Colonel Sun

The story, without spoilers

M is kidnapped, turning a routine visit into an emergency that Bond cannot treat as another ordinary assignment. The trail leads to a Greek island and Colonel Sun Liang-tan, whose conspiracy brings Chinese military power together with a former Nazi commander. Bond must work with unfamiliar allies while trying to recover the head of his own service.

This is an adult Bond mission with the familiar institutional support stripped away. The personal rescue gives the danger a different focus from a briefing about a distant threat: the person Bond normally reports to is the person he has to save.

Can I start here?

Yes, once you know Fleming's Bond and M. It is the first continuation novel, so no earlier continuation book is required. For publication order, finish Fleming's fourteen books before moving to Amis.

What stands out

The Greek island setting and M's abduction make this a useful first comparison with Fleming. Choose it for a compact change of author that keeps Bond, rather than a whole new team, at the centre.

Who wrote it

Amis, author of Lucky Jim, had already written The James Bond Dossier before taking on Colonel Sun. He published this first authorised continuation as Robert Markham in 1968.

Where it fits in Bond’s life

The first continuation was published after Fleming’s fourteen Bond books. Its kidnapping plot needs no earlier continuation; publication order is the clearest route, rather than inserting it between two Fleming missions.

Content notes

Adult readers. Kidnapping, killings, torture and an adult espionage setting.

Setting

• England
• A Greek island

Main characters

James Bond, M, Colonel Sun Liang-tan, Ariadne Alexandrou, Von Richter.