The Matarese Circle

The Matarese Circle has ratings and reviews. Bobby said: Some spy novels get better and more relevant with age, and Robert Ludlum's fabulous T.
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Taleniekov and Scofield are personal as well as professional enemies, Taleniekov having engineered the death of Scofield's wife and Scofield having personally killed Taleniekov's brother. War is only averted through swift communication between the American President and the Soviet Premier. In Amsterdam, Scofield, tired of the covert intelligence world, deliberately releases a suspected mole and assaults a fellow intelligence officer when the latter kills the suspect. Meanwhile, Taleniekov, in Moscow, is summoned by his former teacher, retired Istrebiteli Aleksie Krupskaya, who tells him of an international cabal of assassins known as the Matarese.

Krupskaya urges Taleniekov to find Scofield and stop the Matarese. Taleniekov visits four retired Politburo leaders and is shortly after branded a traitor and sought for execution. Scofield is summoned to Washington and forced into retirement. He sees Taleniekov's man in the street, traps and kills him, and delivers the body to the Soviet embassy. He and Taleniekov face off in a hotel in downtown Washington in a 3-day-long exchange, eventually making contact, neutralizing the assassins, and escaping together.

They contact Scofield's mentor Robert Winthrop, who inquires about the Matarese.

The Matarese Circle

The three meet at Rock Creek Park but are attacked. None of the three are harmed, but Winthrop disappears. Acting on Krupskaya's advice, Scofield and Taleniekov travel separately to Corsica. Taleniekov makes inquiries about the padrone of the Matarese, Guillaume de Matarese, but is hunted by the natives. He is saved by Scofield, and the two encounter a woman named Antonia, who takes them to her grandmother, known in the hills as the "whore of Villa Matarese.

The fifth, Manuel Ortiz Ortega Spain , who was killed by Matarese at the banquet, before everyone else present, including Matarese himself, are killed by servants led by a shepherd boy from the hills. The old woman urges the two agents to find this "shepherd boy. After escaping from the hills, Scofield and Taleniekov conclude that the Matarese are financing terrorist groups all over the world, including Baader-Meinhof, the PLO, and the Red Brigades, with the goal of paralyzing governments. Scofield and Antonia leave for Rome to track down the Scozzi family. Antonia is assaulted by the Red Brigades, of whom she was formerly a member.

Scofield and Antonia fall in love. They learn about Scozzi, who married into the Paravacini family. Scofield and Antonia attend a party at Scozzi's villa, where Scofield approaches him about hiring the Matarese. Scozzi reports the conversation to Paravacini and is killed.

Meanwhile, Taleniekov travels to Leningrad in search of the Voroshin's. He arrives over Finnish border and is met by a KGB traitor. He goes to see his former lover Lodzia, who is being held hostage by a Matarese soldier. They disable him, and discover a blue tattoo on his left chest. Meeting with his former university professor Mikovsky, Taleniekov searches the revolutionary archives.

He finds the account of Voroshin's death, but realizes it is false. Lodzia and Mikovsky are both killed.

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After exposing the traitor, Taleniekov follows a lead to Essen, Germany. There, with the help of lawyer Heinrich Kassel, Taleniekov learns that Voroshin secretly left Russia and became Ansel Verachten, founder of an arms competitor of Krupp. He visits Ansel's son Walter, who is guilty over his family's history. Walter's daughter Odile is revealed as the true Matarese inheritor. The Matarese foster chaos in governments through financial control and political upheaval, like a puppeteer. Violent groups remain unaware, however, that they are mere pawns of the Matarese. Unless Scofield and Taleniekov can stop them, the Matarese will soon, through assassination and through democratic election, control the superpowers completely.

What began in those Corsican hills, will finally span the globe. A young woman from Corsica will give Brandon Scofield new life, but perhaps too late, as he may have to sacrifice it to save his country. And Taleniekov will discover just how far the fever has spread when he contacts old friends. Only Beowolf and the Serpent can track down the heirs and heiresses to a group so deadly and insidious a simple whisper means death.

For the reader, it is a spellbinding ride that keeps pages turning late into morning. A book so exciting, written over thirty years ago, in the midst of a cold war which supposedly no longer exists, isn't suppose to be this much fun. Nor should it be so eerily disturbing. Ludlum later revealed to readers he patterned the Shepherd Boy after Spanish financier Juan March Ordinas, and the Matarese idea sprung from rumors that the Trilateral Commission was attempting to create one world government.

