216pp. First US edition of the scarce second James Bond novel, with first printing stated clearly on the copyright page. Dark gray textured cloth boards. Gold picture of a bird with the words "Cock Robin Thriller" at the bottom right hand corner of the front cover.
The condition is lightly edge-worn particularly along the edges of the spine, with foxing to the front and back end papers. The text block is clear.
Biography of Ian Fleming:
Ian Lancaster Fleming was born in London on 28th May 1908 and educated at Eton College before spending a formative period studying languages in Europe. His first job is with Reuters news agency, followed by a brief spell as a stockbroker. On the outbreak of the Second World War, he is appointed assistant to the Director of Naval Intelligence, Admiral Godfrey, where he plays a key part in British and Allied espionage operations.
After the war, Ian joins Kemsley Newspapers as Foreign Manager of The Sunday Times, running a network of correspondents who are intimately involved in the Cold War. He marries Ann Rothermere in 1952, and his son Caspar arrives the same year. Ian’s sets out to write ‘the spy story to end all spy stories’ and his first novel, Casino Royale, is written at GoldenEye, his home in Jamaica, where he spends a few months each year. Published in 1953, the book introduces James Bond, Special Agent 007, to the world. The first print run sells out within a month.
Following this initial success, Ian publishes a Bond title every year until his death. ‘I agreed to do one a year for them. Every season now, after the Christmas holidays, I head for GoldenEye with a packet of notes and put old Bond through his paces. Takes two months – January and February. Book’s in the mail by March.’
Source: https://ianfleming.com/meet-the-man/
Overview:
James Bond is not a superstitious man, but it’s hard not to feel unnerved in the presence of Mr. Big. A ruthless Harlem gangster who uses voodoo to control his criminal empire, he’s also one of SMERSH’s top American operatives. Mr. Big has been smuggling British pirate treasure to New York from a remote Jamaican island – and funneling the proceeds to Moscow.
With help from Solitaire, Mr. Big’s beautiful and enigmatic Creole fortune-teller, and his old friend Felix Leiter, 007 must locate the crime lord’s hideout, sabotage his operation, and reclaim the pirate hoard for England.
From the jazz joints of Harlem to the shark-infested waters of the Florida Everglades, Live and Let Die sends Bond headlong into the exotic.
Source: https://ianfleming.com/book/live-and-let-die/
- Binding Condition: Good
- Overall Condition: Fair to good
- Size: 190 x 130 mm
