Though both novels were delightful, several questions beckoned: Could Benson find his own authorial voice? Would existing formulas be relied upon again and again accentuating only Benson's unerring descriptive ability and love of the character? Would new ground ever be explored?

High Time To Kill, the latest James Bond adventure is the result, and, happily, Mr. Benson has found that voice, and positively addressed these thoughts. From an original construction, through unexpected twists, to a finale that builds to a thunderous crescendo, Benson finally delivers his own vision of James Bond.

And what a vision! Even the elements that may seem familiar (the international crime organization, the megolomanaical villain, exotic travels around the globe, the beautiful women) take never before explored twists and deliver new impact. Yet, to keep us grounded, the completely enjoyable references to past 007 missions and acquaintances are included, as we are taken on a whirlwind adventure into the world of James Bond. For too long the character's impending actions and thoughts were telegraphed to longtime fans of the genre. Benson deftly changes the signals in High Time To Kill.

The novel opens in Nassau with Bond and personal assistant Helena Marksbury in the midst of a sensuous love affair. Their holiday is rudely interrupted with news of the untimely assassination of an old friend of Bond's. Immediately, we shift to the Stoke Poges Golf Club in Buckinghamshire, England. There, Bond runs into an ancient rival. The story eventually takes us to Brussels, and finally the Himalayas, atop one of the tallest mountains in the world, Kangchenjunga.

There the famed "MacGuffin", (the plot device the characters explore yet the reader is likely to overlook), takes place. Bond must scale the Kangch, some 2,000 feet from the summit in an effort to retrieve a microdot detailing Skin 17, an aircraft material able to withstand a speed of Mach 7. Bond is seemingly thrown from the villain's track at every plot turn while pursuing the mysterious yet instantly recognizable Skin 17. The reader shares the excitement and danger of 007's mission, with Bond at the wheels of a refurbished Jaguar XK8 through Brussels. Exactly how the mission is being compromised is as unclear as the next corner on the road, though the handling is par excellence

The plot moves briskly along with a cast of notable characters. None more so than RAF Group Captain Roland Marquis, a former Eton classmate of Bond. Marquis still harbors an ancient school rivalry against Bond, whether by golf, ice ax or female companionship. (Are we surprised?) A formidable opponent, Benson tells us that Marquis is "made of the same stuff" as Bond. Quite the comparison.

Gina Hollander is a Station B agent providing Bond assistance in Brussels. The initial mention of the formula, developed by "admitted eccentric" Dr. Thomas Wood and his assistant engineer, is especially eerie when in the company of the Defense Evaluation and Research Agency's (DERA) leader. Shades of Moonraker.

The SIS characters return with great payoff. Benson balances perfectly the female M as torn between being a disappointed head of the Secret Service, and a compassionate commander for her underling soldier. Bill Tanner is friend and confidant as he and Bond accept the challenge to a round of golf by Marquis and Harding. Moneypenny shows up for one scene; and Major Boothroyd of Q Branch lives on as well. Marksbury has a few more chapters that provide readers insight into James Bond as a man beyond the scope of his job.

The first half of High Time To Kill builds a setup for a terrific climax. The plot at midpoint presents interesting and various possibilities for the rest of the book. Benson decides to introduce us to the "Union", a terrorist organization behind both the mayhem of the assassination of the Bahamas former governor and the loss and pursuit of Skin 17. Bond utilizes the "visual library" of SIS, which places the Union squarely in league with the Nazis, various international terrorists, the Ku Klux Klan and Ernst Stavro Blofeld. Quite an illustrious group of baddies. Led by a stately but frightening shadow called Le Gerant, this collection of rogues promises to be Benson's trademark creation. The epitaph of High Time To Kill,"The Union will crush you", haunts with a dark foreboding for Bond and his immediate future battles.

As Bond begins his stealth mission to recover Skin 17, a new cast of characters, the Gurkas, are introduced. They are hearty and loyal allies, in the Kerim Bey mold. Suspense builds over an arduous month-long journey through the mountains where Bond and his band of searchers encounter many natural obstacles to survival, and internal contests of wills. Bond soon discovers the Union has placed someone among his new companions; they may not be his only enemy.

Marquis, Bond's personal nemesis, is but one target Bond must consider. Included among other possibilities are Marquis' assistant Carl Glass; Hope Kendall, a bewitching doctor from New Zealand; and a mysterious loner named Otto Schrenk.

Along for the climb with James Bond is a wonderfully developed character, Sergeant Chandra Bahadur Gurung of the First Royal Gurka Rifles. Living with the mantra, "It's better to die than be a coward," Chandra is a charming and effective soldier.

As Chandra and Bond discuss Marquis' plan, as expedition leader. to climb Kangchenjunga, Chandra states of the enormous feat that "it's not quite impossible." The same phrase could easily describe Benson's task of assuming the 007 mantle. Could he reach the heights of Ian Fleming? It seemed "not quite impossible" but surely unlikely. Could the Texas-born author be any more than a "tour guide" through Fleming's world?

Benson, in his previous novels, had demonstrated his mastery of descriptive and researched areas. But in High Time To Kill he achieves beyond a mere visual sense. The monotonous, bone-chilling and painful trek up the Himalayas is bound to make the reader freeze from the inside as Bond battles for his life. Those passages are finely done.

Finally, Mr. Benson exudes confidence on every page of this novel, but the final chapters push his work beyond that of a mere successor to Ian Fleming. Raymond Benson has made James Bond his own. With High Time To Kill, Benson leads the reader through his own climb up the mountain "not quite impossible" to scale.

As does James Bond, Raymond Benson has reached the summit.

Footnote: Just as Tom Zielinski appears as a character in Benson's previous Bond novel "The Facts OF Death", HMSS Publisher Paul Baack appears in HTTK , as a Dutch communication officer. Favorably compared to Major Boothroyd, Q,;we at HMSS never knew Paul was capable of such things. Bravo!