Devil May Care

A variety of authors have written 007 novels since the death of Bond`s creator, Ian Fleming -- and the results have been mixed, to say the least. As `Robert Markham`, Kingsley Amis penned the very first post-Fleming Bond, and this attempt by a novelist better known for his `literary` work was judged a success. Now, after a decade of less successful entries by such writers as John Gardener, we have another serious writer, Sebastian Faulks (author of such acclaimed novels as Birdsong), taking up the challenge.
Devil May Care has already collected a jaw-dropping amount of publicity, with even the Royal Navy helping to put the book firmly at the top of the best-seller charts (Bond is, of course, a naval commander), and few books have had such wind under their sails (the relaunch of the movie franchise with the re-make of Casino Royale and Daniel Craig`s second Bond film, Quantum of Solace, is all part of the ever-accelerating momentum). Of course, this also gives the book farther to fall if it misses the mark.