Product Description

Blofeld holds the world to ransom, having hatched a staggeringly audacious plot to steal British atomic weapons. The book that introduced the most imitated and parodied of all the Bond villains, Thunderball also has one of Fleming's most deranged plots and a spectacularly described Caribbean setting. Bond's efforts to defeat SPECTRE lead modern readers through an amazing, baroque series of set-pieces and a treasure-trove of 1950s attitudes.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #54495 in Books
• Published on: 2004-06-03
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 272 pages

About the Author
Born in London in 1908, Ian Fleming worked variously as a banker and journalist before serving in the British Naval Intelligence during World War II. He published his first novel CASINO ROYALE in 1953 and thus started the astoundingly successful James Bond novels and films. Fleming died in 1964.

Customer Reviews

A little slow at first but ends with a bang... or not...
This is the first Bond book I've read that has seemed a bit slow to start. It's not until he gets to the W.Indies that things start to happen and still plods a little. Then it speeds up and the underwater "scenes" are written really well and fast flowing.

A thoroughly enjoyable read!

Solid if below average Bond book
The ninth Bond book is a good solid adventure yarn, and a welcome return after the unusual departure into short stories that was For Your Eyes only. However, it doesn't live up to the best of the Bond books, being a little slow moving and unsuspensful. Bond isn't often in any real peril, he always has a lot of support around him and he doesn't get captured. Thunderball is notable for introducing Blofeld, the most famous of all the Bond villains (though he isn't in the book vey much, the main baddie being Largo, his Number 2) and also for being one of only two Bond books to have two films made of it (the other is Casino Royal).

Underwater thrills and spooks
As with the other Bond books I have read this book also surpasses a very good film version. Some of the writing is brilliant - the description of underwater wildlife and other-wordliness is very vivid and quite spooky. The casino scene with Emilio Largo (SPECTRE's main agent in the book) is up to previous such scenes in earlier books and I do like how Bond immediately goes on the offensive whilst taking on Largo. There are also some nice touches of humour eg whilst Bond is staying at the health farm, his exchanges with "M" and in the company of his old CIA partner, Felix Leiter.