Similarly, the second paragraph offers a level of deeper insight into the mind of the then-unfamiliar secret agent James Bond, beyond what looks like a suave, carefree exterior. The thrillingly terrific descriptors in these passages instantly place the reader into a situation by now familiar to fans of 007: a glamorous casino.īut Fleming makes it sound anything but glamorous once you get past its external appearance, and imparts the underlying danger lurking there. Image from the poster art for the 1967 film Casino Royale, which was the second live-action adaptation of Ian Fleming’s first James Bond novel

This helped him to avoid staleness and the sensual bluntness that breeds mistakes.” (from the July 1990 tenth Berkley printing of Casino Royale, page 1 © 1953 Gildrose Productions Ltd.) He always knew when his body or his mind had had enough, and he always acted on the knowledge. “James Bond suddenly knew that he was tired. Then the soul-erosion by high gambling-a compost of greed and fear and nervous tension-becomes unbearable, and the senses awake and revolt from it. “The scent and smoke and sweat of a casino are nauseating at three in the morning. The novel opens in a similar way to how the later films based on the soon-to-be iconic character of 007 have, by thrusting the reader right into a tense and dangerous scenario.Įxcept here, it is Fleming’s words, rather than images and sounds, that are used to brilliantly conjure the scene in the mind’s eye: On April 13, 1953, Ian Fleming‘s Casino Royale - the British author’s first novel overall, as well as the first in his James Bond series of spy thrillers - was published in the U.K. Book dealer Jon Gilbert poses with a first edition copy of Ian Fleming's Casino Royale at a 2012 antiquarian book fair in London.

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