Two for the Price of Bond!

Are you sitting comfortably?  Then I'll begin.

As the regular readers among you will know, I've been working my way through the AudioGo 007 Reloaded series of James Bond audiobooks over the past few years.  I've now listened to 13 of the 14 unabridged recordings of Ian Fleming's original novels read by different actors.  At time of typing, I'm just two CDs away from finishing the whole series, so watch this space!

Back to back, I recently (ahem) finished 'You Only Live Twice' (read by Martin Jarvis) and 'The Man with the Golden Gun' (read by Kenneth Branagh).

'You Only Live Twice' by Ian Fleming
and read by Martin Jarvis
(AudioGo 2012)

In 'You Only Live Twice', Bond is a broken man.  His wife is dead, murdered by criminal mastermind Ernst Stavro Blofeld, and Bond's spirit seems to have died with her.  But while 007 is ready to give up, M is prepared to give him an opportunity to live again.  Sent to Japan, Bond receives his deadliest assignment yet from Tiger Tanaka, head of the country's Secret Service.  A suspicious foreigner has created a 'Castle of Death' where too many people have lost their lives in mysterious circumstances.  Tanaka charges Bond with infiltrating the castle, but first of all, 007 has to learn how to be Japanese...

'You Only Live Twice' is followed by 'The Man with the Golden Gun'.  Missing for over a year following his Japanese adventure, Bond makes a sudden re-appearance in London, brainwashed by the KGB to assassinate M.  Fortunately, the attempt fails, but to prove his loyalty, Bond is sent on an impossible mission; to find and kill the notorious hit man 'Pistols' Scaramanga.  But does the world-weary spy have what it takes to assassinate the legendary Man with the Golden Gun?

'You Only Live Twice' by Ian Fleming
(Penguin Modern Classics, 2004)

'You Only Live Twice' and 'The Man with the Golden Gun' are the last Bond books written by Ian Fleming before his death at just 56 years old in 1964.  They're full of references to previous events, locations and people, so you need to be aware of their predecessors' plots.  The events of 'You Only Live Twice', for example, only make sense if you've read 'On Her Majesty's Secret Service' (unfortunately, the only one in the series I didn't have!).  Don't make my mistake, read Fleming's novels in order!

Of the two, I felt 'You Only Live Twice' was the weaker.  I've often got the feeling that Fleming would learn something or meet someone, become fascinated, stew for a bit, then, when the time was right, sit down and write a Bond novel.  Unfortunately, this got in the way a bit with this book.  The theme here is Japanese culture, but so many pages are devoted to Tanaka teaching Bond how to be Japanese that it dispels the tension in the lead up to the mission itself.  Plus, although I know these books are fiction, imagining the bullish Britisher James Bond could masquerade as a Japanese man felt a bit too far fetched.  Underground lairs?  Yes.  Gold smuggled as car parts?  Obviously.  A bit of make up and some coaching to completely change culture?  Hmm, not sure.

Once it did cut to the chase, however, the reader was back on safe ground.  The mission in the 'Castle of Death' has all the hallmarks of a classic Fleming thriller and there's a brilliant cliffhanger ending (although there's a loose end connected with the love interest which is never resolved and will torment me forever!).

'The Man with the Golden Gun' by
Ian Fleming and read by Kenneth Branagh.
(AudioGo, 2012)

'The Man with the Golden Gun' is far more tense and arresting throughout.  Once the initial hurdle of Bond's brainwashing is out of the way, we find ourselves in what would otherwise be a great standalone Bond story.  This is thanks to Scaramanga, a mysterious and unpredictable villain who seems much like a wire that could snap at any time.  Throughout the book, it feels like it's the baddie who has the upper hand and Bond could be unmasked at any moment.  Even when you think it's all over... well, it isn't... quite!

One unexpected negative to 'The Man with the Golden Gun' was its narrator, Kenneth Branagh.  He's such an amazing actor and director and I was really excited to be listening to a Bond book read by him.  Unfortunately, the performance felt really rushed, almost as though he'd squeezed it in between two of his other many projects.  It was such a shame, especially as many of the other 007 Reloaded readers have added so much to the books with their recordings.

'The Man with the Golden Gun'
by Ian Fleming.
(Vintage, 2012)

'You Only Live Twice' and 'The Man with the Golden Gun' both feature great characters, old and new.  I'm sure Dikko Henderson, Bond's Australian Secret Service contact in Japan, must be based on someone Fleming knew.  The guy just leaps off the page!  Felix Leiter and Mary Goodnight also make welcome re-appearances and we find out what happened to a number of other characters too.

Interestingly, the man we find out most about is probably James Bond himself.  When he goes missing in 'You Only Live Twice', Bond's obituary is published - a great read for trivia addicts!

Overall, despite having my disbelief suspended a bit higher than normal, I did enjoy both these stories and they are great additions to the Bond canon.  On the whole, I think it's a case of if you enjoyed one, you'll probably enjoy them all.

Now I've nearly finished them all, I'm actually feeling quite sad that there weren't more.  I know other writers have picked up the pen and continued where Fleming left off, but there is a big part of me that can't help thinking that nobody does it better.

Now, what next...?

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