As a long-time fan of 007, I've been especially drawn to the Bond books, both the originals by Ian Fleming and the many continuation novels that have followed. I've read them all. (John Gardner, who penned 13 Bond novels, was a magic buff and a member of the Houdini Historical Center.)
In 2005, Ian Fleming Publications launched the Young Bond series with well-known comedian Charlie Higson writing the first five books. I LOVED them. Higson absolutely nailed every aspect of Bond and produced some of the best continuation novels of them all, even though they were about James Bond as a schoolboy. I was so into them I launched a blog devoted to the series and came to know Charlie personally. He used to quip, "When I want to know what's going on in my life, I check your website."
When Charlie went off to do other projects, IFP started using different established authors to write one-off books. I enjoyed those too. But I always felt that it was a huge missed opportunity not to have Charlie Higson write a proper adult James Bond novel. Then IFP started creating spin-off novels (the wacky adventures of Q!), which I passed on. I like straight-ahead classic Bond. In fact, I folded my James Bond blog, The Book Bond, earlier this year.
But then my dream came true. IFP announced the first of two new James Bond novels by the great Charlie Higson. Yesterday KING ZERO arrived, and I'm ready to dive back into the world of 007, at least for a weekend.
If you're interested, KING ZERO is out now in the UK. The U.S. edition will be released in November.
Pop quiz: Can anyone tell me the connection between James Bond, Houdini, and London's Leicester Square? First correct answer in the comments wins you a special James Bond/Houdini prize.
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