For Your Eyes Only Audiobook, by Ian Fleming Play Audiobook Sample

For Your Eyes Only Audiobook

For Your Eyes Only Audiobook, by Ian Fleming Play Audiobook Sample
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Read By: Simon Vance Publisher: Blackstone Publishing Listen Time: at 1.0x Speed 3.67 hours at 1.5x Speed 2.75 hours at 2.0x Speed Series: The James Bond Series Release Date: January 2006 Format: Unabridged Audiobook ISBN: 9781481548656

Quick Stats About this Audiobook

Total Audiobook Chapters:

5

Longest Chapter Length:

83:28 minutes

Shortest Chapter Length:

45:35 minutes

Average Chapter Length:

67:35 minutes

Audiobooks by this Author:

11

Other Audiobooks Written by Ian Fleming: > View All...

Listeners Also Enjoyed:

Publisher Description

Sudden emergencies and beautiful girls who aren't quite what they seem and are the stock-in-trade of James Bond. And when 007 is on the case there's only one thing you can be sure of—the result will be thrilling. Whether he's dealing with the assassination of a Cuban thug in America, the destruction of an international heroin ring, or sudden death in the Seychelles, Bond gets the job done—in his own suave and unmistakable style.

Here are five secret occasions in the life of James Bond, all crucial assignments for Agent 007. For Bond, it's just routine. For anyone else, certain death.

–"From a View to a Kill" – Bond must find the security breakdown at Supreme Headquarters.

–"For Your Eyes Only" – On a personal assignment from M, Bond tracks down the killers of an old friend.

–"Quantum of Solace" – A story of disaffected marriage is told to Bond by his host.

–"Risico" – Bond is assigned to disrupt the flow of heroin from Rome to England.

–"The Hildebrand Rarity" – Bond hires himself out as a fishing expert in the Seychelles.

These five short stories find James Bond facing danger from a variety of sources, all of which he escapes through fast thinking and even faster action.

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"Didn't realise at first that it's 5 short stories. Easy to read, quite entertaining. Very dated in the attitude towards women but I was expecting that and it's not uncommon in older books. Couple of the stories could have been about anyone, the James Bond character simply a convenient and well-known one to use, so they're not all spy stories, which was actually a nice surprise. Next I will have to try one of the novels. I've never been a huge fan of the movies, which is probably why I never read any of the books, but I enjoyed this one."

— Neil (4 out of 5 stars)

Quotes

  • “Urban savagery…smooth tale spinning.”

    — New York Herald Tribune
  • “Mr. Fleming’s licensed assassin is in good form…Few men can have been able to mix business with pleasure so successfully as Bond.” 

    — Times Literary Supplement (London)
  • “Master criminals, beautiful damsels in distress, and plenty of action—essentially everything fans have come to associate with 007…Fun reads—great beach books—and the character is still immensely popular on screen, so these are well worth having.”

    — Library Journal
  • “Admirers of Bond will find him in top form.”

    — Listener

For Your Eyes Only Listener Reviews

Overall Performance: 3.32142857142857 out of 53.32142857142857 out of 53.32142857142857 out of 53.32142857142857 out of 53.32142857142857 out of 5 (3.32)
5 Stars: 3
4 Stars: 7
3 Stars: 15
2 Stars: 2
1 Stars: 1
Narration: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 (0.00)
5 Stars: 0
4 Stars: 0
3 Stars: 0
2 Stars: 0
1 Stars: 0
Story: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 (0.00)
5 Stars: 0
4 Stars: 0
3 Stars: 0
2 Stars: 0
1 Stars: 0
Write a Review
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " A strong collection of some of Fleming's Bond short stories. A good time for all. "

    — Noah, 2/20/2014
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " A couple of movies are based in these short stories, including Octopussy. Easy reader. "

    — Robert, 2/15/2014
  • Overall Performance: 5 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 5

