Robert Ludlum's The Bourne Legacy (Hardcover)

by Eric Van Lustbader (Author) "David Webb, professor of linguistics at Georgetown University, was buried beneath a stack of ungraded term papers..." (more)
Key Phrases: thermal heating station, ceramic gun, terrorism summit, Jason Bourne, David Webb, Alex Conklin (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Veteran thriller maestro Lustbader (Black Heart, etc.) seizes the reins of Robert Ludlum's bestselling Jason Bourne series, proving that even Ludlum's death can't stop the ex-CIA operative. David Webb, a mild-mannered Georgetown professor, harbors his old Bourne identity deep within his psyche—except in moments of danger. A mysterious assassin, Khan, has targeted Webb. Seeking counsel from his old CIA handler, Alex Conklin, Webb arrives at Conklin's home to find him, along with Webb's psychiatrist and friend, Mo Panov, murdered. Unsurprisingly, it's a setup, and Webb is declared a rogue agent and the prime suspect. His only clue to the real killer is a pad of paper with a faint impression of the notation "NX 20." Meanwhile, in Reykjavik, preparations are underway for the upcoming summit on worldwide terrorism. Even the dimmest thriller reader will immediately intuit that Bourne, pursued by the world's leading intelligence agencies, will end up in Iceland confronting some evildoer out to wreak havoc on the international terror conference. And thus it comes to pass. Lustbader has wisely eschewed mimicking Ludlum's signature style—short punchy paragraphs with lots of exclamation points. His own prose, often cliche-ridden ("Khan felt as if his brain was about to explode. He was shaken to his very foundation"), is perfectly serviceable, effectively conveying the myriad cinematic hairsbreadth escapes, crosses, double crosses, explosions, furious fisticuffs and careening plot twists. It's a hearty serving of meat and potatoes action adventure, just the sort of fare that both Ludlum's and Lustbader's fans relish.
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From Booklist
Three of Robert Ludlum's novels featured the fictional character Jason Bourne. Now comes a Bourne novel not by Ludlum but by Van Lustbader, the author of 20 novels that had nothing to do with Bourne. The publisher assures readers that the individuals who control Ludlum's estate have given their permission to create this new novel. Here and now, Bourne, described as "an international assassin of deadly repute," has retired from the CIA and is a professor of linguistics at Georgetown University. He has been framed for the murder of two associates and becomes the target of an assassin. The novel begins in Chechnya and continues in such diverse places as Nairobi, Crete, Washington, D.C., and Budapest. The many-paged narrative provides ample room for lots of action, including a body found in a refrigerator, "shared joy" between lovers, fistfights, gun battles, torture, and deceit. The Bourne Legacy reads much like Ludlum, which, of course, is exactly the point. George Cohen
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 464 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press (June 22, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312331754
• ISBN-13: 978-0752868202
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (122 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #112,741 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Ludlum betrayed, August 8, 2007

By	Nessa (Arizona) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Bourne Legacy (Mass Market Paperback)

I purchased this book while on a layover between flights with high hopes. After having read the entire Bourne trilogy I longed for more, like many true afficionados of a memorable character. The only reason I didn't put this book down midway was that it was a choice between soap-operatic plot "twists" or the overpriced airline skymall catalog.

In the original storyline Jason Bourne is a tortured hero, being pushed and pulled by circumstances beyond his control and understanding due to his total lack of memory. He is discovering amazing and frightening skills that he didn't know that he had. Underlying this is a deep fear of what he is becoming along with a horror and guilt of what or who he may have been. His humanity and inner conflict make the character of Jason Bourne believeable. The secondary characters are equally well-developed and three dimensional. The action appeals to genre readers, but it is the character depth and development that causes this series to transcend the genre and appeal to a wider audience.

This is in sharp contrast to Lustbader's creation. It opens up with the "Jason Bourne personality" reasserting himself without thought to the cost or consequence of his actions, leaving his dearest possessions (his family) behind without a twitch. He has become a two-dimensional caricature of the original. Supporting characters that gave a continuity to the story are conveniently dismissed, probably due to the difficulty in making them believable. I mean, Lustbader couldn't even accomplish this with the main character, what would have happened to the supporting cast? He totally ignores age or skill limitations which Ludlum would have included, and relies on a plot cobbled together from recycled action-drama cliches. The result is that this story has more stitchmarks than Frankenstein's monster - and is about as attractive.

Robert Ludlum isn't just spinning in his grave - he's generating electricity. The only resemblence between the two authors is the first letter of their last names. I gave this book one star simply because negative numbers were not an option.

