1953 novel by Ian Fleming, the first James Bond book

<i>Casino Royale</i> (novel)

Casino Royale (novel)

<p><i><b>Casino Royale</b></i> is the <a href="/en/First_novel" title="First novel" class="mw-redirect wl">first novel</a> by the British author <a href="/en/Ian_Fleming" title="Ian Fleming" class="wl">Ian Fleming</a>. Published in 1953, it is the first <a href="/en/List_of_James_Bond_novels_and_short_stories" title="List of James Bond novels and short stories" class="wl"><i>James Bond</i> book</a>, and it paved the way for a further eleven novels and two short story <a href="/en/Anthology" title="Anthology" class="wl">collections</a> by Fleming, followed by numerous continuation Bond novels by other authors.</p>

<div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none" about="#mwt1">1953 novel by Ian Fleming, the first James Bond book</div>
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<style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1066479718" typeof="mw:Extension/templatestyles mw:Transclusion">.mw-parser-output .infobox-subbox{padding:0;border:none;margin:-3px;width:auto;min-width:100%;font-size:100%;clear:none;float:none;background-color:transparent}.mw-parser-output .infobox-3cols-child{margin:auto}.mw-parser-output .infobox .navbar{font-size:100%}body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-header,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-subheader,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-above,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-title,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-image,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-below{text-align:center}</style><div class='mobile-collapse'><header class="mobile-collapse-header mobile-collapse-btn"><b>Quick facts: Author, Country, Series, Genre, Publisher...</b> <span class='arrow'>▼</span></header> <table class="infobox vcard mobile-collapse-element"><caption class="infobox-title" style="font-size:125%; font-style:italic; padding-bottom:0.2em;">Casino Royale </caption><tbody><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-image"><span class="mw-default-size"><a href="/en/File:CasinoRoyaleCover.jpg" class="mw-file-description image media-thumb" title="A book cover: down the left and right sides are representations of hearts, four on each side, each one with a drop of blood below them. In the centre of the image is another heart but without the blood drop. This central heart is surrounded by a gold laurel leaf bearing the words &quot;A whisper of Love, A Whisper of Hate&quot;. Above the heart / laurel is the title, Casino Royale; below the heart / laurel are the words &quot;by Ian Fleming&quot;" data-hash="File:CasinoRoyaleCover.jpg"><img loading="lazy" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/a9/CasinoRoyaleCover.jpg/220px-CasinoRoyaleCover.jpg" decoding="async" data-file-width="257" data-file-height="393" data-file-type="bitmap" height="336" width="220" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a9/CasinoRoyaleCover.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a9/CasinoRoyaleCover.jpg 2x" alt="CasinoRoyaleCover.jpg"></a></span><div class="infobox-caption">First edition cover, conceived by Fleming</div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Author</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Ian_Fleming" title="Ian Fleming" class="wl">Ian Fleming</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Country</th><td class="infobox-data">United Kingdom</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Series</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/James_Bond" title="James Bond" class="wl">James Bond</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Genre</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Spy_fiction" title="Spy fiction" class="wl">Spy fiction</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Publisher</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Jonathan_Cape" title="Jonathan Cape" class="wl">Jonathan Cape</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><div style="display: inline-block; line-height: 1.2em; padding: .1em 0;">Publication date</div></th><td class="infobox-data">13 April 1953 (hardback)</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Pages</th><td class="infobox-data">213</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Followed<span>&nbsp;</span>by</th><td class="infobox-data"><i><a href="/en/Live_and_Let_Die_(novel)" title="Live and Let Die (novel)" class="wl">Live and Let Die</a><span>&nbsp;</span></i></td></tr></tbody></table> <footer class='mobile-collapse-footer mobile-collapse-btn'><b>Close</b> <span class='arrow'>▲</span></footer></div>
<p>The story concerns the British secret agent <a href="/en/James_Bond_(literary_character)" title="James Bond (literary character)" class="wl">James Bond</a>, gambling at the casino in <a href="/en/Royale-les-Eaux" title="Royale-les-Eaux" class="wl">Royale-les-Eaux</a> to bankrupt <a href="/en/Le_Chiffre" title="Le Chiffre" class="wl">Le Chiffre</a>, the treasurer of a French union and a member of the Russian secret service. Bond is supported in his endeavours by <a href="/en/Vesper_Lynd" title="Vesper Lynd" class="wl">Vesper Lynd</a>, a member of his own service, as well as <a href="/en/Felix_Leiter" title="Felix Leiter" class="wl">Felix Leiter</a> of the <a href="/en/Central_Intelligence_Agency" title="Central Intelligence Agency" class="wl">CIA</a> and <a href="/en/List_of_James_Bond_allies#René_Mathis" title="List of James Bond allies" class="wl">René Mathis</a> of the French <a href="/en/Deuxième_Bureau" title="Deuxième Bureau" class="wl">Deuxième Bureau</a>. Fleming used his wartime experiences as a member of the <a href="/en/Naval_Intelligence_Division_(United_Kingdom)" title="Naval Intelligence Division (United Kingdom)" class="wl">Naval Intelligence Division</a>, and the people he met during his work, to provide plot elements; the character of Bond also reflected many of Fleming's personal tastes. Fleming wrote the draft in early 1952 at his <a href="/en/Goldeneye_(estate)" title="Goldeneye (estate)" class="wl">Goldeneye estate</a> in Jamaica while awaiting his marriage. He was initially unsure whether the work was suitable for publication, but was assured by his friend, the novelist <a href="/en/William_Plomer" title="William Plomer" class="wl">William Plomer</a>, that the novel had promise.</p>

