Octopussy and The Living Daylights Audiobook, by Ian Fleming Play Audiobook Sample

Octopussy and The Living Daylights Audiobook

Octopussy and The Living Daylights Audiobook, by Ian Fleming Play Audiobook Sample
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Read By: Simon Vance Publisher: Blackstone Publishing Listen Time: at 1.0x Speed 1.67 hours at 1.5x Speed 1.25 hours at 2.0x Speed Series: The James Bond Series Release Date: January 2006 Format: Unabridged Audiobook ISBN: 9781481537773

Quick Stats About this Audiobook

Total Audiobook Chapters:

3

Longest Chapter Length:

65:12 minutes

Shortest Chapter Length:

45:44 minutes

Average Chapter Length:

52:19 minutes

Audiobooks by this Author:

11

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

Publisher Description

Published posthumously, this book isan anthology of three novellas featuring the world's best-known secret agent, James Bond.

In the first story, "Octopussy," the legendary 007 is sent to Jamaica to deal with a rather odd Englishman. Major Dexter Smythe is a proper fellow living in the lap of luxury, but his fondness for eight-legged creatures has resulted in a dangerous experiment that will put Bond in a precarious position.

Bond's mission in "The Living Daylights" is to neutralize the KGB sniper, code-named Trigger, whose assignment is to prevent an important Russian official from defecting. M sends 007 to West Berlin to safeguard Agent 272, but can Bond kill the sniper in time? Trigger is one of Fleming's most tantalizing villains—a shadowy figure who Bond and the listener glimpse but never meet.

"The Property of a Lady" finds Bond at an auction tracking down an exoticobjet d'artand a deceptive woman.

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"Whether it is tracking down a wayward major who has taken a deadly secret with him to the Caribbean or identifying a top Russian agent secretly bidding for a Fabergé egg in a Sotheby's auction room, Bond always closes the case—with extreme prejudice. Oh, how hooked I was! "

— Bill (5 out of 5 stars)

Quotes

  • “A must for Bond buffs.”

    — Newsweek
  • “Three James Bond novellas come alive in [Simon Vance’s] expert hands…[Vance] gives Bond a smooth, urbane voice, managing not to reflect any of the actors who’ve played the British spy on screen. He also nimbly handles the major’s inner dialogue in Octopussy.”

    — AudioFile
  • “The stories delve deeper into the James Bond character and psyche, are full of atmosphere and detail, and are, in short, pure Fleming.”

    — Raymond Benson, author of High Time to Kill

Octopussy and The Living Daylights Listener Reviews

Overall Performance: 3.24242424242424 out of 53.24242424242424 out of 53.24242424242424 out of 53.24242424242424 out of 53.24242424242424 out of 5 (3.24)
5 Stars: 2
4 Stars: 11
3 Stars: 13
2 Stars: 7
1 Stars: 0
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: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " Not bad: The Living Daylights is short and taut. Octopussy might amuse people who are really really interested in scuba diving. "

    — Nathanielk, 2/18/2014
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " And the Fleming Bond novels come to an end for me. A bit of a low key affair, this final collection of short stories. Still damned good, with both Octopussy and The Living Daylights being just about as good of a short story as you could want and damned fine in their own rights. the other two stories appear to have commisioned and read like work for hire and are a bit clumsey and lazy, hence the lower star rating on the whole. "

    — Russell, 2/10/2014
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " You probably won't believe me on this one, but Octopussy: The Darling is actually a fairly literary short story. Maude Adams summed the story up in a two-minute scene in the movie, which otherwise had nothing to do with Flemings best attempt at depth. "

    — Steven, 2/8/2014
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Genuine James Bond story, with old-fashioned hand to hand combats and witty comebacks. "

    — Marcela, 2/8/2014
  • Overall Performance: 2 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 5

    " Fleming's not a great writer and the three stories in the book were pretty bland. "

    — Quinn, 1/29/2014
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " Very short and very different from the movies, but if you love bond, you'll love the book. "

    — Dan, 1/25/2014
  • Overall Performance: 2 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 5

    " This have to be the least interesting bond novel I read I thought Doctor No. was bad but this one was worse. "

    — Shaun, 1/14/2014
  • Overall Performance: 2 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 5

    " Not much to either of these stories... clearly, Ian Fleming knew this, which is why they weren't published until after his death. "

    — Melissa, 1/14/2014
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Octopussy, meh. The Living Daylights? Awesome. Kind of like the movies. "

