In an extensive article for the British newspaper The Telegraph, thriller writer Anthony Horowitz provides fascinating insights into why he believes James Bond has continued to thrive. In his opinion, it is not because of the films, it is in spite of them. Horowitz analyzes the timeless qualities of Ian Fleming's source novels and says that beginning with the later Connery films, the essence of Fleming was lost in their translation to the screen. Curiously, while being overly dismissive of the entire Roger Moore era and Licence to Kill (a bold attempt to recharge the sagging series), Horowitz does not go into much detail about the series' renaissance with Casino Royale, the most realisitic and hard-hitting entry of all the Bond movies. Nevertheless, it's a enjoyable article with the additional quality of having been written by a novelist who relates how Ian Fleming influenced his own life and career. To read click here