From Publishers Weekly
After a 30-year career that engendered dozens of bestselling novels of international intrigue, Ludlum died in the spring of 2001, just before publication of The Cassandra Compact, the second title in the Covert-One biotech series. This third Covert-One opus co-written with spy novelist Gayle Lynds (Mosaic), who also worked on the first Covert-One epic, The Hades Factor reprises the over-the-top, almost parodic tone of its predecessors with more antics from undercover agent army Lt. Col. Jonathan Smith, M.D. A horrific explosion destroys the Paris lab of computer genius Emile Chambord on the eve of his breakthrough in the development of a revolutionary molecular DNA computer that has the ability to control virtually all the world's computerized operations. Overnight, military satellites, international data banks and worldwide communications threaten to crash. Faced with the enormity of this malevolent power play, Dr. Jon Smith sets out to find the perpetrators. Arriving in Paris just as Chambord's daughter, Th‚rŠse, is being abducted, Smith trails the terrorists to Toledo, Spain. Just when this thrilling setup promises a return to vintage Ludlum, Smith's corny pals, CIA spook Randi Russell and British MI6 spy Peter Howell, pop up and they all go bumbling across Europe to avert a nuclear holocaust. Gainsaying the old saw, "You can't take it with you," Ludlum bequeaths yet another ghostly burlesque of his fabled plotting talents.Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.


From AudioFile
Jon Smith, agent for the ultra-secret Covert One, is called in yet again to unravel the identity of the bombers of the Louis Pasteur Institute, where a DNA computer has been destroyed, along with its inventor, Emile Chambord, and Jon's friend, Marty Zellerbach. Many plot twists ensue as Smith teams up with CIA Agent Randy Russell and MI6 operative Peter Howell. Paul Michael calmly begins this tale of intrigue and ratchets up the tension in each succeeding chapter. Michael follows each character from continent to continent, operation by operation, ably switching accents and phrasing to suit the myriad characters Ludlum is famous for. THE PARIS OPTION pits European and American values against those of Islamist extremists in a startling spy novel. M.B.K. © AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine


Book Description
For thirty years, Robert Ludlum's novels have set the standard for the finest in international intrigue and suspense. With an unbroken string of bestsellers in almost every country in the world, his books have been enjoyed by hundreds of millions of readers and are widely acknowledged as classics in the field. Now, after the bestselling Covert-One novels The Hades Factor and The Cassandra Compact, comes the third thrilling novel in the series.

A fiery explosion in the dark of night shatters one of the laboratory buildings in Paris's esteemed Pasteur Institute. Among the dead is Emile Chambord, one of the leaders in the global race to create a molecular or DNA computer. Unfortunately, Professor Chambord kept the details of his work secret, and his notes were apparently destroyed in either the bomb blast or the raging fire that followed. Under the cover of visiting his friend Marty Zellerbach, who was severely injured when the Pasteur lab was destroyed, Covert-One agent Jon Smith flies to Paris to search for the connection between the Pasteur explosion and the forces now wielding the computer. Following a trail that leads him across two continents, Smith uncovers a web of deception that threatens to wreck havoc and forever reshape the world.



From the Inside Flap
OUTSTANDING PRAISE FOR ROBER T LUDLUM'S

THE PROMETHEUS DECEPTION

"His most ingenious novel yet...a dead-on picture of contemporary corporate strategy." -The New Yorker

"Readers will remain in the dark right up until the explosive climax...THE PROMETHEUS DECEPTION will not disappoint."-San Francisco Chronicle

"His best thriller yet."--Kirkus Reviews

"This is a rousing thriller with all the trademarks of a Ludlum bestseller...heart-pounding...fast-paced...explosive. Ludlum delivers again another top-notch international thriller sure to please...heart-pounding chase scenes, devastating double-crosses, gut-wrenching twists, fast-paced action, fierce confrontations, pressure that ratchets up to an explosive conclusion, and, as always, authentic international locales, high-tech gadgetry, and sophisticated spycraft."-Library Journal

"A page-turner of nonstop action that should leave his fans begging for more."--New York Post

"Reading a Ludlum novel is like watching a James Bond film...slickly paced...all-consuming."-Entertainment Weekly

"Ludlum's latest is a spy thriller that should keep even the most experienced readers guessing...The pace is fast, the action plentiful...a must-read."-Booklist

"If true mystery-mystery in the plot and mystery as to the true nature of principal characters-is the measure of a great mystery writer, then Ludlum just proved himself one of the best." -Austin American-Statesman

"A 1984 for the new millennium...a fast-paced cloak-and-dagger tale. By the end the reader will be left with the chilling feeling that just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they aren't out to get you."-The Commercial Appeal (TN)

"Robert Ludlum continues to jolt his readers with fresh juice...a page-turner of nonstop action that should leave his fans begging for more."-New York Post

OVERWHELMING ACCLAIM FOR THE NOVELS OF ROBERT LUDLUM

"Ludlum is light years beyond his literary competition in piling plot twist upon plot twist, until the mesmerized reader is held captive...[He] dominates the field in strong, tightly plotted, adventure-drenched thrillers. Ludlum pulls out all the stops and dazzles his readers."-Chicago Tribune

"Ludlum stuffs more surprises into his novels than any other six pack of thriller writers combined." -The New York Times

"Welcome to Robert Ludlum's world...fast pacing, tight plotting, international intrigue." -The Plain Dealer

"Robert Ludlum is the master of gripping, fast-moving intrigue. He is unsurpassed at weaving a tapestry of stunningly diverse figures, then assembling them in a sequence so gripping that the reader's attention never wavers." -The Daily Oklahoman

"Don't ever begin a Ludlum novel if you have to go to work the next day."
-Chicago Sun-Times

"If a Pulitzer Prize were awarded for escapist fiction, Robert Ludlum undoubtedly would have won it. Ten times over."-Mobile Register

"An exciting medical-military thriller that moves at a rapid pace to its climax...an exciting new series."-Midwest Book Review

"A pop hit...that should bounce right up the bestseller lists."-Kirkus Reviews

"Gripping...robust writing and a breakneck pace."-Boston Herald



About the Author
Robert Ludlum is the author of twenty-two novels published in thirty-two languages and forty countries. Read by hundreds of millions world-wide, his books include The Scarlatti Inheritance, The Chancellor Manuscript, The Aquitaine Progression, The Icarus Agenda, The Bourne Indentity, The Hades Factor, and The Prometheus Deception. He divides his time between homes in Florida and Montana.

Gayle Lynds is the bestselling author of Masquerade, Mosaic, and Mesmerized, all highly praised novels of international suspense. A former newspaper reporter and magazine editor, Lynds also worked at a think tank where she had top-secret security clearance.



Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Paris, France
Monday, May 5

The first warm winds of spring gusted along Paris's narrow back streets and broad boulevards, calling winter-weary residents out into the night. They thronged the sidewalks, strolling, linking arms, filling the chairs around outdoor cafe tables, everywhere smiling and chatting. Even the tourists stopped complaining-this was the enchanting Paris promised in their travel guides.

Occupied with their glasses of vin ordinaire under the stars, the spring celebrators on the bustling rue de Vaugirard did not notice the large black Renault van with darkened windows that left the busy street for the boulevard Pasteur. The van circled around the block, down the rue du Dr Roux, and at last entered the quiet rue des Volontaires, where the only action was of a young couple kissing in a recessed doorway.

The black van rolled to a stop outside L'Institut Pasteur, cut its engine, and turned off its headlights. It remained there, silent, until the young couple, oblivious in their bliss, disappeared inside a building across the street.

The van's doors clicked open, and four figures emerged clothed completely in black, their faces hidden behind balaclavas. Carrying compact Uzi submachine guns and wearing backpacks, they slipped through the night, almost invisible. A figure materialized from the shadows of the Pasteur Institute and guided them onto the grounds, while the street behind them remained quiet, deserted.

Out on the rue de Vaugirard, a saxophonist had begun to play, his music throaty and mellow. The night breeze carried the music, the laughter, and the scent of spring flowers in through the open windows of the multitude of buildings at the Pasteur. The famed research center was home to more than twenty-five hundred scientists, technicians, students, and administrators, and many still labored into the night.

The intruders had not expected so much activity. On high alert, they avoided the paths, listening, watching the windows and grounds, staying close to trees and structures as the sounds of the springtime gaiety frown the rue de Vaugirard increased.

But in his laboratory, all outside activity was lost on Dr. Emile Chambord, who sat working alone at his computer keyboard on the otherwise unoccupied second floor of his building. His lab was large, as befitted one of the institute's most distinguished researchers. It boasted several prize pieces of equipment, including a robotic gene-chip reader and a scanning-tunneling microscope, which measured and moved individual atoms. But more personal and far more critical to him tonight were the files near his left elbow and, on his other side, a spiral-bound notebook, which was open to the page on which he was meticulously recording data.

His fingers paused impatiently on the keyboard, which was connected to an odd-looking apparatus that appeared to have more in common with an octopus than with IBM or Compaq. Its nerve center was contained in a temperature-controlled glass tray, and through its sides, one could see silver-blue gel packs immersed like translucent eggs in a jellied, foam-like substance. Ultra-thin tubing connected the gel packs to one another, while atop them sat a lid. Where it interfaced with the gel packs was a coated metallic plate. Above it all stood an iMac-sized machine with a complicated control panel on which lights blinked like impulsive little eyes. From this machine, more tubing sprouted, feeding into the pack array, while wires and cables connected both the tray and the machine to the keyboard, a monitor, a printer, and assorted other electronic devices.

Dr. Chambord keyboarded in commands, watched the monitor, read the dials on the iMac-sized machine, and continually checked the temperature of the gel packs in the tray. He recorded data in his notebook as he worked, until he suddenly sat back and studied the entire array. Finally, he gave an abrupt nod and typed a paragraph of what appeared to be gibberish-letters, numbers, and symbols-and activated a timer.

His foot tapped nervously, and his fingers drummed the lab bench. But in precisely twelve seconds, the printer came to life and spat out a sheet of paper. Controlling his excitement, he stopped the timer and made a note. At last he allowed himself to snatch up the printout.

As he read, he smiled. "Mais, oui."

Dr. Chambord took a deep breath and typed small clusters of commands. Sequences appeared on his screen so fast that his fingers could not keep up. He muttered inaudibly as he worked. Moments later, he tensed, leaned closer to the monitor, and whispered in French, ". . . one more . . . one . . . more . . . there!"

He laughed aloud, triumphant, and turned to look at the clock on the wall. It read 9:55 p.m. He recorded the time and stood up.

His pale face glowing, he stuffed his files and notebook into a battered briefcase and took his coat from the old-fashioned Empire wardrobe near the door. As he put on his hat, he glanced again at the clock and returned to his contraption. Still standing, he keyboarded another short series of commands, watched the screen for a time, and finally shut everything down. He walked briskly to the door, opened it onto the corridor, and, observed that it was dim and deserted. For a moment, he had a sense of foreboding.

Then he shook it off. Non, he reminded himself: This was a moment to be savored, a great achievement. Smiling broadly, he stepped into the shadowy hall. Before he could close the door, four black-clothed figures surrounded him.

Thirty minutes later, the wiry leader of the intruders stood watch as his three companions finished loading the black van on the rue des Volontaires. As soon as the side door closed, he appraised the quiet street once more and hopped into the passenger seat. He nodded to the driver, and the van glided away toward the crowded rue de Vaugirard, where it disappeared in traffic.

The lighthearted revelry on the sidewalks and in the cafes and tabacs continued. More street musicians arrived, and the vin ordinaire flowed like the Seine. Then, without warning, the building that housed Dr. Chambord's laboratory on the legendary Pasteur campus exploded in a rolling sheet of fire. The earth shook as flames seemed to burst from every window and combust up toward the black night sky in a red-and-yellow eruption of terrible heat visible for miles around. As bricks, sparks, glass, and ash rained down, the throngs on the surrounding streets screamed in terror and ran for shelter.

Copyright 2002 by Myn Pyn LLC

FROM OUR EDITORS

The Barnes & Noble Review
Known for plots that start off in a darkly humorous fashion and quickly descend into terror, Peter Abrahams (Lights Out, The Fan, The Last of the Dixie Heroes) writes edge-of-your-seat novels of obsession and violence. With his characteristic flair for complex characterizations, his suspense novel The Tutor sets a sociopath loose in a so-called normal American family with gripping and bizarre consequences.

Brandon Gardner is a troubled, rebellious teen skidding toward juvenile delinquency. When he scores low on his SATs, his parents hire handsome, perceptive, refined tutor Julian Sawyer to help Brandon get his act together. They are quickly pleased with the results, and before they know it, Julian is helping them overcome their own disappointments in life, as well.

Only Brandon's precocious 11-year-old sister, Ruby -- a major Sherlock Holmes fan -- suspects that everything is not as it appears. Julian is writing a novel and using the Gardners as test characters he can manipulate, invading their lives and discovering secrets simply so he can demolish each member in turn. Telling lies and leaving false evidence of drug use about the house, he begins to set the family members at odds with one another; offering phony stock tips, he attempts to destroy their financial stability; soon, he also involves the police by making anonymous complaints....

Abrahams is wonderfully adept at building psychological thrills. His narrative voice is supple and inviting, and the tension he creates leaves you uncertain where reality truly lies. The protagonists are all delightfully eccentric, sympathetic, and amusing. In The Tutor Abrahams has written not only a masterwork of suspense but also one of the most emotionally elaborate, witty, and heartfelt novels of his career. This is an innovative, disturbing, compelling tale that will entangle you in its taut web. Tom Piccirilli

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"When Scott and Linda Gardner hire Julian Sawyer to tutor their troubled teenage son, Brandon, he seems like the answer to a prayer. Capable and brilliant, Julian connects with Brandon in a way neither of his parents can. He also effortlessly helps Linda to salvage a troubled business deal and gives Scott expert advice on his tennis game. Only eleven-year-old Ruby - funny, curious, devoted to Sherlock Holmes - has doubts about the stranger in their midst who has so quickly become like a member of the family. But even the observant Ruby is far from understanding Julian's true designs on the Gardners." For Julian, the Gardners are like specimens in jars, creatures to be studied - and manipulated. Scott is a gambler with no notion of odds, festering in the shadow of his more successful brother. Linda is ambitious, hungry for the cultured stimulation Julian easily provides. Brandon is risking his future late at night in the town woods. And Ruby - well, she's just a silly little girl. And in that miscalculation lies the Gardner family's only possible salvation.

SYNOPSIS

Master of psychological suspense Peter Abrahams returns with an ingenious tale of an ordinary family that unknowingly invites the agent of their destruction into their own home.

When Scott and Linda Gardner hire Julian Sawyer to tutor their troubled teenage son Brandon, he seems like the answer to a prayer.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Remember Norman Bates, the cyber-creep from Hitchcock's Psycho? Julian Sawyer, the title character in Abrahams's latest suspense yarn, is clearly cut from the same cloth a creep in sheep's clothing. Once again this author finds menace in dailiness, as he creates a scenario that's firmly grounded in real life, but which becomes increasingly (and fascinatingly) skewed Leave It to Beaver meets I Know What You Did Last Summer. Things begin routinely enough when Linda and Scott Gardner hire Julian to improve the less-than-acceptable SAT scores of their teenage son, Brandon. But before you can say "just like Norman Bates," the seemingly affable, helpful Julian earns the Gardners' trust and subtly exploits each family member's weakness in an attempt to topple their suburban house of cards. While Abrahams slowly ratchets up the tension, readers will discover that professional backstabbing, financial ruin and even murder are all within the scope of this tutor's lesson plans. As usual, the author's ear for the diverse details of everyday life is sharp; indeed, our empathy with these characters' recognizable quirks cleverly serves as a sort of buffer against the sinister goings-on until it's nearly too late. Though all the characters here are deftly drawn (even Zippy, the Gardners' pooch, demonstrates an endearing personality in a brief, nonspeaking role), one merits special mention: not only is the immensely precocious Ruby Gardner passionate about Sherlock Holmes and anything colored blue and yellow, but she's wise well beyond her 11 years and almost smart enough to outfox Julian. Put it this way: if The Tutor were a TV show, Ruby would be spun off into her own series in a Hollywood minute. (July) Forecast: Parents bemoaning prep course costs will enjoy seeing their darkest imaginings enacted, and fans will be snagged by sample chapters in mass market editions of Last of the Dixie Heroes, The Fan and Lights Out. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

