Forever and a Day: A James Bond Novel

By Anthony Horowitz

A spy is dead. A legend is born. This is how it all began. The explosive prequel to Casino Royale, from bestselling author Anthony Horowitz.

 

Forever and a Day is the story of the birth of a legend, in the brutal underworld of the French Riviera, taking readers into the very beginning of James Bond’s illustrious career and the formation of his identity.

 

***

 

M laid down his pipe and stared at it tetchily. “We have no choice. We’re just going to bring forward this other chap you’ve been preparing. But you didn’t tell me his name.”

“‘It’s Bond, sir,'” the Chief of Staff replied. “James Bond.”

The sea keeps its secrets. But not this time. 

One body. Three bullets. 007 floats in the waters of Marseille, killed by an unknown hand. 

It’s time for a new agent to step up. Time for a new weapon in the war against organized crime. 

It’s time for James Bond to earn his license to kill.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Nov 6, 2018
• ISBN: 9781443457439

Anthony Horowitz

ANTHONY HOROWITZ is the author of the US bestselling Magpie Murders and The Word is Murder, and one of the most prolific and successful writers in the English language; he may have committed more (fictional) murders than any other living author. His novel Trigger Mortis features original material from Ian Fleming. His most recent Sherlock Holmes novel, Moriarty, is a reader favorite; and his bestselling Alex Rider series for young adults has sold more than 19 million copies worldwide. As a TV screenwriter, he created both Midsomer Murders and the BAFTA-winning Foyle’s War on PBS. Horowitz regularly contributes to a wide variety of national newspapers and magazines, and in January 2014 was awarded an OBE.

Reviews for Forever and a Day

[bruyere_c · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Picked this because I like Anthony Horowitz and it was immediately available for download from the library—and the cover (not the one shown here) had a nice view of the Côte d’Azur. Not qualified to compare it to Fleming’s works, but ugh, not interesting to me at all.

[stahl2ricco · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The “prequel to ‘Casino Royale.”!!!This was enjoyable, the story of Bond obtaining his 00 status and his first adventure as 007! Chapter 7, "Russian Roulette", is based on an outline of Ian Fleming's, and the story therein, about the Aleksandr Kolchak and the casino, is pretty good! The overall story is pretty good too, and the ending, with a twist I didn't see coming, is very good! Nice last line:"He felt nothing." (cue the Bond theme...)

[writemoves · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I am a huge fan of the James Bond series. I have read all the books written by Ian Fleming and by the various other authors who have written James Bond novels. I am also a huge fan of Anthony Horowitz's books. So I was very pleased to read and enjoyed Forever and a Day. Great story. This is early Bond, right after he was promoted to the 00 section. As interesting as Bond was, the character that make this book so good was a woman, Sixtine. She had an interesting biography but her experiences led her to distrust all men. Sixtine's fate and her relationship with Bond----would she betray him??---made the story more compelling.

There are the usual despicable villains, plenty of gunplay and violence. I never got the sense the storyline dragged. Plenty of plot swerves, particularly in the final chapter...

Looking forward to the next book in the James Bond series.

[dh1writer · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Stopped reading at Chapter 10. Writing is unimaginative, simple, and boring.

[gothamajp · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

. A second read through (for research purposes) of Anthony Horowitz’s most recent addition to the Bond literary landscape. It’s an entertaining adventure of Bond’s first mission as 007, that sits well with the Fleming canon it leads in to. While there’s some neat references here that lay some of the foundations for aspects of Bond’s character in later stories, you don’t have to be steeped in 007 lore to just enjoy this as a straightforward thriller adventure.

[aadyer · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Certainly not dull, fun and exciting and almost a prequel of a prequel when you think about its relationship to Casino Royale. Literary bond at its more dynamic. This feels like Fleming in most part, but misses the point on a couple of occasions. Good but not perfect but seeing the original manuscript for Fleming's TV series was amazing too.

[rivendell_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This second Bond book from Anthony Horowitz is an fantastic addition to the Bond universe. We learn how Bond is introduced to his trade mark cigarettes. Anthony keeps the Fleming atmosphere throughout.

[jfe16 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A spy is dead.A new agent steps up to face the brutal underworld of organized crime . . . and becomes 007. In this prequel to the Ian Fleming James Bond novels, the setting is pre-“Casino Royale” with Anthony Horowitz creating a complex backstory for Bond as he steps up, tests his mettle, and earns his place in Her Majesty’s Secret Service. Here the villains are sadistic, the action is explosive, and the suspense is pulse-pounding. The plot twists and turns as it reveals the story of James Bond’s early days of defining his skills, finding his place, and defying the odds as he sheds any bits of ingenuousness that might still cling. The Bond-worthy plot captures the spirit of Fleming’s stories with Horowitz’s noteworthy attention to detail creating an unfolding narrative that fits the 1950s setting and is impressively good. Highly recommended.

[breic-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A fun and fast (not drawn out) Bond thriller. This beats Fleming, and is also better than the movies. It is a bit childish, but it hits its targets.