Well, this is the expansion to the Bond universe I’ve been waiting for!

Ian Fleming created such a rich world of espionage that it only makes sense to build on it. In Double or Nothing, James. Bond is missing and we’re introduced to a host of other 00 agents instead. It’s the perfect way to tackle some of the issues with diversity found in Fleming’s work whilst remaining true to the character he created.

While Bond doesn’t make an appearance in this book, his presence is felt and he’s regularly referred to. Other familiar characters include M, Moneypenny, Leiter and Q (although not as you’d expect!), and we meet a new cohort of 00 agents - Johanna Harwood, Joseph Dryden and Sid Bashir. These new characters reflect the diversity of the modern day U.K. and each of them have a unique backstory. I particularly enjoyed the inclusion of Dryden, he has sensorineural hearing loss and difficulty processing language following a traumatic brain injury whilst serving in Afghanistan. Of course, for the purpose of the book, a solution to this is found but the initial impact of his injury is well explored and there are occasions in the book where Dryden is able to demonstrate his capability and strength as a result of it

Set in the modern day, a tech billionaire and the climate crisis are big factors in the plot. It felt very relevant although, in true Bond style, it often pushes the envelope on what is currently technologically possible. It did take me a little while to get fully drawn into the story, but that improved once we learnt more about the characters and I began to feel connected to them. Given the name of the book, it won’t come as a surprise that the threat of a double agent hangs over the story, figuring out who it might be and trying to put the pieces together was definitely the most interesting part of the plot!

The book is well paced and builds to the a fantastic finale. There are little hints and throwbacks to Flemings work which I enjoyed looking for. At times, the writing felt a bit cliched but in a way that’s familiar to Fleming’s style.

I’m very excited to find out where this series goes!

Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publishers for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Firstly, thanks to NetGalley, the publishers, and the author for allowing me a pre release copy of this book for review.

As has come to be an almost trademark of any James Bond book or film, we start off with agents infiltrating a heavily guarded hideout, this time in a bid to rescue one of their own from the militia Rattenfänger. 009 Sid Bashir is on a mission to rescue the captured 003, Johanna Harwood, an agent he and James Bond had both previously had a romantic relationship with. Naturally, Bashir and Harwood make their escape.

Meanwhile, Sir Bertram Paradise claims to have developed a means to reverse climate change. But one of the scientists on the project, as well as one of Paradise's team, have gone missing. With M's top spy, James Bond, having disappeared while on a mission some 18 months previously and now presumed dead, Harwood, Bashir, and 004 Joseph Dryden, collectively MI6's next generation of super spys, are sent to find out the truth and locate the missing scientist and security agent. Before long it becomes apparent that Rattenfänger have their noses in Sir Bertram's invention and the agents are also faced with potentially deadly confrontations with members of the group. And with Rattenfänger constantly seeming to be one step ahead of the agents, it soon becomes apparent that there is a mole in MI6. Will our heroes identify the traitor, save the day, the missing personnel, will they be in time to save the planet? And will they discover the whereabouts of 007?

While this isn't a James Bond book, most of our favourite MI6 characters are present - M, Moneypenny, Bill Tanner, and Felix Leiter. Although Q is now a super computer rather than a department that loads up it's agents with all the latest toys and gadgets.

This is an enjoyable book, it has plenty of action in it from start to finish. Some of the scenarios, however, are not all that believable - though that has been the case throughout the whole Bond series. There are times when you're bounced to a different location and it takes a while to discover why and how the characters have got there. And there are plenty of red herrings to keep you guessing the identity of the mole so this gets an extra star from me for that. So while it's not a patch on Ian Fleming's great works, we have to remember that the world has moved on since those days. This seems to have been kept as close as possible to the style we've come to know and love from Bond books and that also wins brownie points for me. It's definitely worth a read, it might even be made into a film eventually - there's definitely potential for it IMO.

Thanks to HarperCollins and Netgalley for an advance copy of this book.

This reads as a classic Bond adventure, with all the usual ingredients, except one.

Instead we focus on new agents, and although I can understand the reasoning behind this, I didn't enjoy it as much for the same reason.

Plenty of action and a decent plot, but not the Bond book I was hoping for.

