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Amis- Colonel Sun
Gardner- LR, FSS, IB, NLF, NDMR, WLOD
Benson- ZMT, TFOD, HTTK, DS, short stories LAF, AMND
Faulks- DMC
Deaver- CB
Boyd- Solo
14 Flemings
14 Gardners
6 Bensons
1 Amis
1 Pearson
1 Faulks
1 Deaver
1 Boyd
7 Screenplay novelizations ( 2 Wood, 2 Gardner, 3 Benson)
5 Young Bond (Higson)
3 MP Diaries (Weinberg)
54 total. 11 authors.
on deck Another Young Bond. This time by Stephen Cole.
That's really very impressive, @timmer!
If you read the later thrillers of Dennis Wheatley into the late 1960s and early 1970s you will actually see that he deals with the rise of Black Power as a form of villainy, so that might be an example of what Fleming might have done had he lived into this era and not died too young in 1964.
Wow Timmer, that's quite an accomplishment!
Does that include all three of Benson's short stories?
Re short stories; no I am only including the original published novels and Fleming short story collections. 54 total books.
The Benson and Weinberg MPD short stories were originally published scattershort in various periodicals.
I am embarassed to say, that I have only read one of the Benson short stories and none of the 3 Weinberg MPD shorts.
I did pick-up the Playboy magazine in which the first of Benson's short stories was originally published, but wasn't able to keep pace after that.
However Benson has been kind enough to make the short stories available in a couple of omibus collections of his novels. So they have been available in paperback for a while.
I've been too cheap to buy though, as I have a natural aversion to repurchasing material that I already have, just because there'a a couple of extras added. Like buying an artist's deluxe edition cd after already having forked out for the original.
However I may break down with the Benson omnibuses, as I do want to read those stories.
Meantime Higson's Young Bond short story is available in the Young Bond Dossier which I did pick up, and even Fleming's "007 in New York" short, has been availalbe in more recent OP collections.
I am also proud to say I own the complete 54 book collection above, including all paperbacks but for MP Diaires:Final Fling which I only have in HC and Solo which isn't out yet.
I also have 10/14 Gardner HC's 2/6 Benson HC's, all 5 Young Bond HC's, 1/3 MPD hardcovers, plus Faulks, Deaver and Boyd HC's.
Someday I will put the whole collection on ebay, for some new Bond fan that wants to read the whole ouevre. Better than leaving book collections to heirs who have no interest in them and might break them up.
James Bond-The Spy Who Loved Me by Wood. Even better than the film, and emulating the Fleming style surprisingly well.
The first three by Gardner. I enjoyed the first initially, but had not read much of Fleming at the time. Now I find all three to be abysmal, there is a reason why I gave up on Gardner after that, but if anyone here feels that he grew as a Bond writer after that, I might give him another shot. The library is rather close from my home.
Yeah, that's interesting. I like putting a lot of myself into my own characters when writing, especially if it is spy fiction I am focusing on. You can fantasize about the job without actually committing your life to it, and live out that dream in the muse of your character/s, putting them into situations where you ask yourself ""what would you do?"
Well, that's exactly what Ian Fleming did in his James Bond novels and short stories. Fleming lives out his own Boys Own-style fantasies and daydreams with James Bond as his surrogate hero. There's a lot of wish-fulfillment in the James Bond novels, and this is down to the fact that Fleming invested so much of himself in them, perhaps even subconsciously.
The Bond continuation novels, as good and Bondian as some of them are, don't even remotely compare IMO to the classic Fleming originals.
Fleming is special. It's like treasure - a whole different world - the classic literary roots of a global phenomenon. The books are so eminently readable. I read the whole 14 all over again last year. I am going to do it again next year too. There is nothing better!!!
Controversial, but I thought Colonel Sun was better than a couple of the Fleming books.
I think that that's quite a commonly held opinion, though I don't hold it myself.
You really need to check out John Gardner, too, @Ludovico. He was a long established thriller writer, not a fanboy. He's the longest standing Bond continuation author, too, so that should count for something.
Gonna start Licence Revoked when I've finished reading The November Man series.
I do plan to to re-visit the entire canon at some point, much the way I have done with occasional Flemingathons.
"You should do your homework..."
Eve, Skyfall
23 novels
Not really a bad novel (I actually enjoyed a lot), but far from the best Bond novel. If you own it, you should read it, but I'd suggest you to start with Fleming novels (especially Casino Royale, From Russia with Love, Doctor No, OHMSS and YOLT, which are my personal favourites) and then read the "continuation novels".
Quite an achievement, that. Well done, sir. =D>