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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
James Bond #6: Back to Jamaica, December 16, 2006
Did Ian Fleming want to kill 007 at the end of the previous novel, "From Russia with Love"? In the final paragraphs of that book, Rosa Klebb kicks out the deadly poisoned spike in her shoe and jabs Bond before she's thrown into a laundry basket and hustled away by Mathis and his assistants.
So I was curious as to how Fleming would resurrect Bond for the next novel, "Doctor No." He does a decent job of explaining away how 007 survived, but there is no mention of what happened to Tania--which is something I'm curious about as I read the novels this time. (At the beginning of "From Russia with Love," Fleming describes the demise of Bond's relationship with Tiffany Case from "Diamonds are Forever").
Although Bond delivered the girl and the Spektor cipher machine--and survived his encounter with Red Grant, the total psycho killing machine--he's treated as if he screwed up and sent to Jamaica to look into the disappearnce of another agent. A little job in the sun that shouldn't take much effort.
Well, this is James Bond we're talking about here, so we know he isn't going to get much of a holiday out of the piddling little assignment.
"Doctor No" has the lean, fluid style that keeps the story moving. It's set in the Caribbean where Fleming lived and wrote all of the Bond novels. I focused more on his description of Doctor No while trying to keep the image of the painfully-Caucasian Joseph Wiseman out of my mind (he was the actor who played No in the film version).
I would put this novel in the same category with "Diamonds are Forever": a strong action story with a couple of over-the-top moments that, although they worked while reading it, look a little strange with some afterthought. In "Diamonds", it was the Italian gangster who liked to dress up like a cowboy in his own private Wild West town. In "Doctor No", it was the obstacle course and giant octopus fight.
The best novels are "Casino Royale", "Live and Let Die", and definitely "From Russia with Love."
I wasn't that wild about "Moonraker."
Next up: "Goldfinger."
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
I'll Never Watch A Bond Flick Again, October 2, 2003
By A Customer
Most of us have seen a James Bond movie at one time or another and enjoyed the outlandish antics in which he participates. However, upon getting my hands on this edition and finishing it in a matter of hours, the movies suddenly hold no appeal. I love the literary Bond! Sure, he's a lecherous alcoholic who smokes 60 cigarettes a day, but that's only during his downtime; when he's on the job, women and booze are secondary. And sure, it's vastly outdated, but the Cold War is still, by far, the best setting for an espionage thriller. The Bond in the novels is a cold cutomer who wouldn't hesitate to kill someone close to him to spare them a worse death (as in the latter part of Live And Let Die). Also, the literary Bond's body is a patchwork of scar tissue, and his handsome features are marred only by a scar on his right cheek.
That said, Fleming's style is great--short and to the point, much the same as his days writing reports during WWII during his stint in the military. His prose isnn't flowery, and it advances the story at a brisk pace.
Dr. No is an excellent turning point for both Fleming and Bond. Fleming killed Bond at the end of From Russia With Love (one report being that he'd tired of the character, but fans clammored for Bond's revival). The events of the previous novel are touched-on briefly in the beginning of the book, but they don't have much bearing on the rest of the story. However, the return of Quarrel (from Live And Let Die) and his loss greatly affects Bond, bringing a depth of character rarely explored by the celluloid Bonds.
Dr. No is a great read of the genre of its time, featuring a dashing secret agent hero, a capable sidekick, a beautiful seashell-hunting love interest, 5-inch tropical poisonous centipedes, flamethrowing dragons, sadistic henchmen, a giant squid (not in the movie!), and of course, Dr. No, the pincer-handed, ultra-rich, ultra-evil, guano-dealing nemesis! Who could ask for anything more?!
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Dr NO is still Number ONE, February 16, 2006
The basic frame of all the James Bond books and movies. It was the book chosen by the owners of the film rights to introduce the character to the screen - and they kept rather close to the essentials ... the tough but sophisticated Bond, the alluring female lead who becomes his companion and usually savior, the gruff but proud M and so on. Probably the best example of the movie being as good as the book - certainly not true of the later cartoonish movies which are seldom as good as the original Fleming stories.
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