41 replies to this topic

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Amazon Quizzes Sebastian Faulks

"I said to myself let's produce an absolutely rip-roaring mainstream Bond adventure."

[zencat]

Excellent!

Also check out the video clip at the Amazon James Bond store. Faulks gives a few very cool clues to characters and locations (without spoiling anything).

[zencat]

You know, the way Faulks talks about locations... I'm wondering if some of these counties that are "still in the news" might be in the Middle East. Since my first days here on CBn I've been calling for a Bond adventure set in the Middle East. To see Bond in the Iran of the Shah with all the that international intrigue swirling around (and, of course, Felix Leiter would be there working some unholy U.S. angle)...how cool would that be?

[Loomis]

Well, I guess Afghanistan is a strong possibility, not only because of the "still in the news" aspect, but also because we know that the book concerns

Spoiler

the heroin trade

, and Afghanistan is

Spoiler

heroin central

, although whether that was also true in the late 1960s I don't know.

Burma seems another likely candidate, for the exact same reasons.

[sharpshooter]

Mainstream Bond with no boring bits. Sounds good. I also like the fact that Faulks has made Bond on top of his game again after the emotional setbacks he had in the last few Flemings. Bond may be a bit older, but he always bounces back and is still the best!

[Trident]

[David Schofield]

[quote name='Trident' post='869948' date='13 May 2008 - 07:46']

[Trident]

[quote name='David Schofield' post='869960' date='13 May 2008 - 10:05'][quote name='Trident' post='869948' date='13 May 2008 - 07:46']

Edited by Trident, 13 May 2008 - 08:21 AM.

[David Schofield]

Not sure how it sits with the concept of any ageing gunfighter, widowed, aware of his age, etc, though...?

Yes, got me thinking too. On a guess I'd suppose the ageing/reflection/depression/whatever part would in any case be quite brief and for the most part to the beginning. So it would probably not have much effect on the main plot. Perhaps Faulks was changing that so as not to make the book a kind of epitaph. Wouldn't do to imply anything like 'this-is-the-final-episode' if one wants to keep the option to revive the series in the future.

I have no real problem - as you can guess from my position on TMWTGG - in Bond being free from the fogs of depression.

Nor am I bothered about him still being fairly irresistible to women in his mid 40s. BUT I sincerely hope Faulks does play on the ageing thing by at least having Bond run a little slower, etc.

[sharpshooter]

Not sure how it sits with the concept of any ageing gunfighter, widowed, aware of his age, etc, though...?

Yes, got me thinking too. On a guess I'd suppose the ageing/reflection/depression/whatever part would in any case be quite brief and for the most part to the beginning. So it would probably not have much effect on the main plot. Perhaps Faulks was changing that so as not to make the book a kind of epitaph. Wouldn't do to imply anything like 'this-is-the-final-episode' if one wants to keep the option to revive the series in the future.

I have no real problem - as you can guess from my position on TMWTGG - in Bond being free from the fogs of depression.

Nor am I bothered about him still being fairly irresistible to women in his mid 40s. BUT I sincerely hope Faulks does play on the ageing thing by at least having Bond run a little slower, etc.

Indeed. The ciggies would be getting to him by now I'd think as well.

[Trident]

What intrigues me is that Faulks' comments on the ageing, widowed gunslinger stem from a very early stage. Of course he had a certain guideline that kept him from doing anything final to Bond, like making him blind, chop off a hand or some other irredeemable injury. But I think it's likely that Faulks first draft was playing a little too much with an image that showed Bond on the decline. And, while perfectly satisfied with the plot and Faulks' writing, IFP just may have objected to a tone that was perhaps too depressing for their liking. I find it worth noticing that Faulks expressed almost the same words Amis' used for TMWTGG. It seems IFP is of the same opinion you are.

[David Schofield]

What intrigues me is that Faulks' comments on the ageing, widowed gunslinger stem from a very early stage. Of course he had a certain guideline that kept him from doing anything final to Bond, like making him blind, chop off a hand or some other irredeemable injury. But I think it's likely that Faulks first draft was playing a little too much with an image that showed Bond on the decline. And, while perfectly satisfied with the plot and Faulks' writing, IFP just may have objected to a tone that was perhaps too depressing for their liking. I find it worth noticing that Faulks expressed almost the same words Amis' used for TMWTGG. It seems IFP is of the same opinion you are.

I certainly got the impression that the "ageing gunslinger/widower" stuff was Faulks way of putting his own stamp on the character, of taking the image away, however slightly, from Fleming, and in that change gaining some kind of ownership of the character, however slight.

You could easily be right that IFP vetoed that of some kind. Certainly, my point about running, etc, was partly facetous in that the initial impression Faulks DID give was that Bond was becoming aware of his age, and the events of his past on his life. I do hope this hasn't been dropped, and we don't encounter a literary Roger Moore: one of my biggest annoyances with the Gardner (and by implication Benson efforts) was that they made no concession to Bond ageing - had they done so, it might have made it easier to accept their quite differing writing styles from Fleming.

