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    On Her Majesty's Secret Service
    Unavailable
    On Her Majesty's Secret Service
    Unavailable
    On Her Majesty's Secret Service
    Ebook285 pages4 hours

    On Her Majesty's Secret Service

    By Ian Fleming

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    British Secret Service agent James Bond, a.k.a. 007, travels to Switzerland on the tail of Ernst Blofeld, the leader of the terrorist group SPECTRE. Bond finds Blofeld, but he also finds himself falling in love with Tracy di Vicenzo. On Her Majesty’s Secret Service gives readers a rare glimpse into the emotional side of the famous spy. 
    James Bond is one of the most iconic characters in 20th-century literature. In addition to the 12 novels and 9 short stories written by Ian Fleming, there have been over 40 novels and short stories written about the spy by other authors, and 26 films produced, starring actors such as Sean Connery and Daniel Craig as 007.

    Random House Canada is proud to bring you classic works of literature in ebook form, with the 
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    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRandom House Publishing Group
    Release dateJan 6, 2015
    ISBN9781551997889
    Unavailable
    On Her Majesty's Secret Service
    Author

    Ian Fleming

    Ian Lancaster Fleming was born in London in 1908. His first job was at Reuters news agency, after which he worked briefly as a stockbroker before working in Naval Intelligence during World War Two. His first novel, Casino Royale, was published in 1953 and was an instant success. Fleming went on to write thirteen other Bond books as well as two works of nonfiction and the children’s classic Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. The Bond books have earned praise from figures such as Raymond Chandler, who called Fleming “the most forceful and driving writer of thrillers in England” and President Kennedy, who named From Russia with Love as one of his favorite books. The books inspired a hugely successful series of film adaptations that began in 1962 with the release of Dr. No. He was married to Ann O'Neill, with whom he had a son, Caspar. He died in 1964.

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    Reviews for On Her Majesty's Secret Service

