Robert Ludlum wrote 3 classic books on the “Jason Bourne” character. After his sad demise, Eric Van Lustbader has been writing some tales featuring the legendary Bourne.
Continuing on earlier tales, Bourne is of course retired and living a simple academic life. He has also lost his wife Marie. His latest addition to miseries is the news that his friend, Martin Lindros, has gone missing in...
more Robert Ludlum wrote 3 classic books on the “Jason Bourne” character. After his sad demise, Eric Van Lustbader has been writing some tales featuring the legendary Bourne.
Continuing on earlier tales, Bourne is of course retired and living a simple academic life. He has also lost his wife Marie. His latest addition to miseries is the news that his friend, Martin Lindros, has gone missing in action. Bourne has to track him down, break down a Islamic fundamentalist terrorist network, prevent a nuclear explosion, et al. The story goes around the globe – Ethiopia, Eastern Europe, Russia, Washington, the works. There is also very interesting biochemical piece of mind control (and how Bourne loses his mind and memory all the more). It’s a fast-read, action packed, thriller.
Overall, I have two conflicting views on this book (and hence, an exact 50% rating).
On the positive side, this is a great entertainer. More like a script for a Matt Damon movie – amazing action sequences, lots of twists and turns, plenty of violence, the works. The pace is unrelenting, strong and engaging. The book is also much better than “The Bourne Legacy” (another Lustbader/Bourne book, which was written before ”…Betrayal”).
On the other hand, however, this is NO WAY a Robert Ludlum / Jason Bourne story. What I loved of the original series was the focus on the mind of the protagonist – what he thinks, what he feels, how he acts and reacts, way he speaks, way he concocts stories (“feed half the truth”) on the fly, how he is always stressed and confused (“is it Bourne speaking, or is it Webb”), the way he manipulates people he meets, et al. I get goosebumps just reminiscing about the old books; even the action sequences were a bit different. I guess it was more dirty, raw and bloody (“know exactly at what pressure your eyeballs will burst…not there yet”) – more “real”; whereas Lustbader’s tales are larger, almost “larger than life” (again, more suited for the “reel”). It is just not the same. If anyone was looking for the old “feel”, he will be so disappointed.
You should know where you belong – traditional Ludlum camp OR action-movie-camp.
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