Devil May Care

The story, without spoilers

In the 1960s, narcotics are flooding Britain and industrialist Julius Gorner appears to be behind the supply. M sends Bond to investigate. The route takes him through Paris to Persia, where Scarlett and Poppy are connected with the danger surrounding Gorner's plans.

Faulks returns to the period of Fleming's Bond rather than updating him to the year the book was published. The mission follows Bond's confrontation with Scaramanga, making it a period sequel with a recognisable place after the final Fleming novel.

Can I start here?

It works best after The Man with the Golden Gun. No other continuation writer's books are required, so it is a straightforward option once you have finished Fleming's main sequence.

What stands out

The period setting is the reason to pick this over a modern reboot. It was commissioned for Fleming's birth centenary, and its Scaramanga connection gives a reader who has just finished Fleming a clear route forward.

Who wrote it

Faulks, the novelist behind Birdsong, was commissioned to mark Fleming’s birth centenary with Devil May Care. The 2008 novel returns Bond to the Cold War.

Where it fits in Bond’s life

Faulks returns to the 1960s after Bond’s encounter with Scaramanga in The Man with the Golden Gun. Fleming’s final novel supplies the useful starting context.

Content notes

Adult readers. Narcotics trafficking, threatened mass violence, coercion and adult relationships.

Setting

• Britain
• Paris
• Persia, now Iran

Main characters

James Bond, M, Julius Gorner, Scarlett, Poppy.