I think by this point people know what to expect from a Jason Bourne novel. This one does not disappoint.
It’s action packed and pacy, a perfect spy novel.
Once more the author does Robert Ludlum proud

An interesting one this, yes it is a “Bourne” thriller, but it feels more like a Treadstone thriller and three women have equal billing with Bourne.
Anyway, Bourne has a repeat of the actions of the very first book, action at sea and a loss of memory. As his memory comes back in bits, he struggles to find out why he was attacked and finds out his surrogate father might still be alive and in hiding. As is the tradition with these books, right from Ludlum’s original this is packed full of conspiracies and hidden agendas. And some very dangerous women who might be friend or foe. Is there anyone Bourne can trust.
Not a bad entry into the series, plenty of pace, different locations and plot twists.

Loved this one. It is pretty fast paced packed with action. I also like the callback to the beginning of the story.

The book brings back some interesting characters, vengeance and running against the clock. Recommend to all fans of the genre.

Thank you Aria & Aries and NetGalley for this e-arc in exchange of my unbiased review.

Thoroughly enjoyed this catch up with Jason Bourne. Plenty of action throughout the story revisits parts of the original and gives lots more information of his back story alongwith those from his past. The new story is engaging and will keep fans, old and new, thoroughly intrigued with the twists in the plot.

The Bourne Escape pulled me in from the first page. Brian Freeman nails the tension and twists, keeping Bourne in constant motion while the world closes in. The action is sharp, the betrayals sting, and just when I thought I had it figured out—bam, another layer unfolds. It felt like classic Bourne but with a modern edge that made it impossible to put down.

Very similar story to the original Jason Bourne story. I'm not sure how much of the story was completely original. It sometimes felt as if elements of the original were rehashed. Having said that, it was fairly enjoyable but not as good as the original Robert Ludlum novels.

The Bourne Escape almost brought us full circle back to the original storyline. He's on a boat, got a head injury and he's out for revenge! But there was a lot more nuance to the story than that. I did get a strong sense of Deja vu, as parts read almost like the original book but after meeting his old doctor, Washburn, the story does splinter off into a new storyline. Johanna had been a source of light for him before her death and it was interesting to see if he would unravel or become the cold, calculated Bourne/Cain once more.

It was nice to see that Putin is back in place as the epitome of Russian bad guy! With a mix of Russian and Treadstone forces seemingly both searching for him, Jason needs to solve a new mystery as to who wants him dead this time.

There is plenty of action and betrayal (from the pinnacle of the US government which is pretty believable in the current political climate!). I loved finding some of my favourite secondary characters coming back to visit. David Abbott (aka Monk), Jason's mentor; Shadow, his handler, and Holly Schultz, as the Director of the CIA, all make an appearance as well as a plethora of former spies and paramours!

We move along at a fair pace and the blend of fiction and real world politics is well crafted. We do zoom around the world a lot, Jason never really finding a safe harbour anywhere for long.

My thanks to the publisher for this review copy and also my thanks to NetGalley and the author, having been a Ludlum and Bourne fan this is my honest feedback based on my reading this book.

Jason Bourne is back and honestly, I didn’t realize how much I missed him until I was 30 pages in and completely hooked. Brian Freeman has truly found his stride in Ludlum’s world. This latest entry is fast-paced, sharply written, and surprisingly introspective for a thriller. Yes, there’s action (plenty of it), but there’s also a lot going on under the surface. For most of the first part of the book the seasoned reader of Bourne canon would get a feeling that this book is a reboot of the original Ludlum book which introduced the world to Jason Bourne before the story changes.

Bourne feels more human in this book and Brian has referred to the OG to bring this attribute to life. There’s a vulnerability to him that adds weight to the story, he’s still the lethal force we know, but he’s also a man haunted by what he’s lost, what he’s forgotten and more importantly what he’s becoming. That inner struggle made the action matter more. He’s not just running or fighting; he is also questioning why he still does either.

Brian Freeman does a great job weaving modern espionage themes deep-fakes, disinformation, shadow ops into a plot that feels very current, without losing the classic Bourne energy. There is a new character, who cis mysterious, morally gray and just the right amount of unhinged, traits which appealed to me in this story.