    — Kevin, 1/9/2014
  • Overall Performance: 2 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 5

    " Hmmm, how did they get a Lotus that can go under water, a tiger hunt and a mini submarine disguised as a crocodile from this mini mini story about Bond turning up to put the fear on a retired spy? "

    — russell, 12/26/2013
  • Overall Performance: 5 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 5

    " 1st Bond book I've read and was truely surprized that it was so well written. Having been influenced by the films I was expecting something more cheesey. A very pleasant find. "

    — Dean, 12/16/2013
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " Haha James Bond is totally not a cool character by modern standards. It's hilarious. This book gets a third star purely for The Living Daylights which was by far the most enjoyable of the short stories in this book. "

    — Matthew, 12/14/2013
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " I have completed the entire Iam Fleming James Bond Series. I enjoyed these 4 short stories They were classic Bond! "

    — Cottero, 11/15/2013
  • Overall Performance: 2 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 5

    " Didn't really find any of the short stories in this collection particularly good. A damp squib of and end to the books. "

    — Liv, 11/1/2013
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " These short stories give Bond a dimension you cannot see in the main novels. "

    — Chris, 8/16/2013
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " While I enjoyed this collection, I think most fans will find Octopussy a little disappointing. IT has very little to do with Bond. The Living Daylights, on the other hand, is great. "

    — Noah, 4/10/2013
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " Don't be afraid of the title. This is a compilation of three different James Bond stories and only one of them gets slightly raunchy about a girl and a cello. For me I can only complain that these stories were short. It makes me want to read more James Bond. Audio book "

    — Hykel, 2/13/2013
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " Sixth-grade book report. Creative book report--we had to choose a scene from the book and re-enact it, and the teacher would snap one Polaroid photograph. I chose a scene from "Octopussy", of James Bond relaxing with a drink in one hand and a gun in the other. Yep: pretty lazy. "

    — R., 9/27/2012
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " All are pleasant reads. Better than for your eyes only. "

    — Xoán, 6/28/2012
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Good to know the stories about Bond are totally diferent from the movies. The books are more realistic. "

    — Paulo, 5/31/2012
  • Overall Performance: 2 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 5

    " Collection of short stories by Ian Flemming starring James Bond. Fun. Short stories so no real action or drama, but a good read nonetheless. "

    — TJ, 5/26/2012
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " These Bond stories definitely read far more like sketches for novels than fully fleshed tales in their own right, which detracts somewhat, but there's something oddly appealing about the tragic tale of a man and his octopus. "

    — Jessica, 5/18/2012
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Fun little snippets of 007 life. Short stories that you'll like if you don't need closure in a story. "

    — Emma, 12/24/2011
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " My edition had pictures for some reason. "

    — Tiffany, 5/30/2011
  • Overall Performance: 2 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 5

    " Fleming's not a great writer and the three stories in the book were pretty bland. "

    — Quinn, 1/24/2011
  • Overall Performance: 5 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 5

    " 1st Bond book I've read and was truely surprized that it was so well written. Having been influenced by the films I was expecting something more cheesey. A very pleasant find. "

    — Dean, 7/8/2010
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Short and sweet. A lot of the content has already been incorporated into the movies, but there's a lot to like here. The short story format is a breath of fresh air to close an enjoyable but formulaic series. "

    — Ben, 2/23/2010
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Octopussy, meh. The Living Daylights? Awesome. Kind of like the movies. "

    — Kevin, 12/15/2009
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " A collection of some of Fleming's later stories, not as interesting as the Bond novels, but good stories just as well. "

    — Velimir, 11/19/2009
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " I felt that all of the stories ended a little too abruptly. I unexpectedly enjoyed the excitement of the auction scene. "

    — Bradley, 10/29/2009
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " This short story was pleasantly surprising. I thought that Flemming's books would feature a lot more outdated language and ignorance, but except for the common use of the word "Ticketty-boo" it was a story that was fun to read and had only a few lines about Bond, James Bond. "

    — Krista, 9/16/2009
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " You probably won't believe me on this one, but Octopussy: The Darling is actually a fairly literary short story. Maude Adams summed the story up in a two-minute scene in the movie, which otherwise had nothing to do with Flemings best attempt at depth. "

    — Steven, 7/5/2009
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " Re-read Sept 2009 to recall how much different the book was to the movie. "

    — Rhod, 4/17/2009

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.