Live and Let Die (James Bond Novels) [Paperback]

Ian Fleming (Author)

Book Description

Release date: May 27, 2003 | Series: James Bond Novels

"Her hair was black and fell to her shoulders. She had high cheekbones and a sensual mouth, and wore a dress of white silk. Her eyes were blue, alight and disdainful, but, as they gazed into his with a touch of humour, Bond realized that they contained a message.

Solitaire watched his eyes on her and nonchalantly drew her forearms together so that the valley between her breasts deepened. The message was unmistakable."

Beautiful, fortune-telling Solitaire is the prisoner (and tool) of Mr Big—master of fear, artist in crime and Voodoo Baron of Death. James Bond has no time for superstition—he knows that this criminal heavy hitter is also a top SMERSH operative and a real threat. More than that, after tracking him through the jazz joints of Harlem, to the everglades and on to the Caribbean, 007 has realized that Big is one of the most dangerous men that he has ever faced. And no-one, not even the mysterious Solitaire, can be sure how their battle of wills is going to end…

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Thrilling" -- Louise Welsh --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

About the Author

Ian Fleming (1908-1964), creator of the world's best-known secret agent, is the author of fourteen James Bond books. Born in London in 1908 and educated at Eton and Sandhurst, he became the Reuters Moscow correspondent in 1929. In the spring of 1939, Fleming went back to Moscow as a special correspondent for the London Times. In June of that same year, he joined Naval Intelligence and served throughout World War II, finally earning the rank of Commander, RNVSR (Sp.). Much of the James Bond material was drawn directly from Fleming's experiences as an intelligence officer. Later, Fleming became a consultant on foreign affairs for the London Sunday Times, by which time he had become far better known as the creator of James Bond.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Books (May 27, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0142003239
• ISBN-13: 978-0142003237
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (117 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #420,329 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ian Fleming was born in London on May 28, 1908. He was educated at Eton College and later spent a formative period studying languages in Europe. His first job was with Reuters News Agency where a Moscow posting gave him firsthand experience with what would become his literary bete noire--the Soviet Union. During World War II he served as Assistant to the Director of Naval Intelligence and played a key role in Allied espionage operations.

After the war he worked as foreign manager of the Sunday Times, a job that allowed him to spend two months each year in Jamaica. Here, in 1952, at his home "Goldeneye," he wrote a book called Casino Royale--and James Bond was born. The first print run sold out within a month. For the next twelve years Fleming produced a novel a year featuring Special Agent 007, the most famous spy of the century. His travels, interests, and wartime experience lent authority to everything he wrote. Raymond Chandler described him as "the most forceful and driving writer of thrillers in England." Sales soared when President Kennedy named the fifth title, From Russia With Love, one of his favorite books. The Bond novels have sold more than one hundred million copies worldwide, boosted by the hugely successful film franchise that began in 1962 with the release of Dr. No.

He married Anne Rothermere in 1952. His story about a magical car, written in 1961 for their only son Caspar, went on to become the well-loved novel and film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

Fleming died of heart failure on August 12, 1964, at the age of fifty-six.

www.ianfleming.com

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#85 in Books > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Thrillers

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

59 of 63 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Fleming finds his style. July 28, 2005

By Augustus Caesar, Ph.D.

Format:Paperback

After "Casino Royale" (1953) introduced James Bond to the world, Ian Fleming quickly followed up with his second novel, the vastly superior "Live and Let Die" (1954). Whereas its predecessor is an apprentice work and one of the weakest of the whole series, "Live and Let Die" is fine Fleming, with all the characteristics that mark the best Bond novels: quick pacing, deft characterization, a solid plot, and Fleming's own inimitable style.

The plot is straightforward: someone is smuggling gold coins into the US and the British Secret Service wants to find out who. M sends Bond to America, where he hooks up Felix Leiter to pursue the nefarious Mr. Big, a gigantic Haitian who works for SMERSH and uses voodoo to maintain his control over his minions. Bond, of course, succeeds, but only after much death, suspense, and sexual tension with Solitaire, his delicious female companion.

I would rank "Live and Let Die" in the second-tier of Bond novels, along with "From Russia, With Love" and "Moonraker." It doesn't quite reach the level of such absolute masterpieces as "Doctor No," "On Her Majesty's Secret Service," or "You Only Live Twice," but it's certainly superior to such relatively weak entries as "Goldfinger," "Casino Royale," and the disastrous "The Man with the Golden Gun." All in all, a classic Bond thriller.

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars The Fleming 'sweep' commences... May 8, 2005

By Christopher J. Benz

Format:Paperback

This was the second Bond novel overall, but the first to feature the blueprint for the Bond novels and films to come. Unlike the superb "Casino Royale" which was almost exclusively kept to one location, LALD is a globe trotting epic dragging Bond from NYC to the Caribbean and incorporating nerve shattering adventures in planes, trains and even finishes up as a sea faring thriller. Amongst all of this, somehow Fleming finds time to establish a number of classic 007 motifs - the decadent hotels, iconic villain, sidekick villians, mastermind death plots, development of Felix Leiter's friendship with Bond, the briefing from M. To cap it off, Q branch also rates it's first ever mention, and the beginnings of the novel's gadgetry fixations begin here. LALD is most notable as being the first of it's form and it must have hit readers powerfully with it's freshness on first release. This was 007 as we now know him - brave, resourceful, invincible - master of any skill or body of knowledge. For me, and most Bond readers, familiar with the genre, it's a good read, not a great one, because it skimps on Bond's psychology which ultimately gives a level of excitement and depth that the movies can't equal (although they certainly have different advantages over the books). You need look no further than "Casino Royale" for the thrill of getting inside James Bond's mind and for enjoying his enigmatic and self centred ethics. This read is much more straight forward and dare I say it, predictable good fun. It deserves it's accolades because it was there first.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Spy Fiction June 20, 2003

By Greg Hirst

Format:Paperback

Ian Fleming readers will know what they are getting, and fans of the movie may not. This is the second Bond outing in novel form, the first being CASINO ROYALE. But like the movies, it's unnecessary to see or read them in order. There are a few references to the first novel, mostly vague "from the Royale incident" statements, but nothing major.
Bond is darker, less suave than the movie version, and it comes out in this dark novel. It's actually has more to do with the movie For your eyes Only than LIVE AND LET DIE. There's an ocean motif in this one, lots of sharks and underwater perils.
Vivid and exciting. good stuff