Robert Ludlum's The Bourne Sanction

This is not a book in the normal sense: It is a mass of unrelated episodes stuck together as some sort of thriller but with so many holes in the plot I'm surprised the book didn't come with a leakage warning! Right from the outset it is unpromising with Lustbader compelled to admit he has "...taken artistic license.." (AND believe me, he certainly has!), and goes on, "..with places, objects, and possibly, even time.." - - he qualifies that disclaimer by asking the reader to, '...overlook these small anomalies.." - - alas Mr Lustbader as there are a great number of anomalies and the 'time' lapses so distortionate to the plot I fear I could not overlook them at all. It is allegedly a book, not a Hollywood blockbuster film where fade-outs show more and fade-ins plus flashback scenario can be taken as helpful by the audience, but the author has not got those eye-catching scenic trickeries, & must rely on the printed word on the page - trouble is the words in this tome do not add up to a sense of reality in any part of it! And so dear reader just remember not only is this plot implausible it is downright impractical to even consider as a narrative! show less

30-12-2012
Re-reading this book. Not because it is so very good, but because I lost track of the Bourne story. Got the latest for my birthday this year and I wanted to read them (the ones by Van Lustbader) in order because movies and Ludlum's versions keep getting in the way of getting a good clear view om what happened when and why with what reason or consequence.

01-01-2013
After reading it again, I tried to make sense of it once again. And, starting with the Bourne books that Ludlum wrote, I just couldn't. As far as I can recall (have to re-read the last book of the trilogy to be absolutely sure, but please correct me if I'm wrong!), Bourne was around 57 when either the 3rd book started, or ended.
The book I'm reviewing now, takes place show more one year AFTER the book before this, and when I draw a linear line from Ludlum-Bourne to Lustbader-Bourne, the character must at least be 58, most likely even older.
And, despite films like Expendables etc. I do not really see a man, no matter how fit, pull the stunts that Bourne does in this book.

Okay, this book is a work of fiction, but this age thing bothers me nonetheless.
And I'm also bothered by the written out fighting scenes. they look / read like they could be copy-pasted from a film script. They feel very unreal and I must admit that when the next scene came, that I applied a form of speed reading...

The amount of stars stays the same, it was an okay book, but certainly not more than that!

december 2009
The synopsis at the back side of the book said it right: this work has nothing to do anymore with the original trilogy that Ludlum wrote about Jason Bourne.

Bourne is again (on of) the main character(s) in this book. But I did not find it as addictive as the first three books that were written by Ludlum.
Sometimes Bourne's past is mentioned, but I miss the confused Bourne, who tries to put together the memory flashes with reality as he lives it. He is now 'only' looking for some terrorist organisation that has roots in WW II, in a way like any other special forces man would do.
He is still being deceived by his friend / the man who hires him, but rather far-fetched in my opinion. I will not disclose any of the contents because that would spoil the fun for other readers.

For me this Bourne book was not as catching, because it was written 'in the ordinary way', without saying that Van Lustbader is a poor writer, or that I can do better. There was no surprize element, no big or sudden twist of fate, the story went on and on and on and then it ended.

What made Bourne special to me was his loss of memory and identity and all the things that came from that, his desperate search for 'him' alongside protecting the new family he had founded with Marie.

Now he has become a loner, not comfortable in his university job, but also not quite Bourne anymore. He doesn't raise his children, Marie is dead, there's nothing that ties him to life. The way the character of Bourne has developed over the books makes this book for me te be '13 in a dozen'. Not bad, but certainly not very special too. show less

Eric Van Lusterbader's third foray into the Bourne saga provides a good read, but does not have as exciting a plot as The Bourne Betrayal, his last Bourne novel. I enjoyed the twists and turns, but overall, we don't learn much more about Jason Bourne/David Webb, and if the ending of The Bourne Betrayal felt anti-climatic, it is an absolute thriller compared to the end of The Bourne Sanction. The target of a terrorist attack this time just seems to fit in too well with the new characters, and lacks in detail that Van Lusterbader has provided in his previous two Bourne stories.

The best piece of this novel, which gets hidden in too many mundance details, is the notion of a killer working for the enemy who is Jason Bourne's equal in show more strength, cunning and clandestine skills. A meeting between these two is obvious early on (so I'm not giving away anything), but once they finally do, the result is somewhat muted and leaves you wanting more too early on.

The alternate history back story about the "Black Legion" is well thought out, and Van Lusterbader pays special attention to the details he creates for this plot line. The double crosses and twists are also well planned, but I was somewhat dissapointed with how many unanswered questions, or maybe questions that can have no answer, he leaves us with after the dust settles.

In all, I enjoyed The Bourne Sanction, though I enjoyed it a little less than the previous novels. Eric Van Lusterbader does a great job in continuing the legacy of Robert Ludlum's work, the style, and continues to develop characters created by Ludlum that have become icons in literature, and now film. show less

This was a very difficult read - typos, grammatical errors, etc.

I found the story line to be okay (at best) and was at least mildly entertained...but towards the end I was in disbelief at the number of resolutions to plots that came about by coincidental meetings, events, and even a child in Munich (with a British Accent) saying, "...right as rain" - Literally this saved the day! Lame...After the first couple coincidences that resolved tension or a dangerous situation I began to be skeptical that the book would end in any kind of dynamic way...I was right!

Lustbader seemingly tried to put too many plot twists and "interesting" side stories into a book that he was not prepared to write out to any good conclusion...it felt like he was show more writing and all of a sudden realized that he needed to wrap things up so he had Bourne pull out his lucky rabbits foot to tie all of the loose ends up in a hurry...

Don't waste your time on this book! Very, Very, Very disappointing show less

It's testament to how much I enjoyed this book that I still haven't actually finished it. I have about five pages left to read and it's just sat on a table waiting to be finished. I think I might have stopped caring about Jason Bourne.

Robert Ludlum's Bourne series may be my all-time favorite suspense novels. I would have rated every one of those books an 8+ on a five point scale. Five stars for sure.

Enter Eric Von Lustbader. And enter complete amazement on my part. How he has managed to stay so true to the character of Bourne is a wonder indeed. While there is just a touch of Ludlum's finesse and deft touch lacking, I would still give Von Lustbader four stars for each of the subsequent Bourne books he's written. All are worthy reads for anyone who has enjoyed Jason Bourne as a character.

If we can't have Ludlum, thank heavens we have Von Lustbader.

Very good follow-up utilizing Ludlow's character/plot device. Unacceptable proofing errors for a series of this brand!!