The James Bond Chronology and Genealogy
by Win Scott Eckert
The Authors:
Ian Fleming (NOTE: all titles by Fleming are in bold type)
Robert Markham (pseudonym for author Kingsley Amis)
James D. Lawrence, Jack Sutter, Peter Sparring, Sverre Arnes, Bill Harrington, and Ian Mennell (original stories in comic strips)
John Pearson
Christopher Wood
Lin Carter
John Gardner
Mike Grell, Doug Moench, Don McGregor, Das Petrou, and Simon Jowett (graphic novels and comics mini-series)
Raymond Benson
Charlie Higson
Kate Westbrook
Win Scott Eckert
Legend:
F-n/c = Fleming novel & its comic strip adaptation (some comic strip adaptations contain an introductory story by Jim Lawrence)
F-ss = Fleming short story
F-ss/c = Fleming short story & its comic strip adaptation (some comic strip adaptations contain an introductory story by Jim Lawrence)
M-n/c = novel by Markham & its comic strip adaptation
P-n = novel by Pearson
W-n = novel by Wood
C-n = novel by Carter
G-n = novel by Gardner
G-n/grn = novel by Gardner & its graphic novel adaptation
B-n = novel by Benson
B-ss = short story by Benson
H-n = novel by Higson
WB-n - novel by Westbrook
E-ss = short story by Eckert
co = comic strip original story, not based on any novels or short stories
(NOTE: Information on these comic strips is derived from The Bond Files, Andy Lane & Paul Simpson, Virgin Publishing, 1998, as well as the original strips which are slowly being republished by Titan Books. For the strips I have not yet read, the placement of these tales in the Chronology is based on the publication dates of the strips.)
grn = graphic novel original story, not based on any novels or short stories
dhc = Dark Horse Comics' James Bond original story in Dark Horse Comics anthology series, not based on any novels or short stories
This is a chronology of the James Bond novel continuity, not of the films. Film novelizations have been included where they do not severely conflict with the novel continuity. See Alternate Universes for Clive Cussler's take on the Bond character.
Generally recurring characters are M, Chief of Staff Bill Tanner, Miss Moneypenny and Major Boothroyd (aka Q, the Armourer). Other recurring characters are listed in parentheses.
November 11,
1920 
Birth of James Bond in Wattenscheid, or Vienna.
July 1932
Deaths of Bond's parents, Andrew Bond and Monique Delacroix, in an Alpine climbing accident.
January 1934 - 1936
James Bond at Eton.
H-n
January-April 1934
SilverFin (Aunt Charmian, Uncle Max, May (Bond's future housekeeper). Thirteen year-old James Bond enters Eton mid-term. A short while later, on holiday at his Uncle Max’ cottage in Scotland, Bond becomes embroiled in a quest to defeat the plans of the sinister Lord Hellebore, and receives the distinctive scar on his cheek. James also sees "The Mighty Donovan" lifting weights with his teeth at the circus. Years later, in Ian Fleming's From Russia With Love, it is revealed that the father of Bond's antagonist, Donovan "Red" Grant, was a German professional weight-lifter who billed himself as "The Mighty O'Donovan." It should be observed that Charlie Higson’s account of young Bond’s life in SilverFin differs slightly from that of John Pearson’s James Bond: The Authorized Biography of 007. Pearson states that James had a brother one year older, named Henry Bond, while Higson portrays James as an only child. Pearson also explains that Bond entered Eton in Autumn 1933, while Higson has Bond entering Eton mid-term in January 1934. And Pearson states that Bond was born in Wattenscheid, while SilverFin establishes that Bond was born in Vienna. Finally, it bears note that young Bond was the victim of some relentless harassment upon his entry to Eton, whereas Tim Heald’s John Steed: An Authorized Biography, Volume 1: Jealous In Honour has it that Bond was the bully.)
H-n
May-August 1934
BloodFever (Aunt Charmian,, James' cousin Victor Delacroix.)
1937
Bond is first recruited by the British Secret Service. Shortly thereafter, he works with René Mathis, of the French Deuxième Bureau, for the first time.
Autumn 1938
Bond meets Ian Fleming in Kitzbühel. He also meets the ski instructor Oberhauser, who is something of a father-figure to Bond.
January 1946
Admiral Sir Miles Messervy is appointed Head of the British Secret Service.
February-May 1946
Bond is posted to Washington, D.C., as a liaison to the OSS. A few months later he leaves Washington, following his his involvement in a scandal involving the accidental death of a Congressman's wife.
