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onesonicbite's review
3.0
I don't understand how Bond gets to gamble so much on the job. How does he do it?
lizajane38's review
4.0
This is my 4th Bond book this year (working on reading all of them). I've read reviews that call Fleming a sexist and a racist. I have to disagree on both counts. Racial issues are not really relevant in this story, but there is a "Bond girl" in every story. Fleming spend a fair amount of time describing these women. They are strong, beautiful and independent and Bond has feelings for each of them. They are very different from the women in the movies.
That said, I enjoyed this book as much as the first 3. The action is tense and the descriptions are spot on.
That said, I enjoyed this book as much as the first 3. The action is tense and the descriptions are spot on.
elee2013's review against another edition
3.0
3.5/5
It’s impossible to deny that Fleming had prodigious talent. His ability to describe a person, a place, in just a brief couple of phrases but still conveying the essence is really impressive. This book is 200 pages of action and characters and settings, all brilliantly sketched.
Bond takes on a US gang in this one, helped along by the damaged Tiffany Case. Diamonds, horse racing, Las Vegas and a cruise ship are all in this; I love how action packed these are. I was glad to see Felix back in action (as was Bond) and I don’t regret deciding to read through this series. Will keep on keeping on.
It’s impossible to deny that Fleming had prodigious talent. His ability to describe a person, a place, in just a brief couple of phrases but still conveying the essence is really impressive. This book is 200 pages of action and characters and settings, all brilliantly sketched.
Bond takes on a US gang in this one, helped along by the damaged Tiffany Case. Diamonds, horse racing, Las Vegas and a cruise ship are all in this; I love how action packed these are. I was glad to see Felix back in action (as was Bond) and I don’t regret deciding to read through this series. Will keep on keeping on.
rbthomas52's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
alextwatts's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
neilrcoulter's review against another edition
2.0
If these were more than just pulp novels, I would expect James Bond to have grown wiser by this point. He’s had enough moments that should have changed him, but he persists in being a judgmental, racist, misogynist jerk. And he still doesn’t seem especially good at his job. I mean . . . his cluelessness on the QE2 from the US to England is hard to believe. I’d prefer this story from the point of view of Felix or Tiffany.
In addition, sending a British superspy to the US to figure out how a diamond smuggling operation is working feels very low-stakes. After Bond has survived Cold War stories of Soviet assassins and rocket weapons stations and so forth, stopping some jewel smugglers is out of place.
I do admire Fleming’s absurd audacity in arranging the story so Bond is involved in a Wild West locomotive chase through Nevada. That was unexpected and pleasantly ridiculous.
This audio version is read by Damian Lewis, whom I didn’t know from anything else. He’s my least favorite reader so far in this “Famous British Dudes Read James Bond Books” series. There is always some fun in hearing British people do American accents, but for some reason Lewis decided that all Americans sound like versions of Joe Pesci (except Felix, who has the kind of Texan accent that Brits usually do when required to do a Texan accent).
In addition, sending a British superspy to the US to figure out how a diamond smuggling operation is working feels very low-stakes. After Bond has survived Cold War stories of Soviet assassins and rocket weapons stations and so forth, stopping some jewel smugglers is out of place.
I do admire Fleming’s absurd audacity in arranging the story so Bond is involved in a Wild West locomotive chase through Nevada. That was unexpected and pleasantly ridiculous.
This audio version is read by Damian Lewis, whom I didn’t know from anything else. He’s my least favorite reader so far in this “Famous British Dudes Read James Bond Books” series. There is always some fun in hearing British people do American accents, but for some reason Lewis decided that all Americans sound like versions of Joe Pesci (except Felix, who has the kind of Texan accent that Brits usually do when required to do a Texan accent).
angela_king's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
latterature's review against another edition
3.0
James Bond in Las Vegas battling gangster-caricatures is something of a let down after the vivid originality of 'Moonraker'. The author almost seems self-conscious of this, and Fleming spends considerable time encouraging the reader to view these villains as every bit as dangerous as Bond's previous foes, but he's mostly unsuccessful. Tiffany Case is, at least, a witty and interesting Bond Girl, but she succumbs to the standard Fleming trap of quickly falling for a spy with all the humor and charm of a phillipshead screwdriver. After 'Live and Let Die' and now this, I'm convinced the old-world British imperialism of 007 simply doesn't mesh with the hustle and bustle of the post-war United States.