James Bond reading order

A plan for the whole series

51 volumes, 14,120 pages, about 260 hours. At 45 min a day that is about 11 months.

• From volume 2 on, the number of ratings falls most before volume 8, “For Your Eyes Only” (by 34%). Plan your break after volume 7, before the series plans it for you.
• Readers scored volume 4, “Diamonds Are Forever”, below its predecessor (7.3 after 7.5). If you slow down there, that is on the book, not on you. From volume 5 the form returns.

Stages

15 stages, with 14 short books from outside the series between them. You finish around January 11, 2028, about 3 months later than in one go.

1. 1
   Stage 117 habout 3 weeksby November 21, 2026

   • 1. Casino Royale1953 · 192 pages · 4 h
   • 2. Live and Let Die1954 · 256 pages · 5 h
   • 3. Moonraker1955 · 255 pages · 5 h
   • 4. Diamonds Are Forever1956 · 248 pages · 5 h
2. Short breakThe Fire Next Time · James Baldwin · 120 pp. · score 8.82 h, by November 25, 2026. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
3. 2
   Stage 216 h21 daysby December 16, 2026

   • 5. From Russia, with Love1957 · 258 pages · 5 h
   • 6. Dr. No1958 · ≈ 277 pages · 5 h
   • 7. Goldfinger1959 · 315 pages · 6 h
4. BreakMaus · Art Spiegelman · 295 pp. · score 9.05 h, by December 25, 2026. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
5. 3
   Stage 318 habout 3 weeksby January 19, 2027

   • 8. For Your Eyes Only1960 · 240 pages · 4 h
   • 9. Thunderball1961 · 262 pages · 5 h
   • 10. The Spy Who Loved Me1962 · 208 pages · 4 h
   • 11. On Her Majesty's Secret Service1963 · 288 pages · 5 h
6. Short breakThe Emperor's Soul · Brandon Sanderson · 96 pp. · score 8.82 h, by January 22, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
7. 4
   Stage 420 habout 4 weeksby February 18, 2027

   • 12. The Man with the Golden Gun1965 · 190 pages · 3 h
   • 13. Octopussy and The Living Daylights1966 · 97 pages · 2 h
   • 14. Per Fine Ounce1966 · ≈ 277 pages · 5 h
   • 15. The Adventures of James Bond Junior 003½1967 · ≈ 277 pages · 5 h
   • 16. Colonel Sun1968 · 256 pages · 5 h
8. BreakBorn a Crime · Trevor Noah · 304 pp. · score 8.96 h, by February 27, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
9. 5
   Stage 520 habout 4 weeksby March 26, 2027

   • 17. James Bond: The Authorized Biography of 0071973 · ≈ 277 pages · 5 h
   • 18. James Bond, the Spy Who Loved Me1977 · ≈ 277 pages · 5 h
   • 19. James Bond and Moonraker1979 · ≈ 277 pages · 5 h
   • 20. Licence Renewed1981 · 278 pages · 5 h
10. BreakI'm Glad My Mom Died · Jennette McCurdy · 320 pp. · score 8.96 h, by April 5, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
11. 6
    Stage 620 habout 4 weeksby May 2, 2027

    • 21. For Special Services1982 · 296 pages · 5 h
    • 22. Icebreaker1983 · 256 pages · 5 h
    • 23. Role of Honour1984 · ≈ 277 pages · 5 h
    • 24. The Killing Zone1985 · ≈ 277 pages · 5 h
12. BreakFlowers for Algernon · Daniel Keyes · 274 pp. · score 8.85 h, by May 11, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
13. 7
    Stage 715 h20 daysby May 31, 2027

    • 25. Nobody Lives for Ever1986 · ≈ 277 pages · 5 h
    • 26. No Deals, Mr. Bond1987 · ≈ 277 pages · 5 h
    • 27. Scorpius1988 · ≈ 277 pages · 5 h
14. Short breakOn Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century · Timothy Snyder · 128 pp. · score 8.42 h, by June 4, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
15. 8
    Stage 817 habout 3 weeksby June 27, 2027

