Young Bond

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Illustration of a young James Bond by Kev Walker
Illustration of a young James Bond by Kev Walker

Young Bond refers to a series of novels featuring Ian Fleming's superspy James Bond as a young teenage boy attending school at Eton College. The series, currently planned to include five novels, is being written by Charlie Higson.

Contents

[edit] Books in the series

According to Charlie Higson, Ian Fleming Publications initially planned for him to only write one novel and that every subsequent novel would be written by a rotating author, possibly similar to the defunct Robert Markham pseudonym of the late 1960s. This plan fell apart and Higson agreed to author future books in the series. However, comments made by Higson in an interview could suggest that after Higson's five books are completed, the series may be continued by another author.[1]

[edit] Currently released

  • SilverFin (2005)
    In 1933, thirteen-year-old James Bond arrives at Eton College for the first time to continue his schooling. There he meets an American bully and his arms dealing father, Lord Randolph Hellebore. While on Easter break, Bond's adventure continues in the Highlands of Scotland where James investigates a local boy's disappearance. Teaming up with Red Kelly, the boy's cousin, James finally reaches a castle and a loch which is home to the Hellebore's and Lord Randolph's genetics project.
  • Blood Fever (2006)
    In 1933, James Bond is back at Eton where he is now a member of a secret risk-taking club known as the Danger Society. When summer vacation arrives Bond goes on a field trip to the Italian island of Sardinia where he stays with his much older cousin Victor Delacroix. While there James investigates a Roman secret society known as the Millenaria that had plans throughout history to restore the Roman Empire. Thought to have been defunct, James learns that the Millenaria are still active and are led by the sinister Count Ugo Carnifex.
  • Double or Die (2007)
    Mainly occurring over the course of three days in December 1933, Double or Die finds James searching for a kidnapped Eton professor in the darkest corners of London. The book was released in the UK on January 4, 2007. The title was announced on January 3, 2007 at the official book launch at Waterstone's in Piccadilly, London. The alternative titles which were available for the public to vote on were "N.E.M.E.S.I.S." and "The Deadlock Cipher".[2][3]
  • Hurricane Gold (2007)
    The fourth Young Bond novel, Hurricane Gold, is set in Mexico and the Caribbean. The book was released on September 6, 2007 in the UK.[4] The plot is centered around Bond trying to foil the robbery of a team of professional criminals, only to end up following them around Mexico and eventually to a mysterious Caribbean island called Lagrimas Negras. The book contains many references to Mayan mythology and much of the end is focused on it.

[edit] Future releases

  • By Royal Command (2008) 
    The fifth Young Bond novel, By Royal Command [5] will be released in the UK on September 4, 2008. The book will deal with Bond's expulsion from Eton College due to the incident with the maid, as mentioned in You Only Live Twice.[6] The Royal Family and the British secret service will also play a part in the plot."[7]. Higson has stated that in this book James Bond will fall in love. [8] [9]
  • SilverFin Graphic Novel (2008) 
    The first Young Bond novel, SilverFin will be published as a Graphic Novel on October 2, 2008. The book will be illustrated by artist Kev Walker. [10]
  • Possible Young Bond Short Story
    During the Hurricane Gold launch party Charlie Higson spoke of the possibility of a Young Bond short story set between Hurricane Gold and By Royal Command. It would be set aboard a ship returning to England from Mexico where Bond would encounter Wilder Lawless from SilverFin. Charlie cautioned that it was "something that might happen or might not". [11]
  • Young Bond Series 2?
    Charlie Higson says that a second cycle of Young Bond books is a possibility. This second series would be aimed at a “slightly older readership” and would include Bond losing his virginity in Paris at the age of 16 (as established in the Ian Fleming short story, From A View To A Kill).[12] However, Ian Fleming Publications have not yet commissioned a second series of Young Bond novels.[13]

[edit] Supplementary books

  • The Young Bond Rough Guide to London, Puffin Books/Rough Guides, 2007 (ISBN 0141323396). 64-page booklet featuring London locations from Double or Die.

[edit] History and controversy

2005's SilverFin
2005's SilverFin
2006's Blood Fever
2006's Blood Fever
2007's Double or Die
2007's Double or Die
2007's Hurricane Gold
2007's Hurricane Gold

Prior to the release of SilverFin, the idea of a Young Bond series had not gone over too well with the fans of the more traditional Bond literature and had come under heavy fire, with some fans comparing it to an unsuccessful 1960s attempt by Bond's publishers to launch a youth-oriented line of fiction that resulted in only one book: 003½: The Adventures of James Bond Junior written under the pseudonym R. D. Mascott. There was also a moderately successful James Bond Jr. television series in the early 1990s aimed at children that dealt with Bond's supposed nephew.

John Gardner, who had written fourteen original novels and two novelisations featuring the adult Bond, was also critical of the series prior to the release of the first book. He stated:

"It's just the last desperate attempt to draw in a new audience. The films have little to do with the Bond we used to know, and now the books are going the same way."[14]

Higson, for his part, has been on record as stating that he intends to stay true to the backstory Ian Fleming created for Bond, though this in many ways contradicts the popular James Bond: The Authorised Biography of 007 by John Pearson, which is considered canonical by some.

