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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.914
EAN num: 9780142003251
ISBN number: 0142003255
Label: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 272
Printing Date: September 02, 2003
Publishing house: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Release Date: September 02, 2003
Sale Popularity Level: 8408
Studio: Penguin (Non-Classics)
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Rated by buyers -
Among the titles of Ian Fleming's James Bond novels, I'd have to say that On Her Majesty's Secret Service is my least favorite, with neither the brevity of a Dr. No or Goldfinger nor the plot descriptive nature of The Man with the Golden Gun or From Russia with Love. Even if I dislike the title, however, this is one of Fleming's best Bond books.
The story opens around a year after the events of Thunderball (the intervening book, The Spy Who Loved Me, is not even mentioned). The villain in that book, Ernst Stavro Blofeld, the mastermind behind SPECTRE, has been in hiding and James Bond is trying to seek him out. It is a more-or-less futile assignment and Bond is disillusioned enough to consider quitting. Before submitting his resignation letter, however, he takes a break at a casino. During this mini-vacation, he performs a chivalrous act to save a beautiful countess from embarrassment; she in turns, rewards him in her own special way.
This countess, familiarly named Tracy, is also the daughter of a genial but ruthless mob boss who Bond winds up (pardon the pun) bonding with. The boss, Marc-Ange, realizes that his daughter is troubled (in fact, suicidal), but that Bond may be able to help her by marrying her. Bond is not willing to do that, but is willing to see her again after she gets treatment. In the meanwhile, Marc-Ange gives Bond a lead on Blofeld.
Blofeld has holed himself up in the Swiss Alps, where extradition is nearly impossible. Bond goes undercover, hoping to lure Blofeld into Germany where he can be arrested. While there, he stumbles upon a strange plot that seems to involve young women seeking treatment for allergies. What Blofeld's scheme is goes beyond Bond's expertise, but the superspy will have more immediate problems as his cover is threatened.
Eventually, Tracy gets back into the mix, which adds another level to the story. Bond versus Blofeld is good, but at long last, Bond meets a woman who he can truly love. Since the very first Bond book, Casino Royale, when Bond found himself betrayed by a lover, he has never been willing to truly risk emotional attachment. This time he does, and this adds an extra depth to this particular novel.
On Her Majesty's Secret Service is the middle part of what I think of as the Blofeld Trilogy, which started with Thunderball and concludes with You Only Live Twice, so it may not be the best Bond book to start with. For Bond fans, however, this book is a treat and one of the very best that Fleming wrote.
Rated by buyers 
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This is my very first ever James Bond novel, I can't remember if I saw the movie. This is a thinking person's spy story with few gimmicks but great finesse and ingenuity. Fleming fascinated millions with his suave 007 personality and his missions against villains who were larger than life and twice as nasty.
The pace is slow, a good armchair read with a briar pipe in hand. An entire new generation will find the foreshadowing deep and miss the absence of the now classic action adventure. But Fleming's astute writing style will continue to attack new fans who enjoy a good story well told.
Nash Black, author of TRAVELERS and SINS OF THE FATHERS.
Rated by buyers -
James Bond is still hunting for Blofeld. After a year Bond thinks he is useless, and wants to quit. In Italy he saves a girl who was trying to kill herself. This leads to a relationship, and Bond learns that she is the daughter of a high ranking Italian gangster.
He has info on Blofeld. He is in Switzerland running a finishing school type or organisation, after having undergone plastic surgery. It is really a brainwashing organisation to get women to basically be terrorist weapon carriers.
Bond infiltrates Blofeld's organisation, gets out of there, and here Tracy helps him out.
He asks her to marry him, and she agrees.
Bond, with some of Tracy's dads' men, assaults Blofeld's organisation, but the supervillain gets away again, and has a nasty surprise waiting at Bond's wedding.
Rated by buyers -
This is definitely one of the better Bonds since, like CASINO ROYALE and FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE, the more formulaic elements are so well integrated in the story.
What I loved about FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE was that the obligatory romance was the actual scheme of SMERSH to ensnare and kill 007. The characters were well-drawn and Bond doesn't come off as such an indestructible superman. His heart is broken in CASINO ROYALE, confused in FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE and then shattered in ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE. (It's also very cool that we learn that Bond annually visits the grave of Vesper Lynd as well as still checks into Casino Royale as well).
We meet Ernst Stavro Blofeld again, not because of some grandiose world-conquering plot, but because he wants the respect and nobility of a title. The College of Arms angle of the story should be the dullest part of the story but Fleming actually makes it interesting by revealing the desire of everyone--except James Bond--to be "somebody."
The biological warfare passages may seem dated but I like revisiting the 007 books while keeping them in context: they must have been fantastic reads in the 1950s and 1960s. These books really anticipated the very modern threat of what Fleming referred to as "the man with the suitcase"...which contains an atomic device. Blofeld's plot in this book to attack England through its livestock with a virus is certainly something to think about in this day of Mad Cow and Bird Flu epidemics.
Although I'm only quibbling, I wished there had been more development between Bond and Tracy, the only woman to ever become Mrs. James Bond. After reading the novel, I felt as if I saw more of her in the movie! (The movie version of OHMSS is also one of the best).
Rated by buyers -
I recently started reading all of the Bond novels and overall have enjoyed them a lot. While Flemings writing style is consistently solid the plots and characters differ greatly. On Her Majesty's Secret Service (number 11 in the series) shares with Casino Royale the title of My Favorite Bond Novel.
The plot is interesting and not *too* far-fetched (for a bond book - some are very cheesy), the characters are very likable and Fleming really nails the mood of "European decadence". This book, like Casino Royale and a few others metes out a healthy serving of bond's classic vices laced with action.
If you like less-than-serious action novels, then I would highly recommend this. Perfect for a long flight or drive
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