The Moonraker project has a millionaire backer, the war hero Sir Hugo Drax—a man who, it seems, cheats at cards. With a ballistic rocket at stake, Sir Hugo's exposure could threaten Britain's latest defense system, so James Bond is asked to investigate. Moving from London's most exclusive gambling club to a missile silo on the Channel coast, 007 and his Special Branch assistant, Gala Brand, discover there's more to Drax than meets the eye.
This audiobook includes an exclusive bonus interview with Bill Nighy.
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"The third iteration of Fleming's James Bond books is based entirely in the UK with industrialist Sir Hugo Drax helpfully offering to build a rocket for HM Government. Of course not all of the story is as plausible as that, but nonetheless it is my favourite of the first three books in the series, thus far."
— Taruia (4 out of 5 stars)
“If you’ve forgotten how wonderful Fleming’s books are as books, you are in for a huge treat. Bill Nighy’s James Bond is a man who knows he can fail, a man who might not get the girl. That quality marries beautifully with Fleming’s high-octane plotting, Cold-War style. There’s a duel between Bond’s souped-up Bentley and the ghastly Sir Hugo Drax’s Mercedes, which Nighy makes hair-raising. Even better is a veddy British scene in which Bond must catch Drax cheating at cards at a London gentlemen’s club. Drax and his crypto-fascist henchmen are cartoonish, red meat to Nighy; the voice he creates for the loathsome Krebs is particularly entertaining. Most impressively, Nighy convinces you that this Bond is a real human being.”
— AudioFile“Fleming is splendid; he stops at nothing.”
— New Statesman“Do not miss this…Mr. Fleming continues to be irresistibly readable.”
— Observer (London)" good read, and the Bond series, enjoyable and a page turner, and a fast read at that. "
— Doubledf19.99, 2/18/2014" Some enjoyable set pieces and observations although it can be a little bit slow at time. Not the best Bond but still worth reading. "
— Paul, 1/23/2014" Luckily, this had next to nothing in common with the embarrassment that is the movie. Bond doesn't even leave Britain, let alone go to space :) Not the best Bond novel, a bit boring here and there, but still a worthy novel. "
— Andreas, 1/22/2014" I never really thought about reading James Bond books before but then I was in an antique shop which happened to have a very large portion of them in paperback form. Wrapped up in twine and having been old dog eared and mouldering copies from first runs on I could not resist. So I brought them home and have been very fascinated since. Moonraker, the third in the series, is nothing like the film aside from a few character names it could be an entirely different Bond film than the Roger Moore vehicle. With the typical action and suspense I have come to associate with Bond I could not put it down. The story follows Bond as he tries to sort out the concerns of superiors on the safety of the Moonraker, a state..ahem.. of the art rocket which has been built by a national hero. I say state of the art since these novels were written well before the space age was in full swing. Although antiquated the stories are still intriguing and I cannot wait for the next adventure with Diamonds are Forever... "
— Bruce, 1/20/2014" This book was okay, not the greatest and average overall. Still it wasn't a bad read either! Onwards to the next one :) "
— Rebecca, 1/10/2014" Two words: Retracting windshield for when car chases turn into gun battles. Totally sweet. Except for when James has to periodically wipe bug guts off of his face. But it's a small price to pay for being awesome. Also, he puts benzedrine in his champagne. We can all relate to that. "
— Ben, 1/3/2014" Bond remains on home soil in this instalment of 007. All the usual sophistication and cut-throat action expected when reading this series. Though I did find this book slightly slower paced than others from Ian Fleming. "
— Lauren, 12/31/2013" Much better. Not sure it's 4 stars but it's a stronger book than the first two. If only I understood how to play bridge... "
— Mike, 12/27/2013" Solid read. By far better than the film adaptation. "
— Markus, 12/17/2013" Of all Fleming's James Bond novels, this was my favorite. Loved how the suspense kept building. Very exciting. "
— John, 12/5/2013" Campy fun about dealing cards, big bombs, and submarines! Enjoyable... although at times a little bewildering. I enjoy the parody of the early bond books. "
— Ryan, 11/26/2013" By far the best of my re-read of the Bond books so far. Action, suspense. And surprisingly, Bond does not get the girl. "
— Williamacrane, 11/18/2013" Classic Bond in the first half of the book with a card-playing showdown with Hugo Drax set amid the paranoia of a threat of a nuclear war in the years immediately after WWII. The second half of the book covers familiar territory that Austin Powers does better. "
— Erik, 10/17/2013" Good book and fun read. Mostly different than the film, but in a good way. "
— Lee, 11/6/2012" About the only things this book had in common with the movie is the title, and the names Bond, M, and Hugo Drax. Once again, I much preferred the book over the movie. It's all about the details. "
— Bill, 10/26/2012" One of my favorite James Bond books. Apparently it's quite easy to disguise Nazi rocket engineers. "
— Douglas, 5/22/2012" Good, but not usual James Bond standards. Bit rushed and obvious plot. "
— Adam, 7/26/2011" An excellent, gripping thriller, the only Bond novel set entirely within Great Britain. "
— Paul, 3/27/2011" Dr. No is 6th in the series, but was the first Bond movie, with Sean Connery and Ursula Andress. The book is in some ways very different from the movie, no radioactivity, for example. The escape sequence is pretty good, at least in its conception. "
— Andrea, 1/16/2011Ian 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.
Bill Nighy is a multi-award-winning actor who has appeared in many TV dramas, including State of Play, The Girl in the Café, and Page Eight, for which he received a Golden Globe Best Actor nomination. He won a Best Supporting Actor BAFTA for his role as Billy Mack in Love Actually, while his other films include Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, and the smash hit The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.