Robert Ludlum's The Altman Code: A Covert-One Novel [Mass Market Paperback]

Gayle Lynds (Author)

Book Description

Series: Covert-One | Publication Date: March 2, 2004

When word reaches the President of the United States that a Chinese cargo ship is transporting chemicals to a rogue nation intent on creating new biological weapons, the president knows he must act quick to obtain the proof he needs.

Covert-One agent Jon Smith is sent to rendezvous in Taiwan with another agent who has acquired the ship's true manifest. But before Smith can get the document, he is ambushed, the second agent is murdered, and the evidence is destroyed. Smith escapes with only his life and a verbal message-the president's biological father is still alive, held prisoner by the Chinese for fifty years. As the mysterious ship draws closer to its end port, Smith is losing time in uncovering the truth about the vessel and its cargo-a truth that probes the secrets of the Chinese ruling party, the faction in Washington working to undermine the elected government, and the international cabal who is thrusting the world to the brink of war...

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Ludlum stuffs more surprises into his novels than any other six-pack of thriller writers combined."-The New York Times

"Ludlum pulls out all the stops, and dazzles his readers."-Chicago Tribune

"Packed with all the classic Ludlum elements...the intricately engineered plot thunders forward at breakneck pace. Bottom Line: Perfectly executed."-People

"Robert Ludlum continues to jolt his readers with fresh juice...a page-turner of non-stop action that should leave his fans begging for more."-New York Post

"Welcome to Robert Ludlum's world...fast pacing, tight plotting, international intrigue."
-Cleveland Plain Dealer

"Dazzling...a clean launch of the 80's spy novel into a thrilling action/adventure web of intrigue mean for the twenty-first century."-Publishers Weekly

"Reading a Ludlum novel is like watching a James Bond film...slickly paced...all consuming."
-Entertainment Weekly

"Ludlum in light years-beyond his literary competition in piling plot twist upon plot twist, until the mesmerized reader is held captive...He dominates the field in strong, tightly plotted, action-drenched thrillers."-Chicago Tribune

"Readers will remain in the dark right up until the explosive climax."-The San Francisco Chronicle

"Gripping...Robust writing and a breakneck pace."-Boston Herald

"Don't ever begin a Ludlum novel if you have to go to work the next day."--Chicago Sun-Times

From the Back Cover

For three decades, Robert Ludlum's bestselling novels have set the standard in almost every country in the world against which all other novels of international intrigue are measured. Now comes the latest volume in the series of novels featuring Robert Ludlum's Covert-One.

The Altman Code

When word reaches the President of the United States that a Chinese cargo ship is transporting chemicals to a rogue nation intent on creating new biological weapons, the president knows he must act quick to obtain the proof he needs.

Covert-One agent Jon Smith is sent to rendezvous in Taiwan with another agent who has acquired the ship's true manifest. But before Smith can get the document, he is ambushed, the second agent is murdered, and the evidence is destroyed. Smith escapes with only his life and a verbal message-the president's biological father is still alive, held prisoner by the Chinese for fifty years. As the mysterious ship draws closer to its end port, Smith is losing time in uncovering the truth about the vessel and its cargo-a truth that probes the secrets of the Chinese ruling party, the faction in Washington working to undermine the elected government, and the international cabal who is thrusting the world to the brink of war...


Visit the Covert-One website: www.CovertOne.com

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 496 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks; 1st ptg. edition (March 2, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312995458
• ISBN-13: 978-0312995454
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.3 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #933,811 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Welcome to my author page. I'm the New York Times bestselling author of award-winning international espionage novels -- spy thrillers -- but when I was growing up, I had no idea ordinary people wrote books. I thought that was the literary turf of dead people, and if not them, then certainly gods and goddesses.

Despite my youthful conclusions, I still dreamed of creating the sorts of novels that would transport people to other worlds, other experiences, and leave them not only truly satisfied but feeling smarter, as I did when I read a really good tale.

Today I've published some eight novels, with a ninth on the way -- The Book of Spies, due out March 30, 2010, from St. Martin's Press. How did I get so lucky? I began writing literary short stories that were published in small journals. The discipline propelled me onward, and here I am today, creating adventure stories about London and Paris, Washington, D.C. and Rome. With me you can travel the world in my books, examining the clandestine world of spies, criminals, and secret power that quietly and importantly impacts all of us.

