The Bourne Identity - Robert Ludlum

It’s about a guy who has lost his memory partially, trying to discover his identity in 500 pages. The story is gripping and the book, unputdownable.

This guy is one who is being hunted by several nations and some very able soldiers. He makes them all bite the dust. But the fact of incredible accuracy in spite of amnesia is what makes the success of the character somewhat fictitious.

The success of the protagonist depends too very much on instincts right from the beginning till the end. The lost memory keeps coming to him in flashes at the right times which is quite coincidental.
His instincts tell him exactly who the enemy in a crowd is (as in a fashion store in Paris), exactly where the trap is, exactly guess the next move of the enemy. A lot of skill! But as I said, his instincts never fail him and guide him in the right direction every time he needs them, which is too very coincidental.

The plot is made of a million moves all of which HAVE to be right. Even if one move went wrong, the game would be lost. But that’s how all suspense thrillers are I guess.

I, the unintelligent one would have (to be able to appreciate the plot better) preferred the author to explain more clearly the Medusa operation and Normandy invasion which seem to be central to the story.

There are frequent mentions of the mastery of an assassin. One or two episodes of killings, illustrating that mastery would have made the reading so enjoyable…

Anyway, pick your copy today and read it…..

And now, the language itself….(typical me :-))

There are more preposterous vicissitudes in life than a single philosophy can conjure – How true!

The wash of the street lamps on the wall, the wash of the moonlight on the shore- I loved the expression.

“The bottle of alcohol, his chemical and psychological appendage” - expression describing an alcoholic.

The profit motive is inseparable from the productivity incentive. – Nice one!

As the traffic lights changed, the row of vehicles lurched forward like an elongated insect pulling it’s shelled parts together – I love this simile. Slow moving traffic could not possibly have been compared to anything better!