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I think, because Tracy is the girl Bond actually marries, people think of her as the most important one. I seem to remember he had doubts before the marriage (wasn't there a nightmare scene, where he dreamed about being trapped?).
And yes, Vesper was the only other woman in the books that Bond thought of marrying. That's not often mentioned, but he was going to propose in CR.
To be honest, I don't think Fleming wanted Bond to ever 'go steady'. That wasn't what Bond was there for in Fleming's imagination. The same view would always pall.
Yes, @ColonelAdamski
Yes, her character changed without any reason really, and even her actions, she's such an inconsistent character, and the way she acted towards Bond is something that I really don't liked like she's a bit of a spoiled brat, especially when she's cured, she became to act childish towards him, and she's not convincing as Bond's partner, I mean for the girl that Bond would marry, it deserves better, Bond deserves a better woman for him to settle down with, Tracy is not just that for me, she's not the woman who deserved that.
I also don't think that she loves Bond either, that's why I don't buy the relationship, not because of Bond (I felt that Bond's feelings for her was real, as so with the other Bond Girls), but it's Tracy who's not convincing here, for me, she didn't loved Bond like how other Bond Girls loved Bond.
Bond loved her, but Tracy is the opposite, she didn't loved him.
For sure, had that marriage succeed, she would just broke Bond's heart and would likely to leave him, like how Tiffany did in the beginning of FRWL, because of her 'prima donna' attitude.
I just wished Bond married Vivienne instead, she's much more of a deserving wife for Bond than Tracy.
Yes, he's having doubts towards marrying her, that's why he also refused Draco's offer, because he had no intention of marrying her.
Yes, and also with Tiffany, he already proposed a marriage to two women before Tracy, so for me, it's also not that new too.
He'd even proposed of having a child with Tiffany Case, and their relationship really lasted to the point of having her as his lived in partner.
I liked that the romance in both CR and DAF are both shared, you can feel that Bond loves the girl, but the girl has to do her own shares and prove that she deserves Bond's love, and she loves him.
Something that Tracy failed, so even Bond married her, that still didn't make her the best Bond Girl for me in the books (in the films, it's a different conversation of course).
But in the books/Fleming, she's not, she just don't deserved it, she's just not convincing and believable as Bond's lover.
Fleming said that Bond couldn't be married because of his job, and the fact that he always goes abroad may annoy his wife 😅. (It came from an interview with Fleming, it's in an article shared here by Revelator).
And also representing Fleming's own life towards marriage, I mean his marriage with Ann wasn't that successful really.
Let us know what you think!
Horowitz's three roundly trounces the previous three tomes though. I think.
Finished this evening. These Young Bond books have been better than I thought.
@j_w_pepper is it already revised or not?
At the moment Casino Royale is the only Bond book we know of that will not be re-edited. IFP confirmed this in one of their announcements. LALD, DR, GF, and TB will definitely be re-edited. As for the rest of the books, we'll have to wait and see.
I read I believe the first four of those when I was a teenager. My favorite from memory was Double or Die.
No, it's not the one from Amazon, but the Canadian version which I have on my hard drive (I also have it as a book, the 2002 Penguin paperback).
It all goes fine till after the gunfight, and she's suddenly shaking behind the tree, and this previously feisty girl who a few pages before threatened to put an arrow in Bond's leg, becomes becomes a piece of quivering girly-jelly, (she's described as becoming 'suddenly obedient'). Then Bond starts saying "See, I told you it's a man's job", she's all fawning saying how kind he is, a complete contradiction to how her character played out previous. And then, while she's all traumatised, and Bond is comforting her, he starts snogging her!! I actually went "noooo!" as I read this.
Anyone else read this recently?
Yea, I get that she didn't expect the play-off to be quite so bloody, and that works. But it's the snog.
I can honestly say it's the only time in the whole of my re-read of the Bond books (which started in March 2020), that I've actually thought 'oooh, I do wish he hadn't written that!'
The inconsistency in Judy Havelock's character in the book sounds and reminds me of Anya Amasova 😅.
The premise that they're tough, but all of a sudden, turned damsel in distress 😅.
But in case of Judy Havelock, I though get it, she's still so young, the point that she still didn't understand things, that she thinks what she's doing was very easy to her, but proved that reality wasn't what she really thinks.
Realizing that violence and killing was more than what she could chew, and there's Bond who's aware of this, that's why he's guiding her, because Judy Havelock seemed so pretentious in the book, not knowing what route she's getting in herself, but when the real violence showed in her face, she realized that what she thought wasn't that easy, so there's Bond to comfort her.
Sure the girl was feisty and strong willed, but she's still not prepared for real violence as Bond does (and as what Bond had encountered so many times).
It's understandable though.
Yeah, I got the sense that Judy was simply a strong willed, but ultimately ordinary woman out to avenge her parents who got involved in something a bit too deep. I actually felt sympathetic towards her reading the story, and I find it's not unrealistic in that sense. Not that Bond isn't condescending towards her at times (the infamous 'two graves' quote used in the film is Bond essentially being sarcastic to her in the story from what I remember).
I suppose one can criticise the character in the sense that she's 'tamed' by the end and automatically falls for Bond, but it's pretty common in Fleming. Not always for the better. I find it much more plausible than when it happens with Pussy Galore in GF, or even with Viv by the very end of TSWLM.
It's the snog mostly. It's Bond sexualising the moment of trauma that came across as creepy. Much in the same way some of those seventies Moore moves on women do when you watch them.
But I don't need the book Bond to be a whiter-than white super-hero, and I'd never say 'Fleming shouldn't have written it' or 'it needs censoring'. Crikey no, I want to read it as it was written. But the whole sequence of events had me thinking Bond was being a letch in this case.