May 1946
Back in London, Bond has a brief liaison with Violet Holmes, wife of fellow agent Charles Reston. (See The Shang Chi Chronology).
E-ss
June-July 1946
The Eye of Oran (Bond escorts Violet Holmes back to Britain after the death of her husband, agent Charles Reston, at the hands of Fu Manchu (aka Dr. Natas).)
February 1947
Clive Reston, the illegitimate son of James Bond, is born. Reston's mother is "Shrinking" Violet Holmes. (See The Shang Chi Chronology). Reston is the grandson of Mycroft Holmes and thus the great-nephew of Sherlock Holmes.
July 1950
James Bond is assigned to the Double-O section of the British Secret Service and granted a "license to kill."
F-n/c
June-July 1951
Casino Royale (Felix Leiter, René Mathis, Junius DuPont, SMERSH. Year 1951 established in Goldfinger.)
F-n/c
January-February 1952
Live and Let Die (Felix Leiter, Strangways, Quarrel, SMERSH.)
F-n/c
May 1952
Moonraker (Ronnie Vallence, Loelia Ponsonby (Bond’s secretary), Sir Hugo Drax.)
F-n/c
July-August 1954
Diamonds Are Forever (Loelia Ponsonby, Ronnie Vallence, Felix Leiter.)
F-n/c
June-August 1955
From Russia, With Love (Darko Kerim Bey, Tatiana Romanova, Col. Rosa Klebb, René Mathis, May (Bond’s housekeeper), Loelia Ponsonby, SMERSH. Death of Kerim Bey.)
F-n/c
February-March 1956
Doctor No (Deaths of Strangways and Quarrel. Honeychile Rider, Sir James Molony.)
F-ss/c
March-April 1957
The Hildebrand Rarity (After death of actor Humphry Bogart in January 1957. Milton Krest. Short story published in Ian Fleming's For Your Eyes Only.)
F-ss/c
May 1957
From a View to a Kill (Short story published in Ian Fleming's For Your Eyes Only.)
F-ss
1958
Quantum of Solace (During Cuban Revolution. Short story published in Ian Fleming's For Your Eyes Only.)
F-n/c
May-June 1958
Goldfinger (Felix Leiter, Junius DuPont.)
F-ss/c
September-October 1958
For Your Eyes Only (During Cuban Revolution. Short story published in Ian Fleming's For Your Eyes Only.)
F-ss/c
October 1958
Risico (After Goldfinger. Short story published in Ian Fleming's For Your Eyes Only.)
F-n/c
May-June 1959
Thunderball (Felix Leiter; Ernst Stavro Blofeld and SPECTRE.)
F-ss
Late September 1959
007 in New York (Short story published in Ian Fleming's Thrilling Cities.)
F-ss/c
Late Summer 1960
The Living Daylights (Short story published in Ian Fleming's Octopussy.)
F-n/c
October 1960
The Spy Who Loved Me (The novel was co-written by Fleming and the novel’s narrator, Vivienne Michel.)
dhc 8-11
Early September 1961
Light of My Death (By Das Petrou. Features Tatiana Romanova. Takes place one year after the laser's invention. Kennedy is President and it's early September: it can only be 1961.)
F-n/c
September 1961-January 1, 1962
On Her Majesty's Secret Service (Blofeld, Irma Bunt, Mary Goodnight (Bond’s new secretary), the Hammonds (M.’s housekeepers), Marc-Ange Draco. Death of Bond’s new wife, Tracy Bond.)
WB-n
January-December 1962
The Moneypenny Diaries: Intended For Her Eyes Only aka The Moneypenny Diaries: Guardian Angel (Bond and Jane Moneypenny share an adventure in Cuba immediately before the Cuban Missile Crisis in October. The diaries, written by Miss Moneypenny, claim that certain dates in the Fleming books (such as, presumably, You Only Live Twice) were altered for publication. However, the authenticity of this information is somewhat questionable, and dates that correspond to Fleming's original writings are being maintained in this chronology.)
F-ss
June 1962
The Property of a Lady (Short story published in Ian Fleming's Octopussy.)
F-n/c
August 31, 1962-Spring 1963
You Only Live Twice (Death of Blofeld. Irma Bunt, Mary Goodnight, Sir James Molony, Tiger Tanaka.)
F-n/c
November 1963-June 1964 
The Man With the Golden Gun (Mary Goodnight, Felix Leiter.)
Early 1964
Birth of Bond’s son, James Suzuki (see You Only Live Twice, James Bond: The Authorized Biography of 007 and Blast From the Past.)