This is a fast paced action packed novel that is very in tune with the Bond films. The hi-tech gadgetry is not overdone but is there where it counts. High speed cars and car chases , exotic locations, meticulously detailed fight scenes, it is pretty breath taking - almost too much so at times. Bond is ever present in name and spirit if not in person. The new quota of double 0’s co-ordinated by Moneypenny no less, are diverse in origin, slightly flawed to one degree or another and fiercely committed to their roles. If anything it was Moneypenny’s role and character that did not sit so comfortably with me. The plot is topical, all to do with climate change and more besides probably improbable- but not so much as to make it unbelievable, the baddies more than a bit deranged. It was all very exciting and great fun to read.

Thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins for an ARC

The shadow of Bond looms large and ever present but lacks some of the finesse of the originals. The number of 00’s is quite confusing at times and you lose track of who is who.

Well I'm a bit torn on this one. You expect an Advanced-Review-Copy when getting a book from NetGalley - I'm not expecting it to be the finished article all of the time but usually the books I see, as far as I can tell, are the final version. I'm not sure what stage this one is at, based on the copy I read, but it's not at the final version stage yet.

The storyline is good and cleverly intertwines the shadow of Bond (007) onto proceedings throughout whilst dipping into the next era of double-O agents at MI6's disposal. There's your usual action scenes you'd expect from a 'Bond' book with car chase scenes and gun-fights aplenty, a dash of romance and twisted villain(s). All the boxes are fully ticked with the makings of a blockbuster movie plot.

However, my main complaint is that the description of some of the gun and fight scenes, in particular, were apparently incomplete and I found myself getting lost with who was where and doing what as detail was seemingly missing. I'm sure an ironing out of the book will fully sort this out and you'd be left with a book to satisfy Ian Fleming fans but at the moment I got lost frequently in the fight/gun scenes , so much so that it detracted from the experience.

I've (perhaps generously) opted for 4 stars based on the presumption that the book is incomplete.
NB If it is complete it would be 3 stars.

I am sorry to say this was not the best book I have read - it was cumbersome and disjointed, and not quite up to the standard I was hoping to find after having read so many Ian Fleming books. I did find it original, and a worth remake at the same time - as it is so hard to follow in the steps of anyone writing James Bond stories. I did enjoy the fact the thriller was so heavily focussed on climate crisis which makes is very timely, and there was plenty of action scenes!

I found this a little difficult to bond with given that there were that many agents not sure I knew my 00’s from my elbow. Storyline was certainly in the mould of a good Bond book with classic villain and villainous organisation and a few add ons as well. Best summed up as evolution from original Bond and MI6 but one I could grow to like.

You can spend hours reading this one in a single sitting ! Loved the M16 and all the double agents whom are assisting a billionaire with climate. Loved the story, definitely one for Bond Fans.

A nice light read. MI 6 has lots of 00 agents that they send in pursuit of a tech billionaire who seems to have the answer for the world’s climate crisis. I found the duel use of the agents’ names and they referring to them by the 00 status confusing and I had to keep going back to see who was what number. It’s an easy read and will happily fill a few hours of reading.

James Bond is missing, presumed dead. In his absence, we meet three new 00 agents: Johanna Harwood, 003. Joseph Dryden, 004. Sid Bashir, 009. It is not all new figures - Q, M and Moneypenny are all here too, alongside a global menace, action scenes, chases and even romance too. What Kim Sherwood has done with Ian Fleming's intellectual property is subtly redefine it, by focusing on these others in these familiar environments, and has found a way to make the world of Bond live without its hero.

Not that Bond is absent from this novel. His shadow looms large over proceedings, and the decisions these new agents make are compared and contrasted mentally with how we think Bond would handle them. We cannot escape Bond.

Sherwood's writing is precise, rapid, and the action clips along at a fair old place. There are twists and turns, appearances from fan favourites - Felix Leiter! One for the fans of You Only Live Twice which I won't spoil - and, as expected, enough material left hanging to take us into book two.

It must be hard to write a Bond novel - we all know the character, we know the story beats to expect - and not everybody who has tried has succeeded all that well. This, though, is one of the good ones, and one whose sequel I will be tracking down once Sherwood has finished writing it.

Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for the ARC.