Minor gripes - a few slower patches of exposition bogged down the pacing in the third act and not all character motivations landed as strongly as I hoped.
But overall? This was a super satisfying, cinematic read.

If you’re already a fan of the Bourne series, this will feel like a return to form. And if you're new to it? You’ll still enjoy the ride just maybe you may need to keep Google handy for a few backstory clarifications or you may just enjoy the ride.

This is a super recommendation for Spy thriller fans, readers who enjoy morally complex characters and anyone craving a globe-trotting escape with brains and bullets.

I recently had the opportunity to read an ARC of The Bourne Escape, written by Brian Freeman and published by G.P.Putnam's Sons. I had received the ARC copy of the novel from the fine folks at NetGalley.com, and for that, I am grateful.

I had been fortunate enough to have read the previous entry into the Bourne Universe (The Bourne Vendetta), which had been released earlier this year (January 2025), written by Brian Freeman. Imagine my surprise when I open my email and the publisher has reached out and asked if I would be interested in reading and reviewing the latest entry, The Bourne Escape, in the Bourne-Universe. This book is scheduled to be released on 29 July 2025.

"Robert Ludlum's The Bourne Escape," the 21st book in the Jason Bourne series written by Brian Freeman, continues the fast-paced, action-packed narrative fans expect.

The Bourne Escape felt like The Bourne Identity 2.0, which was a great book to start the Bourne series (written by Robert Ludlum over forty-five years ago) in which the protagonist was pulled from the Mediterranean and treated by a benevolent but Drunken English doctor named Washburn.

This story begins with Jason Bourne (the protagonist who was originally named David Webb, but who now carries the code name “Cain”) and his current love, Johanna, aboard a boat anchored off the coast of France. They are being hunted by forces from both sides.

One team of hunters is most assuredly Russian, who are at the orders of (Vladimir) Putin. Vladimir Putin is determined to find and punish Jason Bourne after the Treadstone agent kills Putin’s personal assassin, Lennon, who was a mole in the agency. The other hunters appear to be Treadstone, the private intelligence organization for whom Jason Bourne had once worked as an assassin and spy. The CIA also appears to be seeking him.

The story sees Bourne once again losing his memory after a violent attack on his boat, and he must piece together his past while navigating a treacherous world of espionage, betrayal, and powerful adversaries. Those familiar with the Bourne series of movies will recall that Bourne had previously lost his memory after being shot in the head (in fact, almost the first third of the book – I think the number was 28% - read like a retelling of the origin story of the Jason Bourne character from The Bourne Identity). After an intense firefight with a group of would-be assassins, the boat is sabotaged and explodes, hurling both Jason and Johanna into the stormy sea. Jason awakens floating on a piece of driftwood in the Mediterranean Sea. He has no idea whether Johanna has survived the explosion, and he does not see or hear her. Once again, he is rescued by French fishermen, and once again, he makes his way to the same doctor who treated him the first time he was injured. At this point, the story is off and running with this new plot.

This premise in itself is brilliant enough that it’s been repurposed in countless other films and stories (including The Long Kiss Goodnight, XIII and Noir) to the point that assassins and amnesia have become almost inseparable in popular culture, and that it managed to serve as the entire plot (not just premise) for the blockbuster series of Matt Damon Bourne movies in the early part of the century.

The second plot line that comes to play more than a fleeting part in this novel is that we discover that the current Vice President of the United States (and potential successor to the leading power in the free world), Adam Hill, had been providing intelligence to the Chinese CCP government,

The book reunites a lot of former characters from Jason's past and tells some background info about the years past till now.

Some of these characters from Bourne's past include the former head of the clandestine black ops intelligence service Treadstone, David Abbott (aka Monk), who, as the son of an auto industry had previously had roots in the CIA (showing how the intelligence agencies were interwoven with the black ops world of Treadstone) . He was the surrogate father figure/mentor for David Webb (aka Jason Bourne, aka Cain), as Webb had lived with him for ten years following the death of his parents, as well as the man who had initially recruited him to be one of the initial pillars of Treadstone. Abbott was believed to have been killed some years earlier. The reports of David Abbott’s death having been greatly exaggerated, Bourne must track him down. He was safely hidden away but placed himself in danger in an attempt to denounce the vice president, and is now missing.

