Review by Booklist Review
Between 1980 and 1990 Robert Ludlum wrote three novels about amnesiac spy Jason Bourne (they were later adapted, loosely, into a blockbuster film trilogy). Since 2004 a handful of writers have continued the Bourne series; Brian Freeman has written six books, of which this is the latest. In it, Bourne is sent on a dangerous mission to retrieve some highly incendiary information; it's too big a job for one man, even if that man is Jason Bourne, and, as it turns out, the only person who can help him is an old friend who's also an old enemy. Bourne has become, over the years, a larger-than-life action hero, but the author grounds him in a familiar reality. The man isn't a superhero, and his antagonists aren't supervillains. Freeman's novels take place in a recognizably real world, the same one in which the reader lives. His writing style is lively without being cartoonish, and he builds suspense with the skill of a master craftsman. Bourne fans will definitely want to read this one.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Freeman's limp sixth Jason Bourne adventure (after The Bourne Shadow) is more soap opera than spy thriller. Everyone in the global intelligence community is after "the Files," a database of hacked information teeming with secrets ripe for blackmail. Rogue former Treadstone agent Johanna, aka Storm, seeks the files to bring down her former employer. Shadow, the head of Treadstone, has her own plans for the material, and assigns amnesiac spy Jason Bourne to get to them before Storm can. Instead, former lovers Storm and Jason join forces against sadistic Russian pornographers and relentless Chinese assassins seeking the files for their own nefarious ends. First, Bourne must rescue Tatiana Reznikova--a character improbably reappearing after the events of The Bourne Treachery--from sexual slavery. Meanwhile, Abbey Laurent, Bourne's former fiancée, becomes the apparent target of a contract killer while investigating a suspicious wildfire. Freeman brings the heat in both the action and the bedroom scenes, but the way his otherwise strong female characters pine for Jason's attention grows tedious, and some plot inconsistencies distract (Bourne's amnesia is mostly, well, forgotten). With his romantic life finally settled by the story's conclusion, here's hoping Bourne will be better equipped for his next mission. Agent: Deborah Gelfman, Gelfman Schneider Literary. (Jan.)
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
Jason Bourne enters a deadly race to find a laptop. The throughline in the Bourne series is that someone is always out to get him. Maybe they want him dead. Maybe they want him in bed. And, once, he took a bullet to the head, which is the whole premise. The "nowhere man" remembers nothing of his past identity, and he works for a shadowy agency called Treadstone, the new head of which is a woman named Shadow. The elusive prize everyone seeks is a hacked database commonly referred to as the Files. The Files are filled with secret dirt about powerful people, every blackmailer's fondest dream. Whoever controls this data could either destroy the deep state or protect it indefinitely. Everybody wants the information: the "FBI, CIA, NSA, DOJ. Plus most of our enemies overseas." One such enemy is Cody, a Russian thug operating in Estonia. The files are on a laptop, and it doesn't seem to occur to anybody that there could be copies in other places, but that doesn't get in the way of a good story. Shadow wants the laptop, but so does the rogue ex-Treadstone agent Johanna. Two things the women have in common: They hate each other, and they have both enjoyed bedtime with Jason. Sex between Bourne and Johanna was "like two scorpions trying to mate." That's quite good, apparently, if you can get the visual out of your mind. And if you're thinking that Jason doesn't have enough women in his life, the Canadian journalist Abbey Laurent returns. Series fans will remember that she left him inThe Bourne Sacrifice (2022) because he was too dangerous to be around. Now, she's writing a book about a fatal fire, and she's drawn back into his life. All three women are strong characters, but there's also an Estonian damsel in distress named Tati, who is Cody's prisoner. "'Jason,' she murmured aloud, her voice cracking, her soul praying. 'Where are you?'" Her faith in him is complete, and completely warranted. Cody knows that Bourne has "a weakness for women in trouble." The action starts early with the explosion of a limousine and a vivid description of what happens to its occupants, and from there the pace doesn't flag. Classic Jason Bourne, loaded with action, sex, and excitement. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
