The Prometheus Deception

Rating:
Summary: Lose yourself
Review: I hadn't read a Ludlum novel since high school in the mid-eighties. Spy books have lost their teeth over the years but I've been in a spy-ish mood lately (go figure) and I decided to pick this one up (after burning through Andy McNab's earlier books which are great). Even though "Prometheus" has plot holes and inconsistencies galore, it's a tremendously fun read. It leaves a lot of questions unanswered (mainly in regards to bit-part characters and logic) but somehow it kept me intrigued and hungry for more. So go lose yourself if you're an old fan of Ludlum and looking for a late night book to absorb you.

Rating:
Summary: A welcome diversionary read
Review: My brainless read of the moment, this book proved sufficiently engaging to earn a place on my "worth giving as a gift" list. While that isn't necessarily the greatest of feats, this final Ludlum piece (the last manuscript finished entirely, prior to his death--"The Cassandra Compact" being a joint effort) proves an entertaining diversionary read---essentially the literary equivalent for me of a James Bond film, and a half-decent spy novel/suspense.

While Ludlum does makes certain prominent errors vis-a-vis his locations, this effort is written at his ideal thrill-a-minute pace (this same thing cannot be said of all his novels: very many of which become turgid and bogged-down---lousy qualities in what should be an amusing diversion). If you're looking for great literature, it's perhaps best to pass this one by--- on the other hand, if what you are after is a diversionary piece that is riveting, yet not of the "stay awake all night and irritate the spouse beyond belief" nature, this one certainly fits the bill. Good, harmless fun.

Rating:
Summary: All the classic Ludlum ingredients
Review: I've never read a Ludlum book that I didn't like, but then, I haven't read a lot of his recent ones, mainly because they got bad reviews here. I picked this one up in an airport, and enjoyed it tremendously. Yes, the characters are one dimensional, and the plotting is weaker than in the past. One major character is introduced, developed, and suddenly dies, and another switches sides so many times, that they themselves seem to have lost track of their motivation. The main flaw of this book is that it doesn't follow its own internal logic, and this will annoy people who get annoyed by this sort of thing.

I do sometimes get annoyed by it, but I felt that the presence of all the classic Ludlum mainstays more than made up for this. There was that single word sentence, without which no Ludlum novel would be complete. Madness! There was the mysterious, beautiful Mossad agent who saves the hero's life. The hero is blessed with an impossibly long skill set, from demolition, to hand-to-hand combat, to linguistics, to Middle East history, and has no problem in going from a battle zone, to the teaching faculty of an East Coast liberal arts college, and back again, in the space of a month.

I don't know if it's that I expect more of a plot, or if Ludlum has got weaker, but there were definitely problems with this story's structure. Also, I'm a Russia specialist, and the mistakes about the Russian language, and Moscow geography, were annoying. Having said that, I couldn't put it down I read it straight through, ignoring all distractions, just like with the Ludlums of old.

Another thing worth mentioning is that it is very prescient, with hijackings, and anthrax attacks, and the war against terrorism, and everything. Trust Ludlum to keep his material current, even if the story has basically not changed in twenty years.

Rating:
Summary: Formulaic
Review: I really wanted to enjoy this book, as the paperback version was released after Robert Ludlum's death. However, his best work was written in the 1970s and early 1980s. "The Prometheus Deception" really seems to be a re-tooled version of his 1980s book "The Acquitaine Progression," in which a character jumps around from country to country, hooks up again with his estranged wife, and discovers there are few people he can trust. Had Ludlum decided to go off on a new writing strategy, his later works may have been as enjoyable as his first few. ("The Osterman Weekend," for example, was a novel that not only kept you intrigued, it's final pages were alarming!) Here it seems like he settled on a formula of concocting a character, inputting a number of cities on a map, throw in a few red herrings, and then come up with a finish that really seems to miss its impact (Same thing with the otherwise enjoyable "Acquitaine Progression.) Robert Ludlum should be remembered for a better book than this.

Rating:
Summary: A Movie in a Book
Review: This is my first Robert Ludlum book. I'm glad I picked it up. I was grabbed from the first with it's plot. In fact, I literally couldn't put it down. He leads you from one critical situation to another with amazing speed, even while he's busy filling you in on the plot and other "administrative details". It's kind of weird, but while reading the book, I could visualize the movie. In fact, I got the feeling I was watching a movie, full of ordnance and flames and fights and heros and heroines. Frankly, I'm not sure if this is good or bad. It was certainly a feeling I've never experienced before while reading. There seemed to be a few plot holes; a couple of questions I had that weren't adequately answered; a few contradictions (either to plot or to charactors) which were not supposed to be part of the intricate plot. On whole, however, I would recommend this book to anybody. In fact, I already have recommended it to several of my friends and family. It is a genuine page turner, which drags you in and won't let you go. What more can you ask?

Rating:
Summary: Better of the recent Ludlum's
Review: This book is much better of the recent works of Ludlum, I think. I'd like to rate this at 3.5 stars. But it is true that almost of the second half is boring, because the stroy runs too fast to persuade me to feel the plot more reasonable, realistic and impressive, while the first half is very, very exciting.

