No Limit!

No no no no no no no no no no no no there's no limit!

'Dr No' by Ian Fleming, read by Hugh Quarshie
(AudioGo 2012)

OK, now I've got that out of my system, here is a post about 'Dr No' by Ian Fleming, an AudioGo 007 Reloaded version of the novel read by Hugh Quarshie.

Returning to active duty after a near fatal encounter with the Russians, James Bond is given an easy assignment; investigating the disappearance of two MI6 operatives based in Kingston, Jamaica.  But the case is not as it seems. Before too long M's 'bit of a holiday' looking into a suspected affair and elopement has evolved into something far more sinister.  As Bond joins the dots, he finds all the threads lead to Crab Key, home to rare birds, a guano plant and the secretive spider at the web's centre, Dr Julius No.

'Dr No' is much more meticulously paced than 'Live and Let Die', the last Bond story I listened to as an audiobook.  It's still not a long novel, but it includes much more tension, character development and back story and is the better for it.  Bond lives a hyper-real, ultra-violent life just within sight of reality, so it helps to actually bring the story back down to Earth by making readers care about the characters.  In 'Dr No', Quarrel and Honeychile Ryder are much more developed than Solitaire in 'Live and Let Die', so there is a greater sense of danger that makes you genuinely root for these people and want to find out what happens next.

'Dr No' by Ian Fleming
(Penguin Modern
Classics, 2004)

I thought Solitaire was a complete waste of space, but I absolutely fell in love with Honeychile Ryder.  Although in some ways a victim of circumstances, she's not been sat around waiting for Bond to arrive and sort everything out for her.  She has her own aims, talents and desires, some more sensible than others, but whether her decisions make good sense or not, at least she's trying and she's not afraid of using her skills and knowledge to make her way independently in the world.  You go girl!

While the heroes seem more real, the villain Dr No was as unreal as they come.  Perhaps it was a deliberate dichotomy or maybe a villain as completely off the wall as this one is so unbelievable to prevent readers having nightmares.  Having said that, while No was a typical megalomaniacal Bond villain who seemed completely detached from reality in his underground lair, he was scary.  Normally this sort of character becomes borderline camp in the films, but on the page and in his own domain claustrophobia sets in and you begin to doubt that even 007 can overcome this madman's manipulations.

Overall, 'Dr No' is a great adventure story, action-packed, tense and with real punch in places.  It has dated in the last 57 years, but, to be fair, all the Bond books I've encountered so far have, like so many of their contemporaries.  If you can see beyond this, however, I would recommend it.

Now, what next?

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'Live and Let Die'
'Casino Royale'
'For Your Eyes Only'

Reading Voices (Again)...

Before I start, I want to make one thing clear.  I'm reviewing the book, not the author.  I say this because I've just finished 'A Host of Voices' by Doris Stokes, which includes the third and fourth autobiographies written by the popular psychic medium, and understand her to be a controversial figure to some.

'A Host of Voices' by
Doris Stokes
(Warner Books, 2000)

'A Host of Voices' is two books in one.  'Innocent Voices in My Ear' explores Mrs Stokes particular affinity with parents who have lost children, a connection she feels keenly due to the passing of her only child as a baby. 'Whispering Voices' is broader and covers a range of personal and public events, demonstrations and sittings that took place in around 1984-5.

There are three collections of Doris Stokes' autobiographies and I've now read all of them.  Although I'm not sure I have an opinion on her beliefs, her books have a very easy style and before I've realised it I'm already 50 pages in.  If only more books were like that!  Although where would the challenge be then?

'A Host of Voices' was no exception to this.  It has a charming style that made me feel like I was visiting an elderly relative and she was telling stories about her life and experiences.  'Innocent Voices in my Ear' was a bit of an emotional roller coaster because of the subject matter, so while the style was easy going, sometimes the lives described weren't.  As such, it's not really for the faint hearted.  Or those without hanky to hand.

My favourite chapters were where Stokes talked about her life rather than just relaying the stories of her sitters and celebrity contacts, in this world and the next.  Unfortunately, these were quite few, although I suspect much of this was probably covered in her first to autobiographies.

