LICENCE EXPIRED is a collection of short stories that was "racing against changes to Canadian copyright legislation." In Canada, "January of 2015 marked the fiftieth anniversary of Ian Fleming's death, and that put Fleming's novels into the public domain ...Canada ... held to the Berne Convention on copyright." Other countries have made the change from fifty to seventy years and Canada may be following suit. Hence the rush to complete and publish.This collection refers to Ian Fleming's creation

This collection of short stories was fantastic. It truly delivered !One of the great aspects of the collection was that the stories are told from a vast array of characters - not just from the superspy himself. We are given stories told from a villain's point of view, acquaintances, 'Bondgirl' women or even a henchman. The stories span the life of James bond, from school days to retired life as a senior. Of course there were references to many people or things already written about in the Bond-w...

For fans of Ian Fleming, there are a few gems in this collection. Unfortunately, there are a handful of forgettable, entirely skip-able stories where authors imposed their literary fetishes onto an unwilling Bond character -- but these failures make themselves clear in the first few paragraphs so you can abort the mission before you're too invested. Take your time and enjoy the freedom of the public domain. You have all the time in the world.

It's not often that I enjoy every story in a collection, especially one with various authors.I'll say up front, I've only read Casino Royale, so I'm a meager judge on the legitimacy in relation to cannon. But I knew enough to follow along.

I read my first Bond novel when I was 11. That's well over half a century ago. And I wanted to enjoy seeing what this revival would do for the character. Unfortunately, with rare exceptions, the character I know was barely recognisable. So, while I admire the effort that went into producing this Canadian rarity, I have to say I was, overall, rather disappointed. My star-rating is on the generous side.

Haiku summary:In nineteen stories,From Eton to Jamaica,James Bond forever.

I am so glad Ashby and Nickle took advantage of the copyright lapse in Canada and solicited the stories for this anthology. I love spy stories. I love (Daniel Craig) James Bond movies. I love the idea of James Bond. But I've never read Fleming's novels. I know they are full of distasteful things like unrepentant misogyny and racism, and I don't have time for that kind of negativity in my life.The beauty of this anthology is that the writers use all the cool bits and find ways to leave behind or

After the utter disappointment that was Spectre last year, I needed to get my James Bond fix from another source. Thankfully, trusty ChiZine publications came to the rescue with this marvelous collection where authors are set free to explore and expand the character in various and interesting ways.There are stories of all kinds here, the book excels in originality and diversity. The tales seem to be in chronological order, from a young Bond to his very last days. Things kick off with One Sorrowf...

When my friend gave me a birthday present with 'Illegal except in Canada' on the label, I knew exactly what I'd been given: this anthology of stories about the literary Bond by Canadian authors, published and sold only in Canada to take advantage of a copyright loophole. I wasn't sure what to expect, and I was pleasantly surprised by the knowledge and love of the source material displayed by the contributors. ChiZine is a horror press and several of the stories have a horror element, which I was...

Canada's copyright law allowed the written James Bond to go into public domain this year and the editors and CZP jumped right in with this anthology of original Bond stories. The Bonds depicted here range from schoolboy to septegenarian but they all have the Bond mix of coldness, competence and charisma. The stories are all strong but I particularly liked A.M. Dellamonica's Moneypenny story ("Through Your Eyes Only"), Ian Rogers' chilly northern tale ("Two Graves") and Catherine MacLeod's subtle...

Absolutely loved this book of James Bond short stories. Since it's not canon, it takes so much...license, with the character and the series. There's a Bond/Cthulu mashup, Bond as a teenager at Eton, a couple with Bond as a retired 90-year-old, etc. It was such a fresh look at aspects of Bond that have never been examined before.This is not for everyone, clearly. But keep an open mind and enjoy it as the entertaining diversion that it is.

Bond has to be second only to Holmes in fame and popularity, and this is the only anthology available, and only in Canada. Superior stories by some of the best writers around. Get your Canadian friends to send you a copy. You deserve it.

Only four of these stories mention Felix Leiter and NONE feature him zero stars (jk these are super fun I really enjoyed this collection!!!)

Some of the stories aren't that great, but the concept is enough to carry them And a couple of them are just really enjoyable. Fave one is Bond x Lovecraft.

Licence ExpiredOne is sorrow - Jacqueline Baker - 7A slow burner to start with but becomes increasingly compelling as the story goes on. If Higson had written Young Bond like this Eton set short, it would have been an altogether darker and more emotional and believable journey. The gales of the world - Robert J. Wiersema - 5Well written but very strange. I don’t think anybody needs Bond to work for the X-Files. A very unique idea that just doesn’t quite work as a viable crossover concept.Red Ind...

A book full of new Bond short stories should have been great, but this was a wildly uneven collection ranging from a Bond/Lovecraft mash-up to an elderly Bond approaching death. The styles vary and so does the quality. I like my Bond to be Ian Fleming in flavour so I favoured the more traditional Bond tales, though that is purely a matter of taste. The better stories here make the book worth tracking down - or getting sent by a friend in Canada in my case. Best of the lot was A Dirty Business, w...

Sometimes legal loopholes result in great art. With the Ian Fleming's copyright expiring for Canada but not the States, ChiZine was able to cash in big on a great opportunity. The stories do not disappoint. They collection reads like a tribute to Mr. Bond for the twenty-first century. It has the cars, the girls, the gadgets--and the awareness. But they play it straight. Bond is frequently shown to the be the cruel, womanizing not-exactly-politically-correct hero/antihero he is shown to be in the...

An uneven but interesting set of stories mostly starring James Bond, written under the public domain status of Ian Fleming’s books in Canada. Some of these stories are good, some not so good, some barely feature Bond, some don’t require him. Several seem written by authors who’ve never read Fleming’s originals. I give four stars because when the stories were good, I thought they were quite good, and the less good could be easily moved past.

Short story collections are so hard to rate. Some of the stories in here are "5's" for me and some on "2's" thus my middling rating. I found the beginning and ending particularly strong with the middle a little mushy. I found Ashby's Afterword a little odd where she explains the limitations of the book. Nonetheless, I recommend you pick it up for the good stories.

A real mix of quality, but a fantastic premise and overall very enjoyable book. The Cthullu mashup “The Gale of the World” by Robert J. Wiersema was a particularly enjoyable read, although there were several good stories in here this is probably the only one I would recommend to people who aren't James Bond fanatics.