Christmas Spy Thriller

Merry Christmas everyone! As 'Tis still the season to be reading, I thought I would give everyone one last Christmas readint suggestion. I suggested it before and more than once, but every Christmastime I revisit it. I suggest it today for another reason: it is a spy thriller with an uncannily topical plot. I am talking of course of On Her Majesty's Secret Service by Ian Fleming. Maybe my favourite James Bond and favourite Christmas novel. On the track of archenemy Ernst Stavro Blofeld James Bond falls upon a conspiracy that involves biological warfare (when I said it was topical), the destruction of livestock (including Christmas turkeys) and heraldry. There's Blofeld as a murderous Krampus with a dash of King Herod reigning over his hideout of Piz Gloria in Switzerland, beautiful angels of death, hypnotherapy, Eros, Thanatos (in other words: sex and violence), blood on snow, a sort of Census and Bond finds love and loss with the Contessa Teresa di Vincenzo. So today, if you have time, instead of watching a movie, I suggest you snuggled up in a warm blanket, have a drink of something alcoholic (not necessarily a martini)and read this.