This will be a quick review, unlike the book, which bogs down in detail midway and does not recover until the later pages. It seems like the editor told the author to make it longer. In any case, it is still a good, exciting read (except for the above mentioned middle) and has put the author in my sights as someone to check on. In case you did not guess by now, I like spy/thriller/mystery books, using them to occupy time waiting for planes and trains. Have a Merry Christmas. ( )

"The Hadrian Memorandum" is a 444 page book that should be about 100 pages shorter. The book starts with a "bang" but then bogs down in too many pages of chase sequences that do little to develop character or intensify the conrflicts which must be resolved. Then, just about 150 pages from the end of the book, the author hits his stride again, and the story takes off and becomes one of the most satisfying action/ thriller tales of the year.

Alan Folsom displays techniques of a master thriller story weaver: characters are solid, action can be fast paced, and premises are plausible. This is a good read that, with a little more considered editing, would have elevated the author to the top of his genre. ( )

Check your brain at the door, and you're in for a fast, fun adrenaline rush of a story. A landscape architect from Manchester is shown some photos while touring an an island on Equatorial Guinea, and then suddenly the priest is dead, the landscape architect is in flight, and a civil war is breaking out with atrocities galore. While the priest had the wherewithal to burn the photos, the originals and the digital camera card must exist somewhere. And some very powerful, resourceful people have it in their best interests to retrieve it.

The Hadrian Memorandum takes us on a long chase scene involving international intrigue at the highest level. Folsom does a superb job keeping those pages turning; the main characters don't slow down for a second, and neither does the reader. Unlike an action movie, however, the characters are fully developed -- the reader understands the motives of each, even if the levels of violence are implausible. The ending was not entirely expected -- the chase ended with a whimper, not a bang, but the final resolution I though was entirely reasonable. And I was okay with this resolution -- the Ultimate Bad Guy was highly skilled, highly trained, highly effective at what he does. We never really know our hero's full story; he his highly resourceful, but, one suspects, not at the same caliber as the UBG. The chase ends in an unexpected manner, but also does not subvert the nature of the protagonists.

My only real complaint in this techno-thriller concerns the use (or lack thereof) of technology itself. The crux of the plot involves digital media. much time, effort, and lives could have been saved if our heroes would have put their efforts in finding a way to digitally transmit the data. Technology that could have just as easily have ended the chase is instead employed only to make it more intense. It's still a highly entertaining story, and I look forward to Folsom's next novel. If you like action movies, this book is for you. ( )

This is the third book built around the same character, Nickolas Marten, previously a Los Angeles policeman known as John Barron. It is, however, a stand alone novel and it is not necessary to read the previous books to enjoy this one.
I was immediately grabbed by the first sentence and the book is a fast page turner with unexpected twists and villains appearing throughout the novel. It's what I consider a great airplane book: absorbs your mind without requiring intense concentration.
I have rated the book with only three stars, however. The author failed to work through narrative detail. Descriptions are meager, character development is shallow. The result is a fast paced story without rich layering. I was also distracted by several typos in the book: the editor didn't edit.
I do recommend it for a fast read that will grab the reader's attention. ( )

Allan Folsom's newest read, The Hadrian Memorandum, is a very fast-paced and interesting thriller from the beginning. It starts off with sudden, and cold-blooded murders in equatorial Guinea, with tons of double-crossing and plot twists. The idea for the plot was pretty good, seeing the need for oil today. Though I was too young to know a lot about the politics, I could understand much of it by the author's explaining some of the background, which made it much easier to read and enjoy. I was very surprised by the conclusion of the novel. It's action-packed plot keeps the reader interested throughout, but that's about all that keeps the book up. There's not much more to it except hidden conspiracies and cat-and-mouse chasing, all for a couple of photographs that could make or ruin a company and many others. Lots of grammatical mistakes distract and confuse the reader. On the whole, very enjoyable for adventure-lovers, and a good stand-alone novel. But it's just like many others coming in today, nothing special or memorable about it. ( )