Some basic facts. My books have won such awards as "Novel of the Year" (THE LAST SPYMASTER) given by the Military Writers Society of America and the American Authors Associations, and have been People magazine "Page-Turner of the Week" and "Beach Read of the Week." Publishers Weekly lists MASQUERADE as among the top ten spy novels of all time. BookPage concurs: "Gayle Lynds has joined the deified ranks of spy thriller authors like Robert Ludlum and John le Carre." With Bob Ludlum, I created the Covert-One series and wrote three of the novels. One of them, THE HADES FACTOR, was a CBS miniseries in April 2006.

I'm a member of the Association for Intelligence Officers and co-founder and former co-president (with David Morrell) of International Thriller Writers. Born in Nebraska, raised in Iowa, I now live on the side of a hill in Southern California.

Thank you for dropping by. Please visit my website at www.GayleLynds.com to test your Spy-Q, visit my World of Espionage, and sign up for cool prizes.

Warm regards, Gayle

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Altman is the Code for suspense!, May 15, 2004

By 

J. J Kamlani "jotuj" (Fairfield, Connecticut United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Robert Ludlum's The Altman Code: A Covert-One Novel (Mass Market Paperback)

Outlined by Robert Ludlum, and written by Gayle Lynds, the Altman Code sizzles with action, a good plotline, good characterization, and crisp, realistic dialogue.
The latest installment in the Covert-One series with spy/physician hero Jon Smith, the story starts with a photographer who is murdered for pictures he has taken of a Chinese cargo ship transporting enough Iraqi chemical and biological weapons to make any city in the world a grave wasteland, uninhabitable for years to come. The ship's destination? The U.S., where else.
During a mission to obtain the ship's true manafest, Jon Smith and his contact are ambushed, and with his contact killed, and the manafest stolen, Smith is forced to find another way to abtain another copy of the manafest, or die trying.
Lynds leads Smith, and us on an action filled quest for the manafest, so that the ship can be boarded, and destroyed before it's deadly cargo reaches American shores.
Lynds further complicates the plot by throwing in the U.S. President's father being kept captive by the Chinese government, being used as a pawn in this dramatic affair, to "Look the other way, or else", the result is a great read from first page to last.
Hold on, and enjoy the ride! I did.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars For some mind-candy entertainment, this works..., June 24, 2006

By 

Thomas Duff "Duffbert" (Portland, OR United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Robert Ludlum's The Altman Code: A Covert-One Novel (Mass Market Paperback)

The other paperback I was using to kill time on the plane during my recent trip was Robert Ludlum's The Altman Code by Gayle Lynds. This is my first exposure to the Covert-One series, so I can't compare it to others for quality. But so far as political espionage yarns go, this wasn't bad...

The American government gets wind of a chemical shipment from China to Iran, and the material has only one use... as weapons. The official cargo manifest doesn't reflect that reality, and therein lies the problem. If the military stops the boat, they risk international condemnation for aggression (especially if they are wrong about the contents). But if they don't stop the boat, then the Iranian government has weapons of mass destruction. To complicate issues (because there *always* has to be complications), all the official channels that could be used to resolve this matter are taking stances that will move each country to the brink of a massive war. Not only does the boat need to be stopped before it enters the Gulf, but the government also needs to figure out who is pushing for war over peace...

In many ways, this is the typical "covert action, disavow all knowledge if anything happens" type story. There's a subplot involving the President and an old prisoner held in China who claims to be the President's biological father. It's a little "out there", but not so much that it distracts from the main story. Based on what I saw in this novel, I'd be inclined to look for a few more in the series if I was looking for some mind-candy...

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Pass on this one, April 17, 2006

By 

P. Baird (Kenosha, WI USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Robert Ludlum's The Altman Code: A Covert-One Novel (Mass Market Paperback)

I was extrememly dissapointed by this novel. I actually found myself rooting for the bad guys when they finally caught the good guy! The plot had potential -- US & Chinese politics, WMDs, a Mideast connection, etc., but the characters are really hard to believe. It seems like the bad guys are everywhere, watching everything, and only the hero is clueless. Narrow escape after narrow escape, the reader isn't inspired by the hero's dedication, instead, you are left stunned by his stupidity.
If you are a Ludlum fan, pass this one up. There are better choices.