He embellished on this premise and created one of the most action-filled spy novels ever written. A wild ride that is both gripping and tremendously enjoyable. If you read for entertainment purposes, you can't go wrong with this one! View all 6 comments. Jan 06, Manny rated it did not like it Shelves: It turns out that the band of murderous criminals running the US isn't the Republican Party after all, but a different band of murderous criminals.

I think a hot woman takes her clothes off at some point.


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I know I shouldn't drop all these spoilers, but sometimes I can't help myself. View all 17 comments. This is a re-read for me. I read this book when I was in high school when it was a new, current best seller. It's the book that made me a Ludlum fan. It's like an old friend, and I'm looking forward to spending time with it. I"m finally done--it's an intricate plot and it took me a while to read. This is about as good as Soviet-Era spy fiction got; you have two "master spies"--action hero types, initially duking it out but then combining forces to combat an evil the Matarese that causes them to This is a re-read for me.

This is about as good as Soviet-Era spy fiction got; you have two "master spies"--action hero types, initially duking it out but then combining forces to combat an evil the Matarese that causes them to put aside ideology, personal background, anda even personal hatred. Scofield the American spy and Taleniekov the Soviet are both drawn as beleivable characters, sympathetic while you are "in their head" or reading their narrative section. Scofield and Taeniekov are both thoughtful people; they are "action types" but we see their motivations, what makes them tick, the series of events that have made them what they are, and, at times, the regret at what they have become.

The world that Ludlum draws, while fictional, is complex--there are no clear cut good guys and bad guys, and there is honor and betrayal on both. You also are introduced to Antonia, one of the truly strong women characters from this era and in this type of spy fiction. Maybe not the best I've read, but certainly "top five"--if the politics that made these novels interesting has changed, the human drama and compelling plot keep it fresh.

Apr 05, Anshuman Padhee rated it it was amazing. Jun 01, Adam Nelson rated it it was amazing. I had previously read The Bourne Identity, and while it was diverting enough, I wasn't in love with it. I felt the same about the movies. The problem was that I didn't feel there was a whole lot at stake, that there was much I should care about. It was just a very intelligently plotted thriller about a man who has no idea who he is, why he's so deftly skilled, or why he's being targeted.

The Matarese Circle was quite a different experience. In the early going, I felt very much for the characters I had previously read The Bourne Identity, and while it was diverting enough, I wasn't in love with it. In the early going, I felt very much for the characters of Scofield and Taleniekov apologies if I'm not spelling that right--too lazy to look it up at the moment. Ludlum intersperses increasingly deeper layers of the complicated history between the arch-nemeses and why their hatred for each other burns deep.

The, he devises an ingenious way of getting them to have to overcome their desire to kill each other and focus on a larger issue at hand that could embroil not only their own countries, the US and Russia still in the thick of the Cold War, but the entire world in mass chaos and destruction. The novel is a masterpiece of spy intrigue and strategy, but there are deep interpersonal issues that captivate you as well.

Ludlum reveals the origins of the Matarese and their plan at just the right moment in the book. He builds up the suspense to the revelation, and when it comes, I was glued to the page. Conspiracy theorists will love this book, as it provides rich fodder for discussion. All fictional, of course, but questions of "what if? I loved this book. I'm not sure how The Matarese Countdown could possibly live up to this, but I'm willing to let it try.

Apr 10, Al rated it it was ok. A famous book, but not one which particularly appealed to me. The genre is James Bond, but unfortunately without the panache. Ludlum doesn't do things by halves. That's right, the whole world is about to be subjugated by a shadowy threat which the Russian agent just happens to stumble upon.

What's worse, they have to accomplish A famous book, but not one which particularly appealed to me. What's worse, they have to accomplish this rescue singlehandedly make that doublehandedly even though their opponent is a massive, multinational, totally invisible organization which somehow has been able to infiltrate all significant governments and most multinational corporations at the highest levels. Not only that, this organization has countless highly-trained warriors who somehow always know where the heroes are, but for some reason always just miss in their efforts to kill them.

And to top it all off, both the US and Soviet governments are also doing their best, albeit unsuccessfully, to execute both agents. Well, I told you Mr. Sounds like a problem, right? In fact, the US agent, supposedly emotionally dead for years, even finds the time and energy to fall in love while avoiding assassination and figuring out who the bad guys are. Heck, it's a fantasy, right? Might as well live the life. It's all pretty exciting, but just too far over the top, especially the climactic sequence.

Good escapist fare if you need it. May 18, Sydney Mugerwa rated it really liked it.