I HOPE Faulks hasn't been similarly neutered for the sake of producing a standard, formula Bond more recognisable to a wider audience.

[Loomis]

I seem to recall reading somewhere once that Gardner was made to completely rewrite LICENCE RENEWED in order to please Glidrose.

Still, ain't no way DEVIL MAY CARE ain't gonna rock.

[sharpshooter]

My hopes are set high. Faulks better deliver or he will face the hive of fanatical, manical Bond lunatics that is CBn!

[Qwerty]

Still, ain't no way DEVIL MAY CARE ain't gonna rock.

Definitely what it sounds like to me!

[Trident]

I seem to recall reading somewhere once that Gardner was made to completely rewrite LICENCE RENEWED in order to please Glidrose.

Haven't heard about that up to now, most interesting. But I doubt Faulks would have had to do a complete rewrite. If at all, it would most likely just regard the mere tone of the first chapters until the party is on. After that it would surely have been business as usual even in the first draft. Faulks certainly wasn't hired to bury Bond.

Edited by Trident, 13 May 2008 - 02:53 PM.

[zencat]

I seem to recall reading somewhere once that Gardner was made to completely rewrite LICENCE RENEWED in order to please Glidrose.

I've never heard that. At least not with LR. But I seem to recall something about one of the books being substantially rewritten. Or half a book being rewritten.

[Trident]

I seem to recall reading somewhere once that Gardner was made to completely rewrite LICENCE RENEWED in order to please Glidrose.

I've never heard that. At least not with LR. But I seem to recall something about one of the books being substantially rewritten. Or half a book being rewritten.

Well, on a guess I'd think if so, it would have been one of the earlier ones. My impression is Glidrose didn't care very much after ROH, or at the latest NLF.

[doublenoughtspy]

I seem to recall reading somewhere once that Gardner was made to completely rewrite LICENCE RENEWED in order to please Glidrose.

Still, ain't no way DEVIL MAY CARE ain't gonna rock.

That was a rumor that Kingsley Amis repeated in his review of Licence Renewed. John Gardner and the IFP denied it.

I own the original manuscript and while there are plenty of changes and xxx'd out paragraphs - it wasn't a disaster. Of course I could have the "re-write" if that really happened, so it doesn't prove anything - but if you look at the timeline - he would not have had time to re-do the entire book.

[Trident]

I seem to recall reading somewhere once that Gardner was made to completely rewrite LICENCE RENEWED in order to please Glidrose.

Still, ain't no way DEVIL MAY CARE ain't gonna rock.

That was a rumor that Kingsley Amis repeated in his review of Licence Renewed. John Gardner and the IFP denied it.

I own the original manuscript and while there are plenty of changes and xxx'd out paragraphs - it wasn't a disaster. Of course I could have the "re-write" if that really happened, so it doesn't prove anything - but if you look at the timeline - he would not have had time to re-do the entire book.

Hey, this is most interesting! So you haven't read any indication that LR endured any major changes? Was Gardner perhaps more daring in any of Bond's circumstances? There has been some speculation amongst us if he maybe already wanted to install his later Microglobe-affair in LR.

[doublenoughtspy]

Read Gardner's account of it here:

http://www.john-gard...dsite/bond.html

His editor at Hodder wanted a rewrite - Peter Janson-Smith didn't.

[Trident]

Thanks very much for the link!

[K1Bond007]

I seem to recall reading somewhere once that Gardner was made to completely rewrite LICENCE RENEWED in order to please Glidrose.

I've never heard that. At least not with LR. But I seem to recall something about one of the books being substantially rewritten. Or half a book being rewritten.

Hodder's man requested a rewrite of Licence Renewed (re-set too). Peter Janson-Smith avoided it. That was the truth there. Of course Kingsley Amis once wrote to Philip Larkin that he had heard that Licence Renewed was so bad that Peter rejected it and forced Gardner to do a rewrite. Gardner always vehemently denied it. There were a couple of other bad rumors if I recall about LR and I think there was a book that was almost completely rewritten within Gardner's series, but I can't remember which one.

That was a rumor that Kingsley Amis repeated in his review of Licence Renewed. John Gardner and the IFP denied it.

I own the original manuscript and while there are plenty of changes and xxx'd out paragraphs - it wasn't a disaster. Of course I could have the "re-write" if that really happened, so it doesn't prove anything - but if you look at the timeline - he would not have had time to re-do the entire book.

I guess I should have read all the replies before making mine. Heh..

[Captain Grimes]

"I looked at the books and analysed them and they fall roughly into two kinds..."

"The crime stories move at a great lick and I wanted that pace which you find in Diamonds Are Forever or Live and Let Die. But I also wanted the menace that you get from the spy stories like Moonraker..."

"What I really tried to do was to write Bond at the top of his game, with all of the good bits and none of the boring bits. A hybrid of the crime story and the spy story..."

