Rating: 
Summary: Highly original and contains many surprises!
Review: This is another classic Robert Ludlum thriller with all his hallmarks - unexpected twists, flashes of imagination, action and suspense and well-researched characters, locations and politics! IN this one, Michael Havelock, a former CIA/VKR(Russian special intelligence) double agent witnesses his girlfriend Jenna Karras murdered on Spain's Costa Brava. Then some time later, on a field assignment in Rome, he spots her at a railway station and decides impulsively and obsessively to track her down. The trail leads to France and a secret airbase near the Italian border where he sees Jenna again in the hands of some cold-blooded terrorists. His search reaches the US where a top-secret government operation is forming that could change the balance of world power as we know it for ever . . . who is behind this operation? Often very similar to THE POWER and THIS UNITED STATE by Colin Forbes, the villain is surprising . . .and who is the manipulative PARSIFAL character, the final piece in the jigsaw puzzle, or mosiac if you will! Well worth reading, but be warned, it is very long! But hard to fault!
Rating:
Summary: Another Classic From Ludlum!
Review: This was truly a book that I could not put down. This book had it all. Good heroes,evil villains, and an exciting plot.Michael Havelock thinks he witnesses his love being killed in Costa Bravo. He has been led to believe that she is a KGB agent. He sees her in a train station where she escapes him. After pursuing her across several continents he finally has a reunion with her in the U.S. where she is being held prisoner. After they reunite they start trying to find out who was behind all of their problems. Michael has been labeled beyond salvage and marked for death. Havelock and Jenna finally discover that the true evil in the plot is Under Secretary of State Arthur Peirce. Peirce turns out to be a disciple of the VKR(Voennaya) a bunch of maniacs from Russia. Also coming to play in this story is some agreements negotiated be Havelock's ,Secretary of State Anton Matthias. These docements could trigger nuclear war. Havelock and Jenna manage to survive all of this. This is a very good book. You will stay up night and day reading it.
Rating: 
Summary: This is the real "plot within plot" thriller
Review: When Michael Havelock saw the face of a woman he loved in a Roman train station, the same woman whom he had killed several weeks before, out went his plans for quitting the world of espionage and clandestine operations, and he was thrusted back into the realm of shadows where nothing was what it seemed to be.Determine to find her, and why he was led to believe she was a double-agent, Michael triggered a series of reaction from spymasters of Washington and Moscow to find him, stop him and kill him. A true plot within plot, the decision-makers in the background found themselves mere pawns in a greater, more sinister conspiracy by masterminds whose existence no world leader nor government could afford to acknowledge. Michael Havelock found himself victim of his own government's plottings, only to discover his government was also at the mercy of Parsifal, whose machinations could cast the world into an all-out nuclear war. The first half of the book was focussed in Europe where Michael raced across the continent to track down the woman who was supposed to be dead. A trail of dead bodies marked his passing as he grasped the flimiest clue that would led him from one place to another. Certainly, it was the better part of the novel where reader can admire the tenacity and brilliance of the would-be-retired-agent. The later part of the book tracked the conspiracy to its source, but this part is less well-written as convoluted details were rambled and readers get lost in data overload. Also, Michael's jogging through his memories became more confusing for readers. Character wise, there was little to be criticised, though dialogues were a little stilted. But otherwise, each character was clearly distinguishable with a fair degree of realism. Twists in characters could not be anticipated but were introduced brilliantly. The only complaint was readers today could tell if someone calls to say he's got vital info that could not be communicated immediately or needs more confirmation, something bad is sure to happen to ensure the communication would not take place. But to be fair, that is after countless movies and thrillers today, and should not be judged on a book that was written long ago before it became a common ploy. Everything points to an explosive ending and it was almost anticlimatic when it did end though. On the other hand, I suppose no one would really expect an all-out nuclear war.
Rating:
Summary: His most dramatic
Review: You want it to happen. You can't believe it when it does. This is the first Ludlum book that I read, and I was addicted immediately. His plot is forceful and perfect. His setting is immaculately researched and depicted. His characters are if not believable, lovable. Ludlum throws in twist after twist and makes you need to turn back a couple pages regularly. This is a must read! Read it!
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