Actually, I remember feeling a little the same in TSWLM, something to do with when he knew Vivienne was being held hostage, and yet he decided to tell her a story about his last adventure. That bit came across a little like "yea, okay, I know you're in a pickle, but listen to my latest adventure before I save you".
I wonder how much time Fleming invested in the short stories compared to the novels? The writing didn't seem as polished as his better novels like FRWL or OHMSS. I think most of the short stories were TV screenplays first, and you can see how that pans out in the first two stories of YOLT, with Bond saving the day and getting the girl at the end, all wrapped up neatly in a bite-sized chunk.
What stood out most to me is just how devastatingly depressing the last several chapters of CR are. The first time I read it, I still kind of knew what was coming, but was just more thinking about what the end result would be instead of being absorbed by the painful, dragged-out process that Bond and Vesper suffer through until that point. Seeing them try to love in vain and everything being so strained is really brutal. The high point of physical pain in the novel is obviously the wicked torture Le Chiffre gives Bond, but the mental stuff is even more excruciating that fills up the book's final segments.
It's definitely striking how little action there is in CR compared to the stories that follow. But the moments that are there are pretty cool and memorable, like the explosion, the chair bit at the high table, and the car chase. But the focus is definitely on the tension and the characters, which kept me fully riveted both the first and second times I read this. I have this one ranked lower than just about everyone else of the lists I've seen, though I'm hopeful it may rise a spot or two on this new journey. I still have a deep appreciation for it - what it started and how it remains an essential and impressive piece in Bond history. The very first chapter I think might be my favorite. We get all that we need to know about Bond without getting overdetailed.
The first time I read CR was via a simple paperback edition, but I was treated to reading from my new Folio Society edition, which certainly made the experience all the more exciting. The illustrations aren't necessary to enjoy the work, but they enhanced it for me. They chose great moments for a few select, high-quality images of the story. Overall, I really love this book, like most Bond fanatics. If it still ends up ranking lower than most lists, it's no knock against it - just an even higher enjoyment of other books.
That why I consider this as one of the best.
Interesting viewpoints.
And why is Solange talking about suicide?
I like 007 in NY as a short insight of Bond's (Fleming's) thoughts about the city but the ending really comes too quick.
What with the villain's scheme involving two separate planes it gets a little hard to follow and for a thriller it's not that thrilling, and that's why you should probably get thriller writers to write these. Instead we get an anti-climatic Bonny and Cylde across Russia, which I didn't mind but I much preferred it with Anya and James in Red Nemesis.
And Scarlett Papava's name is just a red herring right? Because Papava means Poppy and with the villain being an heroin dealer I was expecting her to be a double agent for him and instead it turns out she's a Double O and she concocts a story about a fake twin sister named Poppy so that James' pride isn't hurt when they work together? For what I think I'm right in saying is the series first female Double O with dialogue, I expected a lot more.
Sebastian Faulks wasn't a thriller writer. He said that himself. He did a JJ Abrams, and did a greatest hits book. I wish in some ways that Jeffery Deaver had written Carte Blanche in 2008 and a sequel in 2011. He might have gotten Bond as a person wrong, but I really like that CB brought everything else in Bond's world (particularly characters) forward and right. I'm also happy that he liked quite a few of my Tweets.
I feel the same way about Sherwood, even though Bond is barely a minor character having the series be modern is exactly where it should be imo and as much as I like Trigger Mortis that's the exception that proves the rule.
I think LALD is a book full of great, memorable scenes, such as Bond’s first meeting with Mr. Big and the damage Tee-Hee inflicts, Felix being put in serious danger, the shootout against The Robber, and a really excellent climax with the attempted keelhauling and explosion. The book excels at both conveying deadly danger and humor (I always crack up at Bond cursing his hand and Solitaire for teasing him). Solitaire and The Big Man are respectively some of my favorite Bond girls and villains, and I do love the extensive amount of camaraderie between Bond and Leiter. Quarrel is a great, late addition, too.
The globetrotting aspect of this one is appealing, and it’s always amusing to me reading Fleming’s thoughts both positive and negative about America. Another thing that works for me in particular is the gold coins as a macguffin, as I enjoy stuff about pirates and treasure very much. The only shortcoming to me was the pacing; things start on the slow side, and there’s a few other bits I thought didn’t flow the best, but no serious issues to lessen my enjoyment. Much has been said about the racism in the book, and I’ll just recap my feelings about it by saying that it can be a bit jarring for a modern reader to read, but it has to be put in context, and I don’t agree with the recent censorship to it. I have the Folio edition now so it won’t personally affect me, but it’s the principle of the matter. As long as the original text continues to be printed alongside altered versions, I guess it doesn’t matter that much.
For me, LALD remains a superb book, filled with wild thrills and escapism. Considering my ranking since my first time has already changed this early on, though, I’m curious to see where it will ultimately place on my list in the long run. I think LALD has more individual moments I liked, but CR is just the tighter, more consistent experience, but I would say I pretty much love them equally.
Novel Ranking:
1. Casino Royale
2. Live and Let Die
Great comparison. Nice to see LALD book get some love. I recommend reading Van Jensen and Dynamite Comics’ graphic novels of them.
Other than Trigger Mortis, I’d say that Forever and a Day works as a period peace. Anthony Horowitz was the right author for this. And that’s coming from someone who like William Boyd’s Solo. But it seems that he was trying to top Devil May Care. As for Kim Sherwood, I think we’ll see Bond at some point. She’s already started writing her 3rd (and possibly final) book in the trilogy. She also said that IFP wanted her to set her stories modern day. It works. I think with us getting two Bond books a year, I think that IFP might be aiming for a Adult Bond novel and a spinoff novel as well. Fingers crossed that this happens!