This is that one Bond movie that featured George Lazenby, some guy no one had heard of before and has never heard of since. My childhood memory of the movie was that this was a real snooze and I've always (possibly unfairly) blamed Lazenby for that. Sean Connery was never boring, was my reasoning. (Also not true.)

In any case, because my childhood memories can be somewhat persuasive (in spite of being highly illogical or unreliable), I wasn't particularly looking forward to seeing this one again.

I was pleasantly surprised!

The movie really isn't as bad as my memory told me, and more surprisingly was that Lazenby wasn't nearly as bad as I thought I remembered. Wtf, Memory? This is probably the first of the Bond movies to have a somewhat surreal tone to it (Lazenby wears a kilt at one point and hypnosis to cure allergic reactions to things like... chickens... is a predominant feature to the story).

And, I'm sorry, can I just say? Telly Savalas as Blofeld. Who came up with that one? Brilliant, I say. Just brilliant.

As far as the book - again with the surprises! The movie actually is very close to the original book which might be the first I've encountered in this experience. There weren't any scenes in the book that I wished had been included in the movie. The movie certainly embellished on some things, but as usual the movie tones down some of Bond's more disturbing behaviors, like seducing a woman just by putting his hand on her breast. (I'd argue that if there's ever any hypnosis going on, it's being done by Bond. No one can have women drop their drawers as quickly and easily as these Bond girls without some brainwashing.)

Bond himself is actually somewhat chill in this book. He calls his future wife a "goose" at one point, and he sleeps with some women in her absence. But compared to some of the books that I've read before this one, I'd have to say this one is almost normal.

This could be attributed to the fact that there's an actual love story here between Bond and the Countess Teresa "Tracy" Draco, daughter of the head of the Unione Corse. (Another surprise! Corsicans!) Things don't end up all fluffy as one would hope for Bond, however, and honestly that whole relationship felt a bit contrived, at least in the novel. We meet Tracy in the beginning, she shows up in the end, and in the middle there's this whole non-Tracy stuff going on and her appearances felt someone forced. At least in the movie this could be edited differently.

So, Corsica and Switzerland, exactly two of the same places we just visited last fall - not long enough yet for the descriptions of Corsican violence and the loveliness of the Alps to not make me feel homesick for those places. I'm not going to say that those are the reasons that I liked this book (and maybe even the movie) more than the others I've read so far, but they're probably contributing factors.

Next up... Diamonds Are Forever.

Commander and Mrs. Bond.

The 11th Bond novel published by Ian Fleming was written at Fleming’s Jamaican property in 1962 while Doctor No was being filmed nearby.

Without a doubt this is Fleming’s most human and emotional portrayal of the British master spy. We see more depth to Bond’s character and Fleming provides more character development than in any of the previous installments in the series. We are also introduced to Tracy (Teresa di Vicenzo) who will become Bond’s wife.

Described as wild and reckless as Bond himself, Tracy is nonetheless shown in the peripheral, not so much about her as Bond’s reaction to her. We also meet her father and see how Fleming describes this mafia strongman as a resistance fighter in the war. Fleming’s use of characters’ war time experience in the novels is a recurring theme that the lines of good and evil can be blurred, most readily revealed as Bond’s own conscious about killing opponents.

This is of course also one of the Blofeld novels (along with Thunderball and You Only Live Twice – though he is more widely used in the films). Akin to Bond’s more humanistic elaboration, Fleming also takes more time to explore Blofeld’s past and shows an oddly individualistic and even vulnerable side to the arch villain.

One of the better Bond novels.

*** I watched the 1969 Peter R. Hunt film starring George Lazenby and Dianna Rigg. This is actually a GREAT Bond film. Lazenby made a really good Bond, too bad it all did not work out.