F-ss/c
1964
Octopussy (Bond exacts vengeance for the death of Oberhauser. Short story published in Ian Fleming's Octopussy.)
1965
Bond briefly encounters fellow secret agent Derek Flint and SPECTRE is mentioned (see Our Man Flint.)
M-n/c
Sept. 1965 
Colonel Sun (Deaths of the Hammonds.)
co
1966
The Harpies
co
February 1966
River of Death (The evil Doctor Cat. Takes place during Carnival in Rio.)
co
1966
The Golden Ghost (Madam Spectra and SPECTRE.)
co 
1967
Fear Face
co
1967
Double Jeopardy (SPECTRE.)
co
1967
Star Fire (SPECTRE.)
co
1968
Trouble Spot
co
1968
Isle of Condors
co
1968
The League of Vampires
co
1969
Die With My Boots On
co
1969
The Girl Machine
co
1969
Beware of Butterflies (Double-O agent Suzi Kew.)
co
1970
The Nevsky Nude (SMERSH.)
co
1970
The Phoenix Project
co
1970
The Black Ruby Caper (Double-O agent Suzi Kew.)
co
1971
Till Death Do Us Part
co
1971
The Torch-Time Affair (Double-O agent Suzi Kew, SMERSH.)
co
1971
Hot Shot (The villainous Doctor No reappears, although it is never explained how he escaped being buried under the pile of guano at the end of Doctor No.)
co
1972
Nightbird (Double-O agent Suzi Kew.)
co
1972
Ape of Diamonds
co
1972
When the Wizard Wakes (SPECTRE.)
P-n
January-February 1973
James Bond: The Authorized Biography of 007 (Honeychile Rider, Sir James Molony. After a few weeks of interviews with biographer John Pearson in Bermuda, Bond sets off to track down Irma Bunt. There is an unrecorded adventure here, but apparently he didn't find Bunt (see Blast From the Past).
During his discussions with biographer Pearson, Bond revealed that the first James Bond novels were the result of a project concocted by Ian Fleming and M, to protect Bond from assassination by SMERSH. The novels were part of a grand scheme designed to mislead the Russians into believing that their prior intelligence was incorrect, and in fact there was no real British agent named James Bond. And, in fact, this fantastic plan did succeed for several years in the early 1950s before the Russians got wise; for a long time, they didn't know what to believe. They only knew that their projects were foiled on many occasions, but by whom?
Now, let us jump ahead to early 1973. Bond is in Bermuda, recovering from a months-long illness. Pearson is sent to Bermuda in the hopes that if Bond opens up about his life story, it will lift his melancholy and aid his recovery. By late January 1973, Bond is feeling back in top form, and ready to return to active duty. He cables M and Tanner several times indicating just that, but the only response is silence. As this situation progresses into February, Bond is becoming more and more resentful. After a few weeks of this treatment, Bond is ready to resign from the Service and marry into the good life, represented by Honey Rider. At the last minute, Tanner arrives, without explanation as to the long silence, and tells Bond of a diabolical scheme in Australia. Bond, still resentful, initially refuses the assignment, but the next day jets off in pursuit of Irma Bunt.
There are two points raised by this scenario which beg explanation. 1) What was the real reason Pearson was sent to Bermuda, and why did M allow the biography, compiled from the notes of the interviews with Bond, to be published? 2) Why did Headquarters inexplicably go incommunicado?
Conjecture: As a start to answering both of these questions, it must be remembered that, in February 1973, Bond was 52 years old. Despite being in top form, he was starting to feel and show his age. The recovery period between each mission was just a bit longer. And he had gone well past the standard mandatory retirement age for a Double-O field agent; only M's great need for his services had taken precedence over compliance with this particular regulation. Bond's major illness in late 1972 prompted M to reconsider; in fact, he was very close to imposing a desk job upon Bond, and retirement upon himself (M would have been about 76 years old at this time).
It was at this critical juncture that M, and indeed the British Secret Service, was presented with an extraordinary proposition. Not only was the proposition extraordinary, but so was the man who presented it: former Secret Service head Mycroft Holmes. In a nutshell, Holmes explained that he had access to a treatment which could significantly extend one's lifetime, that he was personally a beneficiary of this treatment, and that he was willing to share it with selected members of the British Secret Service.
Holmes' presence and proposal lead to the several weeks of silence that Bond experienced, as M and Tanner investigated both Holmes and the Royal Jelly bee pollen elixir (developed by Holmes' brother Sherlock in 1921). Also, if the scheme was to succeed, the world would have to be convinced that any sightings of James Bond, from this point forward, were totally fictional. Thus, Pearson's visit to Bermuda, and the subsequent publication of the biography, served a hidden purpose in that it revealed Bond's age and readiness for retirement to the world; any further Bond adventures must be regarded as complete fiction, as the man was just too old.
