Enjoyed it 7/10. During it’s day, it must have been wonderful to read each book and sail to new destinations. Dan Brown types of adventures that gave everyone a glimpse of new lands. Fleming is a better writer than advertised.

In de Times Literary Supplement van 30 oktober 2020 (dat men niet denkt, omdat ik James Bond zit te lezen, dat ik van de straat ben) werd een veiling aangekondigd van bijzondere exemplaren van door Ian Flemming gschreven James Bond boeken. Eén daarvan was een exemplaar van "Goldfinger", uit 1959,met de opdracht "To Ray, wich much affection", opgedragen aan Raymond Chandler. Die had hem namelijk gestimuleerd fdoor te gaan met de serie, in 1955, toen Flemming net nr5, "Moonraker" had geschreven, en overwoog te stoppen. Raymond Chandler raadde hem toen aan van Bond een meer ontwikkelend karakter te maken, en aldus aangemoedigd schreef Flemming nr 6. "Diamonds are forever", 1956, "Doden voor diamanten" dus.

En aangezien ik met ene bekende behoefte aan volledigheid alle Nederlandse Bonds in de jaren 90 in antiquariaten bij elkaar gescharreld heb - ik kreeg mijn 1e, "Dr. No", toen ik 17 jaren oud met een meniscus-blessure blessure in het Sint-Fransciscus ziekenhuis lag, van mijn moeder - leek me het moment gekomen, door de serendipiteit van de TLS aangemoedigd, er weer eens één te lezen, en dan gelijk die maar met het ronde karakter, die hij schreef na de tip van Ray: "Doden voor Diamanten".

Het begin viel me niet mee, het boek komt traag en rommelig op gang. Als Bond in een casino belandt, dan komt de vaart er in. Net als in "Casino Royale", ik meen de 1e Bond, en teglijk ook één van de beste, wekken die Casino-scenes soms haast de indruk alsof men een klassiek toneelstuk zit te bekijken, waar eenheid van tijd, plaats en handeling serieus genomen worden: de casino-sfeer is overtuigend, de spelkansen een onnadrukkelijke metafoor voor de existentialistische wanhoop en de handeling wordt haast vanzelf boeiend en spannend. Later, in dit boek dan, als men achterna gezeten wordt door een stoomtrein, en Bond aan een touw geknoopt van lakens door een patrijspoort van een oceaanstomer slingert, wordt de hele Griekse deskundigheid weer losgelaten en moet men weer de kritische blik loslaten.

Bond treft in dit boek uiteinedelijk een hele leuke lief, Tifanny. In latere boeken heeft hij die lief meen ik niet meer, en ik heb ze te lang geleden gelezen om me te herinneren wat Flemming haar in een later deel heeft aangedaan. Ik lees er voorlopig geen meer, kunnen ze in elk geval in mijn hoofd lang en gelukkig doorleven.

This one was quite fun! I enjoyed the mafia and the horse racing. It was also great to touch base with a certain American that didn't fare so well in the previous book.

The romantic interest was MUCH weaker than the previous 3 novels, and kind of a let down.

My favorite quote:
"Let's go home to bed and give your shooting eye a rest. My guess is you're going to need it."

Solid 4 Stars! I think I'm finally completely immersed in this series.

James Bond vs. the American Mafia. James Bond's beloved M gives him the assignment to destroy a diamond pipeline. In going after the diamond smugglers, Bond travels to America and is paired up with a woman working for the diamond smugglers - one Tiffany Case. He travels to New York City, Saratoga Springs, and then to Las Vegas.
...

The book, as so many Bond books do, focuses heavily on gambling. We have copious amounts of, not only card playing, but horse racing in this novel. If this bores you, I suggest you skim these pages, Fleming tends to go into excruciating detail.
...

RACISM: The book contains slurs regarding Jews, Italians, blacks and gays. Not to the extent of CR or LALD, but still, it's noticeable.
...

WOMEN: I felt like James Bond was on his best behavior for me regarding his treatment of women in this book. I appreciate his efforts to please me.