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This one ended up surprising me. I was a little underwhelmed until the ending.  So James Bond actually gets married in this one, and it ends with Blofeld killing his wife before they even start their honeymoon. Bond's final words in this one are "We have all the time in the world". This finally explains the tombstone in the film FOR YOUR EYES ONLY. I wasn't familiar with the movie of Secret Service so I didn't realize he'd lost his wife then and had thought it was something we'd never seen from Bond's past.


So we have Blofeld once again menacing the world, this time using hypnotism to destroy the agriculture of the UK (Long story.) Plenty of action although I did find some of the card playing and skiing a little boring. The ending though really makes this an important volume in the James Bond series.

Took a long time to read it, on my phone’s Kindle app

A great read. This is partly why the movie was so good. Bond in top form.

* The eleventh Bond book.

* Second appearance of Blofeld.

* Strangely enough, if I were going to read only one of Fleming's Bond books, this probably wouldn't be it, yet it is my favorite in the complete series. No, it's really not so odd: after seeing Bond tortured by love in so many other novels, it's a pleasure to see him finally find a future in it.

* But there's also plenty of action, a worthy adversary, great detail, humor, and pathos. Because of Tracy, though, it all works best on top of a solid foundation of the other books.



* The sixth Bond movie (George Lazenby).

* Reasonably faithful adaptation. Lazenby is a good Bond (and it's remarkable how well he handles the final scene, which is the diciest of them all).

* With a brand new actor playing the role and it's longer running time (it was the longest Bond film to date and held the record until Daniel Craig's "Casino Royale" beat it out decades later), it's regrettable that the producers still chose to make it about Movie Bond (toned down a bit, it's true) rather than Book Bond. Movie Bond is a superman who is never really hurt and never truly threatened--that's why he can crack his stupid jokes after supposedly facing mortal danger. It's also why it's hard to generate any meaningful suspense, or indeed any sympathy for the character. Though still one of the very best Bond movies, it's the all-too-frequent appearances of Movie Bond that prevent this from rising above its franchise into the wider world of great movies.

* Diana Rigg, though, blows all other Bond girls to date right out of the water.

* And it contains, of course, the best song ever played in a Bond film: "We Have All the Time in the World" by Louis Armstrong.

So Bond is going to get married. Totally shocked by the ending and by shocked I mean totally expected it from the minute Bond was going to get married.

James Bond hunts down Ernst Stavro Blofeld to a Swiss mountain lair, where he is ironically working on something very pertinent to today’s COVID-19 world.

Ian Fleming’s tenth Bond novel is, for me, the last good Bond book. After the poor reception that greeted his previous experimental book (the first person Spy Who Loved Me), he wastes no time getting the train back on track. At the time of writing this (1962) he would no doubt have been elated at the selling of the film rights to the series, and Dr No going into production.

As usual, Fleming takes great care with his characters and setting, and a moody atmosphere permeates throughout. Fleming’s use of Blofeld’s weak points – his vanity and craving for power – to allow Bond to weasel his way into the lair posing as a genealogist expert, is a masterstroke (as well as giving actor George Lazenby, in the film, some funny stiff upper-lipped scenes).

The action scenes are well handled; though I did find Bond’s chasing Blofeld on the bob-run to be so lengthily and finely described as to make the overall bigger task of taking Blofeld’s lair seem almost sidelined. Also, as has been the case in other books in the series, I’ve often been surprised that after such well-crafted build-ups, the final face to face confrontation between Bond and his foe has been all too brief, or in the case of Dr No not even happening. These quirks aside, which ultimately make the first three quarters of the book (the build-up) the most entertaining part, OHMSS is an enjoyable return to form for Bond. It was sadly not to last long. The silly You Only Live Twice follows next, and finishes with the ‘possibly’ unfinished Man With The Golden Gun.

PS. As good as George Lazenby is in the film (which is one of the best of the series), it’s a shame Sean Connery faffed around to make Shalako and The Red Tent at the time. He’s a favourite actor of mine, but his choice of films was sometimes baffling.

