An excellent read of the inspiration for James Bond
343237
Spans the life of one Dusko Popov from 1936-1945.  When his best friend joins the Abwehr, he invites Dusko in as well.  Hesitant at first, for he is definitely anti-Nazi (and not even German, he's Yugoslavian) he joins the military intelligence service...then crosses town and joins MI6 at the same time.  The book is a glimpse in the true story of a double agent during the war, and the trials and tribulations he faces.  I think my favorite part is when he goes to see J. Edgar Hoover, to tell him about the approaching attack on Pearl Harbor.  Hoover doesn't trust him and shelves the information.  Popov theorizes that the reason why the sneak attack was so successful was because Hoover buried all incoming information on it.  Another good part is his few meetings with Ian Fleming, especially at a Baccarat table...
My only real complaints are that I was wondering just what happened to some of the people afterwards; Von Karsthoff the Abwehr spymaster in Lisbon, some of Popov's British friends, even Popov himself since he mentions that he did quit but not when or why.  But all in all, it is a good quick read for anyone interested in real life spy stories.  It is definitely worth picking up if you can find it.
1622002
I am already a huge supporter of the underrated A View to a Kill and was quite delighted to find this book. Andrew McNess offers very detailed, almost psychological analysis of the film that made me appreciate it even more. Even if you've watched AVTAK a hundred times, there is still more to learn by reading this book. If I was a millionaire I would buy a copy for every Bond fan in the world. It's time AVTAK got the respect it deserves.

Note- this review is for the excellent Kindle version.
3991815
Danny Biederman is the actual author--the forward was by Robert W. Wallace.  Biederman's collection of fictional spy artifacts is interesting to both movie buffs and to those involved in real-world espionage.  I hadn't heard of most of the movies in "the Incredible World of Spy Fi," so I'll be looking them up on DVD.  The spy gadgets and props are almost as important as the actor--the gimmicks are characters, too!  Who can forget John Steed's steel-lined bowler, Maxwell Smart's shoe phone, the U.N.C.L.E. Special, James Bond's PPK and tricked-out sports cars, or Jim Phelp's self-destructing tape recorders? I enjoyed reading this book and it will be a valuable reference in my personal library.
1155470
James Bond is a cultural icon of the second half of the Twentieth Century, half the population of the world has seen a 007 film and a good majority have read the books. This book doesn't tread on any new ground.
1873
This is an excellent book concerned with the fascinating world of heraldry or coat of arms. When I opened it for the first time it reminded me of James Bond (impersonated by Australian actor George Lazenby) visit to the College of Arms in London where he meets Sir Hilary Bray, the local expert in British heraldry. Bond is shown the coat of arms of his ancestor Sir Thomas Bond which consists of a chevron (or insigna) charged with three Bezants (Byzantine gold coins) - this technical description can be found on page 42 of Boutell's book while fig. 86 on page 43 shows a chevron charged with three  crescents turned upward. Bond's coat of arms is displayed on the cover of Ian Fleming's novel "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" (1-st edition). Enjoy the book!!!
578455
The basis for the best James Bond film ever. Ian Fleming inspired a generation of bookreaders and moviegoers with this one.
2713040
This is a great, lavishly illustrated book, and great companion for those of us who follow 007.  The book illustrates the various gadgets and gizmos that 007 has made use of over the years and includes a film chronology which gives an overview of each adventure and illustrations of the climactic stunts in each picture.  Learn everything about Bond from his clothes, his cars, the Walther PPK, and read the bios of his most celebrated adversaries and femme fatales.
2645109
A excellent read. Fast pace with plenty of action. The main character, Scot, is on the same level as the fictional character of James bond novels.
3780747
Wes Britton's 'Beyond Bond' is a must buy for any spy aficionado worth the

radio in his shoe. (Get Smart, for those youngsters amongst us.)  Wes

manages to cram more interesting detail about spies into a book than one

would think possible.  I have been closely associated musically with the

film spy movement, James Bond Theme, The Prisoner and others, for more than

40 years and this book proves how little I knew.  Buy it and enjoy.  Vic

Flick

[...]

