The Icarus Agenda [Hardcover]

Robert Ludlum (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Guild (1998)
• ASIN: B000LV96FS
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,350,844 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

After a successful career in the theatre, Robert Ludlum launched his career as a best-selling writer with THE SCARLATTI INHERITANCE in 1971, the first of twenty-two consecutive international bestsellers. Robert sadly passed away in March 2001.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Almost, but not quite a 5-Star book..., April 12, 2001

By 

Jeff Edwards "RadioJeff" (Twin Falls, Idaho) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Icarus Agenda (Mass Market Paperback)

In his prime, absolutely nobody could touch Ludlum's sheer plotting brilliance when it came to the international thriller, NOBODY. 'The Icarus Agenda' is a great example of his style, and the ONLY thing that kept this book from 5-stars was that it slightly dragged in a couple areas...but remember, Ludlum at his worst is still better than most authors at their BEST.

As another reviewer mentioned, this book was more like 3 books-in-one, and I agree. First we have Evan Kendrick making a daring rescue. Next we have his being identified as the person responsible -- which is exactly what he DIDN'T want. And finally we have the real meat of the story: the ultimate action of who is REALLY responsible for the whole thing, and how Evan goes about handling the situation and solving the problem at the same time. Action on top of suspense on top of even more action. Aside from the small tedious slow writing in the middle, this book has about as much action as a novel can possibly have. If you are searching for a James Bond meets Die Hard meets True Lies type book, trust me, 'The Icarus Agenda' most definitely fills the bill. I have heard rumors for years how Ludlum was going to try and turn Evan Kendrick into a series similar to Jason Bourne, but unfortunately, he passed away, and that remains one of the greatest losses in the literary world in a very long time. He will be sorely missed.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Extremely good but a trifle overlong, June 22, 2000

By 

Mr N Forbes-warren "author of RESURGENCE and ... (Newport, South Wales, UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Icarus Agenda (Mass Market Paperback)

ICARUS AGENDA has all the hallmarks of a typical Robert Ludlum thriller - suspense, mystery, surprises around the corner, memorable characters and well-researched locales - also, the elephantine narrative which in this case unfortunately seems to go nowhere, particularly in the midsection. Hence a 4 star rating. However, the book's finer points are many. The story concerns Evan Kendrick, a quiet, mild-mannered Congressman who becomes an unlikely hero when over two hundred hostages are held by Islamic terrorists at the US Embassy in Muscat(spelt MASQAT in the book), Sultanate of Oman. Kendrick dares to avert the crisis by using his work experience in the Middle East and the deaths of several of his employees as a platform for vengeance against the Arab terrorists. He infiltrates an Omani prison to gather information, but when he is hailed a hero for bringing the hostage situation to an end, Israeli Mossad agents seek revenge as his intervention has prevented their rescue of a Mossad agent, Ben-Ami, who holds a secret. Someone is controlling both sets of terrorists, and who is the Mahdi? One year after the Oman affair, Kendrick's life is shattered again as the Arabs come after him, corruption in the White House and CIA is rife as his past is revealed, then his home is attacked. Events lead to a massive arms dealing ring. Can Kendrick save the day in 808 pages time! This Ludlum monster is well worth a read, but I'm surprised his editor didn't do any more cutting and editing, in my view. A lot of the political White House talkative scenes could have been cut down . . . obviously Ludlum's not renowned for the KISS(keep it simple stupid) approach! So, summing up, a great and susupenseful(in most parts) read, but if you're new to Ludlum, THE AQUITAINE PROGRESSION or MATARESE CIRCLE are the best ones to read first.

Nick Warren.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Chris Johnson's review, January 13, 2001

By 

[e-mail] (San Francisco) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Icarus Agenda (Mass Market Paperback)

If you like the nonstop action of James Bond's movies, then you will instantly be lured into any of Robert Ludlum's books. Ludlum inserts life into the most thrilling and twisting plots in such a compelling way that you believe they are true. All good books make you want to keep reading; however, in each of the many Ludlum novels I have read there is simply no stopping. Ludlum pulls his readers into his stories and gets them hooked in a way few authors can. The Icarus Agenda by Robert Ludlum is no exception and will leave even the most read Ludlum fan intrigued and involved. Once you start this book, you go from interested to absorbed in about two pages. The scenario involves hundreds of Americans being held hostage in an American Embassy in the Middle East. All divisions of the government are desperately trying to free the hostages; however, only one man who bid farewell to the Middle East long ago after a tragic accident can truly save them. Behind the somewhat simplistic terrorists is a group of wealthy and powerful individuals who will stop at nothing until they have complete control of the region. Ludlum takes us through a heart-pumping journey of one man's fight to save the hostages and break the mysterious group of individuals fueling the terrorism. After what must be one of the most intense struggles for freedom ever put on paper, the reader is only done with part one of the three-part book. The first part of the book could be a novel in itself and if it were, I would still be writing its praises; however after the roller-coaster ride of the first 200 pages, the reader learns that this is only the beginning. The man who rescued the hostages took neither credit nor praise for his heroic accomplishments because he did not want anyone to know what he had done. " No one's to know I've been here. I never talked to you or anyone else." (pg.11) One reason that he did not want people knowing his identity was that he did not want people thinking that he saved the hostages purely for his own well being. He did what he did because the people that were holding the hostages were the same people that had killed his friends years earlier. Out of a desire for revenge, he had performed acts of heroism unseen in the world today. He then disappeared back to his normal life, or at least he tried to. This is where Part Two takes over. The courageous hero's identity is revealed and he suddenly becomes the most hunted man in the world. He is the target of every terrorist organization because of his daring rescue actions at the embassy. The question is though can those around him and those whom he helped by freeing the hostages save him, or are the people that he helped the ones he should be truly concerned about. Compelling twists and turns leaves the reader zealously searching for answers like a mouse in a maze frantically searching for the cheese. One of the only bad things about this book is that it is well over 600 pages long. However, the length of the book is only a bad thing if you don't have a lot of time. Despite its length, the author fills the whole book with action and never makes you question its length once starting reading it. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes action filled books and once reading wants to become part of the book. The Icarus Agenda envelops the reader into the story and makes them feel like they are a part of the action.