The Machiavelli Covenant

John Barron/Nicholas Marten #2

by Allan Folsom

Former LAPD detective Nicholas Marten's investigation into the murder of his former girlfriend leads him across the globe and to a chance meeting with US President John Henry Harris. But President Harris is on the run from a murderous cabal. With the help of Demi Picard, a beautiful and enigmatic French photojournalist, Marten and Harris uncover one of the most secretive and brutally powerful groups this world has ever known. This brotherhood of blood will stop at nothing to realise their deprived ambitions. The origin of their evil reaches back to the Renaissance, when the dying political thinker Niccolo Machiavelli fashioned a sinister addendum to his most famous work, The Prince. Titled simply The Covenant, it is a terrifying blueprint for the gaining and keeping of true political power. For 500 years, this despotic order of the supremely rich and powerful has kept Machiavelli's original manuscript hidden away under heavy guard, the document itself worshipped like a divine artefact. Outmanned, outnumbered, outgunned, three people now stand alone against this sinister Nicholas Marten, Demi Picard, and John Henry Harris, president of the United States.

Genres: Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Espionage, Suspense, Mystery Thriller, Politics

554 pages, Paperback

First published December 26, 2006

About the author

Until the international success of THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW, Allan Folsom was a jobbing screen writer, contributing to such series as Hart to Hart. He lived in Santa Barbara with his wife, an artist, and their young daughter. Mr. Folsom died of complications of melanoma.

Reviews

[Tessa Nadir · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Nelinistita-i fruntea ce poarta o coroana." (Shakespeare, Henric al IV-lea).
Un thriller cu iz politic avand multe conspiratii si personaje lipsite de scrupule pentru care banii si puterea sunt tot ce conteaza si care nu se sfiesc sa calce in picioare pe nimeni pentru a-si pastra influenta si bogatia.
Foarte interesant, romanul il are in prim plan pe cel mai puternic om din lume, "POTUS" - presedintele Americii si pune in discutie fragila sa pozitie, acesta fiind practic la cheremul celor care l-au sprijinit sa ajunga in functie. Mi s-a parut asadar ca, in desfasurarea unor jocuri politice neconstitutionale, pozitia lui ar fi una destul de neputincioasa si ca trebuie sa satisfaca foarte mult interesele consilierilor si Congresului SUA.
Titlul, "Legamantul Machiavelli" face referire la o supozitie potrivit careia Machiavelli ar fi scris o addenda la celebra sa opera "Principele", potrivit careia s-ar putea crea o societate secreta ai carei membrii sa fie constransi la a comite un omor ritualic anual. Ideal este ca acesti membrii sa aiba functii cheie in organisme politice si nu numai.
In ceea ce priveste actiunea, fostul politist Nicholas Marten este chemat in America urgent de catre fosta sa iubita, actuala sotie de congresman, intr-o problema foarte delicata. Odata ajuns acolo aceasta ii marturiseste ca este din ce in ce mai convinsa ca a fost otravita de un medic machiavelic, angajat de catre Congres. Nicholas tinde sa o creada, mai ales ca sotul si copilul ei suferisera un accident aviatic suspect cu putin timp in urma. Lucrurile vor scapa in curand de sub control caci Nicholas va fi urmarit de politie si toate usile anchetei i se vor inchide in nas.
In acelasi timp, presedintele SUA este pus in fata unei alegeri capitale de catre cei mai apropiati consilieri ai sai, cerandu-i-se in mod fortat aprobarea unor asasinate politice ce vizeaza presedintii altor tari. Cum acesta refuza este nevoit sa fuga pe cont propriu de proprii sai oameni printr-o metoda inedita, fiind pana la urma cel mai bine pazit om din lume. Ajuns intr-o situatie critica, acesta se aliaza cu Nicholas Marten si impreuna vor incerca sa opreasca planurile diabolice ale consilierilor si sa aduca adevarul la suprafata.
Romanul este interesant pentru ca plimba cititorul prin Washington, La Valletta, Madrid, Roma si Barcelona. Pana la urma cartile au acest minunat dar de a ne permite sa calatorim cu ajutorul amplelor descrieri si sa cunoastem astfel orase si locuri la care poate nu avem posibilitatea sa ajungem. Cei care au fost in aceste locuri vor fi incantati sa rememoreze toate atractiile turistice, strazile, restaurantele, hotelurile sau monumentele regasind probabil ceva din farmecul amintirilor pierdute.
Ceea ce nu mi-a placut este faptul ca actiunea ar fi putut sa curga mai repede, sa fie mai concisa si clara, iar 500 de pagini mi s-au parut un pic cam multe. Alt lucru care scade din valoarea romanului este alcatuirea personajului principal, presedintele J. H. Harris fiind extrem de calm si cu sange rece chiar si in situatii foarte tensionate ceea ce ii taie din credibilitate. De altfel toata povestea cu disparitia presedintelui de sub escorta propriilor oameni este greu de crezut.
Pana la urma avem de-a face cu un thiller interesant, foarte potrivit pentru adeptii conspiratiilor politice si pentru cei interesati de Machiavelli, care au destula rabdare sa parcurga intreg itinerariul evadarii presedintelui de la cap la coada.