Of course Mycroft's bona fides were established, and the Royal Jelly was authentic. It was decided that the Royal Jelly would be shared amongst M, Tanner, Bond, and naturally, Miss Moneypenny. When Tanner finally broke the silence and came to Bond in Bermuda, it was not just to give him the Irma Bunt assignment, but to offer him the opportunity to remain in the Service for many years to come. It took quite a bit longer than expected to find another author to participate in stage two of the original Fleming-novel scheme (although newspaper comic strip adventures also were part of the plan during this period), but finally John Gardner was selected and the novel License Renewed saw publication several years later. It is a testament to the success of the plot concocted by M, Tanner, and Mycroft Holmes, that the James Bond novels from this point forward are widely regarded as fictional.
co
1973
Sea Dragon
co
1973
Death Wing (Double-O agent Suzi Kew.)
1974
Bond faces the master of robotics and assassination named Mordillo. (See The Shang Chi Chronology).
co
1974
The Xanadu Connection
co
1974
Shark Bait
co
1975
The Scent of Danger
co
1975
Snake Goddess
co
1975
Double Eagle
co
1976
Doomcrack (The end of Madam Spectra and SPECTRE?)
co
1976
The Paradise Plot (Double-O agent Suzi Kew.)
co
1976
Deathmask (Double-O agent Suzi Kew.)
co
1977
Flittermouse (Double-O agent Suzi Kew, Doctor Cat.)
co
1977
Polestar
W-n
July-August 1977
James Bond, The Spy Who Loved Me (SMERSH.)
co
1977
Codename: Nemesis (Felix Leiter.)
co
1978
Operation: Little (Felix Leiter.)
co
1978
Operation: UFO
co
1978
Operation: Blucher
W-n
November-December 1978
James Bond and Moonraker (Bond goes up against Hugo Drax, Jr., in a modern replay of his father's deadly schemes.)
co
1979
Codename: Romeo
co
1979
Data Terror
co
1979
Experiment Z
C-n
1979
Horror Wears Blue (Bond meets Prince Zarkon at the Cobalt Club's London location. Also appearing are George Gideon of Scotland Yard; Sir Denis Nayland Smith and his old friend Dr. Petrie's son, Val Petrie; Bulldog Drummond; Doc Savage's aide Monk Mayfair; and Simon Templar (The Saint).)
co
1980
Spy Traps
G-n
Early June-Late Summer 1980
License Renewed (Bond, M, Tanner and Moneypenny must have undergone Sherlock Holmes' royal jelly life-extension treatment by this point (see William S. Baring-Gould's Sherlock Holmes of Baker Street, pp. 288-290). This is entirely likely, as Sherlock's brother Mycroft Holmes was the first M. (see John T. Lescroat’s Son of Holmes). Ann Reilly (aka Q’ute), assistant to the Armouror.)
G-n
1981
For Special Services (Felix Leiter and his daughter, Cedar Leiter. Ann Reilly, SPECTRE. Death of Nena Blofeld, Blofeld’s daughter.)
co
1981
Deadly Double (Felix Leiter.)
co
1981
Greek Idol
1982
Bond does some undercover work during the Falkland Islands war (see Icebreaker).
co
1982
Cuba Commandos
July 1982
Bond, on assignment with Felix Leiter, sees the first signs of the Cerberus organization (see A Silent Armageddon).
November 1982
Bond receives a great legacy from his Uncle Bruce (see Role of Honor).
G-n
January 1983
Icebreaker
co
1983
The Mad Emperor (Takes place after the Falkland Islands War.)
1983
Bond gives U.N.C.L.E. agent Napoleon Solo some assistance in Las Vegas (see The Return of the Man From U.N.C.L.E.: The Fifteen Years Later Affair).
co
1984
The Amazons
G-n
March-July 1984
Role of Honor (Ann Reilly, Tamil Rahani, SPECTRE.)
co
1984
Lethal Dose
co
1985
Deadly Desert
co
1985
Terror Time
G-n
1985
Nobody Lives Forever (Sukie Tempesta, May, SPECTRE. Death of Tamil Rahani.)
G-n
Spring 1986
No Deals, Mr. Bond (May, Ann Reilly.)
grn
Late Spring 1986
Permission to Die (By Mike Grell. Features Botanee Bey, daughter of Kerim Bey.)
