“’Do people always fall in love with things they can’t have?’ ‘Always,’ Carol said, smiling, too.” The Price of Salt is alternately billed as a tale of forbidden love and a tale of obsession. Only one of those actually fits the novel. Because while it is true that Therese Belivet allows her life to be completely … More The Price of Salt (or Carol), by Patricia Highsmith: Book Review
“Never send a man where you can send a bullet.” Unlike the previous James Bond books by Ian Fleming, For Your Eyes Only is a collection of five short stories, not a single adventure (two of the stories, “Quantum of Solace” and “The Hildebrand Rarity” had been previously published in Cosmopolitan and Playboy, respectively). Elements of the stories … More For Your Eyes Only, by Ian Fleming: Book Review
I suppose it was bound to happen sooner or later. Here we have it: the first Bond book by Ian Fleming that I actively disliked. Fleming churned one book out every year once he started writing about 007’s adventures in 1953 so it was really just a matter of time before he repurposed some of … More Goldfinger, by Ian Fleming: Book Review
On screen, Dr. No is the very first James Bond adventure. But in the series of books the franchise is based on, Doctor No actually came sixth. In keeping with that, when we meet up with Bond in the book he’s reeling from the events of Diamonds Are Forever and From Russia, With Love. Without any history to build … More James Bond in Dr. No: Book vs. Movie
“All the greatest men are maniacs. They are possessed by a mania which drives them forward towards their goal. The great scientists, the philosophers, the religious leaders – all maniacs. What else but a blind singleness of purpose could have given focus to their genius, would have kept them in the groove of purpose. Mania … More Doctor No, by Ian Fleming: Book Review
President Kennedy himself professed to be a big fan of the novel From Russia, With Love–including it in his ten favorite books. The film adaptation was the last movie he ever saw, as he had it screened in The White House just before his fateful trip to Dallas. Untimely death aside, that seal of approval helped … More James Bond in From Russia With Love: Book vs. Movie
“Those whom the Gods wish to destroy, they first make bored.” Following the somewhat lackluster novel Diamonds Are Forever, From Russia, With Love nicely sets everything right in the world of James Bond. Following the events of that diamond-smuggling adventure, James Bond has found himself living ‘the soft life.’ Work has been slow and he’s been keeping … More From Russia With Love, by Ian Fleming: Book Review
Like Moonraker, Diamonds Are Forever was one of my least favorite movies in the Bond series. Unlike Moonraker, the book didn’t improve things. Moonraker was one of my favorite books in the novels so far, but Diamonds is among the worst. The plot of the book and the movie have the same basic set-up (James Bond pretends to be Peter … More James Bond in Diamonds Are Forever: Book vs. Movie
“Death is forever. But so are diamonds.” You may recall from my last review that Moonraker turned out to be a terrific little book that was adapted into a seriously terrible movie. As fate would have it, I also despised the movie version of Diamonds Are Forever, but while Moonraker became my favorite book in the series so … More Book Review: Diamonds Are Forever, by Ian Fleming
Here we have quite an interesting juxtaposition: Moonraker is the worst Bond movie ever made in my opinion, but it’s probably my favorite of the books by Ian Fleming (so far at least). How did that happen? Blame Star Wars. No really. For Your Eyes Only was supposed to be the next Bond movie after The Spy … More James Bond in Moonraker: Book vs. Movie
Supposedly Fun 