Thunderball (Penguin Modern Classics) [Paperback]

Some time ago I decided to read, or in some cases re-read, all of Ian Fleming's original James Bond novels in the order in which they were published. Having gotten as far as the short story compilation For Your Eyes Only (Penguin Viking Lit Fiction) however, I found that I needed to take a break from Bond for a while. Even with other books interspersed between each Bond adventure I'd had too much of 007 in too concentrated a period and had started to lose my critical perspective.

So I gave up on Bond for a few months, which meant that when I finally picked up Thunderball the character of 007, the world and time he inhabited (these are essentially period novels now) and Fleming's style all felt fresh again. Which turned out to be a good thing, because for anyone who has seen the cinematic Thunderball (and I have seen it many, many times, along with the remake Never Say Never Again) then the plot of the novel will by contrast feel far from fresh & new. Whereas the plots of most Bond novels, with the honourable exception of Dr No. & From Russia With Love, differ substantially from their cinematic namesakes, bar a few details 'Thunderball-the-movie' mirrors 'Thunderball-the-novel' almost exactly.

This doesn't make it a bad novel, just a rather familiar experience that as a consequence lacks real tension due to the corresponding lack of uncertainty over the eventual outcome. In some ways in fact, its inferior to the movie version. Certainly on paper the villain of the piece, Largo, is a far less charismatic and threatening character than he is as portrayed on screen by Adolfo Celi, the pacing of the book is too slow in places compared to the film, and the final underwater battle, although more 'realistic' on the page lacks the scale of the movie's grand finale.

There are positives however. As with all the Bond novels, the written word allows Fleming to go into far more depth when it comes to characterisations, motivations and settings than the films could ever hope to. You get a real feel for Nassau and the Bahamas in the late 1950's and the comparison between the later tropical scenes and the opening passage set in the dowdy health-spa down in Sussex brings it home to you how exotic Bond's overseas adventures must have seemed to readers back in Britain when the book was first published. In the character of Domino Fleming offers a female lead (I dislike the monika 'Bond Girl' for the characters in the books) who is far stronger and more proactive than Claudine Auger's on-screen portrayal. Yes, she's essentially Largo's kept woman but she's also tough and brave, withstanding torture in order to protect Bond and have her ultimate revenge.

As always there will be the inevitable complaints about Fleming's less than enlightened descriptions of afro-Carribean Bahamanians and his mysogynism, but as long as you treat Thunderball, as with all other Bond novels, as products of the attitudes of their time then these are minor niggles that can be ignored or forgiven. Inevitably the book also feels very dated, possibly more so than some earlier Bond adventures, but as I said before it should be treated as a period novel and not a contemporary adventure.

All in all, if you're a fan of the literary or cinematic Bond then you'll enjoy Thunderball in novel form, even if it does feel a little too familiar and comfortable at times. If however, you're looking for the perfect Bond novel I'd recommend tackling From Russia with Love (Penguin Viking Lit Fiction) instead, which has been my favourite out of the nine I've tackled so far.

Of all the James Bond books, this one feels the most cinematic, though I do wonder whether my knowledge that the novel is based on an idea for a film influences me in feeling this. When two British atomic weapons go missing, M puts everyone on alert, and sends Bond on a mission to the Bahamas to track them down.

Thunderball seems to be different from the earlier books. Bond feels slightly less rough around the edges - he's mellowed perhaps? His over-opinionated ways are much lessened, and he comes across even as slightly vulnerable. The other characters are the opposite. Whereas before there was in depth background about Goldfinger, Rosa Klebb, Dr No and so on, in this book Largo seems to be nothing more than a puppet. Blofeld gets the rich detailed treatment in an early chapter, but is promptly ignored from then on, making Bond's battle with Largo feel rather perfunctory and impersonal.

The detail of the settings is also sparser than before. In earlier books the reader is treated to long descriptions about the different winds, visits to Harlem, casinos, cars and so on, all of which are missing from this book. Instead, the focus seems to be on action and actual investigation - it would be fair to say this is almost the first novel in which Bond has actually had to do some proper spying. It is written as if for the screen and not the page.

I would go as far as to say that the opening is probably my favourite section of the book. This is the part in which Bond is himself and has his usual foibles. It's the part that gives Blofeld such a brilliant background - setting up an ambitious idea on Fleming's part to have an enemy that could feature in several novels.

Overall though I'm afraid I didn't find it to be at the better end of the series, lacking the unique elements that characterise Bond's earlier outings. It's certainly not bad though, just perhaps more in line with a run-of-the-mill thriller.

Thunderball was the 9th James Bond book by Ian Fleming and it is one ofhis best 007 books.
The story sees secret agent James Bond 007 being sent to try and recovertwo atomic bombs that have been hijacked by the terrorist organisationSPECTRE, lead by their ruthless leader Ernst Stavro Blofeld, who has giventhe UK government 7 days to pay SPECTRE a ransom of £100,000,000 or thebombs will be detonated in two unspecified but high profile locations inthe US or UK. Whilst investigating in the Bahamas 007 meets Domino Petachia girl who is the lover of a millionaire explorer Emilio Largo who is inthe Bahamas with a group of businessmen with the intention of treasurehunting from his luxury yacht the Disco Volante. Bond becomes suspiciousof Largo and is convinced that Largo has stolen the bombs and is stowingthem on board his yacht and is using the treasure hunt as a cover to avoidarousing suspicion, but trying to convince the government and 007's boss"M" that there is a case for action proves difficult so Bond and CIA agentFelix Leiter must use their own with and recover the bombs before timeruns out.
This book sets a very fast pace early on and is a very engaging novelwhich leaves you wanting to turn to the next page quickly and it is a verysharp piece of work by one of the best thriller writers in history.
If, like me, you have seen the 1967 film version of this book it will helpyou to understand the plot and create a better picture in your mind of thestory that is taking place.
Even if you are not a Bond fan but enjoy a good thriller novel then thisis definitely worth a read.