I have to say that these comments have gotten me excited. It sounds as if Faulks has put a fair amount of thought and effort into this. Given his writing chops, it looks like we may be in for something on par with Colonel Sun, or perhaps even better.

[Loomis]

There is no doubt whatsoever in my mind that DEVIL MAY CARE will be the best of all the continuation novels, as well as better than most of the Flemings.

I recently read John Pearson's JAMES BOND: THE AUTHORISED BIOGRAPHY for the first time, and while I enjoyed it tremendously and would certainly call it one of the best of the continuations, I did find it more than a little wearisome when he tried to, as it were, get all clever with the concept of an ageing Bond, which I found overdone and unamusing. So I'm actually rather relieved by the idea that Faulks' Bond will be The Good Old Fashioned Regular James Bond, Without Any Bells And Whistles And At The Top Of His Game™. After all, you'd have to go back to 2002's THE MAN WITH THE RED TATTOO and DIE ANOTHER DAY for his last appearances.

I do not, however, think that DEVIL MAY CARE will lack characterisation or complexity, but I suspect that Faulks will subtly suggest things rather than hammer them into the ground. He'll bring the reader's imagination into play instead of clumsily putting his own stamp everywhere like an elephant in a china shop. And DEVIL MAY CARE, my friends, will kick like Godzilla wearing a pair of skycraper-sized Doc Martens.

[zencat]

I was a little spooked until I saw Faulks on that Amazon clip. Seeing him speak with such excitement about the book has now REALLY jazzed me. May 28 can't come quick enough.

[Captain Grimes]

So I'm actually rather relieved by the idea that Faulks' Bond will be The Good Old Fashioned Regular James Bond, Without Any Bells And Whistles And At The Top Of His Game™.

I agree completely. Faulks seems to be taking just right approach, in my opinion.

[Skudor]

There is no doubt whatsoever in my mind that DEVIL MAY CARE will be the best of all the continuation novels, as well as better than most of the Flemings.

I recently read John Pearson's JAMES BOND: THE AUTHORISED BIOGRAPHY for the first time, and while I enjoyed it tremendously and would certainly call it one of the best of the continuations, I did find it more than a little wearisome when he tried to, as it were, get all clever with the concept of an ageing Bond, which I found overdone and unamusing. So I'm actually rather relieved by the idea that Faulks' Bond will be The Good Old Fashioned Regular James Bond, Without Any Bells And Whistles And At The Top Of His Game™. After all, you'd have to go back to 2002's THE MAN WITH THE RED TATTOO and DIE ANOTHER DAY for his last appearances.

I do not, however, think that DEVIL MAY CARE will lack characterisation or complexity, but I suspect that Faulks will subtly suggest things rather than hammer them into the ground. He'll bring the reader's imagination into play instead of clumsily putting his own stamp everywhere like an elephant in a china shop. And DEVIL MAY CARE, my friends, will kick like Godzilla wearing a pair of skycraper-sized Doc Martens.

Totally agree. While it would be interesting to dive into Bond's psyche post TMWTGG I think I'd rather have Fleming do that - anything else feels like heresy. Continuation should just churn out Bond adventures without trying too hard to add to the Bond canon.

The exception that I tolerate is Pearson's book - it's fun because it adds detail to the story of Bond's past (even if apparently it doesn't always agree with the Fleming canon) and does it in a very readable way. I loved the Paris chapters - Bond falling in love with a prostitute, recruitment into the service etc. Fantastic stuff.

Can't wait to read this! Only two weeks to go!

[David Schofield]

There is no doubt whatsoever in my mind that DEVIL MAY CARE will be the best of all the continuation novels, as well as better than most of the Flemings.

Well...

I suspect DMC will be in the Licence Renewed catagory which, if one can forget Gardner's writing style and sticking Bond in a Saab, is a good novel and a damn fine story. Had Gardner quit after the one book, I suspect it woud have been viewed as reverentially as Colonel Sun. Sadly, due to the rapid tailing-off of quality in the Gardner works, opinions of LR have suffered. Clearly, Faulks will not been falling into the writing-style traps - it is his stated intent to write as Ian Fleming - and he is obviously maintaining the gas-gusling Bentley (I guess Saab's didn't have much of a UK market share in the 1960s ). And Faulks is not going to be hanging around for a series of increasingly jaded encours. If he can produce something of the level of Licence Renewed, this repeatedly frustrated continuation fan will be satisfied.

Hell, Licence Renewed WAS marketed similarly positively in 1981, those of us "who were there" will remember by Glidrose, now IFP. What on earth went wrong?

[Trident]

Hell, Licence Renewed WAS marketed similarly positively in 1981, those of us "who were there" will remember by Glidrose, now IFP. What on earth went wrong?

The quantity did. There have been simply too much continuations that didn't care a bit for any kind quality but consumed the opportunities to go with the character. So it's perhaps the best decision IFP made to restrict their output to a certain scale.