 First edition cover | |
| Author | Anthony Horowitz |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | Joy Cohn |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Series | James Bond |
| Genre | Spy fiction |
| Publisher | Orion Publishing |
Publication date | 8 September 2015 |
| Media type | Print (hardcover, e-book, audio) |
| Pages | 320 pp (first edition, hardback) |
| ISBN | 978-1-4091-5913-1 |
Trigger Mortis is a 2015 James Bond novel written by Anthony Horowitz, and commissioned by the estate of Bond's creator Ian Fleming, which was published on 8 September 2015.
The book is set in 1957 against the backdrop of the Space Race, and begins two weeks after the events of Goldfinger . The novel is the third in the current-era literary series to be set during the original timeline created by Fleming since 1968's Colonel Sun (following Devil May Care by Sebastian Faulks and Solo by William Boyd) and sees the return of Bond girl Pussy Galore, who made her debut in Goldfinger.
Trigger Mortis was announced in October 2014. [1] It contains Murder on Wheels, previously unpublished material written by Fleming for an unfilmed television series, which Horowitz used to write the opening chapter. The book title was revealed on 28 May 2015 to coincide with Fleming's 107th birthday. [2] [3] [4]
Sarah Ditum from The Guardian noted that Horowitz's previous experience with the Alex Rider series had allowed him to "[slip] in almost seamlessly" into the "Fleming chapter", allowing him to deliver the "tersely precise prose that makes Bond so compelling" and supply "touches of Fleming’s cruel poetry". She felt that problems only arose when Horowitz "deviates from the model", especially with Pussy Galore's substantial backstory and Bond's personality divergence from the previous books. [5] Barry Forshaw of The Independent described the book as a "clever and enjoyable pastiche" which manages to "press many of the buttons that were the purview of [Fleming]". [6] Writing for London Evening Standard , Nicholas Lezard took delight in the "bonkers but hugely enjoyable" story, which has "everything in it we want from Bond [...]". Lezard complimented the villain's "plausible backstory" and Bond's escape scenes, which had him "appropriately, given his situation, gasping for breath". [7] Scott Murray from The Sydney Morning Herald compared Horowitz's writing style to Fleming, stating: "Mostly, he writes as if he were Fleming. [...] Trigger Mortis is a Bond novel no one else could have conceived and written except for Fleming in his prime." He noticed that after the "gripping and tense" Grand Prix scenes, the book "hardly takes a breath or allows the reader the time or desire to look for misjudgments", while only suffering from a few description errors with Bond's observations. [8] Simon Schama, writing for the Financial Times , praised the "humdinger of a Bond story, so cunningly crafted and thrillingly paced that 007's creator would have been happy to have owned it", and described it as a "Loving Tribute" to Fleming. [9]
Felix Salmon from The New York Times observed that Horowitz's setting of Bond, notably with his personality, "isn't — could never be — the same Bond" as Fleming's original. He also noticed that the novel was bogged down with "dutiful" descriptions of technology and lack of research in certain parts of the prose, but nevertheless complimented the story's plot which "should be more than good enough for the fans." [10] On the other hand, Muriel Dobbin of The Washington Times praised the technical detail in the daredevil car racing and space rocket scenes, noting that "Mr. Horowitz obviously did his technical homework". She particularly enjoyed the story's ending, writing: "[...] Bond shines. And so does his Bentley. It’s all great fun." [11] The Daily Telegraph's Jake Kerridge praised the "authentically Fleming-esque storyline" of the book, notably the SMERSH racing storyline, but felt that the book's formulaic Bond girl and villain ultimately proved underwhelming. [12]
In August 2015 it was announced that an audiobook of the novel would be narrated by actor David Oyelowo. [13] The BBC Radio 4 drama series Book at Bedtime broadcast a serialized reading by Rupert Penry-Jones in October and November 2015. [14]
The James Bond series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have written authorised Bond novels or novelisations: Kingsley Amis, Christopher Wood, John Gardner, Raymond Benson, Sebastian Faulks, Jeffery Deaver, William Boyd, and Anthony Horowitz. The latest novel is Forever and a Day by Anthony Horowitz, published in May 2018. Additionally Charlie Higson wrote a series on a young James Bond, and Kate Westbrook wrote three novels based on the diaries of a recurring series character, Moneypenny.
Dr. No is the sixth novel by the English author Ian Fleming to feature his British Secret Service agent James Bond. Fleming wrote the novel in early 1957 at his Goldeneye estate in Jamaica. It was first published in the United Kingdom by Jonathan Cape on 31 March 1958. The novel centres on Bond's investigation into the disappearance in Jamaica of two fellow MI6 operatives. He establishes that they had been investigating Doctor No, a Chinese operator of a guano mine on the fictional Caribbean island of Crab Key. Bond travels to the island and meets Honeychile Rider and later Doctor No.
