Customer Reviews

Robert Ludlum's the Lazarus Vendetta (Covert One Novel)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Patrick Larkin has written an excellent and exciting addition to the Covert-One series created by Robert Ludlum shortly before his death. The central protagonist is Army Lt. Colonel Jon Smith M.D., who was first introduced to readers in THE HADES FACTOR, the very fast paced initial book in the series. The other characters familiar to readers of previous books in the series include CIA agent Randi Russell and the British ex-MI6 operative Peter Howells, who team with Smith as he attempts to penetrate the secrecy surrounding the goals and leadership of an environmental group known as The Lazarus Movement. Fred Klein remains Smith's boss as the head of the ultra clandestine Covert-One operation that reports directly to President Sam Castilla; its very existence continues to be kept secret from not only Randi and Peter but even from the CIA and FBI as well as Congress.

This book follows the classic Ludlum style, a thriller combining fast paced action, a convoluted plot and a few individuals fighting seemingly far more powerful shadowy forces; all these elements linked by a conspiracy that apparently involves high level government operatives. In brief, the original focus of The Lazarus Movement on peaceful reform of environmental policies on a worldwide basis has gradually been replaced by an increasingly strident emphasis on anti-technology protests and an activist agenda of protests and demonstrations in support of its demands for the adoption of its radical eco-conscious agenda. Despite the intense efforts of governmental intelligence agencies around the world, they have been unable to discover either the location of the organization's headquarters or the identity of its leader, a shadowy figure known only as Lazarus. Suddenly, violence strikes a remote Lazarus agriculture experiment in rural Africa; this event seems to legitimize the organization's claims of persecution at the hands of the governments who oppose its anti-development agenda and further energizes the activists who increasingly dominate the Movement.

A major demonstration is planned to protest the scientific research being conducted at the Teller Institute for Advanced Technology in Sante Fe, New Mexico. This research involves some of the most highly classified and leading edge projects in the field of nanotechnology, the intersection of biology, chemistry and physics; projects whose potential to create machines so small that they could penetrate human cells and so powerful that they could be programmed to change structures at the subatomic level had allowed conspiracy theorists to sow fear with regard to both their misuse and their ability to eventually escape the control of the scientists who had created them. As the protesters assemble, apparently well orchestrated violence ensues which results in the deaths of many of the protesters, supposedly as the result of the inadvertent release of fatal nanophages under development at the Institute.

This story is an action filled thriller which uses nanotechnology as the key element of its story line, rather than a scientific thrller per se in the mold of Michael Crichton's PREY, which was a story utilized by Crichton to both inform the reader in detail about the technology and also aggressively promote his viewpoint concerning the need for scientific safeguards to be established with regard to such research. (See my review of PREY dated 12/2/2002 for a discussion of this issue.) This novel in contrast contains only peripheral discussion of the complex issues raised by the rise of cloning, genetic manipulation, and nanontechnology, such as when one character wonders "whether the speed of these advances...offers imperfect men too much power over themselves and over nature". However, these regerences only serve to further the plot, there is neither a deep examination of the technology nor an extensive and explicit philosophophical examination of the moral and ethical dilemmas the developers of such technology might encounter or the government's role in such development.

I highly recommend this book for readers who like action thrillers where the plot is revealed through the adventures of the protagonists rather than through extensive background provided by the author. (There is sufficient background information woven into the narrative for readers unfamiliar with the Covert-One series to thoroughly enjoy this book on a read alone basis, although the nuances of the character developments in those books will obviously be lost.) I was swept along by the compressed time frame of the story. Wih the exception of the prologue and epilogue all of the action takes place within a six day period. I have only two reservations - which are the reasons that I did not rate it five stars although I was very tempted to do so given how much I enjoyed it. First, and most importantly, even for a book of this genre there is an incredible amount of violence, some of it very graphic. While it is not sensationalist in nature and is in fact essential to the storyline, I nevertheless found the detailed description of the effect of the nanophage attacks on their victims sufficiently gruesome and sickening (despite their brevity) to downgrade the rating slightly. In addition, some of the exploits of Smith and his asociates bordered on the "superhero" variety rather than the merely heroic. In summary, this book ison a par with the best action thrillers that I have read recently, especially in that it avoids the overly detailed background information increasingly provided by authors in an attempt to promote a feeling of realism but which concomitantlyslows down the pace and therefore unavoidably detracts from my enjoyment of so many recent stories of this genre.