    • 28. Win, Lose or Die1989 · 319 pages · 6 h
    • 29. Brokenclaw1990 · 304 pages · 6 h
    • 30. The Man from Barbarossa1991 · 303 pages · 6 h
16. Short breakAnimal Farm · George Orwell · 128 pp. · score 8.32 h, by July 1, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
17. 9
    Stage 917 habout 3 weeksby July 24, 2027

    • 31. Never Send Flowers1993 · 293 pages · 5 h
    • 32. Death is Forever1993 · 340 pages · 6 h
    • 33. SeaFire1994 · 288 pages · 5 h
18. Short breakTo Be Taught, If Fortunate · Becky Chambers · 153 pp. · score 8.33 h, by July 28, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
19. 10
    Stage 1020 habout 4 weeksby August 25, 2027

    • 34. COLD1996 · 242 pages · 4 h
    • 35. Zero Minus Ten1997 · ≈ 277 pages · 5 h
    • 36. The Facts of Death1998 · ≈ 277 pages · 5 h
    • 37. High Time to Kill1999 · 319 pages · 6 h
20. BreakJames · Percival Everett · 320 pp. · score 8.76 h, by September 3, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
21. 11
    Stage 1116 habout 3 weeksby September 25, 2027

    • 38. The World Is Not Enough1999 · 304 pages · 6 h
    • 39. DoubleShot2000 · 258 pages · 5 h
    • 40. Never Dream of Dying2001 · 309 pages · 6 h
22. Short breakThe Importance of Being Earnest · Oscar Wilde · 102 pp. · score 8.22 h, by September 28, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
23. 12
    Stage 1219 habout 4 weeksby October 24, 2027

    • 41. The Man with the Red Tattoo2002 · ≈ 277 pages · 5 h
    • 42. Bond Girls Are Forever2002 · 192 pages · 4 h
    • 43. The Moneypenny Diaries: Guardian Angel2005 · ≈ 277 pages · 5 h
    • 44. Secret Servant: The Moneypenny Diaries2006 · 311 pages · 6 h
24. BreakHomegoing · Yaa Gyasi · 320 pp. · score 8.76 h, by November 3, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
25. 13
    Stage 1316 habout 3 weeksby November 25, 2027

    • 45. Devil May Care2008 · 341 pages · 6 h
    • 46. The Moneypenny Diaries: Final Fling2008 · ≈ 277 pages · 5 h
    • 47. Danger Society2009 · 278 pages · 5 h
26. Short breakA Room of One's Own · Virginia Woolf · 144 pp. · score 8.23 h, by November 29, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
27. 14
    Stage 1420 habout 4 weeksby December 26, 2027

    • 48. Carte Blanche2011 · 432 pages · 8 h
    • 49. Solo2013 · 336 pages · 6 h
    • 50. Trigger Mortis2015 · 320 pages · 6 h
28. BreakStoner · John Williams · 293 pp. · score 8.65 h, by January 4, 2028. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
29. 15
    Stage 156 h7 daysby January 11, 2028

    • 51. Forever and a Day2018 · 304 pages · 6 h
30. The end of the series

    January 11, 2028

We count 1.1 min per page, the pace of an average novel reader. Faster? Move the slider.

≈ next to a page count: a volume with no page count in our data is counted at this series’s average.

Does the series hold up

Shape of the series: uneven. Scores jump by 0.6 points with no clear direction.

Best volume: On Her Majesty's Secret Service (7.7, 72 ratings). Weakest: The Spy Who Loved Me (7.1). From volume 2 on, the biggest drop in the number of ratings is between volume 7 and 8: 34%. The series is complete; you can read it start to finish with no waiting. The last volume (7.4) scores close to the series average or above it.