'Whispering Voices' wasn't as much of a success.  It felt a little as though Mrs Stokes' first three books had been so popular she was encouraged to write a third.  Unfortunately, the source material seems to be running out by this stage and it almost feels as if it's being written as events happen, until there's enough text for a book.  By the end, whole chapters are being devoted to reprinted articles about Mrs Stokes and poetry she's been sent by her admirers.  The former would be more interesting as part of an analysis of Stokes in a socio-cultural context and the latter really only illustrate the author's respect for what her correspondents send her. Which is lovely, but doesn't make for a good read.

Overall, if you are interested in the popular culture of the 1970s and '80s or spiritualism, 'A Host of Voices' and its companions are interesting and, somehow, easy reads, despite being full of loss, crime and suicide.  I think a certain amount of detachment helps the casual reader, although maybe I've just been hardened by reading so many sad stories.  Anyway, I suspect you already know if this is your sort of read or not!

Now the days are longer, I'm hoping to get my teeth (or should that be my head?) into a few more titles.  Although I'm not doing myself any favours at the moment - am part way through two paperpacks, one hard back, an ebook and an audiobook.  But at least I'm reading (or listening!), so watch this space or follow me on Twitter for updates!

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Getting into the Spirit of Things...

Bond goes on a Treasure Hunt

The final book I finished last month was 'Live and Let Die' by Ian Fleming.  It was another in the 007 Reloaded series from AudioGo and read by Rory Kinnear, who played M's assistant Bill Tanner in 'Quantum of Solace' and 'Skyfall'.  Fact!

'Live and Let Die' by Ian Fleming
(AudioGo, 2012)

'Live and Let Die' begins with a pirate's gold.  Old, rare and valuable coins from a legendary Caribbean hoard are mysteriously surfacing in America and the authorities want to know how they're getting there.  Working with the FBI and the CIA's Felix Leiter, Bond is sent on a treasure hunt that plunges him headlong into a world of superstition, voodoo and organised crime.  His target is Mr Big, cult leader, smuggler and SMERSH operative, a powerful figure in the Black community who manipulates his magical reputation to get what he wants from his network of terrified informants.  When 007 is forced to go on the run with Mr Big's pet psychic Solitaire, there seems to be no chance of escape.  But Bond was born lucky and it takes more than stories to frighten him.  Something more like the thought of a night time swim in a sea of frenzied sharks and barracuda...

This book is the most 'boy's own' of all the Bond stories I've read/heard so far.  Ignoring the fact that the novel is very much of its time and uses words and descriptions that are unacceptable today, it starts off very gung ho and a bit Bond-by-numbers, almost like Fleming wasn't sure where he was going with it.  For example, a scene set in Mr Big's night club hide out featuring an erotic dancer who strips her meagre coverings for a baying mob may be a teenage boy's cheap thrill, but it seemed excessive even as an attempt to suggest Mr Big and his minions were nothing but unsophisticated tribal savages or to remind us that we're in the hyper-charged world of Mr Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.  Solitaire, also, feels like a box ticked rather than a necessity for the story.  A typical damsel in distress, she comes across as vapid, useless and rather pointless overall.  But can Bond be Bond without a girl?

About half way through, however, Bond and Leiter get back to the business in hand, start doing some actual

'Live and Let Die' by Ian Fleming
(Penguin, 2004)

spying and - lo! - the story starts to pick up.  From then onwards, the tension builds to a fantastic climax that kept me guessing even though I knew what would probably happen.  Now that's more like it!

As with the other 007 Reloaded CDs I've listened to so far, this one kept things simple and benefited from it.

Overall, I was slightly disappointed by this book, but enjoyed the return of Felix Leiter, the tense second half and working out which films various scenes and events had ended up it.  (It goes without saying that this book bears little resemblance to the enjoyable film, but bits of it do appear in other movies, most obviously in 'Licence to Kill'.)

I've already started on 'Dr No' and it's already a much more plodding work, leaden by comparison with this.  I'll be interested to see if it does the opposite to 'Live and Let Die' and gets a bit feisty in the second half instead.

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'Casino Royale'
'For Your Eyes Only'