"Which James Bond books have been made into movies?" is a simple question without a simple answer. Most of the best James Bond movies starring Sean Connery as 007, such as Dr. No, From Russia with Love, and Goldfinger remain remarkably faithful to Ian Fleming's novels. However, as time went on, the films slowly began to deviate more and more from the novels they were based on. Several times the movies took nothing from their source other than the title.
And then there are the post-Fleming novels. After his death in 1964, several other writers took it upon themselves to keep Bond alive on the page. Writers such as John Gardner, Raymond Benson, and Anthony Horowitz have written several new Bond stories, with some of them released as recently as 2018. Needless to say, with plenty of unadapted material, the Bond films will always have something to look towards if they begin running low on ideas.
7 You Only Live Twice
.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=1500&dpr=1.5)
You Only Live Twice is noteworthy as the first Bond film to change much from the book on which it was based. Another noteworthy item is the use of the character of Blofeld; in the 1964 novel, he makes his final appearance in the "Blofeld Trilogy", whereas the 1967 film features him for the first time on the big screen.
The movie's plot follows bond on a mission to a Japanese island after the country is suspected to be involved in the disappearance of an American spacecraft. The novel begins just after the previous installment, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, where following the death of Bond's wife Tracy, 007 is sent to Japan. The head of the Japanese secret service asks Bond to kill Dr. Guntram Shatterhand, who seems to be luring people to their deaths on a nearby island. Bond soon discovers that Shatterhand is actually Blofeld and proceeds to avenge his wife's murder.
Despite the book receiving positive reviews, screenwriter Roald Dahl hated it. He called it "Fleming's worst book", claiming that its plot wouldn't make a good movie. He heavily rewrote Sydney Bohem's screenplay, which was originally faithful to the novel, and came up with an entirely new narrative. However, while the novel still retains a potential spy-action story, it also features a much more personal mission for 007. A classic revenge-style narrative could prove successful in cinematic form.
6 The Spy Who Loved Me
.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=1500&dpr=1.5)
Imagine a James Bond movie with hardly any James Bond in it. The 1962 novel The Spy Who Loved Me proved to be a unique break from Fleming's Bond formula that had been proven successful. This installment is memorable in the fact that it tells the story of one of the classic "Bond girls", Vivienne Michel, instead of James Bond.
The plot follows Michel as she winds up getting involved with some mobsters after looking after a motel. Bond doesn't show up until two-thirds into the book, simply looking for a room before realizing the plot at hand. Understandably, the 1977 film discards the book entirely, turning an intimate thriller into another world-ending scenario.
The change actually came from Ian Fleming himself. When the book was initially released, it was widely criticized for breaking from the traditional Bond-like stories. Fleming then asked for there to be no plot elements in the film adaptation. A proper adaptation of The Spy Who Loved Me is likely never going to happen; not only is the story radically different than what one would expect from a James Bond movie, but it's unlikely the Fleming estate will ever greenlight such a project. That being said, The Spy Who Loved Me could prove to be a fantastic experimental take on the spy genre. It certainly wouldn't be for everyone, but it's definitely interesting to imagine what it would be like.
5 Nobody Lives Forever
.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=1500&dpr=1.5)
Once Ian Fleming passed away, several writers attempted to recreate the success of the series by producing their own James Bond books. While John Gardner wasn't the first, he was the first to write multiple Bond adventures. While his initial four books were met with generally mixed reception, his fifth attempt proved to be the one where he got it right. In this story, the current leader of SPECTRE puts a price on the head of James Bond. What follows is a thrilling story filled with surprises and betrayal.
Nobody Lives Forever became the first post-Fleming Bond novel to receive high critical ratings, with some even naming it as one of the best books of 1986. It's also one of the easiest to envision being adapted to film. With the recent Bond movies taking a more action approach to the espionage series, Nobody Lives Forever fits right in with the best of them.
4 High Time To Kill
.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=1500&dpr=1.5)
After John Gardner, writer Raymond Benson took over as the new 007 novelist. His third novel, High Time to Kill, could prove to be one of the more interesting Bond adaptations. The story begins with Bond tracking down a terrorist organization called "The Union". After attacking during a dinner party Bond is attending, the group steals an important British microfilm with the intent of selling it to a foreign nation. Bond's worldwide hunt eventually lands him in Nepal as he tries to track down the terrorists in the Himalayas.
What makes High Time to Kill stand out among many of the Bond escapades is its sheer global scope. Very few, if any, 007 stories have nearly as much diversity in location as Benson's novel. The MI6 agent spends the majority of the story in the Himalayas, giving a different sense of adventure to James Bond stories. But it's not just Nepal; everywhere from India to Morocco are visited in this book, which could make for a visually interesting movie. Also, of all of Gardner's books, High Time to Kill arguably has one of the most thrilling plots.
3 Devil May Care
.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=1500&dpr=1.5)
Two years after the release of Daniel Craig's first outing as Bond, and a hundred years after the birth of Ian Fleming, writer Sebastian Faulks wrote his first James Bond book. Despite garnering a widely positive reception, Devil May Care would be the only Bond book Faulks would write. In his take on 007, MI6 looks into a businessman suspected of trafficking heroin. Of course, the plot eventually becomes more complicated, turning into a potential global crisis that only Bond can put a stop to.
Unlike most Bond books and movies which adapt the character to the current era, Devil May Care takes place in 1967 despite a 2008 release date. It takes place after The Man with the Golden Gun and largely ignores the post-Fleming Bond novels, and is written in the style of Ian Fleming. In a sense, it's the closest thing the world will ever get to a brand new Ian Fleming James Bond novel. Being a critical and commercial success, Devil May Care may be the most likely post-Fleming book to be adapted into a film. Not only does it capture the essence of Fleming's Bond, but it also features the high-octane action fans have come to expect from the movies.
2 Carte Blanche
.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=1500&dpr=1.5)
After Faulks' success with his solo Bond book, author Jeffery Deaver followed with his own work. Updating Bond for the 21st century, Carte Blanche transforms the Bond of the books in the same way Casino Royale transformed the agent of the movies. For Carte Blanche to be enjoyed, knowing as little about the plot is best. Essentially, Bond begins to investigate a suspicious waste disposal consortium after defusing a terrorist attack in Serbia.
Since Carte Blanche is set in 2011, Deaver updates Fleming's character for the modern era. Rather than being a World War II veteran and Cold War agent, Deaver's Bond was born in 1979 and is a veteran of the Afghanistan war. Bond is updated but the classic suave and unmistakeably evil villains are still ever-present. Being a thrilling new Bond adventure designed for modern times, Carte Blanche could make for an exciting cinematic installment.
1 Forever and a Day
.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=1500&dpr=1.5)
Casino Royale is the 007 origin story? Not anymore. While all other authors have written James Bond stories that take place long after Fleming's body of work, Anthony Horowitz instead goes back to the beginning to tell the story of how James Bond became James Bond. Taking place two years before Casino Royale, Horowitz's novel picks up just as the previous 007 has been killed. This is Bond's first mission as a 00 agent, and it's his job to travel to France to pick up where the previous agent left off.
Forever and a Day is interesting in that it was actually commissioned by the Fleming estate, and even includes material from Fleming that never got published. Considering how the James Bond franchise is about to begin with a new face to the character, Forever and a Day might be a good place for the filmmakers to start. It not only provides a fascinating and intriguing origin story but also features the grittiness and complex world-ending plots that the films have come to embrace.