    " Sheds new light on Bond and more importantly on Fleming as a writer. "

    — Everett, 2/3/2014
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " Quantum of Solace is the best story in this book. "

    — Carolin, 2/1/2014
  • Overall Performance: 1 out of 51 out of 51 out of 51 out of 51 out of 5

    " A collection of short stories that has, so far, provided the titles to three films - the plots of which, of course, bear no resemblance to the plots of the stories whose titles they share. 'A View to a Kill' sees Bond helping out NATO in France (before France left the organisation), when a dispatch rider carrying secret documents is found murdered. It's all a cunning ploy by Soviet spies, who have set up a secret post in a nearby wood. Fleming apparently has a problem with acronyms: he thinks SHAPE stands for Supreme Headquarters Allied Forces Europe. Er no, that would be SHAFE. The title story opens in Jamaica with the murder of a wealthy British landowner and his wife, and then abruptly shifts to London, where M reluctantly admits to Bond that the murdered couple had been good friends of his and that he knew where the killer was hiding out. So Bond jets off to Canada for a spot of revenge, treks south through the woods, stumbles across the dead couple's daughter doing the same thing. They team up and kill the murderer, and Bond gets the girl. 'Quantum of Solace' has Bond being told a story by the Bahamian Governor after a dinner party about a young man and his wife of the Governor's past acquaintance. Don't read it unless you think women belong in the kitchen. In 'Risico', Bond is in Italy, loaned out to International Opium Control to kill a known drug lord. But the villain turns out to only be a smuggler, and a good chap, so Bond doesn't kill him. Finally, 'The Hildebrand Rarity' has a cartoon rich American visit the Seychelles in his huge yacht, ostensibly to look for some rare animal specimens, including the titular fish. Bond is also on the Seychelles and agrees to act as "underwater ace" for the millionaire. Except the American is a nasty piece of work and beats his wife... and is then mysteriously, and poetically, murdered. The introduction to this collection is by someone called Barry Eisler, who I've never heard of. But when he writes of Bond's "refreshingly antiquated view of women", I think I'll never bother finding out who he is or what he has written. There is nothing "refreshing" in chauvinism, and never will be. It continues to astonish me - and I've read nine of the 007 books so far - that Fleming is so well-regarded. Bond may be a more rounded character in the books than he is in the films, but that's not exactly saying much. The stories are not very clever, Fleming's prose is serviceable at best, and the sensibilities embedded in the stories are offensive - sexism, racism, homophobia... it's all in there, and quite blatantly too. "

    — Ian, 1/29/2014
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Quantum of Solace was easily my favorite short in this book. I can't explain why. It's got nothing to do with espionage. The story and the moral really stuck with me. "

    — Dustin, 1/15/2014
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Fun short stories that expand on the Bond character and universe. Be sure to check this one out before Daniel Craig's next outing as the legendary spy. "

    — Patrick, 1/10/2014
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " Hmmm, Bond short stories? Not so sure really. Mind you the stories themselves were pretty good, but they all kind of left me wanting more - what happened next, etc. Good, but not brilliant. "

    — Steve, 11/28/2013
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Just a fun, escapist book of Bond stories. "

    — Mark, 11/20/2013
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " This is a collection of stories, one I had read before (A Quantum of Solace) and not at all like the movies. More serious and thoughtful, I really enjoyed them. "

    — Judi, 11/11/2013
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " The title story is probably the strongest one in this collection, but they're all good short pieces for our favorite spy to swoop in and save the day. "

    — Jessica, 10/16/2013
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " Bond. James Bond. This is the series of books that launched the classic movies. However, the books are quite different than the movies and certainly not politically correct. Fleming wrote these books in the '50's, and Bond reflects that in his character. "

    — Serge, 10/14/2013
  • Overall Performance: 5 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 5

    " Great trashy read. It's 5 short stories (instead of one longer tale, like the rest of the books), and the local color can't be beat. Even if it is very pre Post-Colonialism. "