Another one of the characters playing a large part in the story is Johanna (born Annie, whose background story plays a relatively strong part in the novel), Bourne's on-again, off-again
Amour, who was suspected to be deceased following the explosion of the fishing boat in the first section of the novel.

Another character is Shadow (born Marlen, aka Monika Roth), a spy chief and former assistant to David Abbott, who is the current head of Treadstone, with her agenda, working closely with Holly Schultz, head of the CIA.

One of the other major characters that plays a part in this story is Adam Hill, the current Vice President of the United States, who had been compromised as a former senator with a dark secret and is proving to be a threat to his past victim (Johanna) and the man who loves her (Jason). He has been compromised due to his past actions and is now being threatened, as he sits on the House Intelligence Committee, into passing secrets to the Chinese. This character could be considered a modern version of “The Manchurian Candidate”, which is a term referring to a person (especially a politician) being used as a puppet by an enemy power. The term is a reference to the 1959 political thriller of the same name by Richard Condon, where a soldier had been brainwashed to exert influence on the outcome of the US elections.

Hill's input to this novel is further exemplified by the actions of a Treadstone agent, code-named Vandal (born Sylene Jasper), as she serves as the physical tip of the spear for him. Her role in this novel is that she is working as a double agent, while working as an agent for Treadstone and is serving as a spy for Holly Schultz of the CIA (whose actions and directives are influenced by Adam Hill).

Holly Schultz, who is vision impaired, is the head of the CIA and is working under the influence and at the behest of Adam Hill.

There are many more minor characters referred to or involved in the action, including retired spies, mercenaries, and past lovers. The actions of these characters and how they are interwoven provide truth to a line from the book that rings true in both fiction and in life - "In Washington. everyone has a knife to everyone else's neck".

As in the past, an important motive behind all the action is the Files, an AI engine combined with a hacked database, developed by the Chinese and a threat (there are oh so many threats!) to lives and careers.

Freeman tells a fast paced and thrilling tale, that will keep the reader turning pages late into the evening hours, that races along in the Bourne universe but also manages to weave in individuals from the real world as not only are the prototypical arch-nemesis (“The Russians”) involved in the beginning of the book but also as Bourne has a face to face sit down with Putin who decides to use him as a pawn in his war against Ukraine (to become the first Westerner to be killed in World War III).

The Bourne Escape is more than a fast-paced, action-oriented thriller with a strong political element. It exposes the reader to some semblance of romantic undercurrents. The majority of the story takes place in Europe, with geographic settings that include Bulgaria, France, Greece, Italy, Russia, and Ukraine, with some parts taking place in the United States.

On my self-determined five-star scale, I would give The Bourne Escape a solid four stars, as even though some parts feel like they’re tying up loose ends, the story still feels fresh and exciting. If you enjoy spy thrillers and political intrigue, this one is worth picking up. A strong entry in the Bourne series! The Bourne Escape is more than a political thriller, sure to be a favourite for those aficionados of the previous greats, such as Clancy, Follett, Le Carre, Ludlum, and the current greats such as Flynn and Thor.

As with all my literary ramblings, these are just a few of my five cents' worth.

Bourne is back and he's lost his memory again. He finds himself out at sea (again), wondering who he is and who he can trust. A fast paced trip around Europe ensues as Bourne seeks out the truth.

Despite this being the 21st book in the series, the action never dries up and Bourne's character never gets stale. It's pure escapism at its best and well worth a second read.

I wasn’t as big a fan of this instalment as I have been of previous books. It seemed to take a long time to get going and I questioned if I had read it before. With Jason Bourne losing his memory again and plots of previous novels being mentioned again it’s not hard to see why. Overall maybe a little bit of a lazy book, entertaining but ultimately not all that exciting. Thank you to Netgalley for the advance reader copy.

An easy read, certainly full of action where Bourne spends most of the book fleeing from various adversaries, none of whom he is sure he can trust.
I enjoyed the pace and thought it well written.

