The Literary 007 Lives On

A recent article posted on The Times website has confirmed what Young Bond author Charlie Higson revealed late last year: expect more adult James Bond novels in the future.

This update comes just as the literary 007 celebrations of 2008–Ian Fleming’s centenary and the endless events associated with it–are kicking into gear.

The literary James Bond has been moving along quite nicely with the recent Young Bond and Moneypenny Diaries series by Higson and Samantha Weinberg, respectively, but 2008 raises the bar another level with an unprecedented number of Bond-related releases. Such titles include Sebastian Faulks’ centenary novel Devil May Care, Weinberg’s The Moneypenny Diaries: Final Fling in the UK (her first novel in the trilogy also debuted in the US) and Higson’s Hurricane Gold paperback in the UK and the forthcoming By Royal Command.

Not to mention the upcoming reprints of all fourteen Ian Fleming Bond novels in new hardbacks, the Quantum of Solace short story collection and the author’s non-Bond children’s classic, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. The Diamond Smugglers and Thrilling Cities are also scheduled to be republished at a later date.

‘We concentrate on keeping Ian’s books going,’ said Corinne Turner, managing director of Ian Fleming Publications (IFP). ‘They’re the jewel in our crown, though it’s also our aim to expand the brand with other books.’

Talking specifically about getting Faulks to pen the latest adult Bond adventure–the first of its kind since Raymond Benson’s The Man with the Red Tattoo in 2002, Turner could only heap on the praise. ‘I read Sebastian Faulks’s On Green Dolphin Street and loved it,’ she said. ‘I thought then that he’d be quite interesting. When it was revealed that we’d brought in an author, but weren’t saying who it was, everyone assumed it was Martin Amis, or somebody in the thriller genre, but we wanted to do something that was completely different. I never imagined we could attract somebody like Sebastian.’

With Devil May Care due out this Wednesday, many fans are wondering about what will eventually follow that. ‘We have a number of projects in mind,’ Turner said. ‘Nothing concrete to talk about at the moment, but there will be some more novels in the future.’

Keep watching the CommanderBond.net main page for all the latest literary James Bond news and coverage.

To keep track of all the upcoming 007 releases, events, television shows, and more–just keep your eyes on the CBn Calendar, located on the right panel of our main page.