WOMEN SUBSET: TIFFANY CASE

The Bond girl is Tiffany Case. She breaks Bond's previous three-book mold of black-hair blue-eyed women. A 27-year-old blonde with grey eyes, Tiffany is running with the wrong crowd. She feels a strong attraction to Bond, but tries to fight it, hard. Firstly because she thinks he's a criminal (he's working undercover to try and infiltrate the mob), and secondly because she was brutally gang-raped by Mafia goons at the tender age of 16. Since then, she's shut herself off from all male advances.

I was really actually quite shocked at how well Bond deals with this serious obstacle to getting Case into bed. After learning her story (from his good friend and ex-CIA agent Felix Leiter), Bond treads carefully around her and takes things slow. He's protective of her in a way I've never seen him be with a woman before.

Bond said nothing. He looked out the window and cursed his job. All he wanted to say to this girl was: "Listen. Come with me. I like you. Don't be afraid. It can't be worse than alone." But if she said yes he would have been smart. And he didn't want to be smart with this girl. It was is job to use her but, whatever the job dictated, there was one way he would never 'use' this particular girl. Through the heart.

Awww! James Bond is making me say "aw." I thought this day would never come. Usually I want to lecture and throttle him. Here's another one:

He thought of the lovely face cradled on the open hand below him, innocent and defenseless in sleep, the scorn gone from the level grey eyes and the ironical droop from the corners of the passionate mouth, and Bond knew that he was very near to being in love with her.

Ooh! I was squealing with joy and anticipation watching these two get closer and closer and closer. Tiffany herself was very endearing. She acts very tough and standoffish and gives James a hard time (definitely a difference from most women, who just kneel in front of him and start begging him to have sex with them), but inside she's just scared of men and afraid of letting herself feel something for someone who she believes is on the wrong side of the law (in her mind, criminal men are scum - like the men who raped her).

Here's some Tiffany for you:

Listen, you Bond person, I'm as happy as a cricket. I love being here. I love being with you. And I love this nice dark table where no one can see me holding your hand. Don't mind my talk. I just can't get over being so happy.

She always calls him "you Bond person," and I found this charming.

She's smart, has criminal knowledge, and is one heck of a card player - no wonder Bond's enamored of her.

Bond and Tiffany get to really know each other. And then comes the night when she starts dropping hints to him that "tonight's the night." During this whole chapter I was wracked with anxiety and nerves.

What was I afraid of? That Bond would be a beast to her in bed? No, although this was a possibility - Bond is a real bastard at times - but I was confident he'd put it down right for her, especially on their first night together.

No, what was really terrifying me was Ian Fleming's penchant for ruining things. There's 20% of the book left and I was horrified by the thought that either
a.) she and Bond were on this wonderful romantic date, with her dropping hints right and left that tonight's going to be their first night together in bed, and then Fleming puts them under attack and as a result she dies or she gets too spooked to ever consummate things with Bond or
b.) They would finally have sex, and it would be great, and she would be happy and he would be happy, and they would be in love - and then Fleming would have the bad guys find them, and kill the woman or damage her irreparably in some way.
BECAUSE FLEMING LIKES TO DO STUFF LIKE THAT. Well, I won't tell you if it went one of these two ways, OR a completely different way - you can read the book and find out. But I was on pins and needles.

WOMEN: SUBSET: OTHER WOMEN

But, is Bond's stellar treatment of the Bond girl enough to impress me? Well, frankly, yes. But as an additional bonus, as proof that Bond is trying to be a better hero so that I'm happier with him - there's a great scene where he defends a little manicurist. He's getting a shave (but really spying on Mr. Evil-Guy), and this woman is doing Evil-Guy's nails, and accidentally nicks his fingertip. Evil-Guy flies into a rage, berating the woman and ordering the barber to fire her, then leaving in a huff. When he leaves and the barber starts ripping into the sobbing woman, Bond steps in at tells him to shut the fuck up. Well, not in those exact words. But still. I was cheering! Yay!
...