Tucker Andersen

Amazing that the Ludlum name can still instantly put novels on the the top 10 list ! This novel, another in the Covert-One series, is about nannotechnology being perverted to kill off a big chunk of the human race and achieve world domination. A little bit like Michael Crichton's State of Fear, this novel has an environmental movement gone bad, being used by evil figures for diabolical ends.It is reasonably well-written, fast-paced and keeps you turning the pages for the next event. The Bourne Identity, it is not.But it hooked me enough that I'll pick up the next in the series.

The lead villain in the Lazarus Vendetta is a mad scientist aptly named Lazarus leading a small army of equally mad mercenaries and equally mad subordinate scientists on a path to world domination and mass international genocide. On the other side of the fence, attempting to thwart this dastardly plan, is an American specials ops doctor named Jon Smith and a sly old British secret service agent named Peter Howell who soon discover that rogue FBI and CIA teams are also up to no good. Smith and Howell dash from one side of the globe to the other, battling wave after wave of enemy forces and all sorts of nasty weapons including bioengineered invisible nanobots which turn humans into gobs of slime, as they race against the clock to save the world. If the star roles were switched in this story and the American Jon Smith became British MI6 Peter Howell this could easily be a 007 novel. Yes the villains are that hokey. Still, the Lazarus Vendetta is a fast-paced ride, descriptive, topical, and author Patrick Larkin has definitely proved himself gifted with the pen.

See synopsis above.

Its seems the Nano-tech thriller is becoming quite popular and Patrick Larkin does a great job with this one. ('Nano' by John Robert Marlow was also a good nanotech thriller).

I thought it was an exciting read and it kept me enthralled to the end. I don't seem to remember any slow spots in the whole novel. Good from beginning to end.

Highly recommended.

The book is a typical thriller, with a rather over the top storyline, but an enjoyable read for most anyone that likes fantasy thrillers. In that regard, I'd give the book 4 stars.

The Kindle edition has very poor quality control, quite inexcusable. The typeface constantly changes from normal to bold, throughout the book. That is very distracting and annoying, because it's much more difficult to read with the constantly changing text. That's the reason for the 3 star rating.

The winner of six Earphone Awards, writer and stage consultant Scott Brick is a multi talented gentleman. His performances on radio, television and film are highly rated, as, quite obviously, are his audio book readings. He brings both panache and a sinister tone to this frightening tale of an ultimate evil. Fortunately for listeners he's the performer on both the Abridged and Unabridged editions.

Robert Ludlum needs no introduction to fans of high tech thrillers. His eye for detail and data based presentations have won him legions of fans over the past three decades. He, of course, introduced the Covert-One series, which is here continued by Patrick Larkin.

The Lazarus Movement, once a group with an authentic interest in protecting the environment, is now a maddened horde ruled by Lazarus, a sick scientist bent on controlling not just his movement but the entire world.

Lt. Col. Jon Smith, the dauntless hero of this series, is dispatched by Covert-One to not only find Lazarus but discover his secrets. The recent attack on a research facility which killed thousands has created pandemonium. And so the chase begins as Smith starts to suspect that eliminating Lazarus will not solve the problem at all.

- Gail Cooke

Like all the other books in this series, good adventure without a let up. You get right into the action and it doesn't stop.

What I found great about this book was the fact that Ludlum captured every characters perspective on the current situation. The action was non-stop, the twists were great, and the ending was fantastic. I recommend this book fully.

Would the Lazarus Vendetta be as successful if it had been marketed as Patrick Larkin's Lazarus Vendetta rather than Robert Ludlum's, one wonders.

This is as good as any Robert Ludlum novel. There are plenty of twists and turns and few loose ends. Also the pace isn't any slower than Robert Ludlum's novels. It is an easy yet gripping read. I read in one go.

Congratulations Patrick Larkin on an excellent job. Can we have more of the same please!

I read this book years ago, and when I purchased it I didn't recall having read it. Today I am halfway through reading it, and I am enjoying it thoroughly all over again!