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Miranda is a Tolstoyan thinker! There’s that same ethos of acceptance, nonresistance, and (literally) doglike in-the-moment trust that Tolstoy espouses in his two major novels.

Yes, some of this advice is very decent!

Worst Bond novel ever. It is a major case of “why not just shoot him?” syndrome; it shows Bond giving himself away by showing off his gunmanship in front of the villain (idiot), and there’s not a single mention of Tracy. Fleming thinks he can just ignore her storyline from previous books and continue business-as-usual.

Fleming’s worst novel ever, but I’m pushing through to the end just so I can say I’ve read all of the Bonds.

“She had brought a sweetness back into his life that he thought had gone for ever.” (234)

Fleming’s emotional undertones are very subtle and understated - but they are there. There are signs of Bond’s overwhelming grief for Tracy; you just have to look hard for them.

“He was also sorry for the student who had died showing off for his and Tiger’s delectation.” (142)

I stand by the view that No Time To Die is this novel’s spiritual adaptation, though obviously not a literal one. Both start with Bond reeling from a personal trauma. Then, after a surprisingly jovial opening with lots of male banter and camp (NTTD in Cuba, YOLT in Japan), Bond is drawn back into fighting SPECTRE. Both also concern gardens of death, and both are clear finales for James himself after his trauma.

“Her arms closed round his neck. Bond picked her up easily. He stood for a moment in the lapping water and looked down into her upturned face. The bright eyes said yes.” (276)

Not a courtesy all of the Bond girls in the films got! This absolutely supports my view that these books are way more complex (and better!) than people give them credit for.

M’s the hero of this one! Bond thinks the ‘old man’ is following the wrong hunch when M sends him to Nassau, but it’s there that he runs into Largo.

I’m so glad Fleming didn’t include that bandaged-face crap from the film.

And Blofeld kills No 12 (the disobedient SPECTRE agent) because he slept with one of the women they were dealing with and needed to return home safely. Interesting deviation from what the films later did.

And I love that there’s only a very short SPECTRE episode before we get back to Bond! In the film, their theft of the plane goes on way too long.

Blofeld is given very vague physical description. We just know he carries a natural, innate authority and inner confidence that makes others treat him like their Supreme Commander (or ‘God’). We learn that he started his career as a freelance war spy, but waited to find out who the winning side was. No values - just motivated by money.
This also explores then-concerns about atomic bombs, like today with AI!

Proof that the misogyny for which James Bond is famous partly arose from the FILMS, not the books. The scene in the Thunderball adaptation where Bond forces Patricia Fearing to sleep with him in return for not blabbing about the machine malfunction? Not in the book at all! Apart from one ill-advised kiss which she slaps away, he treats her like a gent.

Honestly, it’s not her best, but there’s some interesting discussion of disability (238-40, 250). Philip Durrant is by far the most interesting character, and his storyline explores how well-intentioned smothering and treating him like an “invalid” makes him feel caged, even when the person in question technically doesn’t do anything wrong. Sometimes he just needs to be let be and allowed to live.

This is one of Agatha’s more discursive novels - but it’s still brilliant. If anyone pulls it off, it’s her!

“Night settled down on Sunny Point.
Sheltered by its walls, seven people retired to rest, but none of them slept well…”

Give me Agatha’s lucid and atmospheric clarity any day!

One of this book’s concerns is whether justice is the ultimate value, or whether it is worth opening up an old case (even for noble reasons) when it means casting a potentially unprovable aura of guilt onto the remaining innocent (76. 89).

Poor old Jacko - no one is happy to hear that he was innocent! They’re all concerned about themselves.

This is great so far - although Arthur Calgary is a slightly thick protagonist. Bless.

Bond says he wants children once he’s retired (263) (!) and quips only half-jokingly that he’s married “to a man. Name begins with M” (262). Whoever said he didn’t have a more human side!?

Pp249-50 is such a moving passage - Bond acknowledges how cruel it would be to “love and leave” Tiffany Case after everything she’s been through with other men. Their banter is funny (255); I just wish she were in the novel slightly more. Their relationship is not quite as compelling as what he has with Honey Rider or Gala Brand.

Tiffany Case is in some ways a typical Bond girl - the one who falls for him because he is far more sensitive to her, more complimentary and cares more about her safety than most of the other men she’s had. But she’s also got a good sense of humour (235, 247), and becomes the hero by almost single-handedly getting Bond away from the Spangled Mob!

After the failed “payment” for Bond’s smuggling at the horse races, and the successful one at the casino, the Spangled Mob have finally captured him and discovered he is a spy. We got a proper Die Another Day moment (“how do you propose to kill me now, Mr Bond?”).

“Whatever the job dictated, there was one way he would never ‘use’ this particular girl. Through the heart.” (102)

Who said Bond didn’t have a soft side!?

I love Fleming’s description of Bond on a long-haul flight (66-8). His descriptions of the small but vivid everyday moments are brilliant.

Drama is about to kick off!