Book info

• Title From Russia With Love
• Author Ian Fleming
• Year 1957
• Genres Mystery, Thriller, Espionage

SMERSH, the Russian intelligence unit, is hell-bent on destroying Special Agent James Bond. His death would deal a hammer blow to the heart of The British Secret Service. The lure? The chance for 007 to bring the Spektor decoding machine from Istanbul to London, and for the British to take the upper hand in a chilling new front of the Cold War. So begins a deadly game of bluff and double bluff, with Bond a marked man as he enters the murky world of Balkan espionage.

Thoughts

After being less enthusiastic about the last couple of Bond books, I really enjoyed this one. Things seemed to pick up and I feel like it tied in really closely to the film, I could picture a lot of the events in my head. It’s an odd one to begin with, though, as there are ten full chapters before James Bond even shows up. Instead, we’re with the bad guys finding out what makes them tick. It’s unusual but I quite liked it.

After that, Bond arrives and what follows is a relatively simple story with layers upon layers of spies, never quite knowing who to trust, and a very stressful train journey. Also, the cliffhanger ending! I’ve got no choice but to read the next one!

Rating: 4 / 5