Brian James Smith reviews Quantum of Menace (2025) written by Vaseem Khan

By: Brian James Smith

Published:
2025-10-23

Quantum of Menace, Vaseem Khan, book, review

In Quantum Of Menace Major Boothroyd, ‘the artist formerly known as Q’, returns to his hometown of Wickstone-on-Water after he is unexpectedly booted out of MI6 by the new M. Coincidental with his redundancy, Q receives a note from his childhood friend, a quantum scientist called Peter Napier. The note was written on the day he died. Whilst the coroner rules ‘misadventure’ (or possibly suicide) Q’s instincts tell him something more sinister is afoot. Now he’s a free agent, Q decides to investigate Napier’s death.

Both Q and Boothroyd have their origins in Ian Fleming. Q is mentioned, though never appears, in 1953’s Casino Royale (‘...talk to Q about rooms and trains, and any equipment you want.’), 1954’s Live and Let Die (‘Q will put you on to the best man and fix a date’) and in 1957’s From Russia, With Love there is a reference to ‘Q’s Craftsmen.’

Major Boothroyd was the Armourer, appearing only in Fleming’s Dr. No (1958). He was based on real life gun expert Geoffrey Boothroyd, an Englishman working for ICI and living in Glasgow. He wrote to Fleming in May 1956, remarking on Bond’s ‘deplorable taste in firearms.’ The two struck up a correspondence which Fleming published in a couple of magazines and is now included in the book Talk Of The Devil: The Collected Writings Of Ian Fleming, recently published by Ian Fleming Publications. Boothroyd recommended Bond use a .38 Smith & Wesson (he lent his own to Fleming so that Richard Chopping could draw it for the From Russia, With Love dustjacket). Although Boothroyd discusses several Walthers in one of his letters, nowhere in their correspondence does Boothroyd actually recommend the Walther PPK. On 21 October 1997, and still living in Glasgow, I spoke to Geoffrey Boothroyd. He told me that ‘Fleming went for the Walther PPK simply because he liked the sound of the name.’ He conceded, ‘It was a good choice – small, lightweight and concealable.’

John Gardner was the first of the continuation authors to place Major Boothroyd in charge of Q Branch. Cubby Broccoli had asked him not to use the name Q and so he changed a secondary character into Ann Reilly, nicknamed Q’ute. Ann Reilly was inspired by Gardner’s real-life gadget guru Jo Ann O’Neil. Ms O’Neil told me that she was ‘quite flattered that he used me as a character.’ Gardner was keen that any gadgets or technology was real, and she introduced him to products and technology available at that time. ‘I remember John wanting to use technology that really existed in the books.’

The cinematic Q – Major Boothroyd

Q has been played by several actors in both the Eon Productions and non-Eon produced Bond films, but it is Desmond Llewelyn who casts the longest shadow. Not long before filming began on The World Is Not Enough (1999), I spoke to Desmond Llewleyn. He recalled, ‘I think what happened was the chap who played Boothroyd, Peter Burton [in 1962’s Dr. No], was unavailable or something happened, and my agent put my name up and going through it Terence Young said, well let’s get him.’

As the Equipment Officer from Q Branch in From Russia with Love (1963), Llewelyn issues Bond with a briefcase containing concealed coins and knives, a snipers’ rifle and tear gas cartridge. By the third film, Goldfinger (1964), the character was now called Q. Llewelyn appeared in seventeen James Bond films. When Richard Maibaum took over scripting duties from Tom Mankiewicz on 1974’s The Man with the Golden Gun, he believed that Boothroyd and Q were two different characters. In his first draft dated 7 January 1974, he wrote a scene for Q and Major Boothroyd. However, it was pointed out that even though the character was only referred to as the Equipment Officer in From Russia With Love, in the end titles he is named Boothroyd. The scene in The Man With The Golden Gun remains intact, but the firearms expert who assists Q is called Colthorpe, played by James Cossins. The first time Q was explicitly referred to as Major Boothroyd on film was in The Spy Who Loved Me (1977).

Desmond Llewelyn’s Q was a much-loved character in the Bond films. He revealed his personal insight into the character of Q. ‘I think he was always a pretty starchy old bugger,’ the 85-year-old Welshman told me. ‘And of course, it’s all to do with luck. If it wasn’t for Guy Hamilton [directing Goldfinger], I mean he gave me the whole idea of disliking Bond, but I think over the years I’ve got very fond of him.’ There were certainly hints of this in the later films, especially Licence to Kill (1989), in which Llewelyn had his largest role, and his final, poignant appearance in The World Is Not Enough.

Pierce Brosnan, Desmond Llewelyn, The World Is Not Enough, Q

Pierce Brosnan, Desmond Llewelyn, The World Is Not Enough, Q

Review of Quantum of Menace – the first of The Q Mysteries by Vaseem Khan

Warning: mild spoilers.

Which brings us back to Quantum Of Menace. All but one of Q’s erstwhile colleagues have deserted him. It is only James Bond who keeps in touch. Theirs is a symbiotic relationship built on personal and professional trust. During his investigation Q’s past catches up with him. This is the first time he’s been in Wickstone for thirty years. The death of his mother, a former romantic relationship (Q, it is revealed, is not really a people person), a young Syrian called Zak, a man called Mort (retired from Oxford University’s Faculty and History), and a clinically depressed pet inherited from his dead neighbour all present him with personal dilemmas, but also an opportunity to make the transition from devoted service in MI6 to a life in the real world.

Quantum Of Menace is pitched as a cosy crime novel. That it certainly is, although any comparison with Richards Osman and Coles is purely coincidental. It is much better than those (and those, to be fair, are good). Vaseem Khan gently lures you into his story then keeps you there. It’s like slipping into a warm bath and not wanting to get out. A dry sense of humour pervades throughout, although there are some moments of real tension as Q begins to piece together the clues. Q is not shy in using some of his own tech when it’s required and he’s often thinking what Bond would do in certain circumstances he finds himself in. There’s also a lovely moment where Khan acknowledges Boothroyd’s origin as a small arms expert before his work evolved with the technology side of the business.

Vaseem Khan is probably the best practitioner of the crime novel today, writing with genuine wit and storytelling verve. It doesn’t read like a Bond novel, nor should it, but it is still recognisably set in that world and there are moments, and one sequence in particular, fans of Ian Fleming and James Bond are going to love. It would be a crime not to read it.

Review by Brian James Smith. Copyright © 2025 From Sweden with Love. All rights reserved.

Editor's Note:
The above article contains excerpts from interviews with Geoffrey Boothroyd, Desmond Llewelyn and Jo Ann O’Neil by Brian James Smith. © Brian James Smith, 1997-2025. All rights reserved.

Order Quantum Of Menace from Amazon UK or Amazon.com.

Catch Quantum Of Menace author Vaseem Khan talking all things Q during his UK tour:

Quantum of Menace, Vaseem Khan, events, Q

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Brian James Smith reviews Quantum of Menace (2025) written by Vaseem Khan

The cinematic Q – Major Boothroyd

Review of Quantum of Menace – the first of The Q Mysteries by Vaseem Khan

Catch Quantum Of Menace author Vaseem Khan talking all things Q during his UK tour:

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