1986
Operation Cowslip takes place (see GoldenEye).
co
1987
The Vanishing Judges
G-n
May-June 1987
Scorpius (Ann Reilly.)
G-n/grn
Late 1987
License to Kill (Milton Krest must be the son or nephew of the Milton Krest from The Hildebrand Rarity, and must have inherited the Wavekrest. Felix Leiter.)
co
1987
Flights From Vietnam
co
1988
The Undead
1988
Bond helps a Soviet skater defect (see Live at Five).
G-n
March 1988-Summer 1989
Win, Lose or Die (Bond is temporarily promoted to captain for this operation. Beatrice Maria da Ricci.)
co
1989
Istanbul Intrigue
co
1989
With Death in Sight
co
1990
Dance Macabre
G-n
March 1990
Cold (Book One): Cold Front - 1990 (Sukie Tempesta. U.S. version entitled Cold Fall.)
G-n
Summer 1990
Brokenclaw
co
1990
Operation Uboki
G-n
January 1991
The Man from Barbarossa
grn
1991
Serpent's Tooth (By Doug Moench.)
G-n
October 1991
Death is Forever
co
1991
The Living Dead
co
1992
Codename: Mr. Blue
grn
March 1992
A Silent Armageddon (By Simon Jowett. Features Erik Klebb, son of Col. Rosa Klebb, and the Cerberus organization.)
grn
1992
Shattered Helix (By Simon Jowett. Features the Cerberus organization.)
dhc 25
1992
Minute of Midnight (By Doug Moench.)
grn
December 1992
The Quasimodo Gambit (By Don McGregor.)
co
1993
Goodbye, Mr. Bond
co
1993
Operation Yakuza
G-n
August 1993
Never Send Flowers (Bond contemplates engagement to Flicka von Grusse.)
G-n
February-April 1994
SeaFire (Bond and Flicka, who have been in training together for the new Two Zeros Section since Never Send Flowers, become engaged. Felix Leiter.)
G-n
April-November 1994
Cold (Book Two): Cold Conspiracy - 1994 (M retires. Death of Flicka. Death of Sukie Tempesta. Beatrice Maria da Ricci. U.S. version entitled Cold Fall.)
G-n/grn
Early Summer 1995
GoldenEye (A new female M is now the head of the Secret Service. CIA agent Jack Wade.)
B-ss
Spring 1996
Blast From the Past (Death of Irma Bunt. Death of Bond’s son, James Suzuki. Short story published in January 1997 issue of Playboy.)
B-n
June 20-July 1, 1997
Zero Minus Ten (Helena Marksbury (Bond’s new secretary).)
B-n
Late 1997
Tomorrow Never Dies (CIA agent Jack Wade.)
B-ss
Summer 1998
Midsummer Night's Doom (Short story published in January 1999 issue of Playboy.)
B-ss
Summer 1998
Live at Five (Flashback to 1988. Short story published in TV Guide, vol. 47, no. 46, 11/13/99.)
B-n
Late October-Mid November 1998
The Facts of Death (The former M, Sir Miles Messervy; Helena Marksbury; May; Sir James Molony; Stefan Tempo, son of Kerim Bey; and Felix Leiter. The new M's true name is Barbara Mawdsley.)
B-n
March-June 1999
High Time to Kill (Death of the former Governor of Jamaica (see Quantum of Solace). Death of Helena Marksbury. First appearance of the Union crime organization.)
B-n
August 1999
Doubleshot (Takes place two months after High Time to Kill. "Le Gérant," Sir James Molony and Felix Leiter.)
B-n
Late 1999
The World is Not Enough
B-n
January-June 2000
Never Dream of Dying ( "Le Gérant," René Mathis, and Marc-Ange Draco.)
B-n
Late 2001
The Man with the Red Tattoo (Tiger Tanaka.)
B-n
October 2001-December 2002
Die Another Day (Bond is captured in October 2001 and spends 14 months as a prisoner in North Korea.)
A James Bond Genealogy
compiled by Win Scott Eckert
Here is how the information was extracted and combined:
From Ian Fleming's You Only Live Twice:
From John Pearson's James Bond: The Authorized Biography of 007:
From Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill's The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen:
From Philip José Farmer's Doc Savage: His Apocalyptic Life:
From John Gardner's Role of Honor:
From Raymond Benson's Blast From the Past:
From Charlie Higson's SilverFin:
From
Charlie Higson's BloodFever:
From Doug Moench's Shang Chi: Master of Kung Fu comic series:
See also Dennis
Power's Shaken but not Stirred: Or Unblended Bonds