[Leah · Rating 1 out of 5]

I guess my first question is...WHERE WAS THIS GUY'S EDITOR? Seriously if I had to read the phrase "in a sotto voice" one more time I was going to throw this book into our burn barrel. Also, I'm pretty sure this book could have been written in 200 pages; as opposed to the 1500 or so. And I skimmed the last quarter. And finally (and I blame the editor); Folsom is a HUUUUGE fan of the following sentence structure, as he used it on every page: "That Nick was a former LAPD detective and now a landscape architect was no matter." or something similar. Bleck.

Furthermore, Folsom MUST think his core audience is a bunch of idiots (and maybe they are, but probably not) because the entire plot was basically repeated every 5 pages. So, if you have the attention span of a 4 year old, then by all means, this book is for you! And...it was SO BORING. Maybe that's why you get the storyline repeated every 5 pages; just because Folsom himself is pretty sure that you've slept through the previous pages. If you're looking for a suspenseful, action-y, thriller-y, summer-read kind of a book then AVOID AT ALL COSTS.

[George Ilsley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I always forget all the typical ingredients that are thrown into the thriller cauldron and brought to a high boil. In terms of being preposterous, ludicrous and ridiculous, this book has it all.

Please leave all skepticism at the door — otherwise you're in for a bumpy ride.

[Cindy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Gestopt op pagina 68. Te Amerikaans, veel herhaling , bijvoorbeeld dat er 'iets is gebeurd in LA'.
Alles meteen opgeblazen met de president en het midden oosten en de VN, kon mij al niet meer interesseren hoe het in elkaar zat.

[Ingrid · Rating 3 out of 5]

In de stijl van Dan Brown, maar dan wel langdradiger. Folsom is op een aantal plekken te lang blijven hangen en plaatst daarna ineens versnellingen in de verklarende stukken die dan weer erg kort door de bocht zijn.

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading the Exil, which I loved I had to order the next two books in the series.
The author is amazing, in that he weaves a story that has the reader spellbound, one does not wish to put the book down.

This is a continuation of the story of Nick Martin, aka prior LAPD detective under a different name. In this book, Nick is five years on from his adventures and still working in Manchester for a garden firm, designing beautiful landscapes. However, he has been called back to the USA by a childhood sweetheart who is dying, her husband and child have been killed in an airplane accident, she was suppose to have been on-board, when assassins unknown missed her. Not giving up, they later injected her with a poison. Nick gets there as she lays dying, and she confesses she thinks they are being killed off for something her husband may have known. The President of the USA comes to visit, being a close friends, and Nick asks for privacy. After she dies Nick sets out to discover who has killed her, and why. However, in doing so, he puts himself in grave danger. Trying to talk to Caroline's doctor about her death, he finds the doctor so scared she blows her brains out, the next day the police contact him re her murder. They say murder, as when they find the doctor, her head is missing.

Fast forward...Nick travels all over Europe, trying to track down a secret society that is trying to take over the world. The President finds out that most of his so called friends, are members of this society and his life is in danger if he does not go along in a World take over, and the assassination of top people in several governments. The President escapes and goes on the run, along the way he contacts Nick for help and they both run together. Excellent story, with lots of twists and plots. Great ending, and one wonders, why these three books have not been made into movies. One also wonders where Lady C is in all this, she is not mentioned until the end of the book.

Onto book three. The Hadrian Memorandum.

[Dave · Rating 1 out of 5]

As I mentioned in my review of The Ruins, I bought this book in Jasper, Alberta to help me get through a long and boring train ride.

Now, in such a case I really wasn't looking for too much from the book; my expectations and requirements were super-low. All I needed was something to distract me and keep the hours moving during the train ride. While The Ruins succeeded, The Machiavelli Covenant failed miserably.

