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Casino Royale (1953)

by Ian Fleming

Other authors: See the other authors section.

Series: James Bond novels (1), James Bond novels - Original Series (1)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingConversations / Mentions
6,2922541,525 (3.53)1 / 339
Fiction. Suspense. HTML:

For James Bond and the British Secret Service, the stakes couldn't be higher. 007's mission is to neutralize the Russian operative Le Chiffre by ruining him at the baccarat table, forcing his Soviet masters to "retire" him. When Le Chiffre hits a losing streak, Bond discovers his luck is inâ??that is, until he meets Vesper Lynd, a glamorous agent who might yet prove to be his downfall.

This audiobook includes an exclusive bonus interview with Dan Stevens.… (more)

  1. 00
    Shadow of the Rock by Thomas Mogford (Stepn)
    Stepn: Another debut thriller, the kind of thing Fleming might have written today.
  2. 00
    The Kobra Manifesto by Adam Hall (benfulton)
    benfulton: Very similar spy stories. Quiller is a bit more physical than Bond, I think.
  3. 12
    The Spy Who Came in From the Cold by John le Carré (Cecilturtle)
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Group TopicMessagesLast Message 
 Folio Society Devotees: New James Bond LE 2023 Casino Royale88 unread / 88BooksFriendsNotFood, January 28

» See also 339 mentions

English (246)  Spanish (1)  French (1)  Swedish (1)  Italian (1)  Hebrew (1)  Catalan (1)  Danish (1)  All languages (253)
Showing 1-5 of 246 (next | show all)
Interesting and worth reading. Has some pacing issues, and some grammatical idiosyncrasies that make the audiobook flow better than the text (i started in print and switched to audio halfway through), but overall decent ( )
  alspachc | Jan 15, 2024 |
The bonus book for Oct/Nov 2023's Pulp/Noir theme for Biere Library Storytime Book Club!

I've previously done a Bondathon series of potlucks through the movies with grad school friends, but had never actually read any of the novels which is why I suggested it- a short, breezy read that's mostly action (though there's this odd good vs evil discussion between Bond and Mathis when the former is recuperating from torture. I'm surprised that I remember the beats from the 2006 adaptation (which by adapting Bond's introductory novel worked as a soft reset for the new Daniel Craig era), but wooooooof that movie went a long way in modernizing James Bond.

I'd have to read more, but like another of my friends' review said, I can't tell if the misogyny and racism is "of the era" for the 1950s or if this is a Bond/Ian Fleming issue. Vesper is far more on equal footing in the film, and Bond is rough but not as much of a dick if I recall. ("sweet tang of rape" really huh)

also! My bartender husband says the ratios Fleming gives for the Vesper are unbalanced, "no need for vodka, increase the lillet" ( )
  Daumari | Dec 28, 2023 |
it was to my expectations and more loved this book would love to read it again ( )
  MandiPandi | Sep 9, 2023 |
The first one or two of the Bond novels were new and exciting. The plot and characters seemed real to me, so I liked this one. When they became a series, they lost their appeal, became kinda trite. ( )
  mykl-s | Aug 13, 2023 |
Casino Royale by Ian Fleming was a truly marvelous classic.

I can totally understand why this book is considered one of the classic and first spy novels. It felt exactly like what I would expect a James Bond book to be - full of thrills, surprise twists and turns, double agents, alcohol, gambling and pretty women.

My favourite part of this book is that it wasn't exactly like a James Bond film - this James Bond made errors along the way and wasn't the perfect spy. He was headstrong and did what he thought was best (even if it wasn't the best plan). It made Bond feel like a real person.

I also really enjoyed the writing style. Mr. Fleming's writing felt elegant and perfectly placed for a spy thriller. I was enchanted along the ride and loved the word choice. It felt more royal, like the English Secret Service should be. On top of that, the heroes, heroine and villain all feel like actual people instead of characters. It was the way and tone of Ian Fleming's words that made it feel so real instead of just written words.

That being said, it was a lovely read. I would highly recommend these books to those who love thrillers and want to see the history of the genre. I found the book really intriguing. I might not continue reading the series but I did really like it book. It was a nice change from my normal read.

Three out of five stars.

( )
  Briars_Reviews | Aug 4, 2023 |
Showing 1-5 of 246 (next | show all)
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» Add other authors (53 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Fleming, Ianprimary authorall editionsconfirmed
Bocchiola, MassimoTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Codignola, MatteoEditorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Deaver, JefferyIntroductionsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Fahey, RichieCover artistsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Stevens, DanNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
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Original title
Alternative titles
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People/Characters
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Important events
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Epigraph
[None]
Dedication
[None]
First words
The scent and smoke and sweat of a casino are nauseating at three in the morning.
Quotations
The Devil has no prophets to write his Ten Commandments and no teams of authors to write his biography. His case has gone completely by default. We know nothing about him but a lot of fairy stories from our parents and schoolmasters. He has no book from which we can learn the nature of evil in all its forms, with parables about evil people, proverbs about evil people, folk-lore about evil people. All we have is the living example of the people who are least good, or our own intuition.
"surround yourself with human beings, my dear James. They are easier to fight for than principles. But don't let me down and become human yourself. We would lose such a wonderful machine."
“Your own injuries are serious, but your life is not in danger... If all goes well, you will recover completely and none of the functions of your body will be impaired... But I fear that you will continue to be in pain for several days...”
'It's not difficult to get a Double O number if you're prepared to kill people,' he said.
Last words
Disambiguation notice
Publisher's editors
Blurbers
Original language
Canonical DDC/MDS
Canonical LCC
Fiction. Suspense. HTML:

For James Bond and the British Secret Service, the stakes couldn't be higher. 007's mission is to neutralize the Russian operative Le Chiffre by ruining him at the baccarat table, forcing his Soviet masters to "retire" him. When Le Chiffre hits a losing streak, Bond discovers his luck is inâ??that is, until he meets Vesper Lynd, a glamorous agent who might yet prove to be his downfall.

This audiobook includes an exclusive bonus interview with Dan Stevens.

No library descriptions found.

Book description
James Bond

closed his eyes and waited for the pain. He knew that the beginning of torture was the worst.

Le Chiffre
The formidable, dangerous French Communist with large sexual appetites. Paymaster of SMERSH and a master sadist.

Vesper Lynd
the conquest of her body would each time have the sweet tang of rape.

A superlative thriller. Replete with elegant, enigmatic women, superb food and service, explosions, torture and sudden death. - Boston Sunday Post

The best gambling scene one can recall and the most revolting torture scenes. - The Birmingham Post

Hums with tension - Time Magazine
For James Bond and the British Secret Service, the stakes couldn't be higher. 007's mission is to neutralize the Russian operative Le Chiffre by ruining him at the baccarat table, forcing his Soviet masters to "retire" him. When Le Chiffre hits a losing streak, Bond discovers his luck is in - that is, until he meets Vesper Lynd, a glamorous agent who might yet prove to be his downfall. This audiobook includes an exclusive bonus interview with Dan Stevens.
Haiku summary
Double Oh Seven
gambles with a union boss
who's a SMERSH agent.
(yoyogod)

Legacy Library: Ian Fleming

Ian Fleming has a Legacy Library. Legacy libraries are the personal libraries of famous readers, entered by LibraryThing members from the Legacy Libraries group.

See Ian Fleming's legacy profile.

See Ian Fleming's author page.

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