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3.27 AVERAGE
3.27 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I liked this book, but I couldn't really get into it. I'm not sure if I'm a James Bond kind of girl...maybe I just wasn't in the mood.
It's a difficult book to approach really. On one hand, you do have a rather good thriller with a formidable villain at the top. Fleming also devises some impressive and wonderfully described action sequences - a shootout in a fish warehouse is a particular highlight - and Bond's character is made much more compelling in the second go around. On the other, there is its rather infamous approach to racism. It's more paternalistic than outright malicious - the closest Fleming gets to malice is when describing Florida senior citizens and American food, in fact - and one gets the impression that it's another symptom of Fleming's belief that the British empire is inherently superior to all else, but the some of the dialog is cringe-worthy minstrel show material, and hinging the entire plot on the idea that a black people are extremely superstitious is pretty shameful.
So, a one star book, and a five star book, all in the same volume. I'll round down just because it's incredibly distracting.
So, a one star book, and a five star book, all in the same volume. I'll round down just because it's incredibly distracting.
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Absolutely loved this— it is full of action and all the cool stuff that make a great spy thriller, but Fleming’s writing is what makes it stand out. He is a wonderful writer, though this book does have some incredibly outdated things to say about minorities!
People have often made mention that the novel version of James Bond is much rougher but I found that an increased interiority of the character made up for his acknowledged harder living. We read about Bond actually feeling with pain and dealing with guilt and regret that hardly eer comes through in any of the pre-Craig movies.
The book is unfortunately casually racist. It's easy to ascribe that to the time it was written and move on but we need to acknowledge the discomfort and say that Fleming was simply wrong rather than unrefined. It's one thing to have a villain who's identity is wrapped up between several types of Western Hemisphere blackness (voodoo, Harlem, the south) but it's entirely another thing to focus on the blackness of the nooks sent to beat up James Bond.
I was also disappointed in the ending. James Bond showed incredible cleverness in getting out of tight spots but when it comes to actually saving himself and the girl at the end it basically boils down to the fact that Bond happened to be prepared earlier and just got lucky with his timing.
The book is unfortunately casually racist. It's easy to ascribe that to the time it was written and move on but we need to acknowledge the discomfort and say that Fleming was simply wrong rather than unrefined. It's one thing to have a villain who's identity is wrapped up between several types of Western Hemisphere blackness (voodoo, Harlem, the south) but it's entirely another thing to focus on the blackness of the nooks sent to beat up James Bond.
I was also disappointed in the ending. James Bond showed incredible cleverness in getting out of tight spots but when it comes to actually saving himself and the girl at the end it basically boils down to the fact that Bond happened to be prepared earlier and just got lucky with his timing.
adventurous
medium-paced
Live and Let Die is more recognisably 'Bond' than Casino Royale was (evil lair, monologuing, etc) so make of that what you will.
Unfortunately, it is also incredibly racist.
Unfortunately, it is also incredibly racist.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism
adventurous
funny
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
For the full, hopped-up-on-cold-medicine-goofballs review (and to learn how Alaina's kind of a poser when it comes to being a Bond fan), follow the link to That's What She Read.
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Big dumb fun.
Shootouts, explosions and sharks! Not as good as casino royale but an enjoyable read nonetheless.
Shootouts, explosions and sharks! Not as good as casino royale but an enjoyable read nonetheless.