Zero Minus Ten

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Zero Minus Ten by Raymond Benson is the first novel by the author featuring Ian Fleming’s James Bond. Mr. Benson is a published author and the first American to write a James Bond book.

Agent 007 is given ten days to investigate a series of terrorist attacks in Hong Kong before it is going to be transferred to China. At the same time, a nuclear bomb has gone off in the Australian outback.

Bond investigates Guy Thackeray, a British shipping magnate, and Li Xu Nan, a head of a Chinese Triad. With the help of T.Y. Woo, a contact in Hong Kong, Bond manages to put Li Xu Nan in his debt and go to Australia to investigate Thackeray’s company, EurAsia.

I have enjoyed show more most of Ian Fleming’s Bond books, as well as the James Bond graphic novels. I’ve read this book a while ago though and these are my thoughts from that time.

Zero Minus Ten by Raymond Benson an O.K. Bond screenplay, but a bit disappointing book. It seems to me the author was writing the book with a movie in mind, what happened to the aging secret agent going through a mid-life crisis? What happened to the kinky, chauvinistic, alcoholic, cold-blooded killer we all know and love?

I do enjoy the Bond movies, like many I’ve seen them before reading the books. However, the literary Bond is quite different from the movie Bond. This book is taking place in the movie universe, ignoring the changes made by other authors to the literary character.

The narrative is missing the amalgam of details and storytelling, instead focusing a lot of it on action scenes for the big screen – which doesn’t usually translate well to books. Some of the writing becomes sloppy and superficial at times. In other books, we got into Bond’s head, this time we’re witnessing everything from the outside – like in a movie.

On the other hand, the heavy details in the book take the reader completely out of the story. I tried to understand how to play mahjong, but the description was convoluted. I did, however, appreciate the history lesson and context of Eastern politics.

I liked the story, it’s solid even if it is predictable, and I enjoyed reading the book, I guess it’s not the Bond I’m used to. If you are looking for a nice, light, Sunday afternoon read, this is it. show less

This is a very enjoyable read. OK so it is predictable. You can say that if you have read one Bond story, you have read them all. It was still enjoyable. I wish they would have turned this one into a movie.

The story is about how 007 saves Hong Kong Island from a madman determined to destroy it before it turns over from British Rule to China. And he has 10 days to do it, hence the title of Zero minus Ten.

Raymond Benson does a pretty good job of describing and explaining the Chinese culture from the Hong Kong and the mainland China point of view. He also does a very good job of Humanizing James Bond. Here he seems to be more of a person one can relate to as opposed to the larger than life figure one sees on the big screen. The only show more negative I noted was that the gadgets were noticeably missing. He recieved a pair of shoes with fake heels that had a first aid kit and some specialty small utensils and thats it. What a let down.

The characters were your typical 007 characters...M was unforgiving, the bad guys were bad and of course James Bond was as smooth as always. I highly recommend this book to any who likes adventures and action. It was a very easy read. show less

(2008 - 2 stars) I've read all of his other james bond books and really loved them, but this one was actually pretty lame. it was ok for a quick read that didn't require much brain power, but nothing to recommend by any means. It was high school when i read all the others, so maybe my tastes have just matured since then.

(2024 - 4 stars) I'm not sure why I didn't like this book very much 16 years ago. I just read it again and loved it. It was lacking a high-speed chase and clever quips, but it had all the other things I excpect from a Bond novel or movie. I thought it was a ton of fun to read, in fact it might be in the top 5 of my favorite Bond books.

The clock is ticking for Hong Kong. The British Crown Colony will soon be handed over to the People's Republic of China. But hopes for a peaceful transition are shattered when a series of terrorist acts threatens the fragile relationship between Britain and China.
James Bond is dispatched to Hong Kong to investigate the nefarious Chinese underworld Triad, but the truth is buried even deeper. Now Bond has only ten days to unravel a fiendish plot of revenge with roots that reach back more than a century and a half...