Colonel Sun

Colonel Sun is a novel by Kingsley Amis published in 1968 under the pseudonym “Robert Markham”. Markham was intended as an umbrella pseudonym under which different writers would continue the series. Colonel Sun is the first James Bond continuation novel published after Ian Fleming's 1964 death.

The Bond portrayed in Colonel Sun continues on with the way Fleming was developing the character in his final three novels. Events take a toll on Bond: he loses his wife in On Her Majesty's Secret Service; he loses his memory in Japan in You Only Live Twice; and he is brainwashed in Russia, is de-programmed by MI6 and almost dies from Francisco Scaramanga's poisoned bullet in The Man with the Golden Gun.

Amis picks up right where “The Man With The Golden Gun” left off. Bond has the nagging feeling of complacency and boredom. An emotional state as at the start of other books (Dr. No, From Russia With Love, Thunderball, On Her Majesty's Secret Service). The action soon kicks off though. Bond ends-up in a realistic Greek setting involved in a scheme rich with more political intrigue than usual. Revenge also features more too: revenge for the death of the Hammonds and M's kidnapping. Bond thus comes across as particularly tough and ruthless.

Amis does a great job at capturing the spirit and soul of Bond. Bond isn't an imitation of the person we see in the movies. He's more in keeping with the literary version. The description of the scenes and the distinct lack of gadgets are in line with the way Fleming wrote.

The book flags a little towards the middle which reflects that Amis likes to get the characters talking to each other. He's not an out and out writer of action scenes. Its also missing the much of the racism (but not all) so prevalent in Flemings novels. Obviously, this is to be welcomed.

In summary, the plot is gripping, the villain inspired and the torture sequence brutal. This is one of the best James Bond books I've read. In fact there wouldn't be another one published until John Gardner carried on the series in 1981.