The Aquitaine Progression (2015) - Plot & Excerpts
The late, great Robert Ludlum (R.I.P.) in his 1980s prime here. Fast-paced, loaded with tension, international intrigue, seemingly endless plot twists, and plenty of action (though not exactly the "non-stop action" that the reviewers for Publishers Weekly and Richmond Times-Dispatch claimed).An international cabal of power-hungry generals (an extreme fictitious example of the "military-industrial complex" that Dwight David Eisenhower warned about?) plots to impose a global militaristic government (Aquitaine) to take over Western democracies via a series of worldwide flase-flag operations, and it's up to protagonist Joel Converse, former U.S. Naval Aviator and Vietnam POW cum international business attorney, to expose and thwart their dastardly conspiracy. Joel plays the role of both hunter and hunted--mostly the latter--as he endures flashbacks to his escape & flight from North Vietnam while the well-connected generals and their cronies chase him through Western Europe (a major source of tension is the frequent bouts of frustration a dismay as the bad guys are almost always one step ahead of the good guys). As a side note, speaking of those generals, I wonder if General "Mad Marcus" Delavane was at least partially modeled on William Westmoreland? Alas, since Ludlum is no longer with us, we can't ask him anymore.Having been published as it was 30 years ago, in the middle of the Cold War and before the EU, a lot of the items referenced are now obsolete, such as a separate West and East Germany, the use of U.S. currency denominations above $100 (IIRC, $500 bills and higher were withdrawn from circulation back in 1981), and Western European countries with their own individual currencies, e.g. the German Deutschmark and the Dutch Guilder, as opposed to the Euro. Which of course does nothing to detract from the quality of the book, but rather gives present-day readers a sense of historical perspective (and for those of us old enough to remember those days, a trip down Memory Lane).As entertaining as "The Aquitaine Progression" was, I'm not quite able to give it 5 stars, as Ludlum committed several gaffes in the areas of military jargon and weaponry technical specs that I, being both a military veteran and a weaponry buff, feel compelled to nitpick:--Ludlum seemed to have no concept of the military phonetic alphabet in telephonic comms, i.e. Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, etc.--Ludlum also apparently didn't realize that the US Navy doesn't refer to its aviation component as the "Air Arm" (that's a Royal Navy term), nor the fact that the USN's official job title for a pilot is "Naval Aviator."--The author makes reference to a "Heckler & Koch PGS auto pistol...its caliber nine millimeters, and with a nine-shell magazine clip." The correct terminology/description would be Heckler & Koch P9S auto pistol, caliber 9mm (millimeter singular, not plural), with a 9-round magazine.--Ludlum makes reference to the U.S. Air Force using F-18s; the F-18 Hornet is a Navy/Marine Corps asset, while the USAF uses F-16 Fighting Falcons for the same purpose that the USN/USMC uses the Hornet. As I read the book, I pictured in my mind whom I would cast for a movie adaptation of "The Aquitaine Progression." Mind you, this is purely a hypothetical exercise, as alas many of my would-be casting selections are now dead:--Joel Converse: Sean Murray (Special Agent Tim McGee from "NCIS")--Valerie Converse: Teri Hatcher--US Army General "Mad Marcus" Delavane: Peter Jason--South African General Van Headmer: Jack Watson (R.I.P.)--Caleb Dowling: Buddy Ebsen (R.I.P.)--Wermacht Field Marshall/Bundeswehr General Erich Leifhelm: Robert Shaw (R.I.P.)--Israeli General Chaim Abrahms: Nick Searcy--Ambassador Peregrine: Richard Jordan (R.I.P.)--LCDR (USN) Connal Fitzpatrick: Christopher Cazenove (R.I.P.) --RADM (USN) Hickman: Fred Dalton Thompson--LT (USN) David Remington: Guy Pearce (Lt Exley in "LA Confidential, and also played a military JAG in "Rules of Engagement")--Admiral (USN) Scanlon: Jason Robards (R.I.P.)--Peter Stone: Shane Rimmer (CDR Carter in "The Spy Who Loved Me" and Alexander Conklin in the ABC-TV 1988 miniseries adaptation of Ludlum's "The Bourne Identity")--French Gen. Jacques-Louis Bertholdier: Jean Reno--Rene Matillon: Dominique de Villepin (okay, he's not an actor, but rather the former French Foreign Minister under Jacques Chirac, but what the hell)--Surete Inspector Prudhomme: Giancarlo Giannini (played DGSE agent Rene Mathis in "Casino Royale" and "Quantum of Solace")--Thomas Thayer AKA Johnny Reb: Donald Sutherland
Robert Ludlum, as you know, is a great author. I'd never heard of this book before picking it up, and it was surprisingly good. The plot was good and the writing kept you interested throughout, although the book reminded me a lot of the movie "National Treasure". Not so much in the storyline, but more in the suspension of disbelief that you must achieve to actually enjoy this novel. Some points I found myself saying, "puhhlllleeeeaaaase", but then again, I find almost all fiction books that way, so I may be more critical than most. Suffice to say, if you like the movie "National Treasure" or you are a huge Robert Ludlum fan, then you will enjoy this book. 3 stars, but 4 if you're not so critical.
What do You think about The Aquitaine Progression (2015)?
This was the first Ludlum book I read after the Bourne series. The very beginning was hard to understand, but once I got into the story things started to pick up. It's your basic spy adventure: a guy discovers a big evil conspiracy and then the conspirators try to kill him. But the plot was well-handled where it could have easily been clunky. It had a lot of talking and scheming and not that much action. I didn't mind that too much, though. Not every protagonist in a Ludlum book can be as deadly as Bourne. This protagonist was simply a diplomat on the run. He did have a gun, but he wasn't exactly proficient with it. Overall, great.
—Billy Maise
Okay, so at first the book was really great, I mean the idea. But then it became to repeat itself - our main character is this close to reveal the truth and bam! he gets caught by the tangles of Aquitaine. The first five times it was OK, but then it just got too predictable. Also, the idea of non-speaking-other-than-English main character crossing the European borders, buying food and checking in hotels without no problems at all seems a bit surreal. Also, I am no fan of books that show the USA
—Conina
This book firmly falls into the thriller / suspense category. Some folks will recognize this author's work from the trilogy of movies starring Matt Damon, where Damon played the character Jason Bourne.Like many Ludlum novels, the main action sets an American battling intrigue throughout Europe. There is plenty of plot line to this story, surpassing Vince Flynn's "The Third Option" in that regard by a long distance. I still put Ludlum at least into the same conversation as approaching the quality of work offered by Tom Clancy. Clancy remains the best in class writer of the thriller genre, in my opinion.Without getting into details of plot, I found this book satisfying.
—Craig