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing, August 23, 2004

By	J. F. Thompson "JT" (Glendale, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Having read many of Ludlum's novels over the years, and having watched his style deteriorate somewhat as time passed, I had hopes that this new iteration of a Ludlum character would bring with it crisp, incisive writing.
It has not done so. Here are several examples of the sorts of sloppy mistakes that steal the joy of reading this book.
1 - a van Lustbader-invented assassin loads his sniper rifle with "the smallest caliber round it will take." What? Firearms by design and definition require a specific and single caliber of ammunition. Does this guy know nothing? And why in hell would he want the smallest caliber, if indeed there were such a thing? He never explains this weird concept.
2 - He has first-response cops showing up at a crime scene complete with tracking dogs. What? That's something that would be called in later at the discretion of the on-scene commander, rather than something that police officers routinely travel with.
3 - He has the Bourne character checking in with a motel clerk who is watching television. Bourne goes to his room, turns on his own TV, and finds himself featured as a wanted man on all channels. Yet he eats, showers, shaves and rests, never even apparently thinking that the check-in clerk, watching television, might have recognized him and might at that minute be calling out the mountes after him.
Just sloppy work for which there is no excuse. I doubt that even Ludlum himself would have written such drivel. Sorry, but it's very disappointing. Books are way too expensive these days to contain such second-rate crap.
-JT

85 of 101 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars (4 1/2) Jason Bourne Outlives Robert Ludlum, July 8, 2004

By	Tucker Andersen (Wall Street) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Robert Ludlum was often credited with being the creator of the modern day action/adventure/international conspiracy genre that provides a riveting reading experience and at the same time reinforces the cynicism so prevalent regarding our powerful political institutions. The sales of his novels certainly reached unparalleled heights, with each successive book further embellishing his reputation and delighting his legions of devoted readers. As difficult as it usually is to identify the most memorable character among the many created by a writer as prolific as Ludlum, the adventures and experiences of Jason Bourne in THE BOURNE IDENTITY almost undeniably created a character who universally captivated Ludlum's fans and whose presence seemed to demand that Ludlum return to create a series that would further enlighten his readers about both Bourne's future and his past. Thus, over the next several years THE BOURNE SUPREMACY and THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM formed a powerful trilogy which has led to the character coming to life on film, with the timing of the release of this book roughly coinciding with the movie sequel starring Matt Damon.

Ludlum's fans know that Jason Bourne was the identity created and embellished by the CIA for a legendary undercover CIA operative whose real name was David Webb. Unfortunately, a deep cover operation in which Bourne/Webb was engaged went perilously wrong, and Webb has struggled for years to recover his lost memories and return his life to a semblance of normalcy. He has officially retired from the life of clandestine ops, has a wife and family and is a professor at Georgetown University. However, his deep friendship with his former CIA controller (Alex Conklin, who plays a key role in this story) allows him to maintain contact with his previous world. Suddenly, Webb finds himself the target of an incredibly skilled assassin and after his escape he finds himself at the center of a very complicated plot to frame him for several murders. Thus, cut off from most of his usual resources in the international law enforcement community, he must retreat into deep cover and use all the skills developed during his career as Bourne to stay alive and untangle the web which has been spun by a master at the high stakes game of international political intrigue and terror. The story is fast paced, the action almost non-stop, and the storyline sufficiently convoluted and the misdirection frequent enough to maintain the reader's interest. There are several other interesting characters, and a really dislikable villain, although I cannot go into details without providing spoilers.

This is the first book that I have read by Eric Van Lustbader, so I cannot compare it to his previous work. Fortunately, he did not choose to attempt to imitate Ludlum's style (this fact might disappoint some readers), but rather chose to continue the Ludlum and BOURNE LEGACY by adopting the trademark Ludlum techniques which I have previously described but utilizing his own methodology to tell the story. Much of Jason Bourne's backstory in the jungles of Vietnam is cleverly interwoven as an essential element of this tale, I hope that some day it will be revealed how much of this was created by Ludlum before his death and how much was this author's invention. ( Many of Ludlum's fans remain curious regarding his role in the creation of THE JANSON DIRECTIVE and THE TRISTAN BETRAYAL, the two novels completed by others after his death.) This book is also much more philosophical in tone than most of Ludlum's work, but that factor is essential to the story.

I highly recommend this book despite one meaningful flaw and one personal dislike. My dislike is the descriptions of torture and violence, which while infrequent were a little brutal for me. More importantly, there were a few instances where the escapes were a little too miraculous and the feats of physical prowess were unbelievable rather than improbable. All authors in this genre walk the fine line of implausibility veering into impossibility, and in some cases I thought this author wrote his characters into situations which left him without any believable methods of achieving the objectives of his narrative. I want to emphasize that despite these criticisms this is a pageturner with the type of palpable tension which epitomizes the Ludlum style. I was fortunate enough to discover Robert Ludlum when THE SCARLATTI INHERITANCE was first published, and read every subsequent book immediately upon publication (except THE ROAD TO GANDOLFO, originally published under a pseudonym) and enjoyed them all tremendously. Not only will this book provide enjoyment to Ludlum fans, but clearly if it achieves commercial success THE BOURNE LEGACY will include a further sequel. The conclusion of this story and the new addition to the cast of characters certainly foreshadow such a development.

One final recommendation for Ludlum fans - as you may be aware Ludlum was a fan of the writer Gayle Lynds and she was his coauthor for three of his last books. While the plots were not as complex as the books for which he was the sole author, this collaboration allowed him to increase his productivity in the years preceding his death. While these stories never achieved the success of his other work, they alerted me to the work of Lynds, and I strongly recommend two of her works which I have read. The initial volume (which definitely should be read first) is MASQUERADE (review 3/4/2004) and the sequel is THE COIL (review 3/16/2004).To date these have not achieved the success which they deserve in my estimation, but they are definitely Ludlumesque in plotting and complexity, although with much greater character development.

Tucker Andersen