When SilverFin was published in March 2005, reviews of the novel were good. This, in addition to a large marketing campaign in the United Kingdom, elevated SilverFin to the number eight spot on the Booksellers list of bestselling children's books in the UK.[15] By November of 2005, SilverFin had already sold 500,000 copies worldwide.[16]

A second book in the Young Bond series, Blood Fever, was released on January 5, 2006 in the UK having been delayed from an initial release in October 2005. The book reached the number one spot on the Booksellers list of bestselling children's books in the UK in its second week of release and held the spot for eleven weeks.[17]

Double or Die, the third book in the series, was released in the UK on January 4, 2007, having had its title announced the day before. The title was voted on in a national poll on the official Young Bond website; the other two titles to choose from were N.E.M.E.S.I.S. and The Deadlock Cipher. After the first three days of Double or Die's release it took the number two spot on the Booksellers list of bestselling children's books in the UK and number fourteen in the overall UK Top 50 list. A week later it had climbed to number one on the children's list and the number twelve spot overall.[18][19]

As of March 2008, the four combined Young Bond novels have sold nearly three-quarters of a million copies in the UK alone.[20]

[edit] Other media

On April 23, 2005, Ian Fleming Publications released the first illustration of the thirteen-year-old James Bond. Drawn by Kev Walker, there are plans to adapt SilverFin into a graphic novel. Further illustrations by Walker have been used on the official Young Bond website as well as the cover of the U.S. hardback edition of Blood Fever and Double or Die. The SilverFin graphic novel will be released in the UK on September 4, 2008, with further adaptations of the novels as well as possible original storylines (possibly written by Higson) on the way.[21]

Due to the success of SilverFin and Blood Fever, Hollywood has been interested in adapting these novels to film, however, Ian Fleming Publications and Charlie Higson have said they hope to release a few more books before possibly considering it.[22] Today, it is believed the film rights to James Bond on film reside exclusively with Danjaq, LLC, the parent company of EON Productions, however, according to Charlie Higson this is not exactly the case.[23]

To coincide with the release of Blood Fever in the UK, PlayerOne published a mobile game adaptation of SilverFin. The game features 3 locations, 15 levels, and a variety of enemies that the player must avoid. Also, according to Charlie Higson, Ian Fleming Publications has been in contact with various video game developers and does have plans to possibly pursue a video game, though it is unknown if this would be an adaptation of SilverFin or perhaps a wholly original Young Bond adventure.[24]

With the release of the Hurricane Gold book TAMBAand Fleming media released the Avenue of Death game which is based on one of the chapters in the book.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Charlie Higson interview with CommanderBond.net. The Charlie Higson CBn Interview. Retrieved on February 23, 2005.
  2. ^ Double Or Die title official announcement. MI6.co.uk. Retrieved on January 3, 2007.
  3. ^ Video of Double or Die title announcement. The Young Bond Dossier. Retrieved on January 3, 2007.
  4. ^ Hurricane Gold official announcment. The Young Bond Dossier. Retrieved on April 24, 2007.
  5. ^ Young Bond 5 is BY ROYAL COMMAND. The Young Bond Dossier. Retrieved on March 6, 2008.
  6. ^ MI6.co.uk interview with Charlie Higson. In Conversation With Charlie Higson. Retrieved on March 8, 2006.
  7. ^ Major Young Bond 5 update from Charlie Higson
  8. ^ Young Bond 5 working title revealed. The Young Bond Dossier. Retrieved on October 10, 2007.
  9. ^ Charlie drops a Book 5 bombshell. The Young Bond Dossier. Retrieved on October 6, 2007.
  10. ^ SilverFin Graphic Novel release date. The Young Bond Dossier. Retrieved on January 29, 2008.
  11. ^ Young Bond short story a possibility. The Young Bond Dossier. Retrieved on October 4, 2007.
  12. ^ Higson plots new Young Bond books. BBC News. Retrieved on April 24, 2008.
  13. ^ Charlie says Young Bond Series II a possibility. The Young Bond Dossier. Retrieved on April 24, 2008.
  14. ^ John Gardner on Young Bond series. Boys' own James Bond. Retrieved on February 28, 2005.
  15. ^ 'Blood Fever' sales. Blood Fever is #1 Bestseller. Retrieved on January 18, 2006.
  16. ^ SilverFin sales. The name's Bond - Bond junior. Retrieved on September 05, 2006.
  17. ^ Young Bond sales and acclaim. Young Bond at IFP's official site. Retrieved on January 18, 2006.
  18. ^ Double or Die sales - theBookseller.com. Bestsellers. Retrieved on January 20, 2007.
  19. ^ Double or Die sales and acclaim. Double or Die is #1 Bestseller. Retrieved on January 20, 2007.
  20. ^ Young Bond sales as of March 08. The Young Bond Dossier. Retrieved on March 6, 2008.
  21. ^ New release date for SilverFin graphic novel. The Young Bond Dossier. Retrieved on June 8, 2006.
  22. ^ Young Bond on film. Author resists Young Bond movie. Retrieved on May 30, 2006.
  23. ^ Young Bond film rights. Charlie Higson in Los Angeles. Retrieved on October 20, 2005.
  24. ^ Young Bond video game. Young Bond 3: In Conversation With Charlie Higson (3). Retrieved on January 23, 2007.

[edit] External links