THE F-WORD:
Speaking of the f-word, it's really clear in this novel that James says it twice. But both times, in my edition, it's blocked out. Here's a sample "----," said Bond, once. Except there's not four little dashes, but one long dash. This is the first time I've come across this, Bond didn't do this (use the f-word) in any previous novels. So perhaps Fleming's treating the Bond girls a bit nicer but spicing up Bond's language? I don't know.
...

FASCINATING TIDBIT:
Bond quotes Ralph Waldo Emerson in this novel.

IN SUMMARY:
I really enjoyed this book. Not enough to give it five stars, because a.) racial/ethnic slurs, b.) Bond makes Tiffany cry at one point (grrrrr), c.) Fleming goes into way too much boring detail about cards and horse racing. But otherwise, a stellar Bond novel. This is really the first time I've seen Bond (in these 4 books) be sweet and patient and charming to a woman. I know people think Bond = Charming Charmer - but in the books he's really more like Entitled Bastard. It was good to see him having to step carefully for once. Tiffany was efficient, smart, and she impressed Bond with her tenacity, brains, and skills numerous times. I also always like to see Felix Leiter, and he was a key player in this novel. I wish there was a bit more of both M and Moneypenny (sometimes I swear Bond's more in love with M than he ever could be with any woman) because I adore seeing Bond interact with them, but I'll take what I can get. 4 stars.

UPDATE: 1971 SEAN CONNERY FILM.
I almost feel like I should stop watching the films that accompany these books. Why? Because I feel as if I'm unfairly judging people's beloved childhood memories. :( While I have no problem ripping a book to shreds with my wrath, I completely understand how watching a film at a young and impressionable age can make that film very special to you, even though later - as an adult - you realize it was campy, hastily put together um... junk. IF YOU LOVE THIS FILM, STOP READING NOW.

Okay, for those of you are still with me.
THE GOOD:
- Sean Connery is a better Bond than Roger Moore.
- Mr. Wint and Mr. Kidd, the assassins who also happen to be a gay couple, are great in the film. Fun, but also menacing. I really enjoyed this - they had a lot more personality than the same characters did in the book.
- I always like listening to the opening song and watching women dance around with diamonds.
- Cute, cute scene where James Bond meets a little rat in the sewers and has a bit of conversation with him.

THE BAD:
- The plot is stupid and farfetched. Blofeld's still alive and cloning himself. Bond's riding a moon buggy through the desert. The whole film is a campy mess. Blofeld's even in drag at one point.
- To my intense dismay, Tiffany Case is shallow and a moron. A far cry from the strong, intelligent survivor who impresses Bond so much in the book. They also develop real feelings for each other in the book, in the movie there's nothing real in their relationship. In the movie she's annoying.
- Bond actually treats women better in the book. In this film he slaps Tiffany. And strangles another woman with her own bikini top as a form of interrogation.

A man I know told me that I'm "not embracing the spirit in which these movies were made" and that I'm not "in the right mindset to watch James Bond films." He might be right. o.O

#64 of 2020

This is the fourth Ian Fleming Bond novel I've read. While less gripping than the previous ones, it is still very well written, with strong characters and plenty of action and excitement.
I've been pleasantly surprised by the Bond novels. They've not been what I expected from stories written in the 1950s by an ex spy notorious for having lived a life replicated by Sean Connery's Bond on screen. I was expecting to be reacquainted with the suave and confident, misogynistic playboy character from the films, but really, Fleming's character from the novels is a damaged man, all too aware of his own failings and sociopathic tendencies. Yes, he does have romantic involvements with the women of the stories, but they are not the weak ornaments often portrayed in the early movies, there to look pretty until Bond slaps them for screaming before flinging them into his bed. The women in the Bond stories all have strength and are fully formed characters with their own history and motivations. I've yet to find one who hasn't been able to give Bond a run for his money, and in many cases it's the women who use Bond for their own ends before inevitably dropping him at the end of the stories.
The Bond of these novels knows that he is owned by his employers, he knows that in all likelihood he's not going to live a long life due to the dangers of his profession, and he knows that he is unable to ever find the love that he seems to crave. He is a much darker, sadder character than you might think if, like me, you had only ever known Bond from the screen.

