Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Escape

In Freeman’s thrilling latest Bourne adventure (after The Bourne Vendetta), the amnesiac spy is dealt a devastating blow that returns the series to its roots. The novel opens in flashback, with a 20-something Bourne—using his birth name, David Webb—undergoing a deadly test from his brilliant and calculating mentor David “the Monk” Abbott. Bourne passes the test and is cleared to take assignments for Webb’s secret new espionage organization, Treadstone. In the present, Bourne is sailing in the Mediterranean with his girlfriend, fellow agent Johanna. The two are on the run from Russian assassins sent by Vladimir Putin and the head of Treadstone. One morning, Bourne wakes up floating alone on a piece of sailboat wreckage, suddenly wiped of all the memories he’d meticulously recovered over the series’ four-decade run. Again a blank slate, Bourne must relearn who he is while dodging those determined to kill him. Freeman keeps the plot’s hard reset from feeling too familiar by seizing the opportunity to fill in key questions about Bourne’s past. It’s a nostalgic treat for longtime series fans, and it sets up future entries for success. Agent: Deborah Gelfman, Gelfman Schneider. (July)