"On Her Majesty's Secret Service" was my first James Bond book, and it was exactly what I had wanted it to be: fast-paced, reasonably well-written, and enjoyable overall. Bond, as a character, was a bit more introspective than I had expected he'd be, and while the book was a touch misogynistic, it wasn't as terribly so as I had feared going in. While the book met my expectations, it never really went beyond them, thus the three-star rating. I'll probably read more Bond books, as this one was fun, but can't see myself becoming a huge Ian Fleming fan.

I REALLY enjoyed this one - in fact this might be my favorite of the Bond novels I've read so far! I can't recall if I've ever seen the movie or not, but the story seemed fresh to me. Due to a tip from the musty ol' College of Arms, 007 has the first solid lead on Blofeld in months. Bond has been itching to get a hold of Blofeld to make him pay for his crimes and involvement in Spectre and Thunderball and now he may finally have a chance. Bond prepares to go undercover to determine if their tip is legit and to see what Blofeld is really up to hiding out in the alps. Ski chases, lots of steamy romance (Bond actually falling for a girl?!?), intrigue, and the usual Bond swagger - this 007 novel does not disappoint.

Recovering in Maine, this was a great summer read, my first Fleming - and there may be more, probably over future summer vacations…

3½ stars.

This 11th entry in the original James Bond series has Bond once again facing Blofeld (from Thunderball) and SPECTRE, this time in Switzerland.

I was disappointed with Bond during the first third of this novel -- his character was more similar to the movie Bond (perhaps Fleming felt some pressure to write more like the successful movies?). Specifically he was more of a "ladies' man" and had less of the interior dialogue revealing emotional vulnerability. This aspect of his character does return though towards the end of the book.

The last third of the book was tremendously exciting and the ending was a gigantic cliff-hanger -- I can't wait to read You Only Live Twice! That said, I found one aspect completely implausible -- Bond marries the daughter of a Mafia type gangster! It doesn't seem to occur to him that this might be viewed as a giant conflict of interest by his bosses, although he does keep quiet about the affair.

In this book James Bond undergoes a midlife crisis and it has an even sadder ending than the time Bond was killed by Rosa Klebb.

It's been a year since Operation Thunderball and James Bond has spent that entire time searching for Ernst Stavro Blofeld. He's ready to hang it up when he gets passed on the road by a hot chick in a sports car which he follows and ends up where it all began, the Casino Royale. He gets kidnapped by the French Mafia and goes home for Christmas. He finally gets a real clue to Blofeld's whereabout from the British Bureau of Upper Class Twits. Blofeld wants to go semi-legit and claims the defunct title of Count Blofeld and needs the Bureau to confirm his lineage. At this point Bond goes undercover. Not regular James Bond of Universal Export undercover where he just shows up and shoots people, real undercover with a fake identity and legend that he has to learn. Sir Hillary Bray, expert on Coats of Arms and Titles of Nobility. He goes to Blofeld's Swiss mountaintop eyrie and meets 10 beautiful, simpleminded girls. He goes skiing, and later bobsledding, and finds the love of his life. Then it ends.

This might be the deepest we ever get into the soul of Bond. He actually proposes to a girl, which is weird that it happens here because this might be the most misogynist book so far. We go to M's house, and the two old sailors (M was a vice admiral) talk about the sea and orchids. Fleming takes the time to name drop a few times as by now the movies have started to come out. He mentions Ursula Andress, who played Honey Rider in "Dr. No" and later Vesper Lynd in "Never Say Never Again." Also Rex Stout gets a shout out for his Nero Wolfe novels. No doubt Stout and Fleming were contemporary rivals.

I liked this one even though there is little actual action until three quarters the way through. Bond actually uses his brain, talks himself out of trouble, chooses the nonviolent path some, and bugs out when it hits the fan. And I'm sure we all feel deep inside a bitter sorrow for our dear, departed friend, Number Two of Station Z.