It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
^ Back to Top
The MI6 Community is unofficial and in no way associated or linked with EON Productions, MGM, Sony Pictures, Activision or Ian Fleming Publications. Any views expressed on this website are of the individual members and do not necessarily reflect those of the Community owners. Any video or images displayed in topics on MI6 Community are embedded by users from third party sites and as such MI6 Community and its owners take no responsibility for this material.
James Bond News • James Bond Articles • James Bond Magazine
Comments
Do you think that Higson would do a better job with the adult Bond than Horowitz?
A continuation Bond in the vein of the cinematic incarnation of the character, however? I'd gladly take it. There are many people who'd be perfect for it. Andy McNab and Chris Ryan, for instance. Both are British and with military background, so no pretentious know-nothings would try and replicate what would seemingly be an armed forces intelligence agent's life in a "realistic" way.
I liked Wood's style a lot.
Interesting point. What would shift more units...
1) A period piece in Fleming's timeline featuring the literary Bond
..or
2) A contemporary thriller based on the current (Craig) incarnation of the cinematic Bond.
I'd rather see the former, but perhaps the latter would sell more, (with a Craig picture on the front, a kind of 'official novelisation of a movie that doesn't exist, if that makes sense).
I think Benson was asked to write with the current cinematic version (Brosnan) in mind, wasn't he?
Horowitz captures the flavor of the early Bond books. He replicates the cool tone and matter of fact attitude Bond carries, even in killing. He realizes that even though he may be new to the Double 0 circle, he would be a capable agent. Most of the missteps he makes are in his emotions.
The book also perfectly weaves Bond history into world history. We get Bond’s first meeting with M and a charming one with Moneypenny. Horowitz also plays with expectations of the the cannon, such as his choice of gun. He uses the cold war backdrop of the fifties to perfect effect, having it play into the villain’s plan and the perfect twist of a last chapter.
Forever and a Day is a treat for Bond fans, particularly those who love the Ian Fleming books. It isn't a patch on Fleming, but it provides the kind of familiar entertainment his fans have loved for decades.
+1
I loved FAAD.
Reading some of the comments makes me glad i'm not a native speaker because i can't even compare writing styles between Fleming and Horowitz that much, or what specific language the writers used, even though i still prefer to read all my Bond Books in English.
All i care about is whether the story grabs me and the visualisation is any good, and this book delivered on all fronts. FAAD had some really dark stuff in it, which i enjoy
Also i don't know why but i could only picture a young pre Dr. NO-Connery while reading. Something i usually never do. But if i'm not mistaken, Horowitz said that was somewhat on purpose.
Horowitz is able to capture Fleming’s flowing style and intricate details from how Bond likes his eggs in the morning to the cars he drives and colourful characters he interacts with.
He’s just as faithfully suave as in the original novels, with a depth of insight into his complex psychology, especially when carrying out his assassinations.
Horowitz even notes in the acknowledgements that the chapter Russian Roulette is based on original material of Fleming’s for an American TV show that didn’t happen.
There are brutal and bloody moments in the actions scenes and unfortunately Fleming’s dated sexism has also been toned down for a modern audience. This is mainly expressed in the form of Sixtine, an older woman who won’t be so easily charmed and seduced by the handsome British spy. But it works.
Meanwhile the Bond villain Scipio is particularly enjoyable and cartoonish; a morbidly obese Corsician gangster Scipio who blusters and waddles between scenes.
But overall there’s something so classic and nostalgic about returning to Bond’s routes with a 1950 setting, as 007 smokes fine cigarettes and scratches at the scar on his cheek..........
Agreed. They may not amount to a lot of content page wise, but they are gems just the same.
On a positive note, there are a lot of 007 books coming this year.
http://jamesbondradio.com/new-and-notable-james-bond-books-2019/
These books don’t interest me personally. I don’t really care about reading books associated with the movies or comics. I want more of the literary Bond (non comics). :)
Yeah, a Bond book per year again would be amazing. I miss the good old days. Well, even every two years would be okay but a new adult Bond book every three years is too long to wait.
I’ve tried reading comics in the past and haven’t really enjoyed them partly because I don’t know in what order to read the speech bubbles. I might order this book that’s a collection of the Dynamite Bond comics and give it one more go though. I’ve never read a Bond comic, so...
Wow, I don’t remember so many Bond reference books coming out at the same time before. Spoilt for choice.
In one of the Young Bond books by Higson a adult 007 shows up in one of the last chapters and it felt really good.
Yeah
Yeah, I remember that. It read well. It was too short to tell though as to whether it was better than Horowitz’s writing in Trigger Mortis which was a great read. Haven’t read FAAD yet.
Can you post it, please?
I think this is it.
A great podcast. Tom and David clearly know their Bond and it's nice to hear people who actually know what they are talking about airing their views.
In the round, I agree with David's comments FAAD may not be perfect but it's by far and away the best continuation novel since 'Colonel Sun'.
That said, the car gaff was extremely annoying and given the importance of car and gun lore in Bond world, pretty unforgivable. The Pussy noticed it immediately and it grated to say the least.
When the book was announced, I wasn't too thrilled with the decision he made to write a novel that predates CR, as I much more prefer novels in the Fleming timeline to feature a Bond that's already an experienced spy. I was pleased to find that Horowitz handled this well. I really like the inclusion of the killing of the Norwegian double agent Rolf Larsen, and how that played out in the early chapters. Luckily Horowitz didn't name him Larson; the "on" ending which you will find in Norwegian names too, is more Swedish sounding that the "en" ending that is more common here. As far as my memory of Norwegian wartime history goes, the facts Horowitz included were correct too.
I like the pace of those early chapters. Halfway through it slows down a bit much for my liking, but it picks up again when Bond uncovers more of Wolfe's and Scipio's scheme. Re. characters, I didn't quite warm to the character of Irwin Wolfe; I don't know, maybe there was something missing to make him more memorable. On the other hand, I found every chapter featuring Jean-Paul Scipio highly entertaining. Sixtine was interesting enough; nice touch teaming Bond up with an older woman.
Did I find FAAD better than Trigger Mortis? Probably not, but on par at least – and I liked TM.
On a side note: I see some previous comments calling Horowitz' prose weak. Given my own enjoyment of this novel, I almost find myself questioning my own literary tastes. I didn't find the inclusion of any of the tropes jarring or annoying. English is not my first language, so that might have been small factor too.
IMHO he's an excellent writer, and I like to think of myself as a reasonably literary and literate person.