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Bond Unknown
From acclaimed authors Willie Meikle and Edward M. Erdelac come two new stories pitting James Bond against the Mythos. Written in the original Fleming style and laced with Lovecraft, this is the mash-up you've been waiting for!
204 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2017
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31 people want to read
About the author
Edward M. Erdelac
79 books114 followersEdward M. Erdelac is the author of thirteen novels including the acclaimed Judeocentric/Lovecraftian weird western series Merkabah Rider, Rainbringer: Zora Neale Hurston Against The Lovecraftian Mythos, Conquer, Monstrumfuhrer from Comet Press, Terovolas from JournalStone Publishing, and Andersonville from Random House/Hydra.
Born in Indiana, educated in Chicago, he lives in the Los Angeles area with his wife and a bona fide slew of kids and cats.
Born in Indiana, educated in Chicago, he lives in the Los Angeles area with his wife and a bona fide slew of kids and cats.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
March 16, 2024
Owing to some Bond books having a murky copyright situation in Canada, this book contains two novellas about James Bond encountering the Cthulhu Mythos. The first, Into the Green by William Meikle, has Bond taking on a cult worshipping some kind of energy being drawn down from the Northern Lights. The second, Mindbreaker, sees Bond trying to stop a cult from awakening a Old One using the blood of a kidnapped princess.
I've only read a couple Bond novels. Into the Green feels more like a novel Bond. Mindbreaker is much longer and feels like a James Bond movie in novel form. They're both enjoyable but I much preferred Mindbreaker, with it's multiple locales, colorfully named characters, and generally feeling more like the Bond experience I'm used to.
Four easy stars, although I noticed some typos in both stories, like maybe the ebook wasn't created from the final versions of the files.
I've only read a couple Bond novels. Into the Green feels more like a novel Bond. Mindbreaker is much longer and feels like a James Bond movie in novel form. They're both enjoyable but I much preferred Mindbreaker, with it's multiple locales, colorfully named characters, and generally feeling more like the Bond experience I'm used to.
Four easy stars, although I noticed some typos in both stories, like maybe the ebook wasn't created from the final versions of the files.
August 8, 2023
This nicely produced book (with wonderful cover from Mark Maddox and illustrations from M Wayne Miller, contains two works.
First we have William Meikle's novella 'Into The Green'. It's a formulaic mythos tale with Bond and too much of Scottish stuff. Mediocre stuff.
Then we have Edward M. Erdelac's novel "Mindbreaker". This one was outstanding in its plot, characterisation, action, complexity, and the British wit— without which we simply have no bond (pun intended) with the work. Most importantly, it made me like James Bond afresh.
Recommended mostly because of this novel only.
First we have William Meikle's novella 'Into The Green'. It's a formulaic mythos tale with Bond and too much of Scottish stuff. Mediocre stuff.
Then we have Edward M. Erdelac's novel "Mindbreaker". This one was outstanding in its plot, characterisation, action, complexity, and the British wit— without which we simply have no bond (pun intended) with the work. Most importantly, it made me like James Bond afresh.
Recommended mostly because of this novel only.
January 2, 2019
My favourite Bond eras are the Moore years, silly names, cool gadgets and OTT storylines. Whilst the two tales in here fall within the Connery range, they still tick most of the boxes. To be honest, I wasn't sure if I would enjoy this at all, it's not what I would normally read, but I got into both stories pretty easily and barring a few minor little niggles, thoroughly enjoyed them both. Erdelac's story takes up the lion's share of the book, and reads exactly like those Bond films of my youth, just with the Elder Gods as potential baddies. If you like your Bond shaken with a sacrificial knife, give this a crack.
April 19, 2021
Both the short story and the novella are written very much in the style of Ian Fleming's original books, and take place in the mid-60s, the novella in particular making reference to the characters or events of a number of Fleming novels, and following immediately after one of them. The Mythos elements are added to the Bond style in a credible fashion, including Bond's own natural skepticism. The short story has some parts that don't quite make sense but the novella holds together quite well.
January 1, 2024
Being a massive bond fan I was delighted to find this unofficial book to see what others would do with Bond.
On reading 'Into the Green' I was starting to regret my decision as the story was poor, the writing was pretty average and the crossover with the unexplained just didn't seem to work. The only thing going for the story was that it was short but that still seemed to be a struggle. If the book had ended there then I would have given it a score of 2 out of 5.
I then started 'Mind Breaker' with plenty of trepidation and the first chapter didn't feel right either but once past that the story was good, the baddies were pretty bondesque and even the X-Files type storyline even seemed to work with the bond spin on it.
It certainly redeems the book as a whole and I would certainly recommend it to any bond fan to experience something a little bit different. It certainly had links to the main bond cast, cars, gadgets and the bond girl to boot.
So on its own this story would have probably been given a 4 out of 5 but packaged with 'Into the Green' it got taken down a peg to 3.