    3.5/5

    512 ratings23 reviews

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    • 4/5
      One of the best James Bond stories. Not as corny as others, even though there are some cringeworthy attitudes to women and sex. However, there is no shortage of exciting action and Bond's escape on skis accompanied by an avalanche is first class.
    • 5/5
      oh man, I spent the last 15 minutes listening to this just saying no no no no no to myself because I just knew how it would go. I just didn't expect a James Bond story to trample my heart that way!
    • 4/5
      A lot of people who regularly read Fleming have this book down as their favourite in the series (some crazy people even put the film down there too!), it's certainly a stand out book, a crossroads in Bond's life where he contemplates quitting the service and reveals to the reader his heart and feelings. As the book opens we see Bond rescue the heroine of OHMSS, Tracy, not once but twice, we find out that he has been visiting the grave of Vesper, the girl he nearly left the service for in the first book, every year since her death and Fleming gives Bond another chance of happiness as he contemplates a life with Tracy outside of his seemingly suicidal lifestyle and job.Of course, as happened in the first book of the series when Fleming introduced Bond to the world, it will never be that simple for him and we see here the development of the almost autonotom killer he later becomes towards the end of the series climaxing in his almost robotic state at the beginning of The Man With The Golden Gun.Personally I prefer the earlier books, the descriptions of the foods and drinks, the atmosphere, Bonds 60th cigarette of the day and Bond's lifestyles, his thoughts on clothing and opinions of different countries but in OHMSS I think we have perhaps the best Bond story with a devilish villian, Blofeld returning from Thunderball, a plan - as always - to take over the world's economy and an exhilirating ski-chase scene down a mountain so fast you can feel the wind whipping past your hair. This could easily have been Bond's last adventure and the start of his retirement but as alwasy Fleming drags him back at the end with a climax guaranteed to tug at the heart strings and show Bond in a - briefly - new light.
    • 4/5
      The least engrossing of Bond books so far read. It moved fast and choppy. But the ending was brutal for an all to human bond.
    • 4/5
      Bond penetrates the stronghold of Spectre chief Blofeld disguised as a herald. Being a herald, I enjoyed the concept.
    • 4/5
      Of all the Bond books, I think I like this one the most. The movie with Sean Connery was great & it blended in my mind perfectly with the book. I guess it's the romantic streak in me that made it so hard hitting.
    • 4/5
      A return to form after the mildly disappointing Spy who loved me. I always thought this was the best film and maybe that is becasue it sticks so closely to the book. It's all there in this one - great locations, dodgy allies, mysterious girl and Blofeld. What more could you want?
    • 4/5
      Another solid Bond entry. This one of course it's famous for having the one and only Bond marriage scene. Shocking as the ending is (and you know it from the movie unless you've been living under a rock for the last few decades), I could not for a moment visualize Bond as a son in law to a mafia don. The scenes between Bond and Marc-Ange are actually my favorites, although it's another one of Bond books that would not be published today because of the decidedly anti-feinist message. Everything you loved about the movie is even better in the book and there's much more depth to the material. Not to be missed for a Bond fan.
    • 3/5
      An unexpected turn for Bond, which is interesting in itself. It's also a lot more entertaining than the preceding few books.
    • 5/5
      Bond no.11, 1963: enter Marc-Ange and his daughter Tracy who is weary of the world, though only 22 or so... this is the most poetic and beautiful, Bond book despite its basicly brutal plot involving Blofeld once more. The Tracy side story, moving along rescue, deception, trusting, love and despair leads to the ending of Bonds carreer in a happy marriage. The absolute anti-climax doesn't happen before the last 15 lines of the book's last page..
    • 4/5
      By far, the saddest of the Bond books...Bond is hot on the trail of Blofeld and SPECTRE. He gambles, meets a girl, learns about family trees, and ends up on a Swiss mountain top surrounded by beautiful women who are being treated for allergies! He also makes a new enemy, Irma Bunt! There follows skiing, bobsledding, explosions and avalanches. And after it all, Bond marries Tracy. And then... "you see, we've got all the time in the world.":-(
    • 4/5
      By far, my favorite James Bond book. And my favorite thing is way Fleming builds the sense that things just can't end well for James and Tracy. The ending is bitter and just the right note of tragedy.
    • 5/5
      Oh my goshhh. Just when I thought Fleming had hit his lowest low with A Spy Who Loved Me, the guy turns around and delivers this masterpiece. Blofeld was as great as I remembered, and the part about the College of Arms made me laugh for ages.
    • 4/5
      The Bond novels can be corny, dull, or sometimes very good. Luckily, this is one of those very good ones. The plot is a little far-fetched, and yet it is so well paced and interesting that you don't really care. Fleming here is doing what he does best -- writing a great page-turner that doesn't necessarily have any literary value, and yet has value all the same.
    • 2/5
      Ian Fleming is simply too English prissy for me, I think. The stories translate well into movie scripts, however.
    • 5/5
      Rounding this rating up, was wavering on 4 or 5 stars, but on a larger scale I'd perhaps rate it 87/100. This book is definitely one of the best in the James Bond series and as Ian Fleming created such a well known iconic character and baddies, he deserves some 5 star ratings I feel.
    • 4/5
      A wonderful narrative flow that does not get impacted in the 3-panel daily-strip telling. Gammidge and McClusky have definitely made this Fleming story their own and it is expertly brought to life. A poignant and heartbreaking story that finally reaches a conclusion in the second strip collected in this book - You Only Live Twice. A great adaptation!
    • 4/5
      Nice one. Set mostly in Switzerland. :-) 4.4
    • 4/5
      Certainly one of the best entries in the Bond series, this book is full of surprising turns against the typical formula and some interesting developments for the Bond character.
    • 5/5
      Another highly entertaining entry in the James Bond series from Mr Fleming. This clearly plays homage to Flemings German and Swiss upbringing. This is a interesting and complex plot regarding various different technical and professional elements. Returns the great nemesis of bonds to centre stage, makes you wonder what will happen next.
    • 2/5
      I listened to the audio version narrated by David Tennant. One thing his performance made clear to me was Fleming's fascination and obsession with varieties of English masculinity (reading the novels I just he was obsessed with rape). He just seems to love them all, from the officious, stuffy English academic or bureaucrat to the no-nonsense, upper-class-but-not-a-snob-about-it James Bond. Fleming also gets to vicariously enjoy being the perfect husband. Fleming has also been pretty clear about his ideal women but he is a bit more single-minded on that front. I find all of Fleming's Englishmen and masculine camaraderie kind of suffocating to be honest.
    • 4/5
      I liked this book better then I thought I would. Also read this book faster then I thought too. Not the best Bond, but I liked the writing in this one at part and Blofeld. The ending is probably the weirdest part because [SPOILERS] Bond gets married to Tracy. I highly doubt he stays married in the books and wondering how this marriage will end.
    • 5/5
      Arguably the best of the Bond books