I couldn't find Covert-One #2 in our local bookstores. So, from Covert-One #1 that I read last year, I jumped to Covert-One #3. Anyway, just like in any of the thrillers where there is one recurring character, that of an agent or spy, each part can stand alone.From his resignation from United States Army Military Research Institute for Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID), Nathaniel Frederick Klein approaches the star of this series, doctor and army John Smith to join the secret army organization in the US called Covert-One. Because Smith is still licking his wounds for his failure to save his fiancee's life from the virus, he agrees to join the secret organization. Had he refused, there would not have been this series. Sorry for stating the obvious.If Covert-One #1 is about a viral strain that can kill half of the world in few seconds, Covert-One #3 is about a DNA strain that can control virtually all computers in the world. Nice theme for a thriller, right? A dream come true for all power-hungry people in the world and a nightmare to the IT professionals like me. Something like when we prepared fro the Y2K in 1999 up to the stroke of the first few minutes of 2000. We were all holding our breath running some transactions in our ERP system. However, unlike the Y2K, there is a group composed of the perpetrators for this virus and they are all in Paris. That's why this novel is called The Paris Option. Then later in the story, it is revealed that these Parisians are planning to use these DNA molecules to stage a nuclear attack to the occupants of the White House - an attack larger and grander than the 9/11. Whoa.This is just what I can say about this book: extremely unbelievable plot but a sufficiently engaging and an outrageously entertaining read.Definitely a must-read for all Robert Ludlum fans (like me).
I don't really know why I picked this book up. I was in a bookstore and I find it impossible not to buy a book. Perhaps it was the Ludlum name as I always enjoyed Ludlum's novels. I was aware that it was not written, or written completely by Ludlum. I wasn't really aware at the time that Ludlum had passed away and this doesn't bother me, this marketing of Ludlum's name to sell more books although I wonder about the benefit of this. It probably does sell more books, but I suspect that many readers are overly critical because it does not live up to the expections of the Ludlum name.That said, I found it an enjoyable thriller. I have not read any of the other books in the Covert One series. The book is well written, the story moves right along, fast enough with enough human interest as well to keep one reading. It is by no means boring and it has a few clever moments where I was laughing out loud. I'm not going to comment on whether anything is realistic or reasonable or "true"; that is not quite what thrillers are about, but it was good entertainment. And in the end, it actually made me think about a few things, make connections to my own life and the world I see and live in; not profound associations perhaps, but it did make me think about things we take for granted: our overconfidence about our own competence, safety, the concept of heartland, idealism, and the darker sides of human nature. What more could I ask from a casual book: escape, relaxation, reflection. For me, considering that I read very fast, this is a far better use of time and money than most expeditions to the movie theater.
What do You think about The Paris Option (2003)?
Another cloak-and-dagger book, but this one has more main characters than Bourne (3), and I really felt myself starting to care what happened to them. Not that I didn't care what happened to Bourne; I'm just saying. Bourne had a personal reason for doing what he did and these other ones. . . I don't know, they were doing it for the good of the general public, and even though it's fiction, it made me wonder how many times we've come close to disaster, but didn't even know about it because some person or people out there stopped it, and we don't even know them. That's all.
—Jenn
More tight situations than imaginable. But they got thru it. Good read and very interesting. DNA computer?
—Dick Pilskog
Third book in the Covert One series did not disappoint. The plot leaned more towards the "tech" side of things, rather than the "medical" as with the first two books in the series, which was refreshing to see. I'm glad this entire series isn't the same plot repeating itself over and over, like some thriller series like this tend to do.I'm so glad the character Marty made a return appearance in this book. He is such a wonderful character. Ms. Lynds does a wonderful job with him - he's not just a "guy with Asperger's syndrome" in the story, but a character in his own right. Other character made return appearances, like Peter Howell and Randi Russell. I've fallen in love with all of them, including Jon Smith of course and root for them throughout the entire story. I am interested to see how their relationships with each other grow as the series continues, and how each will change on their own too. So far, both authors of Robert Ludlum's series here, have done a master job of making me really connect with - or at least fall for - the characters in this book.Tension a mile thick and lots of action fill this book. I'm loving this series and can't wait to read the next story.
—Anastasia Pergakis
