SpyVibe: 007 AUDIO RETURNS

September 2, 2014

007 AUDIO RETURNS

The Reloaded editions of Ian Fleming's James Bond novels, read by prominent British actors, was re-released yesterday in the US by Blackstone Audio. The collapse of AudioGo last year had Bond fans clambering for out-of-print CDs and box sets, but Ian Fleming Publications was able to strike a deal with Blackstone to keep the recordings in circulation. Each 007 title is available in CD, download, and MP3 CD editions. Prices on Blackstone's site range from $10.46 for download to $17.47 (discounted from $24.99) for CDs. Amazon has not updated their pages and still list library-edition prices at around $56 each. Blackstone has ported over the abstract cover designs for each novel from the 2012 Amazon/Thomas & Mercer series (see samples below) and have dropped the "Reloaded" brand. The series features an exciting group of actors, including David Tennent, Kenneth Branagh, Rosamund Pike, Hugh Bonneville, Toby Stephens, Tom Hiddleston, Bill Nighy, Dan Stevens, and many others. Organized by the author's niece, Lucy Fleming, she also participated as a reader for "007 in New York" (Octopussy and the Living Daylights). Live and Let Die (read by Rory Kinnear) doesn't seem to be listed yet, nor do I see box set compilations offered. I was one of the people who bought the Volume One box set two years ago, but missed out on Volume Two when it went out of print. I look forward to hearing these great actors bring the rest of the series to life! Blackstone Audio also continues to offer the wonderful Bond audio series and Fleming/Lycett biography read by Simon Vance, continuation novels Solo and Carte Blanche, and the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang books read by David Tennent. Related Spy Vibe posts: Simon Vance Interview, Audio Book Update, David Tennent Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.