James Bond Books In Order

Publication Order of James Bond Books

Publication Order of James Bond (Extended) Books

Publication Order of James Bond Collections

About James Bond:

James Bond is a famous character created by Ian Fleming. Fleming wrote about James Bond in 12 novels and then 2 short stories. The character was created in 1953 and he first appeared in the novel Casino Royale.

Who is James Bond?

The exact age of James Bond is unknown. In the books and movies, it is thought he is in his late thirties but he never ages beyond that. Fleming changes his dates and timelines so often in the books that no one really knows how old he is. In one of the movies, he does mention that he is 80 years shy of retirement age, but this still doesn’t make sense. Not much is known about his heritage or his early life, other than he travelled extensively when he was younger and he learnt many languages.

He was orphaned at 11 years old after his parents died in a climbing accident and he goes to live with his Aunt. Bond completed his education with a brief stint in Eton College but he leaves because of an affair with a maid. He did attend another college and completed time at University. He then joins the Navy and sees action in World War II before entering the secret service. Bond does have a reputation for being a ladies man. He has many affairs throughout the novels and in popular culture, his lady friends became known as the Bond Girls.

In the movies, the role of the Bond Girl is usually given to an actress who is also a model and is incredibly attractive. He does marry one of his Bond Girls in the novel “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service”, but she is killed on their wedding day and Bond is left devastated.

This set the scene for him to get revenge in the following novel. In some of the short stories, that were written by another author, but are part of the Bond world, Bond has a son. He has the baby with Kissy Suzuki but the child is hardly mentioned until another story where he makes contact with Bond shortly before being murdered.

Casino Royale

In Casino Royale, the readers meet James Bond, he is a secret agent for the UK Secret Service and his code name is Agent 007. He is tasked with travelling to France to bankrupt a member of the Russian Secret Service, Chiffre. He does this under the guise that he is playing against the Chiffre in a high stakes baccarat game.

Bond is undercover as a Jamaican playboy, but members of his team are all around him during the game, making sure he stays alive. The game does not go well for Bond who is bankrupted after the first game. However, CIA agents come to his rescue and give him more money. He eventually wins, despite having people trying to kill him during the game and he gives the money he wins back to the service. The book is not over there though and Chiffre is determined to gets revenge.

He kidnaps members of the team and tortures Bond. Chiffre is killed during the rescue mission and Bond falls in love with a member of his team called Lynd, who becomes the very first Bond girl. Still, the book isn’t over there and the course of true love is not smooth for Bond. It is suggested that people should read the book to find out what else happens to Bond. The book was very successful and sold out in the UK in less than a month. It didn’t do as well in the U.S, the sales were a lot slower, but it eventually became a hit and the rest of the books were written.

Background

Fleming wrote Casino Royale whilst he was in Jamaica with his future wife. He wrote is because he had always wanted to write a spy novel and he wanted something to distract him from his wedding plans. He was staying at the Goldeneye Estate and it took just two months to write.

He showed the book to his girlfriend upon completion, who thought that he should not publish it at all. How his life would have been different if he had listened to her. When Fleming had finished the novel, he showed it to the publishers and they didn’t like it. They rejected it and only looked at it again because Fleming had a brother who was an established travel writer and he suggested they read it again.

TV and Movies

The book has been made into TV shows and Movies over and over, most notably in 2006, when Daniel Craig won the role as James Bond. This movie stays true to the original novel and was the 21st Bond movie to be released, despite it being the film based on the very first book. Even though this movie is the second time that Casino Royale is been made into a film, it establishes a new timeline for the movies and it is not meant to tie in with any of the other movies.

It was the most successful Bond movie of all time and Daniel Craig was congratulated for his role has Bond. His original casting was met with skepticism but after the movie was premiered, people loved him because he didn’t try to copy other Bonds. He completely reinvented the role of Bond, playing him as a much more sensitive character.

Authors

Ian Fleming wrote the Bond novels until his death in 1964. Since then, a number of other authors have carried on the legacy at the request of the Ian Fleming Publications. The most recent novel was released on September 26th 2013 and was called Solo.

William Boyd wrote that book and it picked up with Bonds life in 1969. There are other books still to come, about Bonds life. Ian Fleming Publications recently announced that Stephen Cole is going to continue writing the Young Bond series, with the next book planned to be released in late 2014.

Adaptations

The James Bond novels have been adapted for a lot of mediums. They have been made into TV shows, movies, radio shows and even comics. When it comes to the books, other authors pick up certain areas of his life, and some have even written from the perspective of his Bond girls.

5 Responses to “James Bond”

1. Rade07: 5 years ago

   Im the biggest fun of Bond in Europe and Im trying to get all of Bond books. I just bought “Solo” by Wiliam Boyd and I can’t wait to start reading. LONG LIVE TO BOND

   Reply
   • Winus. Cleyne: 2 years ago

     I am the biggest, hahaha I drive around in a 007 truck across the USA dedicated to James Bond custom paint job

     Reply
2. Steven: 6 years ago

   The notion of Bond’s child is mentioned by Fleming, however briefly. In You Only Live Twice, it’s noted that Kissy Suzuki is pregnant.

   Reply
   • S.W.O.W.: 3 years ago

     Bond was unable to father children.
     Le Chiffre saw to that, personally.

     Reply
     • DSM: 2 years ago

       Au contraire, mon frere. Bond recovered completely from his torture at the hands (and rug beater) of Le Chiffre. That was clearly discussed in the book.

       Reply