19 replies to this topic

[bryonalston]

I've just finished reading The Facts of Death, and in my opinion, it is one of the best Benson Bond's, if not the best Bond novel in recent years. Does anyone else agree?

[BONDFINESSE 007]

it was very good, i am not sure if it was the best or not, i am going to reread them all again and try and figure which one is the best

[zencat]

I think I would put High Time To Kill and Never Dream of Dying above Facts, but I do love it.

[Genrewriter]

I like it just fine but it's not the best by any strwetch, the Union trilogy and Man with the Red Tattoo surpass it by leaps and bounds.

[Icephoenix]

It was a great action romp, but I prefer TMWTRT over all.

[clinkeroo]

I respect your opinion, bryonalston, but it is actually my least favorite of the Benson Bonds. It reminds me far too much of the recent movies with a helter skelter plot holding together a series of disparate action sequences, and for Benson, a very weak head baddie. Kind of reminded me of some of Gardner's cookie cutter/poorly defined villians.
I'd take High Time To Kill as the best of the continuation novels after Colonel Sun.

[Cesari]

Raymond Benson said he wanted to write an "Eon like" book with TFOD.
And the original title choosen by Raymand was: The world is not enough!!
Glidrose disliked it...but EON didn't I suppose...enough to be the titile of their next movie.

[Loomis]

Originally posted by zencat

I think I would put High Time To Kill and Never Dream of Dying above Facts, but I do love it.  

Originally posted by clinkeroo

I'd take High Time To Kill as the best of the continuation novels after Colonel Sun.

zencat and clinkeroo, I'm interested in reading more about why you hold "High Time to Kill" in such high esteem.

What, exactly, is so good about it? The characters? Benson's handling of Bond? The plot? The action? The locations? The surprise move of setting half a Bond novel halfway up a mountain? The writing style? What really sets it apart from Wood, Gardner, and Benson's other works? Is it simply that it just happens for some reason or another to float your boat and strike a chord with you?

While I dislike the book, I'm not about to rail against your opinions, or trying to set a trap for you. I'm not interested in arguing the "cons" of HTTK, since I've done so on other threads - right now, I'd just like to know about its "pros". Both of you are writers who are exceptionally well-versed in the literary Bond of all eras, so I'm aware that you more than "know your stuff"; in addition, I respect your opinions very much, and so I'd like to read more of your views on HTTK. Perhaps they'd help me to see the book in a more positive light.

[iain]

The only Benson book that I would not consider tinder is zero minus ten.

[zencat]

Originally posted by Loomis
zencat and clinkeroo, I'm interested in reading more about why you hold "High Time to Kill" in such high esteem.

What, exactly, is so good about it? The characters? Benson's handling of Bond? The plot? The action? The locations? The surprise move of setting half a Bond novel halfway up a mountain? The writing style? What really sets it apart from Wood, Gardner, and Benson's other works? Is it simply that it just happens for some reason or another to float your boat and strike a chord with you?

While I dislike the book, I'm not about to rail against your opinions, or trying to set a trap for you. I'm not interested in arguing the "cons" of HTTK, since I've done so on other threads - right now, I'd just like to know about its "pros". Both of you are writers who are exceptionally well-versed in the literary Bond of all eras, so I'm aware that you more than "know your stuff"; in addition, I respect your opinions very much, and so I'd like to read more of your views on HTTK. Perhaps they'd help me to see the book in a more positive light.

I SPLIT our answer into it's own thread: What's so great about High Time To Kill?

[MrDraco]

Facts of Death...The very first Bond Novel i ever read...one of my favrities..its great...at the time i was obessed with the movies so it fit in real well and i just continued until i had no more to read...and back..back to the begining back to the dark days of SMERSH and SPECTRE...and i loved it.
Facts of Death is so good it burns my ***...thats how sweet it is.
One time my friend said "James bond was a lose."
i said "James Bond is so freaken awesome, he'll do anything one time i saw him cut a guys head off because he made his drink wrong! most people just don't under stand James Bond.
One time i saw James Bond flip out because a girl looked at him wrong..
And the stuff Double- O agents can do is so freaken awesome i saw one one time and it was so awesome...Double-Os are so cool i want to be one,
Back to the facts of death,
It was a good read and if anyone says its not, they just don't under stand how awesome James Bond is he can do anything, he's the most power of Double-Os one time i saw him in person....He killed guy just to show me he could..WOAH that was awesome.

[deth]

Originally posted by MrDraco
Facts of Death...The very first Bond Novel i ever read...one of my favrities..its great...at the time i was obessed with the movies so it fit in real well and i just continued until i had no more to read...and back..back to the begining back to the dark days of SMERSH and SPECTRE...and i loved it.
Facts of Death is so good it burns my ***...thats how sweet it is.
One time my friend said "James bond was a lose."
i said "James Bond is so freaken awesome, he'll do anything one time i saw him cut a guys head off because he made his drink wrong! most people just don't under stand James Bond.
One time i saw James Bond flip out because a girl looked at him wrong..
And the stuff Double- O agents can do is so freaken awesome i saw one one time and it was so awesome...Double-Os are so cool i want to be one,
Back to the facts of death,
It was a good read and if anyone says its not, they just don't under stand how awesome James Bond is he can do anything, he's the most power of Double-Os one time i saw him in person....He killed guy just to show me he could..WOAH that was awesome.

k.





....as for my opinion, I expect more from the novels than just a EON type Bond.....

[MrDraco]

its not just an EON type bond novel...if it was...it would have been personal..and EON would have felt it to poltically incorrect to hit Cal and new york with the chemical the Number Killers had (Forget the name of the villain and his organizaiton, damn time for re-read)

[zencat]

Benson's books are much better than the recent Eon films, IMO.

[MrDraco]

Yeah i agree, EON needs to do better, i love the movies don't get me wrong but we could do better:

[deth]

yes, his books are better.... but TFOD is too much "in the style of..."

[MrDraco]

Lets leave it at that, don't ruin the moment..just trail off

[White Tuxedo]

And now for something completely different. I thought TFOD was crap. Sorry. I own (cool new Penquin ones) and have read the Flemings from CR-YOLT, and I have all of the US paperback Bensons. I've read so far ZMT and TFOD, and I'm a little of the way into HTTK. I'm determined to read them all, but I have to be honest that I'm not nearly as impressed with Benson as you guys seem to be.

ZMT wasn't too bad, but TFOD was by very far the single worst Bond novel I have read so far. I do have to say HTTK is already better than both of them. But Benson just seems so... bland. Also, Leiter rolling around popping wheelies in his motorized wheelchair was just appauling to me personally. I get the humour in it, but it's still very pathetic to me.

Random thought: One of the things I can't stand the most are lame and extremely too frequent references to Bond's past. It's like, okay Ray. We get it, you know a lot about Bond. However, making pointless references and exhuming past characters in order to make a mockery of them doesn't make you a good writer.

I hope I haven't ruffled any feathers. But I thought TFOD was crap. I just finished it a few weeks ago BTW.

[Qwerty]

Hmmm, can't believe I missed this thread. Well, I consider the Bnson novels hard to classify upon which is the beszt, which is the worst. The Facts Of Death however, would either take the #1 or #2 spot. A very strong villain, an interesting plot and good locations help this book considerably. Although the profanity seems to have been upped a little in this one.

[Tehuti 004]

Would anybody be able to point in my in the direction of this Bond novel for cheap? It seems that most of these are going for well over