Thunderball (James Bond Novels) (Paperback)

~ (Author) "It was one of those days when it seemed to James Bond that all life, as someone put it, was nothing but a heap of..." (more)
Key Phrases: missile station, attack centre, swimming party, Count Lippe, James Bond, Commander Bond (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

In this incredible adventure, James Bond finds himself tackling a daring crime ring called SPECTRE, which has perpetrated the most arrogant blackmail demand ever attempted. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

About the Author

During World War II Ian Fleming served as Assistant to the Director of Naval Intelligence, rising to the rank of Commander. His wartime experiences provided him with knowledge of secret operations. After the war, he built his house, Goldeneye, in Jamaica. There, at the age of 42, he wrote Casino Royale, the first of the James Bond novels. By the time of his death in 1964, Fleming’s 14 Bond adventures had sold more than 40 million copies and the cult of James Bond was internationally established. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (April 29, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0142003247
• ISBN-13: 978-0142003244
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #56,309 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

• This is item 9 in The James Bond Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Now that was a blast, December 2, 2004

By	Kimberley Wilson (VA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

If you've seen the movie you know the plot of Thunderball already so I won't get into that. Reading Thunderball is a great pleasure for Bond fans because the movie was so faithful to the book. There were a few things left out becuase they were considered too much for the big screen.

Ian Fleming must have had a marvelous sense of humor becuase the chapters where Bond finds himself stuck at Shrublands, drinking tea and vegatable broth and longing for spaghetti and chianti are extremely funny. Later when things get serious the reader gets wonderful scenes with M. who really was a fascinating character. The old man was even more ruthless than Bond.

The biggest thing Thunderball did was to introduce the world to Blofeld and nevermind the Austin Powers jokes, the original Blofeld was a very dangerous, very scary dude. The description of Largo and the scenes with Bond's old pal, Felix Leiter are also great.

I'm very happy that the old (real) Fleming books are being re-released in such good quality paper and with such snappy retro covers. My dad's old copies were literally crumbling whenever I touched them.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Interesting Novel, October 23, 2003

By	gobirds2 (New England) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

THUNDERBALL is a very interesting Ian Fleming James Bond novel. I found the first two thirds of the novel very well written. The final third of the novel seems to lose all its steam and sinks into literary mediocrity and that's what really interests me. The first third of this novel contains some of the best prose that Fleming ever put on paper. It is rich in detail and thoroughly engrossing. It is a true delight to read and savor. As the novel enters the second the third it still remains engrossing but seems to lack some of Fleming's usual drive and coherency. The final third falls below what could even be considered commonplaceness for Fleming. Fleming seems to have just given up on this project at some point and just finished it out to get it into publication. Yet THUNDERBALL remains one of my favorite Fleming novels. The first third truly is brilliant and I enjoy reading it and examining at what point Fleming became disinterested.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another great novel., June 12, 2000

By	Terry Anderson (Littleton, CO United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Thunderball (Hardcover)

This novel is a great edition to the 007 series and contains the introduction to SPECTRE and its leader, Blofeld.

After a NATO bomber armed with two nuclear warheads vanishes, the world is soon held for ransom by the evil organization SPECTRE. James Bond is assigned to Nassau and works with his old friend Felix Leiter as they find themselves on the trail of the missing bombs.

A very entertaining book and ranks pretty highly among From Russia With Love and On Her Majesty's Secret Service.