The Bourne Identity – The book which started the legend of Jason Bourne.

This book is the gold standard for the action/thriller genre. It stands like a colossus even 40 years after it was first released.
I first read it in 2002 when the movie with Matt Damon came out. (Note: The movie and it’s sequels are an insult to these wonderful books. The books and movies have almost nothing in common. They’ve just picked a few words here and there and made it into a fan fiction movie with bad shaky cam action scenes).
Anyway, I just finished re-reading it after 18 years. It still had the chills, thrills and excitement I expected. Jason Bourne still remains one of my favorite heroes and Carlos is still one of the best villains put on paper.

The story is well known.

A bullet ridden man wakes up to find out that he has no memories of who he is. What he does have are incredible skills which he puts to good use throughout the book.
The whole story about who Jason is and why he is what he is is unparalleled (Wow, that was a complicated sentence, wasn’t it? just like the book). Many books/serials/movies have tried to copy the idea and have been decent on their own, but nothing compares to genius of Ludlum. He has woven a masterful tale of mystery, intrigue and espionage.

The plotting and pacing is magnificent.

There’s no point where you’ll bored or disconnected from Jason. You’ll be learning his backstory and facing his dilemma and angst along with him. The story moves across Europe at a breakneck pace and the action is fantastic.

The characters are excellent most of the time.

Jason himself is of-course an excellent protagonist. The other players are also believable. The only character I find a bit unbelievable and poorly written is Marie, the heroine.
A part of me feels like she suffers from Stockholm syndrome after being in such dangerous situations and her romance with Jason feels a bit rushed and stilted. She is still a very capable woman and an excellent foil to Jason and maybe Ludlum did what was needed for the plot.

The writing leaves a bit to be desired.

There are some sentences which just feel weird. There are also so many untranslated sentences in French and German. I think it’s too much to assume that a reader would be fluent in 3 languages to follow a book properly. These are minor gripes though, especially in this day and age. That’s what google translate and kindle are for.

If you want a good, original plot and characters that stand out, read this book. If however, you liked the movies and expect the same from the books then it probably won’t meet your expectations. Who knows? Maybe you’ll like it more, give it a shot.