With a mind to kill

With a mind to kill

Cold, sterile, and lacking emotions the attendants of this funeral had no facial expressions. Like mannequins or statues, they attended the funeral of a man known as M. He is the head of the Secret Intelligence killed they were told by James Bond/aka007. Where exactly is Bond and what role did he play in this murder? He succeeded in making the Russians believe that he assassinated M. The Russians grabbed him from the police and placed him in custody. But that’s just the tip of a very dangerous and icy iceberg. Beaten, and seriously injured he received a cable instructing him to return without delay, and here is where it gets intricate and deadly. 

Meet M and hear his cold voice as he tells James Bond that he’s aware the Russians sent him to kill him, M. He wants them to think he’s dead because of the mission he has in mind for Bond will send him back into the hands of Colonel Boris the man who tortured and had him beaten and brainwashed. The information he receives from M will take him back to where it all started and into the deadly hands of Colonel Boris. 4 senior officers are working under General G in Stalnaya Ruka: General Volkhov, Lieutenant General Kirilenko, and Erik Mundt. Memories flood back and haunt him why agree to go back? 

The extraction plan is dangerous and the tension and action are so vividly depicted you can hear the gunshots, the train roaring, the ride in silence, and the deadly result that brings him into the hands of the Russians and face to face with Colonel Boris. Their plan is will change the power structure of Russia and model it after Stalin’s regime following his ideology. This M stated has to be stopped but will Bond be able to convince Boris he’s defected?

Katya Leonova is the Colonel’s assistant and appears cold and emotionless. But her mission is to get closer to Bond and evaluate him to see if he’s lying. 

Interrogations, questions, and just when Bond thinks the Colonel believes him he’s once again imprisoned and sent to the Magic Room, and what happens there just might destroy his mind if he does not focus and stay strong. Lies, betrayals, and deceptions plus a diabolical plot to assassinate someone to achieve their goals. 

Trusting and telling truths prove to be costly. Getting close to Katya and sharing pasts he gets an inside view of her past relationship and wants James for more than just an operative. But she’s reporting to her superior and is not sure he’d bring honest with her but in the end, you won’t believe the harsh realities he faces and the possibility he might not make it out. Telling her that Colonel Boris is involved with a group called Stalnaya Ruka was his first mistake and explaining his role is to find out what this was and what the result was placed him once again in the deadly grip of Boris. 

With uncertainties and truths revealed Bond learns the meaning of more than betrayal. Forced to comply with the demands of the Colonel and placed in a difficult situation he’s forced to kill someone but the man he’s to kill is replaced and the result is not what was expected when the gun misfires what Bond does changes it all. Forced to be part of the final plan, the author creates an ending that is unique and creat as Bond has to find a way to draw attention to himself but the result will cause him serious harm. 

An ending that will shock you and a reveal you won’t see coming as Bond gets a blindside in many ways but in the end, the person who he came to trust lied to him but why the rescue at the end. Where will he go next? He could almost feel the bullets tearing at his back and his image in harm’s way. Was it him?

How often would he have to live with himself with a mind to kill?

Fran Lewis just reviews