Guitarist on productions of James Bond, The Prisoner, Pink Panther and

others, and for many composers including John Barry, Henry Mancini, Jerry Goldsmith and

Michel LeGrand.
1549063
This was a nice blend of Fleming's Bond and the way Connery portrayed the character.  It brought the original stories to mind and offered a rare glimpse into Bond's early military life.
3530605
It's a great time to return to the gritty but elegantly tough world of James Bond, as Hollywood has already proven. Sebastian Faulks stages his 007 contemplating retirement, watching his diet and alcohol consumption, and wondering whether he's fit enough to take on any more assignments. Fortunately, the unusual murder of a drug trafficker in France (his tongue has been cut off and fed to him) forces MI6 to call Bond back to action.

Quickly, James is outfitted with the gadgets for the job, ditching the elder-care routine, for traveling abroad to hunt millionaire scientist Max Gorner, a man determined to undermine several governments against whom he holds a pathological grudge. As with the chief villain in Fleming's The Man With the Golden Gun, Gorner has a disfigurement - a monkey's paw - and as with many Bond novels, he also possesses at his beck and call a vicious homicidal right hand man to kill for him. The leading lady in the story, Scarlett Papava, is one of the more talented of the Bond heroines. She and 007 relate much in the same way as Steed and Mrs. Peel of the Avengers - clever and competitive until the inevitable romantic scenes.

I have read both Mr. Faulks new version of Fleming, as well as Jeffery Deaver's Bond novel, Carte Blanche, and both are wonderful returns to 007's world. What I liked about Devil May Care was the old fashioned attention to the art of being a gentleman - that GQ feature of the Fleming series that highlighted quality, good sportsmanship and style. Reading James Bond caused men all over the world to buy Rolexes and order martinis in my father's day. I don't think a little more elegance could hurt the modern male much either!
3597758
First, let me admit to being a Bond fan dating back to the original U.S. release of Dr. No (1963), and that I am not a professional, or even semi-pro book reviewer.  However, I found this book so helpful from a Bond fan traveler's perspective I'm going to take a shot at it.

I took James Bond's London with me on my first trip to London along with a number of other books on the city.  I found James Bond's London to be one of three books that became my go to resources for navigating London, so my next trip I will be traveling much lighter in the book department.  I agree with other reviewers, a map would be helpful, however, each listing includes a description of how to get to the location which indicates the nearest Tube Station and a verbal description of how to navigate to the site.  This, when combined with a map of London and a map of the London Tube, is really all one needs.  For this purpose, I highly recommend The London Mapguide by Michael Middleditch which includes both a map of London and the Tube.  For more detail, see my second review of The London Mapguide.

One of my favorite features of James Bond's London was Appendix One on page 166 entitled, James Bond's Guide to Good Living, A Ready Reference.  This appendix lists resources Bond uses in London, for example, His Barber, Geo. F. Trumper Mayfair (13:25).  The numeric reference is to the section in the book on, in this case, Trumper.  Many of the listings in this appendix are must see sites for the Bond fan in London, like Turnbull and Asser, Bond's shirtmaker, Les Ambassadeurs Club, one of Bond's clubs, etc.

James Bond's London also includes an icon based key system, which indicates locations related to Ian Fleming specific locations, locations mentioned in the books and/or films, locations related to real-life spy activity, disguised locations, those that double for something else, items marked as "Trespassers Will Be Eaten" which are off limits to the public, like the SIS/MI6 building, and finally "Shaken and Stirred which are recommended or significant sites.  Additionally, James Bonds London also includes an interesting Trivia Challenge that may be fun for Bond fans to pursue at home or on those rainy London days when you decide to stay in.

The only thing I found confusing about James Bonds London were references throughout the book to something called JBB.  This refers to a book by Gary Giblin entitled James Bonds Britton, which to my understanding has been written but not published.  There is a fairly obscure reference to James Bonds Britton on page 15 paragraph 3 but otherwise you will be wondering just what these JBB references mean.  Attention Amazon, this is an opportunity for you to do some publishing

James Bonds London is a good read for anyone interested in Bond or London.  For the traveler to London it is a great resource on a great city, hope you enjoy James Bonds London as much as I have.
232673
After watching the amazing film adaptation this past year I decided to give the Ian Fleming novel a chance.  I'm sure glad that I did, for even though it shows its age through and through it's still a great introductory novel into the world of James Bond.  While some have already noted that the action itself is subdued I feel it bares repeating since this novel is all about establishing character, and with that in mind it does a fantastic job.

In `Casino Royale' we meet British Secret Service agent James Bond, newly crowned 007, as he embarks on a mission full of deceit, murder, torture and high stakes gambling.  Sent to the Casino Royale to turn the tables on the Russian spy Le Chiffre it appears that Bond has one of those `sitting-pretty' type assignments, but things aren't as easy as they initially appear.  First he has to contend with his partner, the beautiful Vesper Lynd.  Bond, while a surefire ladies man, prefers to keep their company strictly bedside and struggles with the idea of entertaining and ultimately trusting her.  Le Chiffre himself also poses a problem in that he is not only smarter than Bond imagined but also much more determined to end up on top then Bond would have given him credit for.

`Casino Royale' may spend most of it's time in the close quarters of the casino floor but it serves up some very interesting background information on everyone's favorite secret agent.  It establishes Bond as a person, not just a pretty face with muscles and brains, but a man stripped to the core with real human emotions and feelings.  `Casino Royale' is the book that sets the foundation for the remaining Bond novels.  His relationship with Vesper plays a huge part in the man Bond becomes and this novel helps the reader come to better understand this iconic character.

While I personally preferred the 2006 Blockbuster to the novel, mainly because the style of writing is dated and moves a little slow, I will say that it's well worth the read.  I myself am now determined to read through the entire Bond series to get a full picture of the man we all love to watch film after film.  This is where Bond began and is a must read for any fan of the films that this immortal character inspired.
3571425
My first reading of the James Bond series.  The movie people were a bit loose in transferring the story line and relationships from the book. The book was not as full of flash or supporting story line as the most recent Casino Royale movie but was very enjoyable to read. Bond is more fallible in the book and he's not gadget driven. The political situations of that time in history were very well pointed out and Fleming's knowledge of the spy game was evident. I would recommend it to any Bond fan. Just don't expect to read the movie storyline in print.
853905
When we were in high school we read all of Ian Flemings James Bond books and loved them. Weve read a number of books in the course of time of those who took up the series after his death but have found most of them wanting, or perhaps our tastes have tended to mature in the course of time. Most of those books have attempted to update Bond and in most cases, in our opinion, tend to be overwritten. Sebastian Faulks, on the other hand, has written a Bond book that takes place in the time period of the original books and in lean style of Fleming. It is true to the character and sense of Flemings books and is really quite good. Its bit like listening to the music one listened to when one was young; it brings back fond memories. If you liked Bond in his original form, youll most likely enjoy this one.

The Silver Elves
1474938
I first came across the "Being James Bond" podcast and forum shortly after Quantum of Solace was released and was instantly hooked. The podcast covered a number of, if not all, the skills shown by 007 based primarily on the movies. As well as pure entertainment, it provides an introduction for the listener to decide whether to learn any particular skill. The book is based on research for a number of different podcast episodes and acts as a handy reference guide, first in paperback and now in Kindle format you can carry it with you at all times!
879415
Great read as long as you understand that this story is along the lines of earlier James Bond films in places. Flying an F-117 through a tunnel using missiles and bouncing bombs to open blast doors amongst other things comes to mind. Still I liked it and it was worth reading.