    — John, 9/14/2013
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " I think this is the last one. I did read all of them. Date read is a guess. "

    — Chris, 3/20/2013
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " A set of short stories with James Bond as the main character. The title story is about a Bermuda colonial administrator who has a beautiful, but cheating and deceitful wife. "

    — Frederick, 3/7/2013
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " nice collection of Bond stories. "

    — Ben, 11/2/2012
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " I'd never read Ian Fleming before, and this was a fun introduction to his work. For some reason (maybe due to the title), I pictured Roger Moore as Bond in all of the stories. This collection was entertaining enough that I'll probably pickup a James Bond novel or two. "

    — Michael, 5/15/2012
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " The first collection of short stories in the James Bond series. A mixed bag of stories....all of good quality but just jarringly different in mood from one another. Ian Fleming was still a tremendous writer. "

    — Tom, 10/7/2011
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " As a collection of James Bond short stories, this book rocks. Though not quite the same as full-length novel, it is filled adventure and amorousness that has made the series popular since Casino Royale. This is not a must for Bond fans, but it is certainly worth the read. "

    — Seth, 6/10/2011
  • Overall Performance: 5 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 5

    " One of the better Bond books - maybe he works better in short stories. I'm curious now to see Quantum of Solace, I'm sure the movie has nothing to do with the short story, which basically involved Bond only as a listener to the story. "

    — Richard, 2/7/2011
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " I was a bit confused when I picked up this book - I didn't realise it was a book of short stories at first and when I got to the end of the first story I was disappointed. But then, once I'd realised, I quite enjoyed the stories. Fleming is a great author. "

    — Brit, 12/7/2010
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " I'd never read Ian Fleming before, and this was a fun introduction to his work. For some reason (maybe due to the title), I pictured Roger Moore as Bond in all of the stories. This collection was entertaining enough that I'll probably pickup a James Bond novel or two. "

    — S., 10/5/2010
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " Clever, well-expressed short stories. Fast-paced. Classic Bond. Last story - The Hildebrand Rarity - especially worthwhile. "

    — Dan, 6/28/2010
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " interesting how Ian Flemming's stories are totally different from the Bond movies, but necessarily in a bad way. this book not only includes For Your Eyes Only, but other short stories, such as A View to a Kill and Quantum of Solace. "

    — Darryl, 1/31/2010
  • Overall Performance: 2 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 5

    " I just don't think Fleming is a very good writer. He's one of those whose books are better as films. "

    — Alice, 1/9/2010
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " A couple of movies are based in these short stories, including Octopussy. Easy reader. "

    — Robert, 10/9/2009
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " 007 in his original form. "

    — Weavx4, 7/20/2009
  • Overall Performance: 2 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 5

    " A mixed bag of stories, "Quantum of Solace" being the best of the five, and that, nothwithstanding Bond not playing any role in it other than that of a willing listener. "Risico" and "The Hildebrand Rarity" are OK. "

    — Roberto, 7/1/2009

About Ian Fleming

Ian Fleming was born in London in 1908. He was educated at Eton and worked as a journalist in Moscow and a banker and stockbroker in London before becoming personal assistant to the Director of Naval Intelligence during the Second World War. He wrote his first Bond novel, Casino Royale, at Goldeneye, his home in Jamaica, in 1952. Since then James Bond has gone on to become a global phenomenon.

About Simon Vance

Simon Vance (a.k.a. Robert Whitfield) is an award-winning actor and narrator. He has earned more than fifty Earphones Awards and won the prestigious Audie Award for best narration thirteen times. He was named Booklist’s very first Voice of Choice in 2008 and has been named an AudioFile Golden Voice as well as an AudioFile Best Voice of 2009. He has narrated more than eight hundred audiobooks over almost thirty years, beginning when he was a radio newsreader for the BBC in London. He is also an actor who has appeared on both stage and television.