BENSON, Raymond

“I wrote Bond novels the way I, as a fan, would have liked to see them” 

Benson is most well-known for being the third—and first American—author to be commissioned by Gildrose, the James Bond literary copyright holders, to take over writing the 007 novels between 1996-2002. In total he penned six original Bond novels, three movie novelizations, and three short stories.  His book, The James Bond Bedside Companion [1984] was nominated for an Edgar Allan Poe Award by Mystery Writers of America for Best Biographical/Critical Work. 

Benson saw the film Goldfinger when a child, which began a lifelong love of James Bond, resulting in the writing of his 1984 non-fiction history of the 007 phenomenon, including analysis of the characters,  books and films.  During this process he met members of Ian Fleming’s family and Peter Janson-Smith, chairman of Gildrose Publications – who was to phone Benson in 1995 asking him to take over from John Gardner who had announced he was retiring from the Bond business.

Benson wrote other novels, short stories and computer games, but it is for his James Bond continuation novels he is best known.

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