The best Bond I’ve read so far. It’s best to think of it as two books, with the exciting book getting started about page 75. The first book is mainly for lovers of bridge and snobbery. But book two is a real adventure, with a refreshingly vulnerable Bond and a surprisingly capable female lead. Of course she’s hot, but even Bond realizes that’s not all she is. Plus, the villain is despicable, the world is saved, and this book has nothing to do with the movie. Good fun.

I’m sure we’ve all experienced that disappointment of re-reading a book, read many years previously, and it failing to live up to fond memories. It’s probably why I seldom go back to old favourites. Sadly I had that with Moonraker.

It’s a shame; the book is divided into three parts, and the first part in London has some of Ian Fleming’s very best writing. He’s masterful at capturing the drab 1950’s post war atmosphere, the interior workings, offices and characters of the secret service; and his confrontation with the cheating Hugo Drax at a Bridge table is a highlight of the entire series. The reasons for M’s suspicions of the much liked and philanthropic Drax are typical Fleming. ‘Extraordinary man,’ he says to Bond. ‘There’s only one thing…’ He looks mildly across at Bond. ‘He cheats at cards.’

Unfortunately the latter two parts of the novel come nowhere meeting the expectancy stimulated by the opening. Even if you can get past the preposterous plot, fifty moustachioed German scientists, just ten years after the war, being allowed it seems with minimal observance from the British government to build what is basically a bomb next to the white cliffs of Dover, then plan to nonchalantly wander off a pier to an awaiting Russian submarine on completion, reads surprisingly for Fleming rather flat and devoid of tension. Perhaps the worst crime of all, and I’m giving nothing away here as we know Drax, like all Bond villains, is going to fail, does not end with a face to face confrontation. It's all very distant. The fact that the finale comes to us via the live reporting of a silly-assed Terry-Thomas like BBC commentator is also a strange decision.

Still, it’s worth a read for the gripping first part alone. We also get to find out a few things about the usually enigmatic character of Bond. His age for a start – he’s 37 (the book was first published in 1955). And we also discover that he gets depressed and often thinks of his death, which he believes will be before the obligatory age of retirement from the 00 section, 45.

The Bond books don’t have to be read in order; any references to previous adventures usually takes no more than a sentence or two. My advice would be not to start with this one.

Another fast-paced thriller from Fleming, this book has a great villain and some exciting moments of suspense. As it’s set entirely in England, it lacks some of the glam vibes you would expect from a Bond novel but remains an enjoyable page-turner.

A solid thriller with an engaging villain and a crisp plot. It's, of course, less spectacular than the film, but viewed via a lens of its era, it's intense and exciting with a gritty edge and exciting action. The opening gentleman's club set piece revolving around drinking and bridge offers a lot of '50s style, and the tale builds to a tense, world-rattling conclusion. Bond and heroine Gala Brand are subjected to a brutal endurance test. There's even a reason provided for Sir Hugo Drax's expository speech that became ingrained in Bond and other megalomaniac tales. I put off reading this one, but it's really readable early Bond.