The best of John Gardner
#1
Posted 01 May 2006 - 10:07 PM
My favorite Gardner is Nobody Lives Forever. It is a unique story in which Bond is the hunted instead of the hunter. It's a great twist and Gardner writes the story well. So well in fact, that this is not just my favorite Gardner novel, it's my favorite Bond novel, period.
#2
Posted 01 May 2006 - 10:21 PM
#3
Posted 01 May 2006 - 11:31 PM
My list in order of preference is as follows:
1.) Nobody Lives For Ever 1986
2.) Licence Renewed 1981
3.) Role Of Honour 1984
4.) For Special Services 1982
5.) Scorpius 1988
6.) Death Is Forever 1992
7.) Icebreaker 1983
8.) No Deals Mr Bond 1987
9.) Never Send Flowers 1993
10.) SeaFire 1994
11.) Cold 1996
12.) Win Lose Or Die 1989
13.) The Man From Barbarossa 1991
14.) Brokenclaw 1990
I urge literary Bond fans to at least have read them all once.
Sure, they are not Fleming (nothing can be), but they have their own place in Bond history. Go on, give them a try...
#4
Posted 01 May 2006 - 11:53 PM
#5
Posted 01 May 2006 - 11:54 PM
#6
Posted 02 May 2006 - 01:40 AM
I was always excited when the new Gardner came out. I relished getting my fix of literary Bond. It became obvious Gardner's heart was not in it towards the end but his series is studded with great ideas and experiments and concepts. Gardner's greatest coup was credibly updating Bond for our time. He showed literary Bond has relevance today.
My list in order of preference is as follows:
1.) Nobody Lives For Ever 1986
2.) Licence Renewed 1981
3.) Role Of Honour 1984
4.) For Special Services 1982
5.) Scorpius 1988
6.) Death Is Forever 1992
7.) Icebreaker 1983
8.) No Deals Mr Bond 1987
9.) Never Send Flowers 1993
10.) SeaFire 1994
11.) Cold 1996
12.) Win Lose Or Die 1989
13.) The Man From Barbarossa 1991
14.) Brokenclaw 1990
I urge literary Bond fans to at least have read them all once.
Sure, they are not Fleming (nothing can be), but they have their own place in Bond history. Go on, give them a try...
ACE my rankings of Gardner's novels are very similar to yours.
I would rank them this way:
1. Nobody Lives Forever
2. License Renewed
3. Role Of Honor
4. For Special Services
5. Icebreaker
6. Death Is Forever
7. No Deals, Mr. Bond
8. Scorpius
9. Win, Lose Or Die
10. Never Send Flowers
11. SeaFire
12. Cold Fall
13. Brokenclaw
14. The Man From Barbarossa
#7
Posted 02 May 2006 - 01:43 AM
For Special Services
Icebreaker
Role Of Honour
Nobody Lives Forever
No Deals, Mr. Bond
Scorpius
Licence to Kill
Win, Lose Or Die
Brokenclaw
The Man From Barbarossa
Death Is Forever
Never Send Flowers
SeaFire
GoldenEye
Cold Fall
My favourite: Nobody Lives Forever
#8
Posted 02 May 2006 - 01:44 AM
I don't know whether to celebrate or to be frightened that you and I and only a handful of others here remember it actually happening.BTW, speaking of Gardner novels...
007's License Renewed 25 Years Ago Today
#9
Posted 02 May 2006 - 01:46 AM
#10
Posted 02 May 2006 - 01:52 AM
It was an illustration done for an excerpt of the book in Cosmopolitan magazine. That's only half of it. It extended over two pages but I don't have the second page here to scan.Love that picture at the beginning of the article, Zen. What is it from?
#11
Posted 02 May 2006 - 01:58 AM
1. Licence Renewed
2. Nobody Lives Forever
3. Brokenclaw
4. For Special Services
5. Win Lose or Die
6. Scorpius
7. Icebreaker
8. Role of Honor
9. Death is Forever
10. No Deals, Mr.Bond
11. The Man from Barbarossa
#12
Posted 02 May 2006 - 03:50 AM
It was an illustration done for an excerpt of the book in Cosmopolitan magazine. That's only half of it. It extended over two pages but I don't have the second page here to scan.
Love that picture at the beginning of the article, Zen. What is it from?
Very nicely done advert, in my opinion.
#13
Posted 02 May 2006 - 03:57 AM
#14
Posted 02 May 2006 - 03:59 AM
Haven't bothered ranking the rest, but I'd probably put Scorpius as #2 and #3 would be either No Deals, Mr. Bond or For Special Services.
#15
Posted 02 May 2006 - 05:37 AM
#16
Posted 02 May 2006 - 05:59 AM
#17
Posted 02 May 2006 - 07:32 AM
Worst: The Man From Barbarossa
Ratings:
1. License Renewed
2. For Special Services
3. Icebreaker
4. Role of Honor
5. Nobody Lives Forever
6. No Deals, Mr. Bond
7. Scorpius
8. Win, Lose or Die
9. Brokenclaw
10. The Man From Barbarossa
11. Death is Forever
12. Never Send Flowers
13. Seafire
14. Cold Fall
#18
Posted 02 May 2006 - 09:08 AM
His best was For Special Services then Icebreaker
#19
Posted 02 May 2006 - 10:27 AM
At the bottom is Man from Barbarossa.
#20
Posted 03 May 2006 - 12:15 AM
Nobody Lives Forever is my favorite Gardner, but I happened to feel the way you about it oward Icebreaker. I could see those twists coming and coming. Particularly in the anti-climactic climax. I still think Raymond Benson's review in The James Bond Bedside Companion summed that book up the best.I've noticed that many view Nobody Lives For Ever as one of Gardner's better novels, I thought it was very predictable and everything that happened you could see coming from a mile away. For me this was one of his worst.
His best was For Special Services then Icebreaker
#21
Posted 08 December 2006 - 03:36 PM
#22
Posted 17 September 2007 - 11:40 AM
1.) Icebreaker
2.) Never Send Flowers
3.) Death Is Forever
4.) For Special Services
5.) Nobody Lives For Ever
Icebreaker was the first Gardner I read in 1986. Re-read it a few months ago and it was as good as ever.
#23
Posted 21 February 2008 - 04:13 AM
#24
Posted 01 August 2009 - 10:09 AM
My ranking :
1-Icebreaker
2-Licence Renewed
3-Role of Honour
4-The Man From Barbarossa
5-For Special Services
6-SeaFire
7-COLD
And for the novelization, I think that Licence to kill is probably the best Bond of Gardner, and Goldeneye the worst.
#25
Posted 02 August 2009 - 10:16 AM
Edited by quantumofsolace, 02 August 2009 - 10:24 AM.
#26
Posted 02 August 2009 - 04:27 PM
#27
Posted 27 August 2009 - 12:44 AM
1. Icebreaker
2. Licence Renewed
3. For Special Services
Having said that, they all read better the first time round. If you read them one after the other, they drag really badly by No Deals Mr Bond....
#28
Posted 11 January 2010 - 10:06 PM
I'm not picking, I love them all. Yeah, you heard me! He did things with the character Fleming would ever have done, like The Man From Barabrossa or the one where he's flying the harrier Jet. Cool stuff.
Hi I know I am late in the game here but I couldn't agree with you more OmarB. I love them all too!
#29
Posted 08 February 2010 - 10:00 PM
#30
Posted 11 February 2010 - 08:44 PM
Just finished Licence renewed. Very good. "The man from Barbarossa" is still my favorite.
Just about to start Licence Renewed for the first time