On reading 'Into the Green' I was starting to regret my decision as the story was poor, the writing was pretty average and the crossover with the unexplained just didn't seem to work. The only thing going for the story was that it was short but that still seemed to be a struggle. If the book had ended there then I would have given it a score of 2 out of 5.
I then started 'Mind Breaker' with plenty of trepidation and the first chapter didn't feel right either but once past that the story was good, the baddies were pretty bondesque and even the X-Files type storyline even seemed to work with the bond spin on it.
It certainly redeems the book as a whole and I would certainly recommend it to any bond fan to experience something a little bit different. It certainly had links to the main bond cast, cars, gadgets and the bond girl to boot.
So on its own this story would have probably been given a 4 out of 5 but packaged with 'Into the Green' it got taken down a peg to 3.
September 10, 2018
This book, which sees 007 dealing with Yogsothery, is definitely a case of chocolate and peanut butter working well together. Five stars for April Moon pulling off this project (The reads themselves are solid four stars.).
A few notes for those readers looking at this book and thinking "hmmmm?":
*It is set squarely within the world of the written James Bond and not the world of the cinematic Bond. (Readers looking for the latter will probably be disappointed.)
*It is set squarely in the Middle Cold War of the Ian Fleming novels (and those authors whose follow-up novels chose to stay there: Amis, Faulks, Boyd, and Horowitz). Action from the Gardner and Benson novels that took Bond into the Late Cold War and into the post-Cold War is not present.
*Meikle's story is less tied with the Fleming sequence of novels. If the reader knows the written Bond, this story can be read without worrying about references.
*Erdelac's novella is very much tied to the Fleming sequence and is best read after the extended novel sequence of Thunderball, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, You Only Live Twice, and The Man With the Golden Gun (Skip The Spy Who Loved Me and read it after or before those four linked novels.) as it is essentially a direct follow-up to that sequence.
Of the two authors takes on the whole premise of the book:
*This reader wished that Meikle had had a few more pages as his story would have been richer for the development. Hopefully it can be expanded for a second printing by April Moon. There also seemed a missed opportunity to work in Geoffrey Peace, R.N., from A Twist of Sand (by Geoffrey Jenkins, who knew Fleming and was after Fleming's death commissioned to write a Bond novel).
*Erdelac, without going into the obscurities as does say Alan Moore, definitely has some fun references to Dennis Wheatley's major spy and occult characters in his novella. (There might have been more references than the three characters but if so alas this reader did not suss them out.)
Overall, this is a great book for a rainy day with a mug of tea ...or a dry Martini and a shoulder-holstered Walther PPK with an Elder Sign nearby.
A few notes for those readers looking at this book and thinking "hmmmm?":
*It is set squarely within the world of the written James Bond and not the world of the cinematic Bond. (Readers looking for the latter will probably be disappointed.)
*It is set squarely in the Middle Cold War of the Ian Fleming novels (and those authors whose follow-up novels chose to stay there: Amis, Faulks, Boyd, and Horowitz). Action from the Gardner and Benson novels that took Bond into the Late Cold War and into the post-Cold War is not present.
*Meikle's story is less tied with the Fleming sequence of novels. If the reader knows the written Bond, this story can be read without worrying about references.
*Erdelac's novella is very much tied to the Fleming sequence and is best read after the extended novel sequence of Thunderball, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, You Only Live Twice, and The Man With the Golden Gun (Skip The Spy Who Loved Me and read it after or before those four linked novels.) as it is essentially a direct follow-up to that sequence.
Of the two authors takes on the whole premise of the book:
*This reader wished that Meikle had had a few more pages as his story would have been richer for the development. Hopefully it can be expanded for a second printing by April Moon. There also seemed a missed opportunity to work in Geoffrey Peace, R.N., from A Twist of Sand (by Geoffrey Jenkins, who knew Fleming and was after Fleming's death commissioned to write a Bond novel).
*Erdelac, without going into the obscurities as does say Alan Moore, definitely has some fun references to Dennis Wheatley's major spy and occult characters in his novella. (There might have been more references than the three characters but if so alas this reader did not suss them out.)
Overall, this is a great book for a rainy day with a mug of tea ...or a dry Martini and a shoulder-holstered Walther PPK with an Elder Sign nearby.
December 9, 2023
Into the green
This is one strange combination for a Bond story. Spy thriller plus sci-fi, paranormal undertones.
It’s essentially Bond meets the X-Files.
Bond is investigating the source of abnormal warm weather near Vancouver, a source which is never fully explained or justified, but monopolises the plot of this short story.
This story isn’t particularly well written either. There’s an abundance of hyphens which are used as semi colons which can make sentences difficult to read- you do adjust to the style eventually.
A mind controlled, self harming Bond isn’t the most fun to spend time with, not for that matter are all the references to the dancing green. It all gets very repetitive by the time the 40 pages are done.
