Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang: The Boom in British Thrillers from Casino Royale to The Eagle Has Landed

Fiction & Literature, Literary Theory & Criticism, Mystery & Detective Fiction
Cover of the book Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang: The Boom in British Thrillers from Casino Royale to The Eagle Has Landed by Mike Ripley, HarperCollins Publishers
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Mike Ripley ISBN: 9780008172244
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Publication: May 18, 2017
Imprint: HarperCollins Language: English
Author: Mike Ripley
ISBN: 9780008172244
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Publication: May 18, 2017
Imprint: HarperCollins
Language: English

WINNER OF THE HRF KEATING AWARD FOR BEST NON-FICTION CRIME BOOK 2018An entertaining history of British thrillers from Casino Royale to The Eagle Has Landed, in which award-winning crime writer Mike Ripley reveals that, though Britain may have lost an empire, her thrillers helped save the world. With a foreword by Lee Child. When Ian Fleming dismissed his books in a 1956 letter to Raymond Chandler as ‘straight pillow fantasies of the bang-bang, kiss-kiss variety’ he was being typically immodest. In three short years, his James Bond novels were already spearheading a boom in thriller fiction that would dominate the bestseller lists, not just in Britain, but internationally. The decade following World War II had seen Britain lose an Empire, demoted in terms of global power and status and economically crippled by debt; yet its fictional spies, secret agents, soldiers, sailors and even (occasionally) journalists were now saving the world on a regular basis. From Ian Fleming and Alistair MacLean in the 1950s through Desmond Bagley, Dick Francis, Len Deighton and John Le Carré in the 1960s, to Frederick Forsyth and Jack Higgins in the 1970s. Many have been labelled ‘boys’ books’ written by men who probably never grew up but, as award-winning writer and critic Mike Ripley recounts, the thrillers of this period provided the reader with thrills, adventure and escapism, usually in exotic settings, or as today’s leading thriller writer Lee Child puts it in his Foreword: ‘the thrill of immersion in a fast and gaudy world.’ In Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, Ripley examines the rise of the thriller from the austere 1950s through the boom time of the Swinging Sixties and early 1970s, examining some 150 British authors (plus a few notable South Africans). Drawing upon conversations with many of the authors mentioned in the book, he shows how British writers, working very much in the shadow of World War II, came to dominate the field of adventure thrillers and the two types of spy story – spy fantasy (as epitomised by Ian Fleming’s James Bond) and the more realistic spy fiction created by Deighton, Le Carré and Ted Allbeury, plus the many variations (and imitators) in between.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

WINNER OF THE HRF KEATING AWARD FOR BEST NON-FICTION CRIME BOOK 2018An entertaining history of British thrillers from Casino Royale to The Eagle Has Landed, in which award-winning crime writer Mike Ripley reveals that, though Britain may have lost an empire, her thrillers helped save the world. With a foreword by Lee Child. When Ian Fleming dismissed his books in a 1956 letter to Raymond Chandler as ‘straight pillow fantasies of the bang-bang, kiss-kiss variety’ he was being typically immodest. In three short years, his James Bond novels were already spearheading a boom in thriller fiction that would dominate the bestseller lists, not just in Britain, but internationally. The decade following World War II had seen Britain lose an Empire, demoted in terms of global power and status and economically crippled by debt; yet its fictional spies, secret agents, soldiers, sailors and even (occasionally) journalists were now saving the world on a regular basis. From Ian Fleming and Alistair MacLean in the 1950s through Desmond Bagley, Dick Francis, Len Deighton and John Le Carré in the 1960s, to Frederick Forsyth and Jack Higgins in the 1970s. Many have been labelled ‘boys’ books’ written by men who probably never grew up but, as award-winning writer and critic Mike Ripley recounts, the thrillers of this period provided the reader with thrills, adventure and escapism, usually in exotic settings, or as today’s leading thriller writer Lee Child puts it in his Foreword: ‘the thrill of immersion in a fast and gaudy world.’ In Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, Ripley examines the rise of the thriller from the austere 1950s through the boom time of the Swinging Sixties and early 1970s, examining some 150 British authors (plus a few notable South Africans). Drawing upon conversations with many of the authors mentioned in the book, he shows how British writers, working very much in the shadow of World War II, came to dominate the field of adventure thrillers and the two types of spy story – spy fantasy (as epitomised by Ian Fleming’s James Bond) and the more realistic spy fiction created by Deighton, Le Carré and Ted Allbeury, plus the many variations (and imitators) in between.

More books from HarperCollins Publishers

Cover of the book Daddy’s Little Earner: A heartbreaking true story of a brave little girl's escape from violence by Mike Ripley
Cover of the book Pack Up Your Troubles by Mike Ripley
Cover of the book The Fire Court (James Marwood & Cat Lovett, Book 2) by Mike Ripley
Cover of the book The Sisters’ Secrets: Reen: A heartfelt magical story of family and love by Mike Ripley
Cover of the book Children’s Party Games (Collins Gem) by Mike Ripley
Cover of the book The Power of Social Intelligence: 10 ways to tap into your social genius by Mike Ripley
Cover of the book The Girl Who's Never Had A Valentine by Mike Ripley
Cover of the book Annie Groves 3-Book Collection 1: My Sweet Valentine, Home For Christmas, London Belles by Mike Ripley
Cover of the book Day of Reckoning: Stories by Mike Ripley
Cover of the book Driving Home For Christmas by Mike Ripley
Cover of the book Masterclass Text Only: Make Your Home Cooking Easier by Mike Ripley
Cover of the book From Home to House: Writings of Kashmiri Pandits in Exile by Mike Ripley
Cover of the book The Good Teacher by Mike Ripley
Cover of the book Nowhere to Go: Part 2 of 3: The heartbreaking true story of a boy desperate to be loved by Mike Ripley
Cover of the book Annie Groves 2-Book Valentine Collection: My Sweet Valentine, Where the Heart Is by Mike Ripley
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy