Rating: 
Summary: THE perfect example of what the genre should be.
Review: I recently decided to expand my reading horizons
from Sci-Fi/Fantasy. I thought about some
techno-military, i.e., Clancy and the like, when
a friend suggested I try Ludlum. At the friend's
suggestion I bought "The Materese Circle".
Let me admit that I could be the world's slowest
reader. Let me also say that this book was so
incredible I went without sleep, not to mention
called in sick to work, for two days until I finished this book. Even if you aren't a fan of
this genre this book will entertain you to the
max, not to mention force you to make pots and pots of coffee.
Rating:
Summary: The best book I have ever read, it is my favorite
Review: I started this book and could not put it down. I got to around the last 200 pages and read them in one sitting. I was up until 2 am entranced by this book because the plot was so fantastic and wove itself through 600+ pages into one of the most brilliant novels I have ever read. If you read only one Ludlum, this is it.
Rating: 
Summary: LUDLUM PEAK
Review: I think there're at least two different Ludlum: the one from his first books (most of them heavily related to WWII like "Thirteen at Zurich" or "Holcroft") and the one from his more evolved products, most of them based upon the idea of a very little ultra powerful organization (almost ever within a major government or with close ties with one, specially US, but with no real acknowledge of this informal chamber from the visible government) which in turn becomes something like spionage books... but they're not. Le Carre is by far the real master in the genre if you look for real and human heroes and spies in some awful predicament. Clancy is the master if you look for acurate descriptions of the technology involved and the balance of power of the world. Either one of them could be telling a real story.
This is not the case with Ludlum, indeed. If you want "real action", "real heroes", "plausible plots in the real world" go look for them somewhere else. This is fast-pace action (almost always: in the "second Ludlum" I was talking about there are some heroes who are not spies, marines or mercenaries but professors or writers and these books are a little slower) in glamorous locations (a secretive Switzerland bank with numbered accounts and very ellegant lobby and offices is a must in these books) in France or Greece with archiultrasupermillionaries foes devoted to conquer the world makes you think sometimes in "Pinky & the Brain" toons series. In Ludlum' books you can find a hot-track pursuit in the middle of Paris at rush hour with bullets everywhere for ten or more pages and every time the heroe is about getting caught, suddendly the author tells you that the character had special trainment fitted for this trance long ago at some secret corps in the US Marines at Laos in a secret mission after VietNam war... you got the picture. Nevertheless, if you have an open mind and enjoy adventures novel and like Bond films and you're able to believe in characters like Rambo or Indiana Jones, you're in for a good time with this book, which is, alongside "Bourne identity" the peak of Ludlum in this line of works.
Rating:
Summary: Good Ludlum-esque spy thriller
Review: I was immediately drawn into the story -- two rival spies going up against a conspiracy that reverberates throughout the entire world. The characters, however, seemed interchangeable and poorly developed. Neither the American or Russian spy developed into a person that I had any interest in. The ending, while lacking in surprise and excitement, is intriguing on a deeper level that Ludlum almost wholly ignores throughout the novel. Overall, not one of Ludlum's best, but worth reading nonetheless
Rating: 
Summary: The research should be better
Review: I wish the great writer like R. Ludlum would do a better research. This book was a disappointment, although I generally LOVE his books. And the reason for the disappointment were scenes and people from Russia. They made me laugh. The words he uses usually either don't exist or mean something completely different. The names!!! He gave a male character a woman's name! Believe me I know, I was born there. Makes you think: is everything he writes about other countries as believable as this? Too bad.
Rating:
Summary: French version
Review: I'm presently reading the french version of The Matarese Circle: the translation is really poor. Frequently, it's impossible to understand the sense of a sentence or words. 4 stars for the book and 0 for the translation.
Rating:
Summary: Ludlum's best
Review: If you love Ludlum's over-the-top novels (and I do), The Matarese Circle has to be up there with the best. Not all of Ludlum's books are a good match of plot and style -- the repeated "Oh my God!" declamations of one character after another can get silly when the goings-on aren't as riveting as they could be (the two Bourne sequels suffer from this problem, I think.) But Circle delivers on all fronts. Part One is a masterpiece all by itself -- the intricate cat-and-mouse game between Talienkov and Scofield plays out thrillingly. And these are two of Ludlum's most believably drawn characters; we feel empathy for both, and root for them to join forces from the get-go. Antonia Gravet, the inevitable gorgeous heroine/love interest who surfaces in Part Two, brings a well-crafted and believable backstory to the plot. One final bonus: some of Ludlum's zestiest minor characters appear in this book, adding to the fun in nearly every chapter.
Rating:
Summary: Required reading
Review: If you're fan of spy thrillers, then this is required reading. Sure, it's Cold War stuff that's a bit dated, but I promise you it's still quite a ride even today. Even moreso when I read it back in the 1980s, when the Soviets and the bad old KGB were primal American fears. Ludlum brilliantly twists that notion 180-degrees: the thought that a CIA agent and KGB agent would get togther was stunning indeed. When I read this book, it knocked me on my butt. I couldn't put it down and I couldn't forget it. Now, a decade-and-half later, I find myself doing my own writing and this book still influences me. So yeah - buy it. And don't expect to get any sleep. But a word of warning - do not read this and then expect the sequel, MATARESE COUNTDOWN, to match its power. It doesn't. That one is hack Ludlum of recent times, he's lost his gift. But not back in 1980 - he was a master. Enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: Miss the Cold War??
Review: If you're like me, then you're probably starting to miss the wonderful spy novels that came out of the Cold War in the eighties. Now that "world peace" seems around the corner, the market for these novels has dissapeared. So, being stuck with books of the past, I highly suggest Robert Ludlum for the spy junkies who can't get enough. The style of writing is better than Tom Clancy, and the plots move along with the speed of light. In this book, two sworn enemies must work together to save their country from the brink of collapse. A must read!!
Rating:
Summary: Nothing Can Be Better
Review: In 1911 on the island of Corsica, a mad baron/genius devises a plan to destroy the corruptors in the government and take over the financial world and world governments. The Matarese, as this SPECTRE-like group is called, is a group hired killers. Brandon Scofield, CIA, and Vasili Talaniekov, KGB, are now the only ones that can stop after a time table is set into motion for Matarese domination. They have sworn to kill each other to avenge the death of their wife and brother respectively but now they must join forces. Matarese assassins strike from New York, where they murder the Chaiman of the Joint Cheifs of Staff, and Moscow, where they do away with a top nuclear physcist. Plenty of suspicion runs around when the hotheads of both nations accuse the other. Talaniekov is contacted by his dying mentor, a KGB killer. There he learns about the Matarese and their plans. He also learns that the only other one that can stop them is Scofield. That is all I will give to you for fear of ruining this awesome book. The intrigue, mystery, and suspense are splendid and the dialouge is crisp. The novel keeps you guessing up until the very end with a titanic climax. If you don't know what to read, read the Matarese Circle!
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