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3.56 AVERAGE
3.56 AVERAGE
adventurous
fast-paced
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I've only read one other Bond novel before this - it was Casino Royale and I was about 13 years old when I read it. Back then the spy world created by Fleming seemed cool and adult; now I see it as extremely goofy. All of it oozes cheese.
It was decent, but not for me. Misogyny isn't cool and there was a lot of misogyny in this.
It was decent, but not for me. Misogyny isn't cool and there was a lot of misogyny in this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny
Another fine Bond adventure, with the first book appearances of SPECTRE and Blofeld in the Bond saga. The first meeting of SPECTRE super-baddies and the issuance of their ultimatum to world leaders are such oft-parodied plot archetypes that it's delightful to read them straight up, no tongue-in-cheek. If Emilio Largo isn't quite as interesting a villain as the organization that employs him (or his boss), the action is solid, and I always enjoy the appearance of Felix Leiter. The movie is somewhat less satisfying than the book. It's certainly faithful to the novel and action-packed, but it is a bit overlong. Underwater fighting also goes a lot slower on screen than on the page.
Excellent! Just fantastic. I think Fleming finally hit his stride here. This is the first book in the "SPECTRE Trilogy" and it was great. This is the first book I could easily say was better than the movie. Fleming can't write fight scenes at all, but there were very little in this book and that worked. Good read.
Good cheesy James Bond fun. The hero's unraveling the plot is hung on an utterly ridiculous contrivance, it has the requisite bits with precisely detailing what James and Felix are eating and how the economics of casinos work, but the usual 1960's attitudes towards women were not _quite_ as pronounced. Yes, they were still there, but it is a Bond book. Another fascinating cultural relic.
More of a 3.5/5 actually. Probably the Bond story that was most closely adapted to the film (due to the intriguing authorship and copyright story about this book).
But beyond that, Thunderball is a solid spy thriller with the usual Bond flavour of exotic locations, elaborate food and drink, strong characters and a sense of being in a world of it’s own. Liked it better than I expected.
But beyond that, Thunderball is a solid spy thriller with the usual Bond flavour of exotic locations, elaborate food and drink, strong characters and a sense of being in a world of it’s own. Liked it better than I expected.
Might be the best Bond yet. Still rife with social problems, but the plot is tighter and more intense than other outings. The biggest flaw in these stories is how Bond (and in this case, Leiter) always makes the right guess about what the plan of the bad guys is. Still, an enjoyable spy book.