Moonraker

by Ian Fleming

Can a man survive horrendous injuries during a war and despite this recover enough to achieve great personal success and even national importance?

Of course. Hugo Drax has.

Hugo Drax

Having been so badly smashed up by the Nazi’s that he could not remember who he was; he has now undergone surgery and is a reconstructed man. And an agent of change.

He has amassed a fortune through intelligent, even cunning dealing. He has achieved great fame throughout the United Kingdom. Even James Bond and M have heard of him. Of course they’ve heard of him - he is the head of the Moonraker project.

He has now joined a gentlemen’s club. But there is a problem.

M is a member of the same gentlemen’s club. And there is a suspicion about Drax.

A rumour that his behaviour is not quite that of a gentleman.

The Ungentlemanly Gentleman

It is really more of a favour than an official assignment. But Bond agrees to have a look at Drax. To see if the rumour has substance. M has concerns not just about Drax. Drax is head of the Moonraker project.

And the Moonraker is vital to Britain’s defences.

If Drax’s behaviour damages Drax’s reputation, the Moonraker is finished with him.

Bond drives through London to a gentlemen’s club, under a dark, threatening, thundery, sky.

But when Bond meets Drax, it is across a table, in a refined gentlemen’s club, playing a game of cards. And his involvement with Hugo Drax, Sir Hugo Drax, the man who is Moonraker is only just beginning.

In this Cold War thriller, Ian Fleming employs a taut narrative and an atmosphere of lurking threat to create a suspense-laden and gripping story.

An entertaining novel with characters far more layered and ironic than in a typical thriller.

Published by Blackstone Audio and read by Robert Whitfield - part of the James Bond series