Frothy as a double latte with extra foam, Heller's latest romantic satire (after Female Intelligence) playfully follows the misadventures of Elizabeth Baskin, a dissatisfied wife searching for a magic potion to revitalize her husband, Roger, only to discover that quick fixes can be disastrous. She's a finicky hotel field inspector spy for AMLP, America's Most Luxurious Properties, who's almost ready to downgrade her own marriage as uninhabitable. Roger, an overworked real estate lawyer, has developed a paunch, a bald spot and a penchant for going to bed at 11 instead of making love till dawn. He drools and drops crumbs everywhere when he eats, and she yearns for the old romance of their first meeting when he rescued her from a breakdown on the "dreaded 405," a Southern California freeway. Brenda, who's Elizabeth's well-meaning sister and a celebrity-obsessed journalist, suggests Dr. Gordon Farkus, a Beverly Hills "specialist in life enhancement." Elizabeth buys into the trendy hocus-pocus and purchases a "stud stimulant" to drop into her hubby's fresh-squeezed orange juice, but in her eagerness to rev up Rog, she overdoses him and suddenly her sweet but dull husband becomes a sexy but terribly self-absorbed hunk no woman can resist. Mortified by the havoc she's wrought, Elizabeth decides to ask for the antidote, only to discover the notorious "life enhancer" has split town. Featuring fun-filled shenanigans played out against L.A. area and resort backdrops, not to mention some rugged adventures on nearby Mt. Baldy, the novel zips along like the latest issue of People and packs the punch of a big bite of pink cotton candy good for a sticky smile on a lazy afternoon. Agent, Ellen Levine. Author tour. (Feb. 11) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

Abrahams (Last of the Dixie Heroes) is in great form with this psychological thriller featuring a suburban family and its deranged tutor/confidant. When Brandon Gardner lets his school work slip and does poorly on the SATs, his parents hire a tutor. Coming with excellent credentials from a local tutoring service, Julian Sawyer does a wonderful job; he really seems to connect with Brandon, becoming his friend and mentor. The family soon embraces Julian, who in turn gives business advice to Brandon's mom and stock tips to his dad. Eleven-year-old Ruby is the only family member Julian doesn't quite win over, for she senses that he has another agenda. What the Gardners don't know is that Julian is also working on his new creation, a sort of true-life performance novel based on the family's reaction to his phony stock tips, betrayal of secrets, and attempts to get Brandon arrested for drug dealing. Ruby's reading of Sherlock Holmes and the refusal of those whom Julian considers his "characters" to act exactly the way he wants them to keep thwarting him and make this a fun read throughout. Recommended for all public libraries. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 3/1/02.] Patrick Wall, University City P.L., MO Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

School Library Journal

Adult/High School-Hired by Scott and Linda Gardner to help their teenage son, Brandon, improve his SAT scores, Julian Sawyer quickly makes himself indispensable to the family. Only Ruby (Aruba Nicole Marx Gardner), 11, a precocious Sherlock Holmes devotee, begins to suspect that the tutor has sinister intent. The Gardners are upwardly mobile, middle-class people concerned with an Ivy League college acceptance for their only son. Scott, in business with his brother, suffers from a sibling inferiority complex, exacerbated by the success Tom's son has had with the SATs and tennis competitions. Linda, concerned with success at her job, baffled by her son's surliness, and frazzled by the whirl of family pressure, is a perfect target for the oh-so-capable Julian. Both parents wrestle with long-standing guilt and grief over the death of their firstborn son. Brandon is acting out, rebelling against pressures he really can't define. All three individuals are like lab animals to Julian; he experiments with their responses by subtly altering their environments. Ruby seems beyond his machinations and understanding and proves to be a worthy, capable adversary in this lethal duel of wits, as she follows clues in true Holmesian fashion. Reading this novel is a compelling roller-coaster ride-one just can't get off until it's over. Teens will enjoy the fast pace, the absorbing foray into deadly mind games, and the valiant heroine.-Carol DeAngelo, Kings Park Library, Burke, VA Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

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