Goldfinger is the seventh novel in Ian Fleming's James Bond series. Written in January and February 1958, it was first published in the UK by Jonathan Cape on 23 March 1959. The story centres on the investigation by the British Secret Service operative James Bond into the gold smuggling activities of Auric Goldfinger, who is also suspected by MI6 of being connected to SMERSH, the Soviet counter-intelligence organisation. As well as establishing the background to the smuggling operation, Bond uncovers a much larger plot: Goldfinger plans to steal the gold reserves of the United States from Fort Knox.
A Bond girl is a character who is a love interest or female companion of James Bond in a novel, film or video game. Bond girls occasionally have names that are double entendres or puns, such as Pussy Galore, Plenty O'Toole, Xenia Onatopp, or Holly Goodhead.
Anthony John Horowitz, is an English novelist and screenwriter specialising in mystery and suspense.
Auric Goldfinger is a fictional character and the main antagonist in Ian Fleming's 1959 seventh James Bond novel, Goldfinger, and the 1964 film it inspired. His first name, Auric, is an adjective meaning "of gold". Fleming chose the name to commemorate the architect Ernő Goldfinger, who had built his home in Hampstead, near Fleming's; it is possible, though unlikely, that he disliked Goldfinger's style of architecture and destruction of Victorian terraces and decided to name a memorable villain after him. According to a 1965 Forbes article and The New York Times, the Goldfinger persona was based on gold mining magnate Charles W. Engelhard, Jr.
David Oyetokunbo Oyelowo is a British actor, director and producer. His accolades include a Critics' Choice Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and nominations for two Golden Globe Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a BAFTA Award. In 2016, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his services to drama.
Ian Fleming Publications is the production company formerly known as both Glidrose Productions Limited and Glidrose Publications Limited, named after its founders John Gliddon and Norman Rose. In 1952, author Ian Fleming bought it after completing his first James Bond novel, Casino Royale; he assigned most of his rights in Casino Royale, and the works which followed it to Glidrose.
Licence Renewed, first published in 1981, is the first novel by John Gardner featuring Ian Fleming's secret agent, James Bond. It was the first proper James Bond novel since Kingsley Amis's Colonel Sun in 1968. Carrying the Glidrose Publications copyright, it was first published in the United Kingdom by Jonathan Cape and in the United States by Richard Marek, a G. P. Putnam's Sons imprint.
Pussy Galore is a fictional character in the 1959 Ian Fleming James Bond novel Goldfinger and the 1964 film of the same name. In the film, she is played by Honor Blackman. The character returns in the 2015 Bond continuation novel Trigger Mortis by Anthony Horowitz, set in the 1950s; two weeks after the events of Goldfinger.
Colonel Rosa Klebb is a fictional character, the main antagonist in the James Bond 1957 novel and 1963 film From Russia with Love, in which she is played by Lotte Lenya. She is a Soviet counter-intelligence operative.
Honeychile Rider is a fictional character in Ian Fleming's James Bond novel Dr. No. In the 1962 Bond film of the same name, her name was shortened and changed to Honey Ryder. In the film, she is played by Swiss actress Ursula Andress and due to her heavy accent was dubbed by Nikki van der Zyl.
Casino Royale is the first novel by the British author Ian Fleming. Published in 1953, it is the first James Bond book, and it paved the way for a further eleven novels and two short story collections by Fleming, followed by numerous continuation Bond novels by other authors.
Goldfinger is a 1964 spy film and the third instalment in the James Bond series produced by Eon Productions, starring Sean Connery as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. It is based on the 1959 novel of the same name by Ian Fleming. The film also stars Honor Blackman as Bond girl Pussy Galore and Gert Fröbe as the title character Auric Goldfinger, along with Shirley Eaton as the iconic Bond girl Jill Masterson. Goldfinger was produced by Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman and was the first of four Bond films directed by Guy Hamilton.
Diamonds Are Forever is the fourth novel by the British author Ian Fleming to feature his fictional British Secret Service agent James Bond. Fleming wrote the story at his Goldeneye estate in Jamaica, inspired by a Sunday Times article on diamond smuggling. The book was first published by Jonathan Cape in the United Kingdom on 26 March 1956.
Commander James Bond is a character created by the British journalist and novelist Ian Fleming in 1953. He is the protagonist of the James Bond series of novels, films, comics and video games. Fleming wrote twelve Bond novels and two short story collections. His final two books—The Man with the Golden Gun (1965) and Octopussy and The Living Daylights (1966)—were published posthumously.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to James Bond:
Blanche Lindo Blackwell was a Jamaican heiress, mother of Chris Blackwell, and an inspirational muse to Ian Fleming and Noël Coward.
Forever and a Day is a 2018 James Bond novel written by Anthony Horowitz and featuring original material by James Bond creator Ian Fleming. It was published on 31 May 2018.