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The Matarese Circle is an old book, written many years before I was born actually but regardless: One would think it a recent publication. As it was decades ago, America-Russia relations are as frosty as ever. To read a book that chooses not to capitalize on this age-old enmity but rather has characters from both countries portrayed on an equal footing and to work together towards world peace —this is music to my ears. The delivery of the thriller is riveting. Ludlum whips up a tantalizing tale of high espionage, treason, murder with streaks of love as a counterpoint. Okay, this was an emotional book and tad bit sentimental.

Sure, Ludlum was an emotional writer. Half the time, I didn't know what he was ranting about. But his theories were fun. Now this sort of thing is more relevant than ever, the way shape of sounds are right now. What's happening is not right. This world, we don't need villains let alone heroes. Sep 01, Ben Coes rated it it was amazing. The first thriller I ever read. Made me want to be a writer.

Jan 06, Shom Biswas rated it it was amazing Shelves: Why does one read thrillers? The apparent answer is rather simple. The edge-of-your-seat thrill-a-minute ride is a departure from the ennui of everyday living. Most of us live still lives. Most of us do not actively seek out the extreme thrills in real life; the mundane is boring but comforting. Thrillers allow us to nonetheless enjoy the excitement vicariously through the exploits of our protagonists. The best thriller Why does one read thrillers? The best thrillers are the ones that are grounded in reality.

The reader would like to know that the events, sinister as they may well be, are within the realms of the possible. The main protagonists in the thriller, the ones the reader would root for, are often extremely competent physically and mentally, but the best thrillers distinguish themselves in not making the lead characters superhuman. They have to be relatable, the same concerns, fears and troubles as the readers have, would have to be troubles for them too.

Robert Ludlum was perhaps the most successful thriller writer of the last millennium. There is a secret society, which is led by a shadowy, all-powerful leader — this society could have been germinating for a long time. In this while, it has been able to infiltrate through every layer of the government.

Now, the secret society wants to move on to the next stage, that of complete world domination - and right now, they are awfully close to their goal. There is one specific task that has to be accomplished by the society before that goal is accomplished. In parallel, there is our protagonist, a troubled and embittered secret-service man: He somehow gets in the middle of this maelstrom started by the secret society, and at some point, becomes the only man that can stop the secret society from its ultimate goal.

How is our protagonist able to save the world from going to the hands of this nefarious secret society? That is the template. And an excellent example of this template is our recommended novel. This is , the year the novel was published. The secret society, the Matarese Circle, has been able to infiltrate the American and Russian governments at all levels except for right at the top. And now, as they independently discover the Matarese plot, and since their governments are compromised, they will have to learn to work together to stop the Matarese.

Reviewed previously at The New Indian Express Jul 24, Vikalp Trivedi rated it it was amazing Shelves: Two men who were once the greatest assets their respective agencies had but now are their greatest liabilities. To be added more importantly that Beowolf Agate and The Serpent are sworn enemies. The characters in the novel are very strongly built. Every main character has many layers of their haunting past which make ithem what are at present.

The background of the characters were drawn wonderfully. The story was stout, moving and pacey. One of the most important, subtle and astonishing thing I found about the book was that the how the form, plan and means change of the Matarese with time.

The Matarese Circle 2011 - Tyrone Rubin Film Show

How they evolve and their domination plan mainly concentrates on economic domination. Both of them delt with assassination of Rajiv Gandhi and John F.

The Matarese Circle by Robert Ludlum | leondumoulin.nl

Both films have scenes where a character is explaining to the lead characters that what we think of political, religious or any other kind of assassination, are nothing more than corporate assassinations. I am writing about the similar theme of these two films and the novel because all of them left a question in my mind - Who holds the real control?

Overall the book was a great spy- thriller. Aug 09, Jhbyu rated it it was ok. Robert Ludlum, has the same general scenario in all books, an estranged spy fighting some international corporation. Not bad, entertaining if you haven't read too many of his books. Moderately fast, fairly easy read. Really good plot, typical Ludlum atmosphere, but man, the dialogue is hard to get through sometimes.

Every character seems to revert into this Perd Hapley mode when talking to other characters: Dec 29, Alison rated it it was amazing. I'm getting close to having all the Ludlum books done and even though I really, really enjoy them it makes me sad knowing there will be no new ones. Dec 18, Markus rated it it was amazing Shelves: This is like James Bond, only better.

View all 4 comments. Jan 17, Bojan rated it it was amazing Recommended to Bojan by: There is so much at stake that keeps your eyes on reading more and more.