<p>Within the spy storyline, <i>Casino Royale</i> deals with themes of Britain's position in the world, particularly the relationship with the US in light of the defections to the <a href="/en/Soviet_Union" title="Soviet Union" class="wl">Soviet Union</a> of the British agents <a href="/en/Guy_Burgess" title="Guy Burgess" class="wl">Guy Burgess</a> and <a href="/en/Donald_Maclean_(spy)" title="Donald Maclean (spy)" class="wl">Donald Maclean</a>. The book was given broadly positive reviews by critics at the time and sold out in less than a month after its UK release on 13 April 1953, although US sales upon release a year later were much slower.</p>

<p>Since publication <i>Casino Royale</i> has appeared as a comic strip in <i><a href="/en/The_Daily_Express" title="The Daily Express" class="mw-redirect wl">The Daily Express</a></i>, and been adapted for the screen three times: a <a href="/en/Casino_Royale_(Climax!)" title="Casino Royale (Climax!)" class="wl">1954 episode</a> of the <a href="/en/CBS" title="CBS" class="wl">CBS</a> television series <i><a href="/en/Climax!" title="Climax!" class="wl">Climax!</a></i> with <a href="/en/Barry_Nelson_(actor)" title="Barry Nelson (actor)" class="mw-redirect wl">Barry Nelson</a> as an American Bond, a <a href="/en/Casino_Royale_(1967_film)" title="Casino Royale (1967 film)" class="wl">1967 film version</a> with <a href="/en/David_Niven" title="David Niven" class="wl">David Niven</a> playing "Sir James Bond", and a <a href="/en/Casino_Royale_(2006_film)" title="Casino Royale (2006 film)" class="wl">2006 film</a> in the <a href="/en/Eon_Productions" title="Eon Productions" class="wl">Eon Productions</a> <a href="/en/James_Bond_in_film" title="James Bond in film" class="mw-redirect wl">film series</a> starring <a href="/en/Daniel_Craig" title="Daniel Craig" class="wl">Daniel Craig</a> as James Bond.</p>



Casino Royale is the first novel by the British author Ian Fleming. Published in 1953, it is the first James Bond book, and it paved the way for a further eleven novels and two short story collections by Fleming, followed by numerous continuation Bond novels by other authors. The story concerns the British secret agent James Bond, gambling at the casino in Royale-les-Eaux to bankrupt Le Chiffre, the treasurer of a French union and a member of the Russian secret service. Bond is supported in his endeavours by Vesper Lynd, a member of his own service, as well as Felix Leiter of the CIA and René Mathis of the French Deuxième Bureau. Fleming used his wartime experiences as a member of the Naval Intelligence Division, and the people he met during his work, to provide plot elements; the character of Bond also reflected many of Fleming's personal tastes. Fleming wrote the draft in early 1952 at his Goldeneye estate in Jamaica while awaiting his marriage. He was initially unsure whether the work was suitable for publication, but was assured by his friend, the novelist William Plomer, that the novel had promise. 