Customer Reviews

Robert Ludlum's The Altman Code: A Covert-One Novel

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

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.

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...

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.

THE SETUP
Set about the year 2000, prior to the last US/Iraq war, the Dowager Empress, sailing from Shanghai, China to Iraq is suspected of carrying chemicals destined to be used for chemical warfare, but is traveling under a false manifest. Because of peace talks underway with China, the U.S. is very hesitant to stop the ship without proof of its cargo. Covert 1, essentially the U.S. President's (Samuel Adams Castilla) private spy/security agency, is assigned to acquire a true manifest which can be used as justification for the U.S. to board and inspect the ship on the high seas. The principal protagonist is Jonathon Smith (a medical researcher and Lt. Colonel in the US Army ith USAMRIID, the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, and an agent of Covert 1). His principle antagonist is (red-haired Chinese) Feng Dun, but he is also being watched by counter-intelligence agents led by Major Pan Aitu. CIA agent Randi Russell, the sister of Smith's dead wife, about whom Smith has mixed feelings, comes to his assistance.

DEVELOPMENTS -- possible spoilers.
Ultimately, the events reflect an internecine conflict between (corrupt hardliner) Wei Gaofan and (reformist) Niu Jianxing (aka "the Owl"), both members of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party. The other characters are agents or puppets of these two powerful bureaucrats. Feng Dun is a triple agent working for Yu Yung Fu (CEO of the shipping company), Ralph McDermit (CEO of the Altman Group), and ultimately for Wei Gaofan. Major Pan Aitu (a classic low-profile intrepid detective-type) is working for Niu Jianxing.

In a side story, David Thayer, the father of President Castilla, believed to be long dead, has been in a Chinese prison since 1947. His situation is passed along by oppressed minority Uighers, seeking U.S. aid.

CAVEATS
Readers without excellent memories for names will find the numerous characters hard to remember, and therefore the plot hard to follow--especially because there are so many Chinese names. In my opinion, it is nearly impossible for an audiobook listener to keep track of who is who, which is why I include the "Developments" section above, which I hope is enough to keep readers on track.

As in all Ludlam, Ludlam "inspired", "derived", etc. books, there are numerous implausibilities, requiring "suspension of disbelief", but the reader is well compensated for this effort.

The title "Altman Code" is essentially meaningless, but catchy.

Lynds has a penchant for misusing geological similes. For example, "adrenalin following through his veins like lava" Not bloody likely, at the earth's surface, typical lava has the consistency of wet concrete, which will only flow downhill or under great pressure. *** Referring to the President (a pure anglo despite his name): "His face could have been carved of Monument Valley stone"--which would literally mean crumbly dark red-brown sandstone--not very complimentary "Marble" or "granite" would have made more sense.***After stabbing an intruder, then calling Washington, search the corpse, and after carrying the corpse a considerable distance from his room, Smith pulls out the dagger and "blood flowed like the Yangtze". Sure--ever hear of clotting? On the other hand, at Shanghai, the Yangtze is a very sedate, slow moving, river--but I doubt that is what the Lynds intended. ****Similarly, when Smith is in the penthouse office of a building, McDermit (in the same building) says that he will "come down" to meet Smith. What part of "penthouse" does Lynds not understand?

EVALUATION
"The Altman Code" is everything you could want from an espionage thriller. Fast paced, exciting, and featuring interesting characters.

RATING
It isn't the purpose of the Amazon ratings for Ludlum fans to argue the relative merits of the Ludlum branded novels, or to compare them with "real" Ludlum novels. The milking of the Ludlum name by his estate is atrocious--but the books should be judged on their own merits. While I agree that "The Altman Code" is not Ludlum, it is still a good read.

This has got to be one of Ludlum's worst. Gayle Lynds must have written most of it. It's hard to beleive that there would be an agent in the field as inept as Jon Smith. This agent's performance is so bad, he shouldn't be in any covert organization, even the fictional ones! If it wasn't for luck and the skills of other agents (including one really smart female), he'd been dead in chapter one!! It should be criminal to create a covert agent with such ineptness. He can't retrieve documents without getting caught or beat half to death. He couldn't subdue one guard while helping the President's estranged father escape. The whole novel is about the star character screwing up! Shame on you RL for putting your name on this novel. This is the last time I buy a novel based on the author's reputation.

If you're a Ludlum fan, like I am, you will be acutely disappointed in this bomb. After the likes of The Sigma Protocol and The Janson Directive, this one is about as interesting as watching the tide come in. It starts with a hackneyed premise of terrorist weapon materials being transported to China, then comes to a grinding halt as the "story" stagnates for hundreds of pages, going on and on, with no advancement of the plot whatsoever, like a car stuck in the mud.

This was my first Robert Ludlum novel and I am seriously disappointed. I don't know that I'll even finish it. Characters have literally had the same conversations multiple times, as if the author isnt sure we were paying attention and they better summarize the plot again, just to be safe. The writing itself just tries to hard and is, in a word, lame. Sample line: "He crossed the room to the sink and picked up the dish liquid, Dawn, and poured some in the sink." Like we need to what brand of dish soap it is(!)?

From the summary on the jacket, this novel sounded promising. Instead, I'm fighting to stay awake, not caring if they ever catch the bad guys. 2 out 5 stars because I've managed to hang on more than half way.

After really liking the Bourne Identity movies I figured I'd pick out a Ludlum novel because it would be good. I got this from the library to check out and figured it would be a good read while I was on vacation. I was very disappointed.

I barely got through it, but it helped me get to sleep so I plugged on. First off, to reload a pistol you use a MAGAZINE, it's not a clip. To hear some super special forces secret agent type calling it a clip takes all credibility away from the author to me. It is soooo painfully obvious that the writer Gayle lynds has done no research whatsoever into weapons or combat and has never fired a firearm. If you're going to write an action/thriller type novel, at least write like you somewhat know what you're talking about. An MP5 is not going to slam anybody's body back like a sack of rice, it fires 9mm rounds. Bullets do not push people back, not even a little bit, unless it's from a cannon of some sort or some other huge weapon designed to attack tanks or buildings. Also, nobody is ever going to win and/or escape any firefight when they're armed with a 9mm Glock and a 9mm Beretta and they are facing off against a force that outnumbers them 6 to 1 and is armed with assault rifles.

The writing was poor, the dialogue was unrealistic, and it is littered with things that just make the author lose credibility (clips). I will give Ludlum another chance by reading another novel, but Gayle Lynds is a very poor writer. And what is up with her constant use of the word "too". She has sentences like "And I better get over to the building, too." Why is there a comma there Gayle, it doesn't sound right. It should be "I'll get over to the building too." It takes away the choppiness. I did not get the sense at all that the main character was tough, it was clearly written by somebody that has never done any of the things she writes about.

Seeing that such poor writing gets published is actually a good thing, it gives me hope for my novel.

I give this book 2 stars, and overall rating of "Extreme Cheese".