Before he took on the identity of Jason Bourne, David Webb was just a teacher in Zurich, living a quiet life. Things changed, of course, once Webb was recruited by Treadstone, a black ops agency operating way off the books and away from government oversight. His first mission involved taking on a neo-Nazi cell in Europe, followed by a final test that resulted in Webb suffering a brain injury that wiped his memory and left him without any recollection of the event or his time with Treadstone.
Readers know the rest from there—Webb becomes Jason Bourne and flips the script on Treadstone and everyone else who attempts to stand in his way.
With Bourne’s past fully explained and set after the events of The Bourne Defiance (2023), we catch back up with the former operative, who is once again attempting to live a quiet life. But when Bourne is spotted in Paris by a woman who knows him as David Webb, his past comes calling back in more ways than one. That woman, Johanna, is the sister of Bourne’s old fiance, Monika, who vanished after Bourne himself was tasked with killing her in what was supposed to be an act of absolute loyalty to Treadstone following his first mission. Nobody has seen Monika since, but Johanna reveals that she has reason to believe she’s not the only one looking for her sister. Finding her is of the utmost importance, but to do that, Bourne will have to revisit his past and make sense of it all before it’s too late. Things become more complicated, however, as each dark secret emerges, and old enemies rise back up to resume their war with Bourne, who must not only confront the horrors of his past but also go to war with those hunting him down in the present day.
Brian Freeman, a brilliant choice to take over and reboot Ludlum’s beloved hero, delivers another winner here. Faster and more action-packed than the Ludlum and Lustbader era of books, this new iteration of Jason Bourne is more in line with other darlings of the thriller world, such as Mitch Rapp, Scot Harvath, and James Reece. Here, Freeman’s genius lies in the seamless intertwining of past and present, as we see Bourne grappling with fragmented memories of a botched mission that demanded the ultimate sacrifice and how those tragic events still impact him today. There’s a ton of character development and plenty of questions finally answered, and without giving anything away, this is probably the most satisfying Bourne book since Ludlum was in his prime. Fans of Robert Ludlum’s original trilogy (and the film adaptations starring Matt Damon) will find themselves on the edge of their seats with this one. This is Bourne at his finest—dynamic, enigmatic, and unstoppable, and Freeman’s knack for crafting pulse-pounding action scenes, combined with his fresh take on Bourne’s amnesia, breathes new life into the series that’s fast become required reading for anyone seeking a high-concept, thrilling, and unputdownable reading experience.
Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Shadow, a must-read for any fan of high-octane espionage and a standout addition to the Jason Bourne saga, not only honors Ludlum’s legacy but also cements Brian Freeman as one of the top writers in the genre today. If you crave action, look no further.
Book Details
Author: Brian Freeman
Series: New Jason Bourne #5
Pages: 400 (Hardcover)
ISBN: 0593716450
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons
Release Date: July 16, 2024
