James Bond: The Union Trilogy: Three 007 Novels (High Time to Kill, Doubleshot, Never Dream of Dying) and a Short Story ("Blast from the Past")
by Raymond Benson
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Book Summary Information
Author: Raymond BensonEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2008-10
ISBN: 1605980072
Number of pages: 832
Publisher: Pegasus
Book Reviews of James Bond: The Union Trilogy: Three 007 Novels (High Time to Kill, Doubleshot, Never Dream of Dying) and a Short Story ("Blast from the Past")
Book Review: Great Bond stories, can't wait for the movies
Summary: 5 Stars
Reading this book revisited a disappointment that I first experienced in the early 1970's. This is not a criticism of the quality of the writing, how interesting the plot is or anything to do with this excellent book. It is simply a reality of the dynamic nature of film relative to the printed word.
I went to see the Bond movie "Thunderball" when it first came out and that later led me to read the book by Ian Fleming. While the book was interesting, it lacked the "in your eyes" quality of the movie, which was an unavoidable disappointment. Over the years, the technical capability of movie making has made enormous advances so the spectacular images in the Bond movies do even more to raise the temperature of your vitreous humor than the earlier films. Therefore, even though I do possess a vivid imagination, when I read this book it was impossible to conjure up scenes that are anywhere near what the film version could be. However, that is a fact that I must accept and examine this book in the context of that reality.
This book is a collection of three books, where James Bond battles an organization called "The Union", which is a reincarnation of SPECTRE. International in scope, it is an organization with no political agenda, the goal is to simply make money, and so it will ally with anyone willing to pay. With enormous resources and no scruples, the Union is able to recruit people that otherwise would be untouchable, making them a formidable opponent for the great 007.
In the first story, the formula for a surface that will allow planes to fly seven times the speed of sound is stolen from a British lab. It is installed in the pacemaker of a Chinese agent and when the small plane he is riding in crashes on a Himalayan mountain, Bond is part of an expedition to recover it.
The second story is a continuation of the first; the Union is now allied with a Spanish national whose goal is to reunite Gibraltar with Spain. By assassinating the Spanish and British prime ministers when they meet and employing an army of followers, the goal is to execute a fait accompli. Bond is also being secretly drugged and the Union has managed to create a double of Bond who is to be the assassin.
In the final story, which continues the thread of the first two, Bond and the leader of the Union are both determined to end the battle between them. Bond poses as a film trade journalist and he infiltrates the set of a movie that is being made with Union money. The Union has been hired by a wealthy Japanese industrialist to carry out acts of terrorism against the "decadent West." Their goal is to explode a bomb at the Cannes Film Festival.
Throughout all three stories, Bond is invincible in battle and irresistible in the sexual arena. Women still fall for him, proving to be both a benefit and a hindrance but always a pleasure. Given my disappointments stated in the first paragraph, the most significant praise that I could give this book is that I want the stories made into movies. I can state in my loudest possible literary voice that that is my hope.
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Summary of James Bond: The Union Trilogy: Three 007 Novels (High Time to Kill, Doubleshot, Never Dream of Dying) and a Short Story ("Blast from the Past")
"Raymond Benson captures the spirit and pluck of Fleming's 007 in his high-flying spy thrillers."?Chicago Tribune"It's clear that Benson is the best of the successors to Bond creator Fleming. Fans of Fleming's original novels can pick up a Benson adventure and feel right at home."?Booklist
In this trilogy of thrillers, James Bond confronts one of the most dangerous adversaries he's ever encountered?The Union, a mysterious and sinister organization of criminals-for-hire.
HIGH TIME TO KILL
This high octane adventure takes 007 from one of England's most exclusive golf clubs to the cosmopolitan city of Brussels, and finally to an expedition up the icy heights of the third tallest peak in the Himalayas.
DOUBLESHOT
The Union has vowed revenge on James Bond and has concocted an ingenious and complex scheme to destroy him. The only way Bond can hold onto his sanity is to embark on a mission that takes him from the seedy underbelly of London's Soho to the souks of Tangier; from a Union training camp in Morocco to the clutches of a deadly Spanish beauty.
NEVER DREAM OF DYING
In the third and final part of the trilogy, James Bond finally comes face to face with the Union's enigmatic leader. The journey eventually takes 007 to a thrilling underwater brush with mortality, a chase through the Corsican wilderness, and a surprise encounter with an old friend.
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