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Siren Song [Hardcover]

Quinn Fawcett (Author)
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)


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Book Description

July 1, 2003
The world knows Ian Fleming best as the creator of that international sensation, James Bond, hero of countless novels and films. The real Ian Fleming was once an operative for British Naval Intelligence, ostensibly retired to a career in journalism after World War II. Rumors have long swirled that Fleming never completely left the spy game. . . .

Siren Song

At a posh New Year's Eve party in London, Fleming falls hard and fast for the glamorous Nora, who mixes brains and beauty in a way Fleming can barely resist. But it's winter in England, and he longs to return to his sanctuary on the island of Jamaica, and he has a plane to catch. On his way to the airport, Fleming is practically kidnapped by operatives of British Intelligence who offer him a scoop-the name of a powerful American businessman who is secretly a Communist and who may be passing US secrets to Soviet Russia. Suspecting that British Intelligence has its own private reasons for discrediting this man, and unwilling to be their patsy, Fleming will not look at the dossier.

When Nora unexpectedly turns up in Jamaica, Fleming anticipates a pleasant idyll-particularly when he discovers that this beautiful woman is a tough, adventurous, former war correspondent. Sex appeal, intelligence, and a shared passion for journalism-Fleming sees a new future unfolding before him. Even learning that Nora is investigating the American whose dossier Fleming refused does not dampen the former spy's ardor. The explosion of a bomb in Nora's hotel room provokes Fleming, who accompanies Nora to her home base of San Francisco.

There, Nora plans to expose the businessman's connections to Soviet Russia and his bigamous marriage. Fleming has his hands full keeping the lady safe-but begins to wonder just why the people trying to kill Nora are so persistent.

In a world of concealed motives, love is a most dangerous game. . . .

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Clumsy prose and a thin plot make Fawcett's second "Ian Fleming" novel (after 2002's Death to Spies) an unsatisfying read, either as a complement to the James Bond canon or as a thriller in its own right. At a holiday party in London in 1950, Fleming bumps into a fellow journalist he admires, Nora Blair DeYoung, who writes under an assumed name. Unlike Agent 007, Fleming doesn't seduce the beautiful and successful DeYoung; he's catching a plane the next morning for Jamaica, where he has a vacation house. But before Fleming can make his flight, he's accosted by two British intelligence agents with an unusual assignment: to smear Oscar Winterberg, an enigmatic San Francisco labor leader who may be a Communist spy. The scrupulous Fleming, who served in British naval intelligence during WWII, refuses to do their "dirty work." As the creaky plot unfolds, DeYoung and Fleming (inevitably) become lovers and partners in an effort to unravel Winterberg's mystery. Amid a surfeit of exposition, Fawcett's Fleming is nowhere near as compelling as the fictional Bond. The real Ian Fleming is probably turning in his grave, but given Bond's iconic appeal, enough fans should get aboard to ensure a third installment in the series. FYI: Fawcett is also the author of The Scottish Ploy and other titles in his Mycroft Holmes series.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Ian Fleming bides his time at a posh London party, counting the hours until his flight leaves for his winter home in Jamaica. But when Fleming, working as a journalist after a distinguished career as an intelligence operative during World War II, meets Nora Blair DeYoung, also a journalist, he wishes his flight could be delayed by a few days. When she arrives in Jamaica a couple days later, it seems the attraction was mutual. But when Fleming learns she is there on an assignment he turned down--writing an expose on German businessman Oscar Winterberg--he wonders if there's more than coincidence at work. After an attempt is made on Nora's life, it's clear the Winterberg story has implications far beyond discrediting a possible spy. The second Ian Fleming novel, following Death to Spies (2002), combines the genteel sophistication of Fleming's James Bond adventures with a gritty, atmospheric evocation of cold war espionage. Fawcett eschews the larger-than-life villainy of the Bond novels for the subtly realistic dangers of betrayal and emotional exploitation. Wes Lukowsky
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 368 pages
  • Publisher: Forge Books; 1st edition (July 1, 2003)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0312869282
  • ISBN-13: 978-0312869281
  • Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #236,079 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars 007 lite, July 2, 2003
This review is from: Siren Song (Hardcover)
Before catching his plane in the morning to go to his winter vacation home in Jamaica, Ian Fleming attends a New Year's Eve Party in London. There he finds himself attracted to journalist Nora Blair DeYoung. However, his efforts towards an evening of delightful romance before hopping his plane fail.

Before boarding his plane, two British intelligence agents order Ian, a World War II naval intelligence agent, but now a reporter, to smear American Oscar Winterberg, who they believe is selling secrets to the Russians. The governments of both the Americans and the British strongly believe Oscar is a Communist spy, though the evidence is flimsy. Ian refuses before leaving for Jamaica. Soon to his delight Nora joins him at his vacation home, but she did not come for fun in the sun as she works for the Americans and wants Ian to join forces with her. His objective is to keep the spy he loves safe while hers is to expose Winterberg.

Though exciting at times, Ian Fleming is just not James Bond even if the premise of this novel and its predecessor DEATH TO SPIES is that the author modeled 007 after his own activities. The story line will hook the die-hard fans, especially those that remember Lazenby and Allen as Bond respectively. The story line is filled with action, but Fleming's motive to assist the peril of Pauline Nora never fully comes across. Still this espionage thriller brings to life the 1950s with its Red Scare so that readers will overall enjoy this 007 lite.

Harriet Klausner

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Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
THE JAUNTY notes that Noel Coward was coaxing from the piano on the dais seemed appropriate to a more intimate soiree, Ian Fleming judged with some amusement. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
dark filtered cigarette, freight entrance, limpid blue eyes
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Oscar Winterberg, Deborah Byrd, San Francisco, Blake Young, Nora Blair, Merlin Powell, Miss Byrd, New York, Lord Hemmingford, United States, Francis Davenport, Chabrol Arms, Charles Winstead, Ian Fleming, Stockton Street, Beale Street, Ferry Building, Lord Dale Hemmingford, British Secret Service, Henry Long, Isaiah Hines, Lagonda Rapier, Cesar Holiday, Government House, Kemsley Newspapers
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