CIA case officer Cameron Pryce thought he'd crushed the deadly cabal of powerbrokers and assassins. But like a phoenix rising from the ashes, the Matarese dynasty is back. Now the countdown begins -- and Pryce is already running out of time. "The Matarese Circle, " Robert Ludlum's multimillion-copy spellbinder, introduced a treacherous international cabal of powerbrokers and their hired assassins. More than 20 years ago, the top CIA and KGB agents joined together to insure that, in an explosive act, the Matarese conspiracy went up in flames. But now Robert Ludlum, the unsurpassed master of suspense, returns with a stunning thriller for the 21st century. . .Secret deals are in the making, massive mysterious transactions steeped in corruption and murder. The players stand at the highest pinnacles of global finance and government. It is an unprecedented consolidation of money, power, and ruthlessness. Their ultimate aim: worldwide economic domination and all it entails. . . by whatever means necessary. The Matarese dynasty is back in all its glory and evil. And the one man with enough knowledge to stop it, CIA case officer Cameron Pryce, may not have enough time. The Matarese countdown has begun and Pryce's only chance to cut it off is to follow the trail of blood money and stone-cold killers to the heart of this deadliest conspiracy.From the Hamptons to Monte Carlo to London's Belgrave Square, Matarese assassins have already struck with brutal efficiency, eliminating all who stand in their way. But on Spain's Costa del Sol, one victim survived long enough to breathe these dying words: '"Find Beowulf Agate' --words that reverberate all the way to CIA headquarters in Langley,Virginia. Beowulf Agate is the code name for legendary retired agent Brandon Scofield, the only man ever to penetrate the Matarese and survive. Now Cameron Pryce has to draw Scofield and his wife, Antonia, out of their Caribbean paradise hideaway and back to a place they thought they'd never have to go again -- back into the Matarese circle of death. For from the oil fields of the Persian Gulf to the boardrooms of Manhattan, from the hills of Corsica to the halls of power in Washington, the circle is closing, the noose is tightening, the panic is spreading. And Pryce has made a chilling discovery: the Matarese have broken new ground. . . deep inside the CIA. "The Matarese Countdown" is Robert Ludlum at his best, as he delivers a terrifying and persuasive vision of worldwide financial mastery that could only happen today.
This was disappointing. I had hopes for this story, given the reputation of the author. How did he get such a great reputation. His writing is stilted, bordering on purple, with such lines as, "Oh, I see what you mean," said the tall, attractive, and formidable Antonia,...," and, "Our?...Taleniekov is dead. He's gone!" "Not in my head, Cameron Pryce. He never will be." This last leads me to another point, his character identification. Cameron Pryce is sometimes Cam or Cameron or Pryce or Cameron Pryce. The old master-spook, Brandon Scofield is sometimes Brandon, Bram, Scofield, Brandon Scofield, or his code name Beowolf Agate. The names change sometimes in the same conversation. And italics are thrown around like rose pedals at a wedding, with no regard for their place in the sense of the dialogue. Speaking of which, Ludlum's dialogue is stiff with endless conversations that, seem to bring the characters themselves to scream, "Get to the point!" In his favor, I was attracted to the idea of an aging CIA spook, years past his prime, revisiting an old enemy. There were so many possibilities for this book, but Ludlum seems to have taken the road most traveled and written a trite, simplistic yarn that could have had so much more tension.
What do You think about The Matarese Countdown (2004)?
Wow. This was cheese. Other reviewers have probably said it better but this was way off the mark for the work of Robert Ludlum. A number of years ago I read almost all of Tom Clancy's books back-to-back during one summer of reading. This may have disguised what I later noticed to be a "dumbing" down of his work. Campy dialogue, impossibly perfect characters, and useless repetition of important plot lines became the norm in Clancy's work (maybe it was there all along, but Rainbow Six was the major turning point for me). This Robert Ludlum book seemed to be heavily influenced by the later Clancy novels as though some sort of reverse mentor-apprentice relationship had formed between the older Ludlum and the younger Clancy.Either way, I wouldn't recommend this book unless you have nothing else to read.
—Marc
This was left behind in my hotel room by a previous guest and I picked it up when I ran through my own books. It's a spy novel from the late '80s and feels like a straight to DVD spy movie. Computers and technology we take for granted are almost magical devices that can do almost anything. If it weren't for the authors need to explain how wonderful these things were it wouldn't have been so distracting. I've read many spy/thriller type novels set before the ubiquity of computers that dealt with them much more rationally. Also the Matarese are like a Bond villain with unlimited resources and access to military hardware and technology that you wouldn't expect to find in the real world. The main characters read like action heroes from a bygone era where men are men and women are sex toys. I had read the Bourne novels about 20 years ago and remember liking them at the time, so I found this to be of a let down.
—Steve
This sequel to 'The Matarese Circle' doesn't quite match the original story in intensity nor conflict. It comes off as Ludlum by the numbers. Put protagonists in harm's way, let protagonist avoid harm, and then wash, rinse, and repeat for 500+ pages. There is too much of the 'charming, almost over the hill' operative. The first book thrived on the solid premise of sworn enemies working together for something greater than themselves, but the threat of Ludlum's revived Matarese comes off as cliche and I was literally waiting for them to trip over themselves. Not Ludlum's best.
—dee