Once again, I'm punching myself for picking up one of these cookie-cutter "evil-world conspiracy" books. What a waste of time. By the time I got to about page 100, I could tell that I'd made a mistake. The writing was fairly crappy, especially its style...if I was an English major or something, I could probably tell you exactly what was wrong with it...but since I'm not, I can only say that it seemed jilted a little. Not smooth. No flow to the action or even in the descriptive passages. Add on to this the fact that the characters were flat and uninteresting and the whole plot line was pretty ridiculous (even for a genre of books that are known to have ridiculous plots)...well, you get the idea.

I wouldn't have bothered to finish it if I hadn't already invested so much time in it. So I made myself read through to the end, though I kept having to put it down every chapter or so and grab a different book for a while (Lord of the Rings, usually) 'cause it was just pissing me off so much. Thank you, Allan Folsom!

[Rickey · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Machiavelli Convenant is a fast-paced conspiracy novel that drew me in from the first chapter. The chapters are short, easy to read, and usually keep you hanging, wanting to start the next chapter. I’d never heard of the Montserrat Monastery before, but the pictures I saw on the Internet of it and Montserrat Mountain in Spain looked spectacular, probably a great vacation destination. The book cover looked quite similar to The DaVinci Codes’s cover and the plot is similar, revolving around a wide-ranging evil conspiracy. The story is a little far-fetched, but, hey, it’s fiction. If you keep this in mind and try not to analyze the story too much, I think you’ll enjoy it. For a New York Times Bestseller, editing could have been a little better (although if it had been a self-published book, I would have considered the editing good). I liked the book enough that I plan on soon reading the prequel, The Exile, as well as any sequels that come out.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

So you want to know where the Ruski KGB got it's poisoning idea for Litvinenko? It's all right here in one of the best political thrillers ever! 10 of 10 stars!

[Akira · Rating 4 out of 5]

THAT CLIFFHANGER WAS SO MEAN

[William · Rating 2 out of 5]

I first read Allan Folsom about 18 years ago and enjoyed his debut novel, 1994’s “The Day After Tomorrow” so much I went out and bought the many other books he had already published to that point. However, the books that followed “TDAT” haven’t quite met the standard he set in it. This effort, “The Machiavelli Covenant” is fast paced and full of action, but there are a number of glaring plot holes and / or enough asinine stories or situations that I cannot fully endorse it as a great read. Case in point: the evil cabal of high ranking officials reveal to the President of the United States their plan to assassinate the leaders of France and Germany (not fully sure why those two, but…). The President, being one of the good guys says no to the idea and the bad guys are like “ok”, we will just keep pushing it until you say “yes”. Then, once the President flees them, fearing he may be in danger too (what?…sarcasm), it is revealed that they control the Vice-President anyways. So why not just kill the President in the first place? Made no sense, and there was just too much of that silliness going on.

[Heather Singh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this book!! Super long read through which was why I only gave it 4 stars. I’m sure it could have been shorter but the buildup was needed. This is the 2nd book in a trilogy and I will definitely read the other two.

[Syazwanie Winston Abdullah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Draggy bits, then that cliff hanger.

[Mum · Rating 4 out of 5]

lived up to 'stay up late novel' and 'unputdownable'.
A bit too much use of the words 'suddenly' and was distracting.
Unpredictable for me and perfect to curl up with on a rainy inside day. Sad it finished and that it finished with the line "... and there was a knock at the door...." arggggghhhh!!!!

[Dawn Lennon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unnerving. Creepy. Suspenseful. Complex and complicated. Gripping and oddly informative. If you like suspense thrillers that involve heinous, insidious evil with extraordinarily well-contrived deus ex machina events, then this is a book for you. For as fantastic as it all was and how intricate the plot, there is something truly engaging about the characters, their stories, and the ability of the author to weave an enormous amount of intricate plot elements in a plausible, if unimaginable, way.

This is a book about political deceit of the highest order and, if you are a fan of conspiracy theories, you'll find the elements at the very least disturbing. If you're interested in how security organizations like the Secret Service and CIA among many others do their thing, you'll be amazed. If you wonder how intelligent, prominent people can be lured into sects/cults and remain caught in their webs, you'll be stunned. And, if you ever think about how the use of technology and science can be put to truly dastardly use, this plot will get under your skin.

