Bond books - do they get better?

[Rbneader]

I just finished Casino Royale, the first James Bond book. It was OK but not particularly great. I never felt particularly invested in the characters or the story. They do seem like good period pieces, but not something I'll be back to re-read.

Do they really get better, are they another series that got it's reputation because it was interesting when first released?

[Pulpmeister]

Well, it was his first novel. Bear in mind Fleming wrote only a small number before he died, (all written in the 50s and early 60s, and so they are dated of course.)

The books have been much overshadowed by the gaudier movies.

From Russia With Love and Goldfinger are standouts, in my view. Diamond are Forever is also pretty good. The best non-Fleming Bond novel is Colonel Sun, by "Robert Markham" (Kingsley Amis). Amis was a genuine Fleming fan, and loved the Bond books. It shows.

[WillAdams]

Agree that _From Russia with Love_ and _Goldfinger_ are the best of the Ian Fleming books.

I never much liked any of the non-Fleming books, actively disliking a few of them, except for the ``Young Bond'' series by Charlie Higson which I found surprisingly good, and nicely true to the originals --- highly recommended.

[MickeyC]

I understand what made Ian Fleming & Bond so famous was John Kennedy. Apparently, a reporter asked Kennedy who his favorite author was and he said it was Fleming and his Bond books.

[crich70]

Originally Posted by MickeyC

I understand what made Ian Fleming & Bond so famous was John Kennedy. Apparently, a reporter asked Kennedy who his favorite author was and he said it was Fleming and his Bond books.

And Mr. Fleming's home was the inspiration for the title of one of the more recent movies. He named it "Goldeneye." I understand the name of James Bond came from a book about birds that Mr. Fleming had in his library.

[WT Sharpe]

I must have read all or nearly all of the Bond books when I was a teenager. As I recall, Thunderball was another standout. Bond was always one for living large, and it was catching up with him. (If I'm not mistaken, he was smoking 60 cigarettes a day at the time; not at all the kind of thing that tends to keep a suave secret agent in top fighting form, and that's not counting his daily consumption of alcohol!) So M sends him to a health spa to whip him back into shape, and the people at the spa, of course, try to kill him.

[crich70]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

I must have read all or nearly all of the Bond books when I was a teenager. As I recall, Thunderball was another standout. Bond was always one for living large, and it was catching up with him. (If I'm not mistaken, he was smoking 60 cigarettes a day at the time; not at all the kind of thing that tends to keep a suave secret agent in top fighting form, and that's not counting his daily consumption of alcohol!) So M sends him to a health spa to whip him back into shape, and the people at the spa, of course, try to kill him.

I think it also says something about the times in which the book was written. back in the 1960's people still didn't know how bad smoking was for you. I imagine Mr. Fleming might well have been one of those who was dealing with the problem in some way or other (or that he knew someone who was) and he could have given 007 that problem as a way of illustrating that without saying it directly and arousing the ire of the Tobacco companies.

[Greg Anos]

They form an arc. A steady rise until On Her Majesty's Secret Service and then the disintergrating of the Bond character.

The best in my opinion are Goldfinger, Thunderball, and On Her Majesty's Secret Service.

[Greg Anos]

However, if you would like to look at the other side of the coin, so to speak, I can recommend Eric Frank Russell's Wasp.

During WWII Fleming worked in the "dirty tricks" portion of British Intellegence, working on Germany. Eric Frank Russell worked "next door", in the "dirty tricks" section working on Japan...

Wasp was all the dirty tricks he thought up for Japan, wriiten as science fiction...

[crich70]

Thunderball (the movie) has an interesting tale connected with it too. In one scene 007 is in a swimming pool with a shark and there was supposed to be a glass partition between the actor (Sean Connery) and the shark which of course wouldn't show but at one point Mr. Connery felt something bump into him and there was Mr. Shark. Apparently the glass panel wasn't long enough to cover the whole distance and it was enough of a gap at one end for Mr. Connery to be bumped by Mr. Shark. The look of shock on his face at that point in the movie isn't faked. It's Mr. Connery's own true reaction to the incident. I think they also showed 007 needing some physical conditioning in "Never say Never Again." And once again the bad guys tried to do 007 in.

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by crich70

Thunderball (the movie) has an interesting tale connected with it too. In one scene 007 is in a swimming pool with a shark and there was supposed to be a glass partition between the actor (Sean Connery) and the shark which of course wouldn't show but at one point Mr. Connery felt something bump into him and there was Mr. Shark. Apparently the glass panel wasn't long enough to cover the whole distance and it was enough of a gap at one end for Mr. Connery to be bumped by Mr. Shark. The look of shock on his face at that point in the movie isn't faked. It's Mr. Connery's own true reaction to the incident. I think they also showed 007 needing some physical conditioning in "Never say Never Again." And once again the bad guys tried to do 007 in.

The movie "Never say Never Again" was "Thunderball" revamped.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

Never Say Never Again is a 1983 spy film based on the James Bond novel Thunderball, which was previously adapted in 1965 under that name.

[crich70]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

The movie "Never say Never Again" was "Thunderball" revamped.

I can believe it. I understand the title came from the fact that Mr. Connery had said he'd never make another 007 movie. Of course some aspects of the books don't change I imagine. Some bad guy is always trying to do 007 in somehow.

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by crich70

I can believe it. I understand the title came from the fact that Mr. Connery had said he'd never make another 007 movie. Of course some aspects of the books don't change I imagine. Some bad guy is always trying to do 007 in somehow.

I remember that. And, of course, "Never Say Never Again" sounds much better as a title than "Thunderball Again."

[Rbneader]

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll try the 4 suggested instead of trying to read in order.