n  all bad roads lead to the bad townn
The fourth James Bond novel, in which 007 takes on a gang smuggling blood diamonds from Sierra Leone to the USA. Stepping in as a mule under a pseudonym, Bond smuggles diamonds from London to NYC before moving on to Saratoga, NY and Las Vegas (the bad town) to collect his fee and track down the head of the gang, and finally to Sierra Leone to wrap things up. Throughout, he encounters and is hindered by gangsters Wint and Kidd (two characters that stood out for their sociopathic banter--calling each other 'Mister Wint' and 'Mister Kidd'--when I first saw the film adaptation some forty years ago). Their exit stage left on the RMS Queen Elizabeth is quite amusing albeit passively homophobic.

By the end, Bond has moved Tiffany Case, now a former gang member, into his flat in London. Is this the end of our playboy super spy?

Another entertaining Bond adventure which finds 007 on the trail of an American diamond smuggling ring. It takes him from London to New York and ultimately to Las Vegas. On the way he encounters old CIA pal, Felix Leiter who now works for Pinkertons and makes the acquaintance of lovely Tiffany Case. As always there is lots of action, but many nice moments with Miss Case. Entertaining and an exciting read. It's been fun working through the Bond series again.

پس این بخشی از یک رویا نیست و من روی صندلی عقب استادیلاک نشسته‌ام. این دامن تیفانی است که زیر سرم است آن فیلکس است و ما داریم به سرعت به سوی جایی امن می‌تازیم، جایی که دکتر، حمام، کمی غذا و نوشیدنی داشته باشد و بشود ساعت‌های بی‌پایان خوابید. باند تکان خورد. دست تیفانی را توی موهایش احساس کرد. انگار که بخواهد به باند بگوید همان‌طور که امید دارد، همه چیز واقعی است. او دوباره لم داد و چیزی نگفت. از هر ثانیه لذت برد و به صدای آن‌ها و صدای حرکت تایرها روی جاده گوش سپرد.

از متن کتاب

Quite different than the movie, and filled with sexist, racist, and homophobic content. However, this was written in the fifties so I won't judge it through today's lens. Plot wise - I thought there would be much more about the diamonds, but really James Bond is seeing how far down the criminal pipeline he can go. They're pretty sure the source of illegal diamonds is from French Guinea (or around there) and they know they end up in America. It's up to Bond to pose as one of the low level carriers and see how far on the criminal trail he can get. His new job takes him to New York, Saratoga, and Vegas. These American mobsters are more methodical and organized than he gave them credit for and it's not as easy as a job as he assumed it would be. Lots of action, intrigue, some sex appeal, and unique villains. Classic James Bond.

Ten quick observations after watching the movie “Diamonds are Forever” right after reading the book.

1.There are diamonds in both. Diamonds aren’t the real story in the movie.
2. Love interest Tiffany Case is more drawn out in the book, though I’d never argue against Jill St. John.
3. The two gay henchmen characters are in both but more lethal in the movie.
4. A mud bath scene in both and I like the way it’s used in the book more.
5. The movie: Where’s all the horse racing scenes?
6. The book: Where’s Blofeld?
7. The final scenes in the movie are big but all over the place.
8. The final chapters in the book are effective but not overly exciting.
9. Similar character names in the book (Like Shady Tree) that are in the movie but aren’t really the same character.
10. Felix Leiter is more interesting in the book. Of course he did loose a hand during the Moonraker project which hadn’t even happened in the movie series.

This was a good story. I really thought it would be a little more exciting. By that I meant everything seems to kind of just fall in Bond's lap. The story starts out as one path and then magically it all gets sorted out in the end from what seems almost little to no effort on Bond's part and him being extremely lucky. It is a little dated but all in all it was entertaining. We shall see if the next one is better.