The Bourne Legacy

The Bourne Legacy features the same Jason Bourne of the three bestselling novels by Robert Ludlum. Ludlum's estate has acceded to using Bourne again, this time by novelist Eric Van Lustbader. The events of the Bourne Legacy occur some years after The Bourne Identity. I have not actually read Ludlum's Bourne books but I have seen the 3 movies. The movies, however, allegedly have almost no congruence with the books.

Bourne is no longer a CIA operative and lives as David Webb, a professor of Eastern Studies. When someone suddenly attempts to assasinate him and frame him for the murders of his two closest confidants, the Bourne identity reasserts itself. Events quickly unfold and lead Bourne to run for his life as well as look for the true culprits. A certain twist in the story leads to the explanation why this book was entitled as such. The novel has all the classic espionage thriller stuff and is a good read.

Lustbader writes in a straightforward way. The action and suspense is kept at a continuous pace. He stops at intervals such that one is not too overwhelmed with events taking place. Lustbader is a bestsellimg novelist on his own right (The Ninja, Black Heart, to name a few) but I have not read him before. He proves his mettle in using Ludlum's Bourne in a way that does not actually copy Ludlum but nevertheless makes the new Bourne still much like the previous one.

I rate this book 4 out 5 stars. Lustbader has written another Bourne novel, The Bourne Betrayal, released last year. It has also become a bestseller and is something to look forward to.