The Man with the Golden Compass

Vaseem Khan

THE world of 007 has never lost its glamourous allure since Ian Fleming’s first book, Casino Royale, hit the shelves in 1953 and became the launch pad for one of the most sensational and lucrative success stories in both the publishing and film industries.

In more recent times, a steady run of inventive James Bond spin-off books have thrilled a contemporary audience and die-hard fans alike. Some have focused on characters other than Bond himself, such as Miss Moneypenny and the Double-0 section, but Vaseem Khan, author of two award-winning crime series set in India, was firmly fixed on the ingenious gadget wizard himself, Major Boothroyd (aka Q).

Quantum of Menace, the first impressive book of Khan’s quirky, clever and thoroughly entertaining Q Mysteries series, was published last year in partnership with the Fleming Estate and won the accolades of critics and the hearts of readers. And now we return once again to a Bond world in which 007 plays a mere cameo role to techno titan Q as we have never before seen him. For Khan (pictured below), writing this fresh and fascinating Bond-fuelled series was ‘the greatest honour’ of his life but it came with challenges, not least the task of employing just the right tone for a character who has become as deeply embedded in the 007 stories as James Bond himself.

And this second outing for Q proves that the author has risen superbly to the challenge, bringing us a much more up-close-and-personal Q, a man who has lost his job at MI6 and is now operating in an increasingly fraught modern world… a place which reflects some of 21^st century life’s darkest corners but is leavened, in trademark form, by the Bond brand’s much-loved wit and satire.

Enforced redundancy from a highly specialised role developing weapons and field technology for MI6 left Q – still only in his fifties – feeling adrift and unsure of his place in the world until he returned to his sleepy hometown of Wickstone-on-Water to successfully solve the murder of his childhood friend Peter Napier, a quantum computer scientist.

The move back to Wickstone healed some of Q’s insecurities but came with complications… resuming a prickly relationship with his estranged and authoritarian father Mort, and the awkwardness of working alongside his bitter ex-fiancée Kathy Burnham, the woman he dumped at the altar thirty years ago but still gives his heart ‘a frisky little bounce’ and is now the local tough-as-nails police detective inspector.

Much to Kathy’s discomfort, Q has now been hired as a civilian investigator by the police to re-examine the unsolved murder of Lawrence Noble, a tech millionaire turned online antique dealer who made his money in computer gaming before buying a local stately home and living there as a virtual recluse. Almost a year after his death, police still haven’t worked out why Noble was tortured before his killing, and the significance of a circular golden object inscribed with mysterious runes which was found close to his body.

As Q investigates, danger stalks those around him, and he soon finds himself dragged into a chilling conspiracy where past and present meet in a way he couldn’t possibly have imagined. To solve this perilous case, he’s going to need some input from old pal James Bond, the services of his humanoid robot Miss Honeypenny (secreted out of MI6 before he left), and help from his 17-year-old ‘assistant’ Zak Youssef who has a troubled history but also a unique skillset when it comes to the gaming world.

Bond fans will relish this second outing with Q, a delicious feast of skulduggery, ruthless treasure hunting and technological wizardry served up with a side helping of genuine emotional intensity, spine-tingling suspense, welcome guest appearances from forever favourites like Bond and Moneypenny, and the return of a disturbing figure from the 007 universe.

Khan puts ingenuity, dry humour and powerful psychological intensity into this gripping addition to the Bond canon as the ever-inventive Q employs his top-secret field technology skills to investigate a brutal murder and follow a perilous twisting, turning path to justice. Motored by the decidedly modern concept of online gaming, but still wrapped up in the irresistible nostalgia, quirkiness and stylish authenticity of the Bond world, The Man with the Golden Compass is buzzing with big personalities, compelling detective work, and an addictive get-up-and-go vibe.

Perhaps more thoughtful, aware and emotionally wise than the original, this terrific series with the inimitable Q at its heart is proving to be a treat for both Bond and detective fiction fans. So fasten your seatbelts and prepare for action… Q might be out of MI6 but he’s definitely not out of the game! 
(Zaffre, hardback, £20)