This depends on the plot itself,I can understand when I finisihed to read it, but I think that there might be another way of writing for effetive story telling,such as the way to reduce the number of episode and to write each more in detail. And even in the first half, the prologue might not be so effective. It might be better to be placed after chapter one.

In addition, the reason why the second half is less interesting is that the story about two women is cheap.It is better that the truth of Bryson's wife did not make come true ever and the story about Mossado lady complited. Due to those mistakes, the Bryson's character might not be of a brilliant master spy's.

I think that hero's sorrowful,lonely and impressive characters are important than the best success of the plot even in such political thrillers which consistss of many action scenes. So, it is "Gemini Contenders" which is the best of Ludlum's for me, because its character of hero is written well.

It is because F. Forsyth could success in his several works that he wrote very well the hero's lonley character in each work. And he never made a seires of one hero. This I expect the best in those novels. Ludlum's plot is not so bad basically and it can penetrate the dark side of the modern world. I wish, I can read and enjoy more strong personality of the hero in his latest work,"Sigma Protocol," which is very welcomed by his fan.

Rating:
Summary: Starts with a Bang, Ends with a Fizzle
Review: The premise is a good one. Covert agent discovers after being retired that he had been working for the wrong side all along. Enraged, he wants revenge, but finds he has been sentenced to death by whom? He isn't sure, but he sure knows how to duck trouble as he races from one bad position to another around the globe. The reader expects this pace to continue to the end. Unfortunately, it does not. About two thirds of the way through, the novel just dies. Seemingly important characters are just abandoned, and others which had little mention or priority seem to be reintroduced into major roles. The climax is tired with the big showy blast of a movie-of-the-week's stuntman's special effects.

Rather than read this, I recommend one of the earlier works for which Ludlum is famous: The Bourne Identity, The Osterman Weekend, The Rhineman Exchange, to name a few.

Rating:
Summary: Standard Later Ludlum
Review: Robert Ludlum used to be the big name in spy adventure novels. To a large extent, he still is. When you pick up a Ludlum book, you know what you will get: a fast and entertaining read with a Cold War good vs. evil mentality. With his international intrigue, superspy characters and constant action, his writing is closer to a James Bond movie than even Ian Fleming's books.

The problem with Ludlum is the same thing as his strength: you know what you're going to get. There are characters dying immediately after revealing a single clue and other characters appearing at the magic moment to save the day. The protagonist, Nick Bryson, is so talented both physically and mentally, it limits the sense of danger he faces...he is no ordinary guy.

This one probably rates just above three stars; I'd give it three-and-a-half if I could. Certainly, I will continue to read Ludlum (I've read all but his collaborations); his books are never a waste of time but are always fun diversions.

Rating:
Summary: I REALLY wanted to like this book, but....
Review: I have been disappointed by Ludlum's recent works. However, I decided to give him another chance. This book starts off well enough. That is to say, the plot seem believable, and intriguing. The whole retired-spy-who-is-back-in-the-game routine is getting a bit tired, but I can deal with that if the story is good. But the plot literally falls apart for me with the return of Ted Waller (p. 336). Actually I could say it started deteriorating earlier, but up to this point, it was salvageable. After page 336, the plot was--to use one of his favorite terms--beyond salvage. I really think he had one or two plot twists too many. And none of the subsequent plot twists were believable. Character development is lacking. The main character showed some promise, but the promise goes unfulfilled. I'm still baffled why the character Layla was even introduced at all. She adds nothing to the story. Which is sad, because developing her character WOULD have added quite a bit to the story. Anyway, it got so bad that, about 150 pages from the end I was skimming the book just to end the misery. Rather than go on endlessly, I will summarize some criticisms:

1. Promising plot deteriorates. I mean REALLY deteriorates.
2. Poor character development
3. "Superhuman" main character, despite having being retired for five years
4. Abu's re-emergence at the end of the book. Why was this necessary? (maybe in my skimming I missed something, though I dont think so)
5. Dunne's recruitment of Bryson (this was mentioned in a previous critique)
6. Waller's motives
7. However, the book's dialogue has improved over the Matarese Countdown.

Want a good Ludlum book? Try the following titles: The Parsifal Mosaic, Bourne Identity, Bourne Supremacy, Matarese Circle, Holcroft Covenant, and Scarlatti Inheritance are clasics

Rating:
Summary: Deus ex machina
Review: Nick Bryson, the "hero," gets himself into more tight spots than
you can count. But at the last moment an enemy becomes a friend
and saves him, or he pops out of a closet to save the girl, or
some other miracle happens. Ludlum does a good job of getting
Bryson in trouble, but he, Ludlum, can't figure out how to get
Bryson out, so he creates an unbelieveable solution. But it's
still interesting, even if only to find out how Bryson will get
out of his next fix. Reads like an old movie serial where the
hero falls over a cliff and you wonder how he'll survive.