I gave this book a 3 rating because, to me, the plot was over the top. I could have given it a 4 because of the extraordinarily intricate weaving of the story. It was written to race along and it did, but I didn't think there was much writer's artistry here. But perhaps the bulk of my rating was that I'm not one for suspense mysteries, especially when the details are difficult to read.

[Cathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I completely lost my voice this week - really, completely gone. I got tired of texting the kids to tell them what to do, so I gave up and read a book instead, which was much more fun for all of us. This book is a total page turner, what I would call a "beach read", aka "escapist literature". Actually, literature is way way too strong of word for this book. The conspiracy theory story is exciting to read, but it definitely didn't enrich my life. I'm sure I could have done much better things with those hours of my life. There is murder, intrigue, conspiracy, action and adventure galore. It is one of those books that the movie would be MUCH better than the book. I tend to speed read these kinds of books, partly because it is so exciting, and also because the details would drive me crazy (because they are so totally ridiculous and utterly impossible) and because it can get quite intense/violent. I have one more action novel that's been floating around here - maybe I'll read it one of these days. I have to admit, sometimes a good escape can be kind of fun. :) Maybe the next one will be better than this one was.

[Frank · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent followup to The Exile. Once I started, I couldn't put it down. An exciting action thriller that's well writen and smartly put together.

[Millie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought it was a little far fetched but enkoyed reading it. it was a long book but went quickly

[Peter Heymans · Rating 3 out of 5]

leest heel vlot, maar niet meer dan een gewone thriller met een vrij spectaculair en onmogelijk maar toch voorspelbaar verloop.

[Socrate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bătăile încete ale inimii lui Nicholas Marten răsunau precum o tobă îngropată undeva înăuntrul lui, iar expiraţia şi inspiraţia lui parcă erau din coloana sonoră a unui film. La fel era şi zgomotul respiraţiei chinuite a lui Caroline care zăcea în patul lângă care stătea el.

Poate pentru a zecea oară în mai puţin de cinci minute se uită iarăşi la ea. Ochii ei erau tot închişi, iar mâna i se odihnea delicată într-a lui. După cât de vie părea mâna aceea, ar fi putut foarte bine să fie o mănuşă. Nimic altceva.

Oare de cât timp era în Washington? Două zile? Trei? Venise cu avionul din Manchester, Anglia, unde locuia, imediat după ce Caroline l-a sunat şi i-a cerut să vină. Din clipa în care i-a auzit vocea a ştiut că se întâmplase ceva groaznic. Vocea ei trăda groaza, spaima, neajutorarea. Apoi Caroline i-a spus despre ce era vorba: contactase o infecţie stafilococică foarte agresivă şi incurabilă. I se mai dădeau doar câteva zile de trăit.

Însă nu era doar şoc şi groază în vocea ei. Mai era ceva. Mânie. Cineva îi făcuse ceva, a spus ea, şoptind dintr-odată de parcă îi era teamă că ar fi putut fi auzită. N-avea importanţă ce spuneau sau ce aveau să mai spună doctorii, Caroline era sigură că infecţia care o ucidea fusese cauzată de o bacterie ce i-a fost administrată în mod deliberat. Chiar în acel moment, judecând după zgomotele din fundal, cineva a intrat în salon. Caroline încheie brusc discuţia rugându-l insistent să vină la Washington. Apoi a închis.El nu ştia ce să creadă. Ştia doar că ea era teribil de înspăimântată şi că situaţia în care se afla era înrăutăţită de moartea recentă a soţului ei şi a fiului lor de doisprezece ani. Cursa specială în care se aflau cei doi se prăbuşise în largul coastelor Californiei. Stresul fizic şi emoţional adus de aceste tragice evenimente păreau s-o fi copleşit pe Caroline, iar Marten, lipsit de alte informaţii, nu avea cum să-şi dea seama dacă exista vreun temei pentru suspiciunile ei sau nu. Totuşi, aceasta era realitatea: Caroline era grav bolnavă şi voia să-l aibă lângă ea. Din câte şi-a dat el seama auzindu-i vocea, a ştiut că trebuia să ajungă acolo cât de repede putea.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Man, is this thing long! I was finally able to categorize it a bit, and ended up giving it a four.

Not to like: some of the tech details and elaboration of the experiments was a little too fantastic. I've had enough of everything being a conspiracy these days. Some tech details wrong, especially the engine-turbine-compressor discussion, but hey, we can't all be Tesla (the dude, not the vehicle).

