Live and Let Die (novel)

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.

The second James Bond novel by Ian Fleming, released in 1954.

After being on a leave due to the events in Casino Royale, Bond is given a mission in states. The case is about sudden eruption of smuggled gold coins, that are linked to Harlem crimelord Mr. Big.

The novel would later become the basis of the eighth Bond film and parts of it would later be incorporated into For Your Eyes Only and Licence to Kill.

Tropes used in Live and Let Die (novel) include:
  • An Arm and a Leg: Felix Leiter literally loses his arm and a leg when he is lowered to a Shark Pool.
  • Dirty Communists: SMERSH is at it again, this time through Mr. Big's criminal activities.
  • Everything's Even Worse with Sharks: Sharks are present, but Bond is more worried about Barracudas when he swims to Mr. Big's island.
  • Everything's Squishier with Cephalopods: An octopus grabs Bond's legs, forcing him to take action agains it. This in turn reveals his location to Mr. Big's men and he's caught shortly after.
  • Exploding Fishtanks: The result of the firefight between Bond and Robber.
  • Fingore: Mr. Big orders Tee-Hee to break one of Bond's fingers.
  • Funetik Aksent: How some black people talk in Harlem.
  • Hazardous Water: To ensure his island's privacy, Mr. Big has his men dumping offal into the surrounding waters, putting all the sharks and barracudas in the area into a feeding frenzy.
  • Literal Ass-Kicking: When Bond frees himself from Tee-Hee's grip, he bashes his head with his empty pistol, hits him in the groin and gives boot to his behind, sending him down a staircase to his death
  • Living Lie Detector: Mr. Big uses Solitaire like this, and apparently she really can detect lies. She believes it's due to her Psychic Powers, but we never learn whether she's right or not.
  • Manly Tears: When Mr. Big is defeated, Bond, shaken by the whole ordeal, sheds tears.
  • Pirate Booty: Sir Henry Morgan's treasure, that Mr. Big is smuggling to the states.
  • Scooby-Doo Hoax: Mr. Big's operations are dosed with a bit of Hollywood Voodoo and to he encourage rumours that he is really a zombie or even Baron Samedi himself.
  • Spiteful Spit: After one of Harlem's inhabitants sees Bond and Felix strolling by, he spits.
  • A Taste of the Lash: When Solitaire is "reading" Bond, Mr. Big lashes her to remind who is in charge.
  • Title Drop: While discussing the operation, Felix notes that they have a convention which goes "live and let live". Bond then answers that his is "live and let die".
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