Shocked to find this is book 21 in the Jason Bourne series, how did I miss this, I haven’t read any since the original trilogy! However, that didn’t matter and I’m sure other fans of Bourne will love this adrenaline fuelled adventure of their hero. The action never lets up but there are a lot of characters to get your head around and some of those have multiple names, a bit confusing.

Briefly, Bourne finds himself drifting at sea and all he can remember is that he was on a boat that blew up. He has lost his memory again! Rescued, his memory starts returning in dribs and drabs but his main thoughts are that there was a woman on board and that Putin is seeking revenge on Jason for killing his agent, one of his top assassins. Meanwhile there is a traitor in Washington who also wants him dead and will go to any means possible to achieve that. As Bourne starts to recover he finds himself being chased ruthlessly whilst he is searching for his mentor David who has gone missing.

Honestly, it was a bit of a complex storyline, with so much going on. Interesting that there were a number of female killers in the book, not something you see often, and they are all both very pretty and totally ruthless, a la James Bond! A fast paced and exciting thriller, violent with a lot of dead bodies killed in a variety of methods. Keeps you on the edge of your seat. Entertaining read.

This is an exciting, action packed adventure, filled with thrills and spills! Bourne is a worthy hero in this fast paced romp across Europe as Bourne goes round in circles and the body count rises. A very good topical thriller with world events as they are today. Perfect for lovers of adventure thrillers. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

4* A good intro for me to a character I'd heard about but never been interested in (because of the actor who played him) until now. Very Bond-y, but strangely believable with digs at current affairs, and because of the motivation of the self-described omniscient playmaker.

OK, well this book doesn't let up from the minute it starts. There are 5 female characters of varying importance, one of whom is blind, who're seemingly as strong, well trained, determined, and emotionally detached as any male killer-for-hire. Wow. Unexpected but strangely believable. I didn't get to like any of them, because all had betrayed each other to a degree, some were double agents, some were blinkered, and all were coldhearted killers. Not even a lovely guide dog loving its owner could redeem said owner. But good on the doggy for not trusting a person who ended up kind of getting what he deserved, but also not, because that kind of evil betrayer deserved to be shown up publicly, not let off the hook to a degree. I wish I could've seen a MAGA meltdown at the actual video reveal, sadly good on abused Annie for getting her revenge.

Jason/Cain is a more modern, less misogynistic take on 007, 'loving' the woman he's with until the woman (he thinks) he loves comes back into his life. He's actually a far less visible, almost not-quite-as-capable a character as say, Shadow, a future playmaker who's a woman of many secrets, power and mystery. One who's the product of her upbringing and brainwashing at the hands of the playmaker that she'll likely take over from one day.

I liked the Chinese-agent aspect of the tale, which is pretty much a take on The Cheeto being an agent of Russia, but, what a cop out, worthy of MAGA spinners/strategists. I liked the encounter with 'Putin', although it didn't feel remotely believable. I liked the reveal about 'Putin's' M.O., about his plans for the West, about his manipulation of word events. Did it feel believable? All too much, sadly and scarily. All maybe closer to the truth than most will dare to admit. Where's Seal Team 6 when you need them?

This was a very visual romp of a tale, au Bond. Very entertaining.

ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Head of Zeus/Bloomsbury, for my reading pleasure.

Once again Jason Bourne is caught in an explosion and plucked from the sea. Once again he has lost his memory with only flashes leaving him uncertain who he can trust and what kind of man was he. Who is trying to kill him and why? Jason Bourne has always been one of my favorite characters. I enjoyed and recommend this novel.

I've received email requesting me to read this novel. Perhaps reason for publisher to contact me directly was that I've much appreciated previous Jason Bourne story. Naturally, I've only wanted to read through while following previous novel storyline (I believe I have completed in Feb.). I must say while I really admired Johanna and Cain I found it of course sad when I was at last pages of the novel. Nevertheless, writer is knowledgeable on this subject, proven specialist in surveillance stories. This is my go to book for this year actually two of them this year and hopefully new work is coming as well.
Pleased to be on publisher list and would without doubt recommend this.

Caught in an explosion Jason Bourne is forced again to seek answers. A suspenful novel that keeps you reading. I could not put it down until I had finished it. Highly recommended.