View to a Thrill

James Bond Jr.--nephew of the famous playboy spy--is sent to school at England's exclusive Warfield Academy. There he meets a band of cronies: buffoonish surf-speaker Gordo (son of American agent Felix Leiter); the nerdy but brilliant ``IQ'' (grandson of the resourceful Q); chubby, bespectacled Phoebe, who is hopelessly in love with James (making her spiritual kin to Miss Moneypenny); and James's love interest--Tracy, the headmaster's spirited daughter. This quintet is swept up in an adventure so crammed with action that it is dizzying--and difficult to keep track of. The essentials involve the attempts of villains Jaws and Scumlord to steal a device implanted in James Jr.'s borrowed Aston Martin. A frantic pace, one-dimensional characters and a bunch of jokes in dire need of a laugh track make the first installment of this new series wearisome to sit through. Although reluctant readers may be initially intrigued by the novel's bright, comic-book-style cover, they are likely to prefer the tie-in TV cartoon series. Ages 8-12. (Jan.)