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espionage thriller
Series · espionage thriller
Matarese
The Matarese series by Robert Ludlum has 2 known books (2 published) and is best read in publication order, starting with The Matarese Circle (1979). The latest book with a fully recorded publication date is The Matarese Countdown.
- Books
- 2 known books (2 novels)
- Published
- 2
- First published
- 1979
- Status
- completed
- Shelved under
- Thriller
- Last checked
Start here: The Matarese Circle (1979) — then read straight through in publication order.
Reading order
The date order of published books and any announced future entries — the default way to read the series.
- Book 1:
The Matarese Circle
Robert Ludlum's The Matarese Circle (1979) runs 601 pages, pairing an American and a Soviet intelligence officer -- bitter Cold War enemies -- who must cooperate against a shadowy Corsican-founded network of industrialists manipulating global politics from behind the scenes.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Matarese Circle - Book 2:
The Matarese Countdown
The Matarese Countdown returned to the conspiracy eighteen years later, in 1997, at a slightly shorter 566 pages, in a post-Cold-War world where the Matarese's ambitions have only grown more dangerous.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Matarese Countdown
About the Matarese series
The Matarese are a shadowy Corsican-founded network of industrialists and power brokers who have spent generations quietly manipulating global politics and economics from behind the scenes, and the two agents forced to unite against them are the heart of Robert Ludlum's Matarese duology. The Matarese Circle (1979) pairs an American and a Soviet intelligence officer — bitter Cold War enemies — who must cooperate when they discover a conspiracy larger than either of their governments, a premise that let Ludlum subvert Cold War thriller conventions almost two decades before the wall fell.
The Matarese Countdown (1997) returns to the conspiracy a generation later, in a post-Cold-War world where the Matarese's ambitions have only grown more dangerous. The two books can be read as a complete arc bookending the fall of the Soviet Union, and are considered among Ludlum's most ambitious conspiracy plotting outside the Bourne trilogy.
Frequently asked questions
How many Matarese books are there?
Two: The Matarese Circle (1979) and The Matarese Countdown (1997).
What order should I read the Matarese books in?
Publication order: The Matarese Circle, then The Matarese Countdown.
Is the Matarese series connected to Jason Bourne?
No shared characters — it's a separate Robert Ludlum conspiracy thriller, though both share his interest in shadowy global conspiracies and morally compromised intelligence officers.
Is there a third Matarese book?
No. The duology has been complete since The Matarese Countdown (1997).
If you like the Matarese series
Reading order last verified .