Recommended?: well it’s thankfully short if nothing else, and could have been better had the concept been less repetitive and the story better executed. As it stands this is a strange, below average curiosity. Only for the Bond completists, just don’t an exciting, fun, faithful short story.
Mindbreaker
Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in….to the weirdness. This is yet another Bond meets Indiana Jones ancient mythology meets X-Files story, charting the story of what goes on in the basement of MI6 rather than the 9th floor.
Much like Indy, when the mythology and fantasy bubbles along in the background for the first 75% of the story, it mostly works as a driver for all of the action and adventure.
However, at the tail end of the story, when the fantasy spills over to be the main element of the story, it’s not quite working for me.
Recommended?: much better than Into the Green, better writing, more interesting adventure. It starts strong and I enjoyed the links to the main adventures, characters of old etc. but ultimately, the fantasy, horror, mythological element just don’t belong with Bond. Great to explore these but I think that’s it for me.
This is one strange combination for a Bond story. Spy thriller plus sci-fi, paranormal undertones.
It’s essentially Bond meets the X-Files.
Bond is investigating the source of abnormal warm weather near Vancouver, a source which is never fully explained or justified, but monopolises the plot of this short story.
This story isn’t particularly well written either. There’s an abundance of hyphens which are used as semi colons which can make sentences difficult to read- you do adjust to the style eventually.
A mind controlled, self harming Bond isn’t the most fun to spend time with, not for that matter are all the references to the dancing green. It all gets very repetitive by the time the 40 pages are done.
Recommended?: well it’s thankfully short if nothing else, and could have been better had the concept been less repetitive and the story better executed. As it stands this is a strange, below average curiosity. Only for the Bond completists, just don’t an exciting, fun, faithful short story.
Mindbreaker
Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in….to the weirdness. This is yet another Bond meets Indiana Jones ancient mythology meets X-Files story, charting the story of what goes on in the basement of MI6 rather than the 9th floor.
Much like Indy, when the mythology and fantasy bubbles along in the background for the first 75% of the story, it mostly works as a driver for all of the action and adventure.
However, at the tail end of the story, when the fantasy spills over to be the main element of the story, it’s not quite working for me.
Recommended?: much better than Into the Green, better writing, more interesting adventure. It starts strong and I enjoyed the links to the main adventures, characters of old etc. but ultimately, the fantasy, horror, mythological element just don’t belong with Bond. Great to explore these but I think that’s it for me.
November 26, 2023
A pastiche of the Ian Fleming James Bond 007 books and HP Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos that was made possible by the original Ian Fleming books being public domain in Canada, that is available again in paperback and kindle edition for really good price on amazon!
Shockingly good and better then it has any right to be, this includes a short story "into the green" and a full length novel "mindbreaker" the latter of which serves as a continuation of the later James Bond books! I had a great time with this and am glad its easily available again!
It is cosmic horror James Bond and it kinda rules!
Shockingly good and better then it has any right to be, this includes a short story "into the green" and a full length novel "mindbreaker" the latter of which serves as a continuation of the later James Bond books! I had a great time with this and am glad its easily available again!
It is cosmic horror James Bond and it kinda rules!
January 31, 2023
I have never in my life read a James bond story, although I have seen quite a few of the movies. The only thing that led me to this book was my love of the work of Edward M Erdelac. I find that I was not disappointed in the least a bit by the content of this anthology and now find my interest piqued in the further literary adventures of James Bond.
January 25, 2025
007 meets HP Lovecraft, both lose
Tepid mish mosh of 007 & Lovecraft, don’t waste your time. This is several hours you’ll never get back. Hard to believe this was licensed.
Tepid mish mosh of 007 & Lovecraft, don’t waste your time. This is several hours you’ll never get back. Hard to believe this was licensed.
November 18, 2024
The consensus here seems to be that Erdelac's piece, Mindbreaker, is the stronger of the two stories in this volume. Erdelac approaches Ian Fleming's material with reverence, and the result is an excellent pastiche--on par with anything by Kim Newman or Neil Gaiman. Starting with the appropriately lurid title, he does an excellent job of capturing the James Bond persona.
It is annoying that the editor has made the strange choice of justifying both margins while eliminating paragraph indents throughout. Erdelac's text is also full of typos and minor errors. His tale is billed as a novella, but at 152 pages (well over 60,000 words by my back of a napkin calculation), this is easily a short novel and in mass-market format would probably weigh in at 180 pages or so. It would be great to see a well-edited Mindbreaker as a standalone novel!
It is annoying that the editor has made the strange choice of justifying both margins while eliminating paragraph indents throughout. Erdelac's text is also full of typos and minor errors. His tale is billed as a novella, but at 152 pages (well over 60,000 words by my back of a napkin calculation), this is easily a short novel and in mass-market format would probably weigh in at 180 pages or so. It would be great to see a well-edited Mindbreaker as a standalone novel!
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews