The Matarese Countdown

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER “First-rate suspense.”—People Twenty years ago, top agents from the CIA and KGB banded together to bring down the Matarese Circle, an international cabal of power brokers and assassins whose sole objective was to achieve worldwide economic domination. Now the bloody Matarese dynasty is back—and the only man with the power to stop it may have already run out of time. CIA case officer Cameron Pryce is hot on the trail of the new Matarese alliance. His only chance to terminate its ruthless activities is to follow the trail of blood money and stone-cold killers right to the heart of its deadly conspiracy. From the Hamptons to London’s Belgrave Square, Matarese assassins have already struck with brutal efficiency, eliminating all who stand in their way. Their chain of violence is impossible to stop—until Pryce gets a rare break. One of the Matarese’s victims survives long enough to whisper dying words that will blow the case wide open: the top secret code name for legendary retired CIA agent Brandon Scofield—the only man who has ever infiltrated the Matarese inner circle and lived to tell about it. “Welcome to Robert Ludlum’s world . . . fast pacing, tight plotting, international intrigue.”—The Plain Dealer

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER “First-rate suspense.”—People Twenty years ago, top agents from the CIA and KGB banded together to bring down the Matarese Circle, an international cabal of power brokers and assassins whose sole objective was to achieve worldwide economic domination. Now the bloody Matarese dynasty is back—and the only man with the power to stop it may have already run out of time. CIA case officer Cameron Pryce is hot on the trail of the new Matarese alliance. His only chance to terminate its ruthless activities is to follow the trail of blood money and stone-cold killers right to the heart of its deadly conspiracy. From the Hamptons to London’s Belgrave Square, Matarese assassins have already struck with brutal efficiency, eliminating all who stand in their way. Their chain of violence is impossible to stop—until Pryce gets a rare break. One of the Matarese’s victims survives long enough to whisper dying words that will blow the case wide open: the top secret code name for legendary retired CIA agent Brandon Scofield—the only man who has ever infiltrated the Matarese inner circle and lived to tell about it. “Welcome to Robert Ludlum’s world . . . fast pacing, tight plotting, international intrigue.”—The Plain Dealer BONUS: This edition includes an excerpt from Robert Ludlum's The Bourne Identity.

An international circle of killers, the Matarese will undoubtedly take over the world within just two years. Only two rival spies have the power to stop them: Scofield, CIA, and Talaniekov, KGB. They share a genius for espionage and a life of explosive terror and violence. But though these sworn enemies once vowed to terminate each other, they must now become allies. Because only they possess the brutal skills and ice-cold nerves vital to their mission: destroy the Matarese. Praise for Robert Ludlum and The Matarese Circle “A blockbuster . . . Ludlum’s best.”—The Wall Street Journal “A spellbinder.”—The Dallas Morning News “Ludlum stuffs more surprises into his novels than any other six-pack of thriller writers combined.”—The New York Times “Don’t ever begin a Ludlum novel if you have to go to work the next day.”—Chicago Sun-Times BONUS: This edition includes an excerpt from Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Identity.

The Fourth Reich is waiting to be born. The only man who can stop it is about to sign its birth certificate. In 1945 the children of the Third Reich were secretly hidden all over the world-to be concealed until the 1970's, when they would come of age. Then the most elaborate plans and $780 million in a Swiss bank would be waiting. There would even be an unsuspecting outsider to set the plan into action. that outsider is Noel Holcroft, the American son of a high-ranking Nazi. He's just been shown an amazing document, the Holcroft Covenant. If he signs, it will be his own death warrant and a devastating threat to the security of the world.

The first collection of Ludlum's works ever to be published, this omnibus contains three of his most famous and bestselling thrillers, The Holcroft Covenant, The Matarese Circle, and The Bourne Identity, unavailable in hardcover elsewhere.

American agent Harry Latham has penetrated the fortresslike mountain hideaway of the Brotherhood of the Watch, a neo-Nazi organization that was born in the days after the fall of the Third Reich. But on the eve of his most spectacular success, after three years in deep cover, Harry disappears. Drew Latham, Special Officer for Consular Operations in Paris, is frantic to discover his older brother’s fate. But when Drew receives the good news that Harry has surfaced, gut-twisting doubts arise. For Harry has emerged with an explosive document: a list of secret supporters of the Brotherhood, among them high-ranking officials of the United States and its allies. But is it legitimate? The search for the truth about Harry and the growing Nazi threat will plunge Drew into a labyrinth of deceit and death. And whoever makes it out alive will hold the fate of the free world in his hands. Praise for Robert Ludlum and The Apocalypse Watch “A powerful, exploding novel . . . vintage Ludlum in fine form.”—Booklist “If a Pulitzer Prize were awarded for escapist fiction, Robert Ludlum undoubtedly would have won it. Ten times over.”—Mobile Register “Bloody great fun.”—Kirkus Reviews

The name on the computer screen is James Barbour Matlock, college professor and Vietnam veteran. He’s Washington’s choice to stop a far-reaching conspiracy in an undercover assignment destined to put his neck against the razor’s edge of danger. But the faceless men behind the scenes don’t care if it means savaging the woman he loves or trapping him in a maze of unrelenting terror. They just care about one thing: Matlock is the perfect man for the job—and the reason why is disturbing, explosive, and extremely deadly. Praise for Robert Ludlum and The Matlock Paper “A sure winner . . . fast paced, suspenseful, and bound to keep you turning the pages.”—The Denver Post “A 110% story all in overdrive . . . Ludlum writes better and better.”—Kirkus Reviews “Suspense, violence, and total readability.”—Chicago Tribune