The Janson Directive

By: Robert Ludlum

Narrated by: Paul Michael

Length: 20 hrs and 52 mins

Publisher's summary

One of the world's greatest men has been kidnapped! Nobel laureate, financier, and philanthropist Peter Novak - a billionaire committed to fostering global democracy through his Liberty Foundation - has been captured by the Caliph, a near-mythical terrorist who plans to execute him in a matter of days.

Running out of time and hope, Novak's people turn to a man with a history of defeating impossible odds: Paul Janson. For decades, Janson was a legendary covert operative and assassin. Now he has retired, and nothing could lure him back - nothing except Peter Novak, who once saved Janson's life.

Backed by the considerable resources of the Liberty Foundation, Janson assembles a crack extraction team to rescue Novak from his fortress prison. But the operation goes horribly wrong and Janson is marked for death, the target of a "beyond salvage" order.

Now he is running for his life, pursued by Jessica Kincaid, an agent who, as a student of Janson's own lethal arsenal of tactics, can anticipate his every move. To survive, Janson must outrace a conspiracy that has gone beyond the control of its creators. To win, he must counter it with a conspiracy of his own. Janson's only hope is to uncover the nearly unimaginable truth behind these events - a secret that has the power to foment wars, topple governments, and change the course of history.

©2002 Myn Pyn LLC (P)2002 Audio Renaissance, a Division of Holtzbrinck Publishers, LLC

Critic reviews

"All the trademarked Ludlum gifts of plotting, pacing, and suspense are on full display in this engrossing mystery." (Amazon.com)
"Vintage Ludlum - big, brawny, and loaded with surprises." (Publishers Weekly)
"A marvel of stunning physical detail...Ludlum's best since The Bourne Identity." (Kirkus Reviews)

Another Ludlum Pleaser!

In typical fashion, Robert Ludlum has created a fast paced story of international intrigue. His precise descriptions help immensely in this audiobook format. What makes all of his stories worthwhile is the plausibilty that it could happen.

Captivating

Great story line and exceptional narrator. His voice changes with the characters and makes for enjoyable listening.

A real drag !

Ludlum likes to use $10 words in a $1 sentence. Makes for difficult reading --- and very difficult listening.

The Janson Directive

A real page turner, that is if it were a hard back :-)

Like Watching a Bourne Movie for Hours and Hours

The story inspired questions and suspense, which made it impossible to unplug. The writing is snappy and alive, without breaking the "dumb down" barrier. It was not saturated with unnecessary words, either. I enjoyed it from the first word to the last, and was disappointed when it was over. It made me log in and get another Ludlum immediately.
The narrator did a good job. Not spectacular, like Frank Muller, but he nailed the accents and kept me wanting more.

OK

Very long for the plot. Performance was very good. It becomes very complicated and and not believable, (I don't thing an agent of any organization could get away with speaking to POTUS the way Janson did), hey, but that's just me!😄

Thrilling and action packed

Ludlum has woven a fine thriller that just made it to the top of my favorite listens. The covert operations and spy sequences in this audiobook were phenomenal, and kept me itching for more. Every time I thought that I knew what was going to happen next, I was proven wrong. As a story alone this book is great, but there's more. Paul Michael does a fantastic job of narrating this book while keeping the separate characters in check. Each voice is distinct, and it really helps ease into Ludlum's style. I like this book better than the Bourne series, and that is a compliment. Get it.

Fair warning!

The plot was VERY predictable. I felt like the author was giving details on various subjects just to show his research - this was my impression in quite a few places. The characters (even the protagonist) were rather two dimensional. On the flipside, the reader did a good job. The book wasn't bad or anything, but it's been sitting poorly with me. Fair warning!

Fun listen

This was quite an enjoyable piece of fiction. Plenty of action and suspense kept me interested and character development was nicely done for the most part.
The narration was excellent, one of the best narrators I have ever heard. There are tons of different accents and he nailed them, it would have been really annoying if he did a poor job.
The plot had some good twists and turns though ultimately was a bit, well, odd. I know a big point of the story is that bureaucrats have little foresight but the mistake they made was a bit far-fetched. Oh well, it was still enjoyable.

Great book

Wonderful! The suspense is great the way ludlum can unfold a story is a truly amazing thing. Could be slightly faster moving jansen is stumbling around for a long time before he figures out squat!