Death Is Forever (Paragon Large Print) [Large Print] [Paperback]

John Gardner (Author)

Book Description

Series: Paragon Large Print | Publication Date: May 1994

Specially priced! James Bond is back. Loaded with the 007 brand of excitement--harrowing chases, spectacular locations, and a breathless finale--this high speed adventure is Gardner at his best.

--This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Readers fond of Bond should not miss Gardner's latest 007 adventure, his 11th since he took over the series after the 1964 death of Ian Fleming, Bond's creator. Updated to the '90s, Bond now practices safe sex and seems to have given up both smoking and his obsession with powerful customized sports cars. In this action-packed bloodbath, the required, consummate villain is Wolfgang Weisen, aka "the Poison Dwarf," an East German spy master who as "a child at Joseph Stalin's court" watched Tarzan and Chaplin movies with "Uncle Joe." Weisen has been directing the systematic assassination of members of Cabal, the West's premier spy network in Germany, and M assigns Bond and the CIA's Eazy stet St. John to stop him. Bond is at first put off by Eazy's feminism but is quick to accept her invitation to share her berth on the Ost-West Express. Weisen, tracked to Venice, turns out to be a Pickwickian character: rotund, bald and baby-faced but determined to force Europe to its knees and restore Stalinism. Suspense builds as Bond races to Calais on the day the cross-channel tunnel is to open. Eazy is unable to make the trip, having suffered the fate of all women who get too close to Bond's heart. Amusing, clever stuff.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

Of course, it isn't really forever; it's just business as usual for James bond, still gamely tackling would-be world dominators--this time, Wolfgang Weisen, the Poison Dwarf of East German intelligence--in his 11th outing under Gardner's flag. Whatever Weisen's plan is--and just what he has in mind is a surprise Gardner saves until the very end--it involves penetrating CABAL (a NATO network of spies working in East Germany, all but outmoded by unification), issuing a bogus order to disband, and then picking off the agents one by one. When Bond and American Eazy St. John are packed off to Berlin to replace their latest fallen comrades, you can bet that they'll be trailed by homicidal enemy agents, fed a million lies by their supposed contacts, and be left guessing as to which of the surviving Cabalists can still be trusted--and you can bet too that Bond will bring snooty Eazy to heel by showing up her gutless tradecraft and sweeping her off her feet. The trail of double-crosses that leads from Berlin to Paris to Venice strains belief, but it's all lightly likable. Once Bond and Co. reach Venice, though, the story slips into a distinctly stodgy groove (``His smile was so evil that the hairs on the back of Bon's neck stiffened''), with Bond, Eazy, and trustworthy Gus Wimper going up against the Poison Dwarf, his kinky bedmate Monika Haardt (you have to take the kinkiness on faith--she doesn't do anything but try to kill our hero), and the staff of executioners, torturers, etc. Bond, who seems to be having more trouble adjusting to the new world order than his younger brethren, doesn't exactly shine, but Gardner's fans won't be disappointed either. Ian Fleming's fans need not apply. -- Copyright ©1992, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 347 pages
• Publisher: Eagle Large Print; Large prnt edition (May 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0792717503
• ISBN-13: 978-0792717508
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,767,528 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Solid Post Cold War Outing for Gardner with 007, May 25, 2000

By 

Donald Mitchell "Jesus Loves You!" (Thanks for Providing My Reviews over 109,000 Helpful Votes Globally) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Death Is Forever (Paperback)

Ian Fleming's James Bond is the gold standard. To me, From Russia with Love is the finest novel in that distinguished, exciting series. But Fleming is gone, and we are fortunate to have John Gardner to continue the stories for us.

Gardner's stories suffer from two basic weaknesses: He doesn't have the full range of Cold War enemies to work with and his doesn't have the same hard edge to his characters and writing.

Death is Forever veers back toward the Fleming books by involving Wolfgang Weisen, onetime director of East Germany's Security Service. He makes for a truly fascinating villain. Fleming would have made him even more fascinating, but you will enjoy him and his plot to destabilize the West. Although the Cold War is over in this book, Gardner finds a way to create an extension of the Cold War. That is good for all of us readers.

In all other ways, the book is a typical Gardner offering -- serviceable plot and relentless Bond.

If you have a choice between reading a Fleming novel and a Gardner one, you should always read a Fleming one first. If you have read and liked all of the Fleming books, you will be pleased with this Gardner offering. Enjoy!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rich in plot and surprises, one of the best Bond novels!, August 2, 2003

By 

matt f. (mississauga , ontario, canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Death Is Forever (Paperback)

Beginning with the murder of two members of a VERY well-organized spy ring known as Cabal, Bond teams up with another MI6 agent to try and find out what happened to the remaining members of the organization and find out who was behind it.

Wow! John Gardner has a masterpiece this time. This is one of the best espionage novels I've read. Bond goes up against some of the most sinister and ruthless villains, and in this novel almost nobody can be trusted. The amount of double-crosses and plot twists is astounding, and unlike the more recent Bond movies, the plot is complex and (gasp) logical! As Bond unravels more clues as to who is killing Cabal's agents, he must use every means available to survive, and to stop a cataclysmic event orchestrated by a ruthless organization.

Because of the rich and twisting plot, Death Is Forever captures the more sinister elements of the spy world with nothing short of brilliance. HIGHLY recommended.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Gardner is as close as anyone's ever gotten to Fleming, November 23, 2002

By 

Robert Douglas (Alexandria, Louisiana United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Death Is Forever (Paperback)

I'm not a "die-hard Bond fanatic" but I've seen the movies and read some of the novels, and after reading some of the other comments, mostly negative, about Gardner and his novels I thought I'd set down some thoughts on DEATH IS FOREVER. For me Gardner is as close as anyone's ever gotten to Fleming and not that far behind. DEATH IS FOREVER was an enthralling novel and the best Gardner I have read (with SCORPIUS a close second). Gardner's Bond, like Fleming's, is not a super-hero with rocket-boats and submarine cars never at a loss for humorous one-liners every time he kills a guy. He's a flesh-and-blood human being as vulnerable as anyone else who survives by using his head. Of all the movies, the two that are most faithful to Fleming's original conception of the Bond character are "From Russia with Love" and "Licence to Kill." In my opinion, needless to say, the two best Bond films. And this is the Bond of DEATH IS FOREVER and the Gardner novel series. As for the Benson novels, I've never understood why the head of the James Bond fan club was chosen to succeed Gardner as Bond writer and not an actual published novelist.