Labyrinth

by Jon Land

"The Committee" has masterminded a fiendish, far-reaching plot rooted in the highest corridors of power. Code Tantalus. Tantalus -- all the more daring because it is so obvious -- strikes at the very lifeline of humanity. Its aim is enormous, horrible, and unknown even to the superpowers. Only one man, Christopher Locke, an unsuccessful college professor, can expose the trail that begins with the brutal execution of every person in an obscure South American town. But even as Locke navigates the labyrinth leading to The Committee and Tantalus, The Committee is hunting him down, using even his most trusted friends against him.

Genres: Thriller, Fiction, Suspense, Action, Mystery

384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1985

About the author

Jon Land is an American author of thriller novels and a screenwriter. He graduated from Brown University in 1979 Phi Beta Kappa and Magna cum Laude. He often bases his novels and scripts on extensive travel and research as well as a twenty-five year career in martial arts. He is an associate member of the US Special Forces and is an emeritus board member the International Thriller Writers. John currently lives in Providence, Rhode Island.

Reviews

[Tania · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a good book but I was ready for it to end. The person who performed the audiobook edition was exceptional.

[Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

This book reads a lot like a James Bond movie, which fluctuates between being really good and utterly ridiculous. Land seems like a very competent writer, and I especially liked that it was pretty obvious he'd travelled to at least most of the places and put effort into describing them accurately.

The good outweighed the bad. It was pretty fast paced with lots of action and maneuvering, which made the read enjoyable. The bad was completely in some of the outlandish plot points:


1. Christopher Locke was way too good. Land used his little bit of CIA training from something like 12-20 years ago to justify Locke overcoming professional killers and accomplishing things he shouldn't have been able to. Somehow, he was able to defeat top level assassin's even though he spent the majority of his life as a college professor.
2. The very first portion of the book follows a different character who has a metal pincer for a hand that he could shove into the chest of an enemy and kill.
3. One of the main enemies had an absurd armor that was basically extremely thin metal that is molded to fit his body like a glove but could stop anything. He'd get shot 6 times in the stomach with no effect. Nobody ever thought to shoot him in the face. Apparently, you couldn't even see it or tell he had it on. You'd think more people would have this miracle armor.
4. The enemy plot was to kill all the crops in most of the world with their brand new and insanely powerful poison and supply crops to the now needy world with their secretly purchased farmland in South America that could be planted and ready harvest within three weeks due to their brand new and insanely powerful miracle fertilizer. I was most disappointed in this revelation because Land had done a very good job keeping you unsure what the plan was but giving you enough hints to want to know more.
5. The worst of all was the conclusion of the story that took place in the US. Locke has to go to Texs and stop all the crop dusters from taking off and poisoning the US. He gets there and just starts driving around a huge part of Texas looking for everything. He's basically given up when he goes into a bar and a down on his luck stunt flyer who runs a WWII fighter plane squadron just so happens to be wondering what he was going to do because the one place in the area that could adequately handle his planes was just taken from them last minute (it was basically the only thing that the Committee didn't maintain complete control of, which a major plot hole). The guy happens to know that the only place the crop dusters could be taking off from and he just so happened to have his squadron of pilots waiting around, and worst of all, he just so happens to equip his vintage WWII planes with live ammunition and rockets for their aerial dogfights in front of crowds. This was so bad. In what world would they have live ammunition in their fake dogfights? He says the pilot would shoot a target for the crowd, but even if that justified one plane having a very small amount of ammo (it doesn't really), they all are easily equipped within minutes to have a full blown battle.


This was an entertaining read and I'd be willing to read more of Land's work.

[Charlie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book showed up at my home when I was in high as a free book to join a book of the month club. I was not a good reader and did not enjoy reading. This book hooked me and since then I have read everything Jon Land has published.

[Wenzel Roessler · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Look for review by Keith he summarizes this book much better than I can. Basically, it's a well written book with some really, shall I say, way out there scenes. There are sections of this book that are so silly that it actually is entertaining. At the heart of the story is a spy novel with some interesting characters thrown in.

[Veronica Haley · Rating 4 out of 5]

As the title implies, numerous twists and turns up until the unexpected ending.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

OK, this book is GREAT. I know this because I read it back in my early 20s on a fluke - I was at my grandparents' house and needed something to read before bedtime. Found this on the bookshelf in my uncle's old room and got totally wrapped up in it. It's a great story about a professor who used to know all the ins/outs of espionage and how to handle himself against being pursued, and suddenly he gets thrust into a plot where he has to dredge all of that back to the surface. Great characters, good suspense... I have actually been looking for this book since then hoping to re-read it. I'll be ordering it on Amazon soon!

[Marian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a older book my dad picked up at a used book store, but the plot was suprisingly unique. The premise involved a sort of global-terrorism by controlling the worlds most valuable resource; food. Quite interesting.

[Chuck · Rating 5 out of 5]

A complex story about an effort by "The Committee" to corner the world's
food market. Good story. I must remember this guy.

[Ivan Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite book of all times so far but I haven't finished reading it....It just gets better and better

[Vicki Elia · Rating 1 out of 5]

Audiobook Review

I reserve 1 star reviews for those that are so bad I stop reading. Congratulations, Jon Land!

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

i want to read