Doubleshot (2000) – Raymond Benson

The next Raymond Benson 007 novel, takes place a few short months after High Time to Kill. Ian Fleming’s creation, James Bond, is on medical leave and isn’t doing so well. There may be a lesion in his brain causing blackouts, and his medication seems to be exacerbating things. Even dealing with these issues, Bond…

The World is Not Enough (1999) Raymond Benson

Raymond Benson’s next Bond story was the adaptation of the Pierce Brosnan film, The World is Not Enough. It doesn’t differ too much from what ended up onscreen, but because it’s the written word, it allows one to recast the film, and I happily eject Denise Richards as Christmas Jones from the movie in my…

Live at Five (1999) – Raymond Benson

007 is back. Raymond Benson wrote a short story, just in time for the premiere of The World is Not Enough. It was published in TV Guide and gives a brief glimpse of a Cold War defection that James Bond was involved in. Set in the United States following a botched attempt in London, Bond…

High Time to Kill (1999) – Raymond Benson

007 is back. It’s been awhile since I’ve delved into a James Bond story, and it was definitely becoming an itch that needed to be scratched, so I happily dove into the next novel in the series, Raymond Benson’s High Time to Kill from 1999. The story finds Bond pursuing a relationship with his personal…

Batman (1966) – The Minstrel’s Shakedown, and Barbecued Batman?

Batman (Adam West) and Robin (Burt Ward) encounter an all-new villain when The Minstrel (Van Johnson) arrives in town. A talented singer and an electronic genius, he leans his talents toward villainy! This two-parter was written by Francis M. Cockrell and Marian B. Cockrell, with the first instalment, The Minitrel’s Shakedown, first airing on 21…

Midsummer Night’s Doom (1999) – Raymond Benson

Jame Bond has had a long history with Playboy and for the magazine’s 45th anniversary, novelist Raymond Benson penned a short story to be featured in the celebratory issue. In fact, this time around 007 interacts not only with some Playmates from the previous years but also with Hugh Hefner himself. It seems there’s going…

The Facts of Death (1998) – Raymond Benson

James Bond is back. Building off his previous short story, Blast From the Past, the novel, Zero Minus Ten, and his adaptation of Tomorrow Never Dies, author Raymond Benson thrusts 007 into another globetrotting adventure that takes him from London to Texas, and Cyprus in an attempt to stop a viral outbreak and a growing…

Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) – Raymond Benson

Raymond Benson’s second 007 novel was an adaptation of the second Pierce Brosnan film, Tomorrow Never Dies. And while he seems to have some trouble adapting some of the more over the top action beats of the film, his take on the story actually works really well, and is one of the strongest film adaptations…

Zero Minus Ten (1997) – Raymond Benson

While I may not have cared for Raymond Benson’s 007 short story, Blast From the Past (to be clear I liked everything but for the Penthouse Forum ending of the story) I was more than ready to return to the world of James Bond, and see what Benson could deliver with his first novel featuring…

Blast From the Past (1997) – Raymond Benson

Benson takes over 007’s adventures from John Gardner, and delivered this short story that first appeared in Playboy in 1997. Benson shows that he can tell a Bond story in true Ian Fleming style, though the ending definitely is a little more adult, but hardly surprising given the context of where it was published. James…