In 1981 John Gardner was asked by Glidrose Productions (now Ian Fleming Publications) to write a series of new James Bond novels. The former Royal Marine had been a successful author since the 1960s, firstly with a series of light hearted thrillers and later with more series spy novels.
Gardner’s first James Bond book was Licence Renewed (1981) and he followed that up with a total of 14 novels and two film novelizations before retiring from the job in 1996, after which Raymond Benson took his place.
Licence Renewed (1981)
For Special Services (1982)
Icebreaker (1983)
Role of Honour (1984)
Nobody Lives for Ever (1986)
No Deals, Mr. Bond (1987)
Scorpius (1988)
Win, Lose or Die (1989)
Licence to Kill (1989) – film novelization
Brokenclaw (1990)
The Man from Barbarossa (1991)
Death Is Forever (1992)
Never Send Flowers (1993)
SeaFire (1994)
GoldenEye (1995) – film novelization
COLD (1996) – in the US the title was Cold Fall
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August 3rd, 2011 at 12:57
These were my introduction to the literary Bond, I really loved them.
August 3rd, 2011 at 13:42
I enjoyed the Gardner books and have made it a point to purchase them all for my collection. Gardner was a good choice to pick up where Fleming’s writing ended.
August 3rd, 2011 at 21:45
I did enjoy the Gardner books very much, I thought he did his absolute best to hold up the series, I’m certain that Fleming would have been pleased. I understand that Gardner does not like to discuss his association with the Fleming Foundation, I’ve long wondered why.
August 4th, 2011 at 18:37
Gardner perfectly brought Bond up to date without up-dating him. Oh, and the Saab is Ace.