The Bourne Identity.
Robert Ludlum.
541 Pages, Paperback.
Even though I had seen the movie of The Bourne Identity, I didn't recall much of it, which was one of the bigger reasons why I was inclined towards reading this book. Reading it made me feel a little like Jason Bourne: fragments, names, and faces coming back to me at irregular intervals, but with no context in which to place them.
The story is about a man who is discovered unconscious in the sea at Île de Port Noir, a small island on the coast of France. He has no memory and no name. A tiny microfilm implanted into his thigh bears a number which leads to a bank account in Zurich which contains 4 million dollars and his name, Jason Bourne!
It fascinated me that he starts with one clue: that somebody wants him dead, and at times of extreme distress and danger, he exhibits certain fighting and survival instincts, for which he has no explanation.
He finds himself caught between a rock and a hard place as he tries to understand his past, which comes back to him in flashes, remembering something or the other, a place, a building, a street.
The plot is set to a background of beautiful European scenery, jungles in the Far East, with the aid of modern technology, financial loopholes and wiring, and all without a mobile phone in sight.
Though it takes time to set your pace while reading this book, but when you get to that point : the Robert Ludlum’s spy-action thriller does not let up on suspense, mystery, or pace. Cliffhangers are not solely confined to the end of a chapter, but are scattered throughout at the end of paragraphs.
Submitted by- Arpit
1st year Electronics Hons