To like: imagine a combination of a Christopher Reich book and an Umberto Eco book. That's a good thing: they're both great. Geographic references, international travel, ancient rite, hidden societies, extreme money, plot devices, plenty of gun work. Excellent ending, too, as I wonder whether someone is actually a latent part of the conspiracy come back to tie up some loose ends.

[Cynthia Marcus · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is just not a good book. The writing is below average and it felt very dated. There is no character development. All the characters are one dimentional and some appear and disappear so quickly, I'm not sure why they were even in the book. There are multiple plot holes and despite the fact that the author feels obligated to repeatedly restate what has occurred previously I was still befuddled with the story line. The plot is convoluted and ridiculous ( OK, it is a political thriller so maybe we can let that one slide). There is alot of action, but somehow it was just boring. Very cookie cutter. The ending was beyond and if the author thought that would peak my interest in another one of his 535 page "thrillers", forget it.

[Bonnie Wilson · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is what happens when I get to the Library sale with 10 minutes left on the bag sale. I grabbed this because I liked the title and I thought the author sounded vaguely familiar. I didn't get very far. I figured I could put up with the plodding descriptions of each character as he or she is introduced - "So & So. Short, stocky, cold eyes." etc.

But then I am asked to believe that a strongly Conservative US President would balk at the notion of a fool-proof plan to assassinate the uncooperative leaders of France and Germany and replace them with compliant US partners.

That is a suspension of disbelief beyond my capabilities.

[Magda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pierwsze, co robię, gdy biorę do ręki nową książkę, to przeczytanie jej krótkiego opisu i informacji o autorze na okładce. Tym razem też tak było. Allana Folsoma wcześniej nie znałam. Forsytha i Ludluma, do których jest on porównywany, też nie za bardzo. Miałam styczność jedynie z trzema książkami tego drugiego autora i uważam, że były średnie. Jednak "Traktat Machiavellego" pozytywnie mnie zaskoczył. Mógłby być jedynie trochę krótszy (o połowę?), bo pomimo króciutkich rozdziałów (za którymi przepadam!), strasznie mi się dłużyło. Przeczytanie jej zajęło mi niby tylko tydzień, ale pod koniec lektury musiałam wytężać pamięć, żeby przypomnieć sobie, jak to wszystko się zaczęło.

[Les · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story is about a plot to kill the President of France and the Chancellor of Germany. There is an organization of people who told the President John Henry Harris that if he does not go along with this plot that he will be killed. A former LAPD police officer named Nicholas Marten helps the President to escape and warn the leaders of Nato about this plot. It is a fast moving book. We have murder and a lot of violence in it. We read about what are leaders of our country can do when power gets corruptive.

[Rob McClintock · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a page turner, in that I kept moving to see what was going to happen. But as these type of novels go, this did seem overly long, repetitious, the dialogue was just plain stilted. The plot really was "out there" but that's what happens with these global conspiracies that involve the U.S. President as a key player. But it was entertaining and much like eating a bag of potato chips - it can be hard to stop. I saw it through, but it wasn't in the Robert Ludlum class of writing in my view.

[alexander silagin · Rating 1 out of 5]

terrible

Tried to finish it but gave up after some serious struggle with myself. Terrible book..
It started pretty good as an average book but went downhill very fast. President leaving hotel in Madrid without anyone noticing? Vice president and secretary of defense returning back to US in a private jet? Just a figment of inflamed imagination and total lack of basic knowledge. Need to wash my brain with soap after just a hundred pages

[David Dupont · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ik vond dit een lang maar vermakelijk boek. De schrijfstijl is soms wat te vertellend, maar er is voldoende vaart in het verhaal om hier over te lezen. Soms had ik het wel wat moeilijk om alles realistisch te blijven vinden. Meestal zijn presidenten niet zo zelfredzaam als hier beschreven. Er is wel veel spanning en die wordt er goed in gehouden. Al bij al dus geen slecht boek.

[Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting take on the “deep state” conspiracy theory that a group, in this case a very large and rich group, is molding the world for its own betterment. The book uses this scenario to spend 500 or so pages on an escape story that is well written and enjoyable to read. Thank you Mr. Folsom for keeping my interest and taking me away for a short while from COVID-19 stories in the news.

[Joe O'Connor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent; Continuing character: Nick Marten; now living in England, Marten finds himself involved in an incredible plot of insurrection and world power as he looks to uncover a secret society and ends up being the one man who might be able to save the President of the US; again overly long, particularly the tunnel sequence