by the corrupt law firm Harris Weber. Gabriel discovers that the rightful inheritor of the painting, Emanuel Cohen, was murdered in Paris. Gabriel forges six paintings and has his old friend Anna Rolfe arrange to sell them to Ricard, the owner of a gallery in the Freeport. Rolfe is accompanied by the thief Ingrid, who poses as her assistant. At the end of the negotiations, Anna agrees to trade the forged paintings (which the gallery believes are real) for the stolen Picasso.

However, Ricard’s plan to sell the painting goes against the interests of OOC, so they have him killed and take the painting from the Freeport. Ingrid hacks into the Freeport and finds a list of all the shell companies that use the Freeport. She also discovers someone else stealing files from the Freeport: Lambert, a hacker who worked for clients of Harris Weber. Lambert is the assassin’s next target, but Gabriel saves Lambert by running the assassin off the road when he chases them on his motorcycle. Lambert tells Gabriel and Ingrid about Harris Weber’s use of shell companies to help wealthy people buy and sell art without paying taxes. The assassinations were arranged by the head of Harris Weber, who is named Trevor Robinson. Gabriel decides to steal the names of the people behind the shell companies from the offices of Harris Weber.

Gabriel organizes this heist with Christopher Keller, a former assassin and Secret Intelligence Service agent; Rene Monjean, another thief and the driver of the yacht they use during the heist; and Ingrid. Gabriel also enlists the help of Don Orsati to protect Lambert in Corsica. With remote tech support from Lambert, the crew steals files from the Harris Weber offices in Monaco. They learn that treasurer Lord Radcliff received a political donation from a corrupt Russian billionaire named Federov. Radcliff claims that Prime Minister Hillary Edwards was involved in the transaction. However, after hacking Radcliff’s bank, they learn that Federov paid Radcliff more money after he resigned from his government position. Edwards, who had nothing to do with the donation, is also forced to resign, and an election for prime minister is held.

The vote goes to Hugh Graves. His wife, Lucinda, is the one who discovered that Charlotte was investigating the stolen Picasso painting. Lucinda enlists Robinson to arrange for the murders of Charlotte, Emanuel, and Ricard. Right before Gabriel is able to inform a reporter named Samantha about the conspiracy to oust Edwards from the government, Gabriel and Ingrid are abducted by Robinson. Christopher and Timothy kill Robinson and his men, saving Gabriel and Ingrid. They blame the Russians for the murders, as Robinson was holding them at a property owned by Federov.

Once free, Gabriel gives the incriminating evidence to Samantha, who writes a series of articles about Harris Weber. Lucinda not only wanted her husband to be prime minister, but she also wanted to protect her interests and the interests of other people who launder money in London. The conspiracy to oust Edwards began because she was going to pass anti-money-laundering legislation. Gabriel gets Lucinda to tell her husband to refuse the position of prime minister by threatening to uncover Lucinda’s role in the assassinations. After she agrees, Lancaster—an old friend of Gabriel’s and a former prime minister—becomes prime minister again. Gabriel buys a cottage in Cornwall.