Sex for Dinner, Death for Breakfast

by Brian A. Dixon

Enter the seductive and dangerous world of Ian Fleming’s James Bond 007 with Sex for Dinner, Death for Breakfast. In this in-depth cultural study, Brian A. Dixon explores the integral role of the human body in Bond’s adventures, delving into the literature, films, artwork, and advertising associated with the world’s most celebrated secret agent.

Examining the familiar accoutrements of the 007 adventures—including often elaborate references to fashion, food and drink, sex, and methods of execution—Dixon uncovers their profound significance. Each detail accentuates an unwavering focus on the body, revealing the extent to which these narratives are products of their unique cultural and historical moments and the way in which they foretold the future of politics, culture, sexuality, and consumerism.

The body of James Bond represents—then, now, and later—the body politic in its portrayal of what we were, are, and may well be. The appetites of the unforgettable characters who populate his thrilling adventures—for food, power, sex, and killing—are our appetites. Sex for Dinner, Death for Breakfast: James Bond and the Body exposes the ways in which Ian Fleming’s popular fiction and the unending film series it inspired offer a performance of those cultural fears, anxieties, hopes, and desires grounded in the body, assuring James Bond’s status as an incomparably influential cultural icon.

254 pages, Hardcover

Published September 16, 2025

About the author

Brian A. Dixon is a writer, cultural studies scholar, and media critic. His fiction has appeared in the pages of publications such as Connecticut Review, Zahir, and Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine. His drama has been seen Off-Broadway. His academic writings include studies concerning multimedia in the classroom, nineteenth-century American literature, detectives in film and fiction, ethnic humor in British sitcoms, archetypes in comic books, the works of Ian Fleming, and the James Bond films.

Dixon has served as the assistant editor of ATQ: The American Transcendental Quarterly and as the editor of Revelation: Apocalyptic Art and Literature. He is the author of Sex for Dinner, Death for Breakfast (2025) and has edited volumes including Figures of Freedom: Representations of Agency in a Time of Crisis (2024), the acclaimed television retrospective Back to Frank Black: A Return to Chris Carter’s Millennium (2012), and Columbia & Britannia: An Alternate History (2009), nominated for the 2010 Sidewise Award for Alternate History.

Reviews

[Ngaa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and BookBuzz for providing this eARC. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.


This book is well-researched and creative, yet succinct in its exploration of the cultural iconography of James Bond, including, but not limited to, James Bond as a celebrity, James Bond as a standard of social ideation, and James Bond as a political tool and bureaucrat. Brian A. Dixon expertly explores how a dying British empire, anxieties about various conflicts (including those lurking beneath the surface), changing masculinities, technology, and the body itself converge to create a figure that has endured for several decades, inspiring impassioned debate and fervent fanfare alike.


I especially appreciate the lens that Brian A. Dixon uses to explore how James Bond's body is a critical and indeed political part of his story and how this exploration includes subjects that are currently a matter of ethical debate in the biotechnology space. The exploration of the body as political, weaponry, object and person is clear and concise, particularly as Dixon explores the overt sexual and phallic tones present in the text. It is also intensely interesting to read the exploration of James Bond in terms of location, travel and consumerism. Where many writers would struggle to communicate the throughline between these varied topics, Dixon does so with ease and provides interesting socioeconomic, political and historical commentary in the process.

[Abigail L. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brian A. Dixon’s Sex for Dinner, Death for Breakfast is a fascinating deep dive into how James Bond’s body—and the bodies around him—reflects the evolution of culture, politics, and desire. From the tuxedo-clad glamour of 1960s spycraft to the brutal realism of modern action, Dixon dissects the way flesh, fashion, and fantasy intertwine to create one of the most enduring icons of masculinity. I loved how the book connected Bond’s appetites—for food, sex, and power—to the changing world he inhabits. It made me look at the entire Bond universe with new eyes, not just as entertainment, but as a mirror of who we are and what we crave.

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shaken, Stirred, and Seriously Smart!
Who knew Bond’s biceps and martinis could reveal this much about us? 🍸 Sex for Dinner, Death for Breakfast takes you on a wild ride through the guts, glamour, and grit behind 007’s world. Dixon spills the secrets on why Bond’s hunger for danger (and dinner) says more about us than him—and it’s honestly delicious. I devoured this book faster than Bond downs a Vesper martini. If you think you know the world’s most famous spy, think again—this one’s got layers, baby! 💋

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a scholarly exploration of James Bond's body, not just as it's used for violence and sex, but how depictions of his physicality are reflections of society.

Dixon makes many thought-provoking points and supports them well, but I feel there was quite a bit of padding going on. I think the salient points of the book could have been well covered in a lengthy essay.

Oh, and the author lost just the tiniest touch of credibility for calling Die Another Day, the nadir of the Brosnan Bond films, "underrated."

Received via NetGalley.

[Paige Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

007 Has Never Looked This Deep (or This Delicious)
This book peels back Bond’s perfectly tailored suit to reveal the juicy secrets beneath—smart, sassy, and sharper than a martini glass rim!